Francois de La Rochefoucauld quotes

“Women's virtue is frequently nothing but a regard to their own quiet and a tenderness for their reputation.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“The greatest part of intimate confidences proceed from a desire either to be pitied or admired.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“Some accidents there are in life that a little folly is necessary to help us out of.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“Innocence does not find near so much protection as guilt.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“The accent of a man's native country remains in his mind and his heart, as it does in his speech.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“The surest way to be deceived is to consider oneself cleverer than others.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“We promise in proportion to our hopes, and we deliver in proportion to our fears.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“When a man must force himself to be faithful in his love, this is hardly better than unfaithfulness.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“When a man is in love, he doubts, very often, what he most firmly believes.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“Many men are contemptuous of riches; few can give them away.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“We are never so ridiculous through what we are as through what we pretend to be.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“That good disposition which boasts of being most tender is often stifled by the least urging of self-interest.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“We seldom praise anyone in good earnest, except such as admire us. ”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“Philosophy finds it an easy matter to vanquish past and future evils, but the present are commonly too hard for it.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“We may seem great in an employment below our worth, but we very often look little in one that is too big for us.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“Self-interest makes some people blind, and others sharp-sighted.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“Some counterfeits reproduce so very well the truth that it would be a flaw of judgment not to be deceived by them.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“We are very far from always knowing our own wishes.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“Pride, which inspires us with so much envy, is sometimes of use toward the moderating of it too.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“However greatly we distrust the sincerity of those we converse with, yet still we think they tell more truth to us than to anyone else. ”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“Only the contemptible fear contempt.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“We are easily comforted for the misfortunes of our friends, when those misfortunes give us an occasion of expressing our affection and solicitude.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“Those that have had great passions esteem themselves for the rest of their lives fortunate and unfortunate in being cured of them.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“The desire of talking of ourselves, and showing those faults we do not mind having seen, makes up a good part of our sincerity.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“We pardon to the extent that we love.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“A man's worth has its season, like fruit.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“One can find women who have never had one love affair, but it is rare indeed to find any who have had only one.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“You can find women who have never had an affair, but it is hard to find a woman who has had just one. ”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“The name and pretense of virtue is as serviceable to self-interest as are real vices. ”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld

“It is often laziness and timidity that keep us within our duty while virtue gets all the credit.”

— Francois de La Rochefoucauld