Francois De La Rochefoucauld
136 quotations
It is great cleverness to know how to conceal our cleverness.
If it were not for the company of fools, a witty man would often be greatly at a loss.
Usually we praise only to be praised.
We only confess our little faults to persuade people that we have no big ones.
Silence is the safest course for any man to adopt who distrust himself.
When we cannot find contentment in ourselves, it is useless to seek it elsewhere.
We often forgive those who bore us, but we cannot forgive those whom we bore.
Conceit causes more conversation than wit.
We can never be certain of our courage until we have faced danger.
There are crimes which become innocent and even glorious through their splendor, number and excess.
Neither the sun nor death can be looked at with a steady eye