Politeness is a desire to be treated politely, and to be esteemed polite oneself. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
We are more often treacherous through weakness than through calculation. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
We seldom find any person of good sense, except those who share our opinions. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
If we resist our passions, it is more due to their weakness than our strength. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
There are but very few men clever enough to know all the mischief they do. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
The sure way to be cheated is to think one’s self more cunning than others. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
We have no patience with other people’s vanity because it is offensive to our own. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
Nothing is so contagious as example; and we never do any great good or evil which does not produce its like. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
As great minds have the faculty of saying a great deal in a few words, so lesser minds have a talent of talking much, and saying nothing. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
What keeps us from abandoning ourselves entirely to one vice, often, is the fact that we have several. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
If we did not flatter ourselves, the flattery of others could never harm us. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
We would rather speak ill of ourselves than not talk about ourselves at all. – 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
We get so much in the habit of wearing disguises before others that we finally appear disguised before ourselves. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
We should often feel ashamed of our best actions if the world could see all the motives which produced them. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
We often forgive those who bore us, but we cannot forgive those whom we bore. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
It is not enough to have great qualities; We should also have the management of them. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
Love can no more continue without a constant motion than fire can; and when once you take hope and fear away, you take from it its very life and being. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
Our actions seem to have their lucky and unlucky stars, to which a great part of that blame and that commendation is due which is given to the actions themselves. – Francois de La Rochefoucauld
How can we expect another to keep our secret if we have been unable to keep it ourselves? – Francois de La Rochefoucauld