Francois de La Rochefoucauld
Francois de La Rochefoucauld
François VI, Duc de La Rochefoucauld, Prince de Marcillacla ʁɔʃfuˈko]; 15 September 1613 – 17 March 1680) was a noted French author of maxims and memoirs. It is said that his world-view was clear-eyed and urbane, and that he neither condemned human conduct nor sentimentally celebrated it. Born in Paris on the Rue des Petits Champs, at a time when the royal court was vacillating between aiding the nobility and threatening it, he was considered an exemplar of the accomplished 17th-century...
NationalityFrench
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth15 September 1613
CountryFrance
Francois de La Rochefoucauld quotes about
Gratitude, in most men, is only a strong and secret hope of greater favors.
Gratitude, in most men, is only a strong and secret hope of greater favors.
Nothing is rarer than true good nature; they who are reputed to have it are generally only pliant or weak.
Whatever ignominy or disgrace we have incurred, it is almost always in our power to reestablish our reputation.
Our merit gains us the esteem of the virtuous-our star that of the public.
Sometimes a fool has talent, but never judgment.
Few things are impossible in themselves: application to make them succeed fails us more often than the means.
High fortune makes both our virtues and vices stand out as objects that are brought clearly to view by the light.
To be a great man it is necessary to turn to account all opportunities.
The trust that we put in ourselves makes us feel trust in others.
The soul's maladies have their relapses like the body's. What we take for a cure is often just a momentary rally or a new form of the disease.
Before strongly desiring anything, we should look carefully into the happiness of its present owner.
Sometimes there are accidents in our lives the skillful extrication from which demands a little folly.
What makes false reckoning, as regards gratitude, is that the pride of the giver and the receiver cannot agree as to the value of the benefit.