Joseph Addison
Joseph Addison
Joseph Addisonwas an English essayist, poet, playwright, and politician. He was the eldest son of The Reverend Lancelot Addison. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend, Richard Steele, with whom he founded The Spectator magazine...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth1 May 1672
force gives great ideas lively sight themselves
Words, when well chosen, have so great a force in them that a description often gives us more lively ideas than the sight of things themselves
science sight perfect
Our sight is the most perfect and most delightful of all our senses.
ideas sight giving
Words, when well chosen, have so great a force in them, that a description often gives us more lively ideas than the sight of things themselves.
aggravation sight parent
The unjustifiable severity of a parent is loaded with this aggravation, that those whom he injures are always in his sight.
distance tired sight
Our sight is the most perfect and most delightful of all our senses. It fills the mind with the largest variety of ideas, converses with its objects at the greatest distance, and continues the longest in action without being tired or satiated with its proper enjoyments.
stars sight heaven
By anticipation we sugar misery and enjoy happiness before they are in being. We can set the sun and stars forward, or lose sight of them by wandering into those retired parts of eternity when the heavens and earth shall be no more.
strong men sight
A man with great talents, but void of discretion, is like Polyphemus in the fable, strong and blind, endued with an irresistible force, which for want of sight is of no use to him.
above knowledge next raises truly virtue
Knowledge is that which, next to virtue, truly raises one person above another.
conversation himself less man method provided requisite talk understood
Method is not less requisite in conversation than in writing, provided a man would talk to make himself understood
enemy happiness noise retired true
True happiness is of a retired nature, and an enemy to pomp and noise
call rank romans tis
Tis pride, rank pride, and haughtiness of soul; I think the Romans call it stoicism
command deserve mortals tis
Tis not in mortals to command success, But we'll do more, Sempronius; we'll deserve it
atheism atheist deny faith greater infinitely measure receive requires truths
To be an atheist requires an infinitely greater measure of faith than to receive all the great truths which atheism would deny
dull growing next step
We are growing serious, and let me tell you, that's the very next step to being dull