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Joseph Addison Quotes - Page 10

All Quotes Affection Age Ambition Appearance Art Atheism Beauty Bravery Character Children Community Compassion Contentment Country Courage Criticism Critics Death Design Desire Destiny Earth Education Enthusiasm Eternity Evil Exercise Fame Fate Flattery Friends Friendship Funny Genius Giving Glory God Gold Gratitude Greatness Grief Happiness Health Heart Heaven Honesty Honor Hope Human Nature Humanity Humility Husband Imagination Imperfection Innocence Inspirational Inspiring Judgment Justice Kindness Knowledge Laughter Liberty Life Life And Death Literature Losing Love Lying Mankind Marriage Modesty Morality Mountain Music Nature Opportunity Pain Passion Perfection Philosophy Plato Praise Prejudice Pride Prosperity Quality Reading Religion Running Safety Satire Science Serenity Silence Sorrow Soul Success Suffering Sunshine Talent Time Tragedy Understanding Violence Virtue War Weakness Wine Wisdom Wit Work Writing

Simonides, a poet famous in his generation, is, I think, author of the oldest satire that is now extant, and, as some say, of the first that was ever written.

Simonides, a poet famous in his generation, is, I think, author of the oldest satire that is now extant, and, as some say, of the first that was ever written.

Thinking, Generations, Firsts

Joseph Addison, Richard Steele (1854). “The Spectator”, p.178

To be perfectly just is an attribute of the divine nature; to be so to the utmost of our abilities, is the glory of man.

Men, Umpires, Literature

Richard Steele, Joseph Addison (1794). “The Guardian”, p.67

Is it not wonderful, that the love of the parent should be so violent while it lasts and that it should last no longer than is necessary for the preservation of the young?

Parent, Lasts, Wonderful

Joseph Addison, Sir Richard Steele (1853). “The Spectator”, p.139

There is no greater sign of a general decay of virtue in a nation, than a want of zeal in its inhabitants for the good of their country.

Country, Want, Decay

Joseph Addison, Richard Hurd, Henry George Bohn (1866). “The Works of the Right Honourable Joseph Addison”, p.410

Wine heightens indifference into love, love into jealousy, and jealousy into madness. It often turns the good-natured man into an idiot, and the choleric into an assassin. It gives bitterness to resentment, it makes vanity insupportable, and displays every little spot of the soul in its utmost deformity.

Wine, Men, Vanity

Joseph Addison, Richard Steele, Francis Prévost, Francis William Blagdon (1833). “The Spectator, in Miniature: Being the Principal Religious, Moral, Humourous, Satirical and Critical Essays, in that Publication Compressed Into Two Volumes”, p.118

The pleasantest part of a man's life is generally that which passes in courtship, provided his passion be sincere, and the party beloved kind with discretion. Love, desire, hope, all the pleasing emotions of the soul, rise in the pursuit.

Party, Passion, Men

Joseph Addison, Sir Richard Steele (1852). “The Spectator”, p.296

How beautiful is death, when earn'd by virtue!

Beautiful, Death, Virtue

Joseph Addison, James WILD (Dramatist.) (1779). “Cato; a tragedy ... As performed at the Theatre-Royal in Covent-Garden. Regulated from the prompt-book ... by Mr. Wild. (Bell's edition.).”, p.57

A cloudy day or a little sunshine have as great an influence on many constitutions as the most recent blessings or misfortunes.

Nature, Rain, Sunshine

Joseph Addison, Richard Steele (1796). “The Spectator”, p.311

The first of all virtues is innocence; the next is modesty. If we banish modesty out of the world, she carries away with her half the virtue that is in it.

Half, World, Next

Ladies are always of great use to the party they espouse, and never fail to win over numbers to it. Lovers, according to Sir William Petty's computation, make at least the third part of sensible men of the British nation; and it has been an uncontroverted maxim in all ages, that though a husband is sometimes a stubborn sort of a creature, a lover is always at the devotion of his mistress. By this means, it lies in the power of every fine woman, to secure at least half a dozen able-bodied men to his Majesty's service.

Husband, Lying, Party

Joseph Addison (1860). “The Freeholder. Swift's notes on the Free-holder. The Plebian, by Sir Richard Steele, with The Old whig, by Mr. Addison. The Lover”, p.17

The union of the Word and the Mind produces that mystery which is called Life... Learn deeply of the Mind and its mystery, for therein lies the secret of immortality.

Lying, Secret, Mind

It is of unspeakable advantage to possess our minds with an habitual good intention, and to aim all our thoughts, words, and actions at some laudable end.

Mind, Action, Good Intentions

Joseph Addison (1839). “Essays, Moral and Humorous: Also Essays on Imagination and Taste”, p.76

Nature delights in the most plain and simple diet.

Nature, Simple, Delight

Sir Richard Steele, Joseph Addison (1753). “The Spectator”, p.105

T is liberty crowns Britannia's Isle, And makes her barren rocks and her bleak mountains smile.

Rocks, Liberty, Mountain

Joseph Addison (1854). “The Works of the Right Honourable Joseph Addison”, p.37

When a man is made up wholly of the dove, without the least grain of the serpent in his composition, he becomes ridiculous in many circumstances of life, and very often discredits his best actions.

Character, Men, Personality

Joseph Addison (1858). “Works, Including the Whole Contents of Bp. Hurd's Edition: Withletters and Other Pieces Not Found in Any Previous Collection; and Macaulay's Essay on His Life and Works”, p.571

Whilst I yet live, let me not live in vain.

Vain, Let Me

Joseph Addison (1856). “The works of Joseph Addison: including the whole contents of B. Hurd's edition, with letters and other pieces not found in any previous collection, and Macaulay's essay on his life and works”, p.460

Facts are plain spoken; hopes and figures are its aversion.

Aversion, Facts, Figures

No man writes a book without meaning something, though he may not have the faculty of writing consequentially and expressing his meaning.

Book, Writing, Men

My voice is still for war. Gods! can a Roman senate long debate Which of the two to choose, slavery or death?

War, Two, Voice

Joseph Addison, Henry George Bohn, Richard Hurd (1856). “The Works of the Right Honourable Joseph Addison: Poems on several occasions. Poemata. Dialogues upon the usefulness of ancient medals, especially in relation to the Latin and Greek poets. Remarks on several parts of Italy, in the years 1701, 1702, 1703”, p.187

There is no greater sign of a bad cause, than when the patrons of it are reduced to the necessity of making use of the most wicked artifices to support it.

Support, Wicked, Use

Joseph Addison, Henry George Bohn, Richard Hurd (1872). “The Works of the Right Honourable Joseph Addison: The Spectator. The Guardian. The Lover. The present state of the war, and the necessity of augmentation, considered. The late trial and conviction of Count Tariff. The Whig-examiner. The Freeholder”, p.421

It must be so,-Plato, thou reasonest well! Else whence this pleasing hope, this fond desire, This longing after immortality? Or whence this secret dread and inward horror Of falling into naught? Why shrinks the soul Back on herself, and startles at destruction? 'T is the divinity that stirs within us; 'T is Heaven itself that points out an hereafter, And intimates eternity to man. Eternity! thou pleasing, dreadful thought!

Plato, Fall, Men

'Cato' (1713) act 5, sc. 1, l. 1

But silence never shows itself to so great an advantage, as when it is made the reply to calumny and defamation, provided that we give no just occasion for them.

Giving, Silence, Advantage

Joseph Addison, Richard Hurd, Henry George Bohn (1854). “The Works of the Right Honourable Joseph Addison: The Tatler and Spectator [no. 1-160”, p.98

A good conscience is to the soul what health is to the body; it preserves constant ease and serenity within us; and more than countervails all the calamities and afflictions which can befall us from without.

Health, Serenity, Soul

Joseph Addison (1856). “The works of ... Joseph Addison, with notes by R. Hurd”, p.253

Man is the merriest species of the creation; all above or below him are serious.

Men, Mirth, Serious

Many actions calculated to procure fame are not conducive to ultimate happiness.

Action, Fame, Ultimate Happiness

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