Fortune Quotes - Page 36

• All I desire is, that my poverty may not be a burden to myself, or make me so to others; and that is the best state of fortune that is neither directly necessitous nor far from it. A mediocrity of fortune, with gentleness of mind, will preserve us from fear or envy; which is a desirable condition; for no man wants power to do mischief.

  Seneca the Younger

  Men, Envy, Mind

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• Fortune dreads the brave, and is only terrible to the coward.

  Seneca the Younger

  Brave, Coward, Terrible

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• Virtue has her heroes too As well as Fame and Fortune.

  Friedrich Schiller

  Hero, Virtue, Fame

  Friedrich Schiller (1861). “Schiller's Complete Works”, p.545

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• As a writer, politician, scientist, and businessman, [Ben] Franklin had few equals among the educated of his day-though he left school at ten. (...)Boys like Andrew Carnegie who begged his mother not to send him to school and was well on his way to immortality and fortune at the age of thirteen, would be referred today for psychological counseling; Thomas Edison would find himself in Special Ed until his peculiar genius had been sufficiently tamed.

  John Taylor Gatto

  Mother, School, Boys

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• What a world is this, and how does fortune banter us!

  Henry St John, 1st Viscount Bolingbroke

  Doe, World, Banter

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• According to Solomon, life and death are in the power of the tongue; and as Euripides truly affirmeth, every unbridled tongue in the end shall find itself unfortunate; for in all that ever I observed in the course of worldly things, I ever found that men's fortunes are oftener made by their tongues than by their virtues, and more men's fortunes overthrown thereby, also, than by their vices.

  Walter Raleigh

  Men, Life And Death, Speech

  Sir Walter Raleigh, Thomas Birch, William Oldys (1829). “Miscellaneous works”, p.564

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• It is observed in the course of worldly things, that men's fortunes are oftener made by their tongues than by their virtues; and more men's fortunes overthrown thereby than by vices.

  Walter Raleigh

  Men, Vices, Tongue

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• Misfortune is the root of good fortune; good fortune gives birth to misfortune.

  Laozi

  Roots, Giving, Birth

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• Fancy sets the value on the gifts of fortune.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  Fancy, Values

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• There are certain people fated to be fools; they not only commit follies by choice, but are even constrained to do so by fortune.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  People, Choices, Fool

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• Nature makes merit, and fortune puts it to work.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  Merit

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• The contempt of riches in the philosophers was a concealed desire of revenging on fortune the injustice done to their merit, by despising the good she denied them.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  Desire, Done, Riches

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• Good and bad fortune are found severally to visit those who have the most of the one or the other.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  Found, Good And Bad, Bad Fortune

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• Our probity is not less at the mercy of fortune than our property.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  Mercy, Probity, Property

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• The good or the bad fortune of men depends not less upon their own dispositions than upon fortune.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  Men, Disposition, Depends

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• The most brilliant fortunes are often not worth the littleness required to gain them.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  Gains, Brilliant, Wealth

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• Our wisdom is no less at fortune's mercy than our wealth.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  Wisdom, Wealth, Mercy

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• Our wisdom lies as much at the mercy of fortune as our possessions do.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  Wisdom, Lying, Mercy

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• Men's happiness and misery depends altogether as much upon their own humor as it does upon fortune.

  Francois de La Rochefoucauld

  Happiness, Humor, Men

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• Men in excess of happiness or misery are equally inclined to severity. Witness conquerors and monks! It is mediocrity alone, and a mixture of prosperous and adverse fortune that inspire us with lenity and pity.

  Baron de Montesquieu

  Men, Inspire, Mixtures

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• Gaming is a kind of tacit confession that the company engaged therein do in general exceed the bounds of their respective fortunes, and therefore they cast lots to determine upon whom the ruin shall at present fall, that the rest may be saved a little longer.

  William Blackstone

  Fall, Gambling, May

  Sir William Blackstone (1841). “Commentaries on the laws of England: in four books ; with an analysis of the work”

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• Fortune may raise up or abuse the ordinary mortal, but the sage and the soldier should have minds beyond her control.

  Walter Scott

  Should Have, Soldier, Abuse

  Sir Walter Scott (1832). “Talisman”, p.300

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• A man's fortune is frequently decided by his first address. If pleasing, others at once conclude he has merit; but if ungraceful, they decide against him.

  Lord Chesterfield

  Men, Pleasing Others, Merit

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• The permanency of most friendships depends upon the continuity of good fortune.

  Lord Chesterfield

  Friendship, Continuity, Depends

  Lord Philip Dormer Stanhope Chesterfield, Philip Dormer Stanhope Earl of Chesterfield (1855). “The Works of Lord Chesterfield: Including His Letters to His Son, Etc : to which is Prefixed, an Original Life of the Author”, p.630

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• A rake is a composition of all the lowest, most ignoble, degrading, and shameful vices; they all conspire to disgrace his character, and to ruin his fortune; while wine and the pox content which shall soonest and most effectually destroy his constitution.

  Lord Chesterfield

  Drinking, Wine, Character

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