No man, however enslaved to his appetites, or hurried by his passions, can, while he preserves his intellects unimpaired, please himself with promoting the corruption of others. He whose merit has enlarged his influence would surely wish to exert it for the benefit of mankind. Yet such will be the effect of his reputation, while he suffers himself to indulge in any favourite fault, that they who have no hope to reach his excellence will catch at his failings, and his virtues will be cited to justify the copiers of his vices. β¨ Samuel Johnson, Elizabeth Carter, Samuel Richardson, Catherine Talbot (1825). The Rambler: A Periodical Paper, Published in 1750, 1751, 1752, p.283
More Author Quotes
- Men who have flattered themselves into this opinion of their own abilities, look down on all who waste their lives over books, as a race of inferior beings condemned by nature to perpetual pupilage, β¦ βΆ
- Whatever is formed for long duration arrives slowly to its maturity. β¨ Samuel Johnson (1827). The Rambler, p.72
- We are unreasonably desirous to separate the goods of life from those evils which Providence has connected with them, and to catch advantages without paying the price at which they are offered to us. β¦ βΆ
- In lapidary inscriptions a man is not upon oath. β¨ In James Boswell 'The Life of Samuel Johnson' (1791) vol. 2, p. 407 (1775)
- A man's mind grows narrow in a narrow place. β¨ James Boswell, Samuel Johnson (1866). The Life of Samuel Johnson, p.165
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