Francois de La Rochefoucauld Mind Quotations

It is from a weakness and smallness of mind that men are opinionated; and we are very loath to believe what we are not able to comprehend.

Mediocre minds usually dismiss anything which reaches beyond their own understanding.

As great minds have the faculty of saying a great deal in a few words, so lesser minds have a talent of talking much, and saying nothing.

The accent of one's birthplace remains in the mind and in the heart as in one's speech.

People always complain about their memories, never about their minds.

Gracefulness is to the body what understanding is to the mind.

Those who occupy their minds with small matters, generally become incapable of greatness.

The defects and faults of the mind are like wounds in the body; after all imaginable care has been taken to heal them up, still there will be a scar left behind, and they are in continual danger of breaking the skin and bursting out again.

The desire of talking of ourselves, and showing those faults we do not mind having seen, makes up a good part of our sincerity.

The defects of the mind, like those of the face, grow worse with age.

Not all those who know their minds know their hearts as well.

We are deceived if we think that mind and judgment are two different matters: judgment is but the extent of the light of the mind. This light penetrates to the bottom of matters; it remarks all that can be remarked, and perceives what appears imperceptible. Therefore we must agree that it is the extent of the light in the mind that produces all the effects which we attribute to judgment.

A well-trained mind has less difficulty in submitting to than in guiding an ill-trained mind.

There are more defects in temperament than in the mind.

Moderation is caused by the fear of exciting the envy and contempt which those merit who are intoxicated with their good fortune; it is a vain display of our strength of mind, and in short the moderation of men at their greatest height is only a desire to appear greater than their fortune.

Narrow minds think nothing right that is above their own capacity.

The gallantry of the mind consists in agreeable flattery.

Gravity is a mysterious carriage of the body invented to cover the defects of the mind.

We have more indolence in the mind than in the body.

Penetration has an air of divination; it pleases our vanity more than any other quality of the mind.

All who know their own minds know not their own hearts.

Good taste comes more from the judgment than from the mind.

As it is the mark of great minds to say many things in a few words, so it is that of little minds to use many words to say nothing.

When the philosophers despised riches, it was because they had a mind to vindicate their own merit, and take revenge upon the injustice of fortune by vilifying those enjoyments which she had not given them.

Things often offer themselves to our mind in a more finished form in the very first thought, than we might have made them by muchart and study.

Fearlessness is a more than ordinary strength of mind, which raises the soul above the troubles, disorders, and emotions which theprospect of great dangers are used to produce. And by this inward strength it is that heroes preserve themselves in a calm and quiet state, and enjoy a presence of mind and the free use of their reason in the midst of those terrible accidents that amaze and confound other people.

A weak mind is the only defect out of our power to mend.

We often in our misfortunes take that for constancy and patience which is only dejection of mind; we suffer without daring to holdup our heads, just as cowards let themselves be knocked on the head because they have not courage to strike back.

Commonplace minds usually condemn what is beyond the reach of their understanding.

Every one speaks well of his own heart, but no one dares speak well of his own mind.

Second-rate minds usually condemn everything beyond their grasp.

Our minds are lazier than our bodies.

Bodily labor alleviates the pains of the mind and from this arises the happiness of the poor

Politeness of mind consists in thinking chaste and refined thoughts.

Gallantry of mind consists in saying flattering things in an agreeable manner.

Ideas often flash across our minds more complete than we could make them after much labor.

Wisdom is the mind what health is to the body.

Minds of moderate caliber ordinarily condemn everthing which is beyond their range.

Youth is a perpetual intoxication; it is a fever of the mind.

Small minds are much distressed by little things. Great minds see them all but are not upset by them.

Politeness of the mind is to have delicate thoughts

Nature has concealed at the bottom of our minds talents and abilities of which we are not aware.

It is the habit of mediocre minds to condemn all that is beyond their grasp.

The mind is always the patsy of the heart.

Customary use of artifice is the sign of a small mind, and it almost always happens that he who uses it to cover one spot uncovers himself in another.

Smallness of mind is the cause of stubbornness, and we do not credit readily what is beyond our view.

Solemnity is a device of the body to hide the faults of the mind.

Strength and weakness of mind are misnomers; they are really nothing but the good or bad health of our bodily organs.

As the great ones of this world are unable to bestow health of body or peace of mind, we always pay too high a price for any good they can do.

It often happens that things come into the mind in a more finished form than could have been achieved after much study.

We are lazier in our minds than in our bodies.

Idleness is more an infirmity of the mind than of the body.

Narrowness of mind is often the cause of obstinacy; we do not easily believe beyond what we see.

Those who are condemned to death affect sometimes a constancy and contempt for death which is only the fear of facing it; so that one may say that this constancy and contempt are to their mind what the bandage is to their eyes.

The daily employment of cunning marks a little mind, it generally happens that those who resort to it in one respect to protect themselves lay themselves open to attack in another.

The most clever and polite are content with only seeming attentive while we perceive in their mind and eyes that at the very time they are wandering from what is said and desire to return to what they want to say.

Our minds are as much given to laziness as our bodies.

What renders us so changeable in our friendship is, that it is difficult to know the qualities of the soul, but easy to know those of the mind.