Socrates

Philebus was saying that enjoyment and pleasure and delight, and the class of feelings akin to them, are a good to every living being, whereas I contend, that not these, but wisdom and intelligence and memory, and their kindred, right opinion and true reasoning, are better and more desirable than pleasure

As to marriage or celibacy, let a man take which course he will, he will be sure to repent.

Be slow to fall into friendship; but when thou art in, continue firm and constant.

The way to gain a good reputation is to endeavor to be what you desire to appear.

Our prayers should be for blessings in general, for God knows best what is good for us.

The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.

He is richest who is content with the least, for content is the wealth of nature.

Thinking will not overcome fear but action will.

Everyone should keep a mental wastepaper basket, and the older he grows, the more things will he promptly consign to it.

Were it not for imagination a man would be as happy in arms of a chambermaid as of a duchess.

Youth is unduly busy with pampering the outer person.

Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can’t practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage.

Once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny, consume you it will.

I would not talk so much about myself if there were anybody else whom I knew as well.

My own experience and development deepen everyday my conviction that our moral progress may be measured by the degree in which we sympathize with individual suffering and individual joy.

Man is the only animal that laughs and has a state legislature.

Cities give us collision. ‘Tis said, London and New York take the nonsense out of a man.

Our best thoughts come from others.

Nothing is too high for the daring of mortals: we storm heaven itself in our folly.

The French are wiser than they seem, and the Spaniards seem wiser than they are.

Life at its noblest leaves mere happiness far behind; and indeed cannot endure it. Happiness is not the object of life: life has no object: it is an end in itself; and courage consists in the readiness to sacrifice happiness for an intenser quality of life.