Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Samuel Johnson

Quote by Samuel Johnson

“Every class of society has its cant of lamentation, which is understood or regarded by none but themselves; and every part of life has its uneasiness, which those who do not feel them will not commiserate. An event which spreads distraction over half the commercial world, assembles the trading companies in councils and committees, and shakes the nerves of a thousand stockjobbers, is read by the landlord and the farmer with frigid indifference.”

Quote by Samuel Johnson

Book:The Works of Samuel Johnson, LL.: D., with an Essay on His Life and Genius
Create image

Work

The Works of Samuel Johnson, LL.: D., with an Essay on His Life and Genius

This volume gathers the major literary and critical works of Samuel Johnson, the renowned 18th-century English writer, lexicographer, and moralist. The collection includes his essays, poems, and other prose, reflecting his influence on English letters. The accompanying essay provides a thoughtful overview of Johnson's life, his intellectual development, and his lasting literary legacy, offering readers context for understanding his contributions to literature and thought. more

Author

Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson

Samuel Johnson was an English writer, poet, and lexicographer, renowned for his comprehensive English dictionary, 'A Dictionary of the English Language', published in 1755. His distinctive writing style and wit have cemented his place as a significant figure in the history of English literature. more

You May Also Like

“No degree of knowledge attainable by man is able to set him above the want of hourly assistance, or to extinguish the desire of fond endearments and tender officiousness; and, therefore, no one should think it unnecessary to learn those arts by which friendship may be gained.”

ThinkingMenWantShouldMayArtAbleDesireHumanityDegreesUnnecessaryAssistanceEndearment
Book:Johnsoniana: Or, Supplement to Boswell: Being Anecdotes and Sayings of Dr. Johnson
Create image

“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. Every man wishes to be rich, but very few have the powers necessary to raise a sudden fortune, either by new discoveries, or by superiority of skill in any necessary employment; and among lower understandings many want the firmness and industry requisite to regular gain and gradual acquisitions.”

MenWantHumanityEvilWishUnderstandingRichIndustrySkillsDiscoveryGainsAdvantageRaisesFortuneConnectedEvery ManEmploymentGoodsProvidenceSuperiorityAcquisitionFirmnessNew Discoveries
Book:Works: With an Essay on His Life and Genius
Create image

“The hostility perpetually exercised between one man and another, is caused by the desire of many for that which only few can possess. Every man would be rich, powerful, and famous; yet fame, power, and riches, are only the names of relative conditions, which imply the obscurity, dependence, and poverty of greater numbers.”

MenWould BeDesireHumanityNamesPowerfulNumbersPovertyRichGreaterConditionsFameRichesEvery ManOne ManRelativeDependenceHostilityObscurity
Book:The Rambler: In Four Volumes..
Create image

“The power, indeed, of every individual is small, and the consequence of his endeavours imperceptible, in a general prospect of the world. Providence has given no man ability to do much, that something might be left for every man to do. The business of life is carried on by a general co-operation; in which the part of any single man can be no more distinguished, than the effect of a particular drop when the meadows are floated by a summer shower: yet every drop increases the inundation, and every hand adds to the happiness or misery of mankind.”

MenWorldHandsMightLife IsHumanityIndividualLeftGivenAbilityMankindEffectsParticularSummerConsequenceIncreaseAddMiseryEvery ManOperationsProvidenceShowersDistinguishedMeadowsEndeavourSingle Man
Book:The Works of Samuel Johnson, LL.D.: With An Essay on His Life and Genius
Create image

“He that compares what he has done with what he has left undone, will feel the effect which must always follow the comparison of imagination with reality; he will look with contempt on his own unimportance, and wonder to what purpose he came into the world; he will repine that he shall leave behind him no evidence of his having been, that he has added nothing to the system of life, but has glided from youth to age among the crowd, without any effort for distinction.”

WorldFeelsLooksDoneRealityAgePurposeHumanityLeftImaginationEffortBehindsWonderEffectsYouthEvidenceCrowdsCompareDistinctionComparisonContemptUndone
Book:Works
Create image