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Civility Quotes

Browse 391 quotes about Civility.

Civility Quotes

“Civility is a work of the imagination, for it is through the imagination that we render others sufficiently like ourselves for them to become subjects of tolerance and respect, if not always affection.”

Ifs Life Imagination Subjects Affection Tolerance Civility Tolerance And Respect

Book:A Passion for Democracy: American Essays

Source: A Passion for Democracy: American Essays

“An enforced uniformity of religion throughout a nation or civil state, confounds the civil and religious, denies the principles of Christianity and civility, and that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh.”

States Jesus Nations Christ Religious Christianity Principles Jesus Christ Deny Flesh Civility Church And State Separation Of Church And State Uniformity Religious Liberty

Book:On Religious Liberty: Selections from the Works of Roger Williams

Source: On Religious Liberty: Selections from the Works of Roger Williams

“A SWEET disorder in the dress Kindles in clothes a wantonness : A lawn about the shoulders thrown Into a fine distraction : An erring lace which here and there Enthrals the crimson stomacher : A cuff neglectful, and thereby Ribbons to flow confusedly : A winning wave (deserving note) In the tempestuous petticoat : A careless shoe-string, in whose tie I see a wild civility : Do more bewitch me than when art Is too precise in every part.”

“Let’s not forget that American democracy started with ‘We the People’ agreeing to work hard to create ‘a more perfect union.’ We’ve lost the idea that politics begins at home with what happens in families, in neighborhoods, in classrooms, in congregations. We called this democracy into being – and if we want to call this democracy back to its highest values, it’s got to be the us doing that calling. That’s not going to happen if ‘We the People’ don’t know how to talk to one another with civility and hold our differences in a creative, life-giving way.”

“In less than a century after the barbarian nations settled in their new conquests, almost all the effects of the knowledge and civility, which the Romans had spread through Europe, disappeared. Not only the arts of elegance, which minister to luxury, and re supported by it, but many of the useful arts, without which life can scarcely be contemplated as comfortable, were neglected or lost.”

Art Lost Nations Effects Century Comfortable Europe Spread Luxury Ministers Conquest Elegance Neglected Civility Barbarians

Book:The Fall of Rome: And the End of Civilization

Source: The Fall of Rome: And the End of Civilization

“People will no more advance their civility to a bear, than their money to a bankrupt.”

People Bears Civility

Book:Letters Written by the Earl of Chesterfield to His Son

Source: Letters Written by the Earl of Chesterfield to His Son

“Don't ever forget that you're a citizen of this world, and there are things you can do to lift the human spirit, things that are easy, things that are free, things that you can do every day: civility, respect, kindness, character.”

“Civility does not ...mean the mere outward gentleness of speech cultivated for the occasion, but an inborn gentleness and desire to do the opponent good.”

Mean Doe Desire Justice Speech Social Justice Mere Occasions Opponents Gentleness Civility

Book:The Wit and Wisdom of Gandhi

Source: The Wit and Wisdom of Gandhi

“I am told that I had a bad temper, and remember being banished to the back hall until civility returned.”

Remember Halls Temper Civility Bad Temper

Author:Paul D. Boyer

“The civility which money will purchase, is rarely extended to those who have none.”

Literature Civility

Book:Delphi Complete Works of Charles Dickens (Illustrated)

Source: Delphi Complete Works of Charles Dickens (Illustrated)

“Civility is only a passenger - not a driver - on the information superhighway.”

Information Internet Drivers Civility Passengers Information Superhighway

Book:The IMac Book

Source: The IMac Book

“No greater glory can be handed down than to conquer the barbarian, to recall the savage and the pagan to civility, to draw the ignorant within the orbit of reason, and to fill with reverence for divinity the godless and the ungodly.”

Reason History Greater Glory Draws Ignorant Conquer Divinity Reverence Recalls Savages Civility Pagan Barbarians Orbit

Book:The Original Writings & Correspondence of the Two Richard Hakluyts

Source: The Original Writings & Correspondence of the Two Richard Hakluyts

“Speak not injurious words neither in jest nor earnest; scoff at none, although they give occasion.”

Giving Speak Brilliant Occasions Earnest Civility Jest

Author:George Washington

“Civility, it is said, means obeying the unenforceable.”

Mean Said Civility Obeying

Author:Ellen Goodman

“Martha Stewart contributes more to our civility than the Baptist Church.”

Church Civility Baptists

Author:Dave Hickey

“We need to create a society in which civility rules over cynicism and apathy.”

Needs Apathy Cynicism Civility

Author:Antanas Mockus

“Manlius ... took care in his invitations, actively sought to exclude from his circle crude and vulgar men like Caius Valerius. But they were all around; it was Manlius who lived in a dream world, and his bubble of civility was becoming smaller and smaller. Caius Valerius, powerful member of a powerful family, had never even heard of Plato. A hundred, even fifty years before, such an absurdity would have been inconceivable. Now it was surprising if such a man did know anything of philosophy, and even if it was explained, he would not wish to understand.”

Source: Dream of Scipio

“As we move into the twenty-first century, women's status in society will become the standard by which to measure our progress toward civility and peace.”

Firsts Moving Progress Century Standards Twenties Civility

Author:Mahnaz Afkhami

“Civility is not not saying negative or harsh things. It is not the absence of critical analysis. It is the manner in which we are sharing this territorial freedom of political discussion. If our discourse is yelled and screamed and interrupted and patronized, that's uncivil.”

Ifs Political Negative Critical Absence Discussion Analysis Harsh Discourse Civility Interrupted Territorial Critical Analysis

Author:Richard Dreyfuss

“We see a decline of civility, and, sadly, it’s often modeled by the very people from whom we have the least right to expect it.”

People Decline Civility

Author:Max De Pree

“Diversity is not an abnormality but the very reality of our planet. The human world manifests the same reality and will not seek our permission to celebrate itself in the magnificence of its endless varieties. Civility is a sensible attribute in this kind of world we have; narrowness of heart and mind is not.”

World Mind Humans Heart Kind Reality Planets Diversity Endless Celebrate Variety Attributes Sensible Permission Heart And Mind Our Planet Civility Magnificence Abnormality

Author:Chinua Achebe

“The civility of no race can be perfect whilst another race is degraded. It is a doctrine alike of the oldest and of the newest philosophy, that man is one, and that you cannot injure any member, without a sympathetic injury to all the members”

Men Philosophy Perfect Race Members Tyranny Doctrine Injury Tyrants Civility Sympathetic

Book:Delphi Complete Works of Ralph Waldo Emerson (Illustrated)

Source: Delphi Complete Works of Ralph Waldo Emerson (Illustrated)

“All of us should banish hateful communications and practice civility for differences of opinion.”

Should Differences Opinion Practice Communication Civility Hateful Differences Of Opinion

Author:Dallin H. Oaks

“There is chaos behind the civility, of course.”

Courses Behinds Chaos Clarity Civility

Book:The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia?: Broadway Edition

Source: The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia?: Broadway Edition

“Her companion's discourse now sunk from its hitherto animated pitch, to nothing more than a short, decisive sentence of praise or condemnation on the face of every woman they met; and Catherine, after listening and agreeing as long as she could,with all the civility and deference of the youthful female mind, fearful of hazarding an opinion of its own in opposition to that of a self-assured man, especially where the beauty of her own sex is concerned, ventured at length to vary the subject.”

Source: The Complete Works of Jane Austen: All novels, short stories, letters and poems

“Civility is not about dousing strongly held views. It's about making sure that people are willing to respect other perspectives.”

People Views Willing Perspective Civility Respecting Others

Author:Jim Leach

“So let us begin anew -- remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate. Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us.”

Problem Remember Sides Subjects Weakness Proof Divides Sincerity Both Sides Civility Never Fear Inaugural Inaugural Address Inaugural Speech

Author:John F. Kennedy

“I think almost every writer in the world would hope that books would be always talked about with respect and civility and depth and seriousness.”

Thinking World Book Would Be Depth Seriousness Civility

Author:Dave Eggers

“I was under the librarians' protection. Civil servants and servants of civility, they had my back. The would be whatever they needed to be that day: information professionals, teachers, police, community organizers, computer technicians, historians, confidantes, clerks, social workers, storytellers, or, in this case, guardians of my peace.”

“URBANITY, n. The kind of civility that urban observers ascribe to dwellers in all cities but New York. Its commonest expression is heard in the words, "I beg your pardon," and it is not consistent with disregard of the rights of others.”

Kind Cities Rights Heard New York Expression Consistent Urban Observers Civility Pardon Disregard Dwellers

Book:Delphi Complete Works of Ambrose Bierce (Illustrated)

Source: Delphi Complete Works of Ambrose Bierce (Illustrated)

“It is so much easier to extol the virtues of civility than to talk civilly about the virtues we need to uphold.”

Needs Virtue Easier Civility

Author:Amitai Etzioni

“I regret not getting brutally forthright with human beings a hell of a lot sooner than I did. Civility and obliquity are wasted on people who will not make the effort to be harsher or stricter on their own gooey egos than they are on other people.”

People Humans Philosophy Human Beings Effort Hell Regret Ego Civility I Regret

Author:Kenny Smith

“In religious matters a traveller loses nothing by civility.”

Matter Loses Religious Civility Traveller

Book:The Silver Stallion

Source: The Silver Stallion

“Genuine tolerance does not mean ignoring differences as if differences made no difference. Genuine tolerance means engaging differences within a bond of civility and respect.”

Ifs Mean Doe Made Differences Tolerance Genuine Engaging Civility

Author:Richard John Neuhaus

“[T]he politically correct are above the rules of ordinary civility, once they have identified you as an unbeliever in their religion.”

Politics Ordinary Civility Politically Correct Unbelievers

Author:Orson Scott Card

“Among friends one has the privilege of saying nothing; the civility consists in the assumption that one's silence will be civilly understood. I can imagine a small gathering of friends who say nothing all evening: they recoil from saying anything that the others don't want to hear; and their silence would be the subtlest courtesy.”

Want I Can Would Be Friendship Silence Imagine Understood Privilege Evening Assumption Gathering Courtesy Civility Recoil Saying Nothing

Book:T. S. Eliot: The Man and His Work

Source: T. S. Eliot: The Man and His Work

“You never see the old austerity That was the essence of civility; Young people hereabouts, unbridled, now Just want.”

People Want Young Youth Essence Civility Austerity

Book:Tartuffe and Other Plays

Source: Tartuffe and Other Plays

“That character in conversation which commonly passes for agreeable is made up of civility and falsehood.”

Made Character Conversation Hypocrisy Falsehood Civility

Book:A Supplementary Volume to the Works of Alexander Pope, Esq: Containing Pieces of Poetry, Not Inserted in Warburton's and Warton's Editions : and a Collection of Letters, Now First Published

Source: A Supplementary Volume to the Works of Alexander Pope, Esq: Containing Pieces of Poetry, Not Inserted in Warburton's and Warton's Editions : and a Collection of Letters, Now First Published

“Comedy speaks for civilization; farce bears an ill-concealed, sometimes unconcealed animus against civilization. Often against civility too.”

Sometimes Speak Comedy Bears Civilization Ill Civility Concealed Farce Animus

Book:A Critic's Notebook

Source: A Critic's Notebook

“I know it's very 'old media' of me to admit this, but I am often unnerved by the lack of civility on the Web.”

Knows Media Civility

Author:Willow Bay

“It is becoming plain that our liberal regime of equality and personal freedom depends, more than most theorists of liberalism have been willing to admit, on the existence and support of certain social assumptions and practices: the belief that each and every human being possesses great and inherent value, the willingness to respect the rights of others even at the cost of some disadvantages to one's self, the ability to defer some immediate benefits for the sake of long-range goals, and a regard for reason-giving and civility in public discourse.”