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Human Nature Quotes

Browse 4693 quotes about Human Nature.

Human Nature Quotes

“It is good to be often reminded of the inconsistency of human nature, and to learn to look without wonder or disgust on the weaknesses which are found in the strongest minds.”

Mind Humans Looks Humanity Found Wonder Mankind Human Nature Weakness Strongest Disgusting Inconsistency

Author:Thomas B. Macaulay

“See, here's a shadow found; the human nature Is made th' umbrella to the Deity, To catch the sunbeams of thy just Creator; Beneath this covert thou may'st safely lie.”

Humans May Made Lying Found Human Nature Shadow Creator Deities Umbrella Sunbeams Covert

Book:Emblems

Source: Emblems

“The area between the nose and the chin, the subject of kissing and the vehicle for speech, is perhaps even more known and set upon than the eyes. The mouth is also riddled with a complex interweaving of folds, curves, flats and lost-and-found edges. These nuances are needed by a perceptive person who might try to understand human nature.”

Trying Humans Persons Might Eye Found Lost Known Subjects Human Nature Needed Kissing Speech Mouths Areas Complexes Edges Noses Flats Vehicle Curves Folds Chins Nuance Portraiture Lost And Found

Author:Robert Genn

“A religious creed differs from a scientific theory in claiming to embody eternal and absolutely certain truth, whereas science is always tentative, expecting that modification in its present theories will sooner or later be found necessary, and aware that its method is one which is logically incapable of arriving at a complete and final demonstration.”

“The courage of a soldier is found to be the cheapest and most common quality of human nature.”

Humans Found Common Quality Human Nature Army Soldier Navy

Book:The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

Source: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

“A great and frequent error in our judgment of human nature is to suppose that those sentiments and feelings have no existence, which may be only for a time concealed. The precious metals are not found at the surface of the earth, except in sandy places.”

Humans May Character Feelings Earth Found Existence Human Nature Judgment Errors Surface Sentiments Metals Concealed Sandy Precious Metal

Book:Essays and aphorisms

Source: Essays and aphorisms

“With reason, then, the common opinion of mankind, little affected by the few dissentients who have contended for the opposite view, has found in the careful study of nature, and in the laws of nature, the foundations of the division of property, and the practice of all ages has consecrated the principle of private ownership, as being pre-eminently in conformity with human nature, and as conducing in the most unmistakable manner to the peace and tranquility of human existence.”

“Happiness is only to be found in a recurrence to the principles of human nature; and these will prompt very simple measures.”

Humans Happiness Found Simple Principles Human Nature Prompts Recurrence

Book:The works of Benjamin Disraeli, earl of Beaconsfield: embracing novels, romances, plays, poems, biography, short stories and great speeches

Source: The works of Benjamin Disraeli, earl of Beaconsfield: embracing novels, romances, plays, poems, biography, short stories and great speeches

“My pessimism (which, by the way, is far from absolute) originated with my despair in the lack of perfection to be found in human nature. I was attempting in my successive books to show the inevitable handicap of the human condition.”

Way Humans Book Shows Found Conditions Human Nature Despair Perfection Absolutes Inevitable Pessimism Human Condition Attempting Handicaps

Author:Stanislaw Lem

“Take us generally as a people, we are neither lazy nor idle; and considering how little we have to excite or stimulate us, I am almost astonished that there are so many industrious and ambitious ones to be found - although I acknowledge, with extreme sorrow, that there are some who never were and never will be serviceable to society. And have you not a similar class among yourselves?”

People Littles Found Class Human Nature Sorrow Racism Extremes African American Acknowledge Lazy Ambitious Considering Idle Idleness Industrious

Author:Maria W. Stewart

“Truly man is a marvelously vain, diverse, and undulating object. It is hard to found any constant and uniform judgment on him.”

Men Hard Found Human Nature Objects Diversity Judgment Constant Vain Diverse Uniforms

Author:Michel de Montaigne

“In every age the vilest specimens of human nature are to be found among demagogues.”

Humans Age Found Human Nature

Author:Thomas B. Macaulay

“Nor is any evidence to be found, either in History or Human Nature, that nations are to be bribed out of a spirit of encroachment and aggression, by humiliations which nourish their pride, or by concessions that extend their resources and power.”

Humans Spirit Found Nations Human Nature Pride Evidence Resources Aggression Humiliation Concessions Encroachment

Book:James Madison's

Source: James Madison's

“Theologians in all the great faiths have devised all kinds of myths to show that this type of kenosis, of self-emptying, is found in the life of God itself. They do not do this because it sounds edifying, but because this is the way that human nature seems to work. We are most creative and sense other possibilities that transcend our ordinary experience when we leave ourselves behind.”

Way Humans Kind Self Shows Seems Found Sound Behinds Creative Human Nature Possibility Type Ordinary Myth All Kinds Theologian Great Faith

Book:The Spiral Staircase

Source: The Spiral Staircase

“Most men unconsciously judge the world from themselves, and it will be very generally found that those who sneer habitually at human nature, and affect to despise it, are among its worst and least pleasant samples.”

Men World Humans Found Worst Human Nature Judging Pleasant Despise Sample Sneer

Book:Delphi Complete Works of Charles Dickens (Illustrated)

Source: Delphi Complete Works of Charles Dickens (Illustrated)

“Has it not. . . invariably been found that momentary passions, and immediate interests, have a more active and imperious control over human conduct than general or remote considerations of policy, utility and justice?”

Humans Passion Found Interest Justice Human Nature Policy Active Consideration Utility Momentary

Book:The Federalist, on the New Constitution, Written in the Year 1788

Source: The Federalist, on the New Constitution, Written in the Year 1788

“The malignity that never forgets or forgives is found only in base and ignoble natures, whose aims are selfish, and whose means are indirect, cowardly, and treacherous.”

Mean Found Forget Human Nature Aim Forgiving Selfish Never Forget Cowardly Treacherous Indirect Ignoble

Book:Life and Campaigns of George B. McClellan, Major-General, U. S. Army

Source: Life and Campaigns of George B. McClellan, Major-General, U. S. Army

“There are no perfect human beings! Persons can be found who are good, very good indeed, in fact, great. There do in fact exist creators, seers, sages, saints, shakers, and movers...even if they are uncommon and do not come by the dozen. And yet these very same people can at times be boring, irritating, petulant, selfish, angry, or depressed. To avoid disillusionment with human nature, we must first give up our illusions about it.”

“No man is allowed to be a judge in his own cause; because his interest would certainly bias his judgment, and, not improbably, corrupt his integrity. With equal, nay with greater reason, a body of men are unfit to be both judges and parties at the same time.”

Men Reason Body Together Found Individual Causes Loses Religious Party Numbers Moral Greater Violence Human Nature Judging Equal Injustice Motive Proportion Adequate Efficacy

Author:James Madison

“It is a singular capriciousness of the human mind, that after all the admonitions we have had from experience on this head, there should still be found men, who object to the new constitution for deviating from a principle which has been found the bane of the old.”

Men Should Mind Humans Has Beens Stills Found Principles Human Nature Objects Constitution Human Mind Bane Admonition

Book:The Fœderalist: A Collection of Essays, Written in Favor of the New Constitution, as Agreed Upon by the Fœderal Convention, September 17, 1787. Reprinted from the Original Text. With an Historical Introduction and Notes

Source: The Fœderalist: A Collection of Essays, Written in Favor of the New Constitution, as Agreed Upon by the Fœderal Convention, September 17, 1787. Reprinted from the Original Text. With an Historical Introduction and Notes

“I found that I faced a highly complex situation, and that I couldnt hope to change it until I had armed myself with the necessary psychological and intellectual capacity. My contemplation of life and human nature in that secluded place had taught me that he who cannot change the very fabric of his thought will never be able to change reality, and will never, therefore, make any process.”

Humans Reality Able Found Process Situation Human Nature Taught Intellectual Capacity Complexes Psychological Contemplation Fabric Secluded

Book:In Search of Identity: An Autobiography

Source: In Search of Identity: An Autobiography

“Sometime, it will be found that people can be changed only by changing their surroundings. It is alleged that, at least ninety-five percent of the criminals transported from England to Australia and other penal colonies, became good and useful citizens in a new world.”

People World Found Five Human Nature Changed Citizens Percent England Criminals Australia New World Ninety Surroundings Colony

Author:Robert Green Ingersoll

“It is clear that this essential Christian doctrine gives a new value to human nature, to human history and to human life which is not to be found in the other great oriental religions.”

Giving Humans Christian Values Found Literature Clear Human Nature Essentials Doctrine Human Life Human History Christian Doctrine

Book:The Formation of Christendom

Source: The Formation of Christendom

“I got disappointed in human nature as well and gave it up because I found it too much like my own.”

Humans Wells Found My Own Too Much Human Nature Disappointed

Book:A Fairy Tale of New York

Source: A Fairy Tale of New York