Moliere

French playwright

Early Modern influential 32 sayings

Sayings by Moliere

It is a strange thing that a man should be so proud as to despise others for their poverty.

1670 — From the play, 'The Bourgeois Gentleman'
Controversial Unverifiable

Virtue is the first title of nobility.

1665 — From the play, 'Don Juan'
Controversial Unverifiable

A husband is a man who, when he dies, leaves his wife a widow.

1662 — From the play, 'The School for Wives'
Controversial Unverifiable

There is no limit to the absurdities a man will commit for the sake of his vanity.

1670 — From the play, 'The Bourgeois Gentleman'
Controversial Unverifiable

The part of the lover is to give, and the part of the beloved is to receive.

1665 — From the play, 'Don Juan'
Controversial Unverifiable

A doctor's practice is a collection of errors.

1673 — From the play, 'The Imaginary Invalid'
Controversial Unverifiable

It is a silly thing to try to be what you are not.

1670 — From the play, 'The Bourgeois Gentleman'
Controversial Unverifiable

There is no more dangerous error than that of mistaking a man's character for his reputation.

1664 — From the play, 'Tartuffe'
Controversial Unverifiable

The world, sir, is a great book, of which we have only read a few pages.

1662 — From the play, 'The School for Wives'
Controversial Unverifiable

All the ills of mankind, all the tragic misfortunes that fill the history books, all the political blunders, all the failures of the great leaders, have happened only because of a simple lack of logic.

1666 — From the play, 'The Misanthrope'
Controversial Unverifiable

The duty of comedy is to correct men by amusing them.

1669 — Preface to 'Tartuffe'
Controversial Unverifiable

A man's greatest pride is to be able to acknowledge his own mistakes.

1670 — From the play, 'The Bourgeois Gentleman'
Controversial Unverifiable