“There are good marriages, but no delicious ones.”
Il y a de bons mariages, mais il n'y en a point de délicieux.
Maxim 113.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
“Jealousy is always born with love but does not always die with it.”
La jalousie naît toujours avec l'amour, mais elle ne meurt pas toujours avec lui.
Maxim 361.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
“The evil that we do does not attract to us so much persecution and hatred as our good qualities.”
Le mal que nous faisons ne nous attire pas tant de persécution et de haine que nos bonnes qualités.
Maxim 29.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
“The desire to appear clever often prevents one from being so.”
Le désir de paraître habile empêche souvent de le devenir.
Maxim 199.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
“Only firm people can be truly soft.”
Il n'y a que les personnes qui ont de la fermeté qui puissent avoir une véritable douceur.
Variant translation: It is only those who are firm who can be genuinely kind.
Maxim 479.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
“We may bestow advice, but we cannot inspire the conduct.”
Variant translation: We give advice but do not inspire behavior.
Maxim 378.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
Reflections on Various Subjects (1665–1678), II. On Difference of Character
“It is harder to hide the feelings we have than to feign the ones we do not have.”
Maxim 56 from the posthumously published 1693 edition of the Maximes.
Later Additions to the Maxims
“We often forgive those who bore us, but we cannot forgive those whom we bore.”
Nous pardonnons souvent à ceux qui nous ennuient, mais nous ne pouvons pardonner à ceux que nous ennuyons.
Maxim 304.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
“We pardon to the extent that we love.”
Maxim 330.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
Nul ne mérite d’être loué de bonté, s’il n’a pas la force d’être méchant: toute autre bonté n’est le plus souvent qu’une paresse ou une impuissance de la volonté.
Maxim 237.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
“The intention of cheating no one lays us open to being cheated ourselves.”
L'intention de ne jamais tromper nous expose à être souvent trompés.
Maxim 118.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
Reflections on Various Subjects (1665–1678), II. On Difference of Character
“The truest way to be deceived is to think oneself more knowing than others.”
Le vrai moyen d'être trompé, c'est de se croire plus fin que les autres.
Maxim 127.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
Reflections on Various Subjects (1665–1678), I. On Confidence
“It is a great folly to wish to be wise alone.”
C'est une grande folie de vouloir être sage tout seul.
Maxim 231.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
“Hypocrisy is an homage that vice pays to virtue.”
L'hypocrisie est un hommage que le vice rend à la vertu.
Maxim 218.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
“If we judge love by the majority of its results, it resembles hatred more than friendship.”
Si on juge de l'amour par la plupart de ses effets, il ressemble plus à la haine qu'à l'amitié.
Maxim 72.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
Dans l'amitié comme dans l'amour on est souvent plus heureux par les choses qu'on ignore que par celles que l'on sait.
Variant translation: In friendship as in love, we are often happier due to the things we are unaware of than the things we know.
Maxim 441.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)
“Who lives without folly is not as wise as he thinks.”
Qui vit sans folie n'est pas si sage qu'il croit.
Maxim 209.
Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims (1665–1678)