“Of all the creatures that creep, swim, or fly,
Peopling the earth, the waters, and the sky,
From Rome to Iceland, Paris to Japan,
I really think the greatest fool is man.”

— Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux

De tous les animaux qui s'élèvent dans l'air,
Qui marchent sur la terre, ou nagent dans la mer,
De Paris au Pérou, du Japon jusqu'à Rome,
Le plus sot animal, à mon avis, c'est l'homme.
Satire 8, l. 1
Satires (1716)

Original

De tous les animaux qui s'élèvent dans l'air, Qui marchent sur la terre, ou nagent dans la mer, De Paris au Pérou, du Japon jusqu'à Rome, Le plus sot animal, à mon avis, c'est l'homme.

Satires (1716)

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Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux 30

French poet and critic 1636–1711

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