“Females choose; their choosiness is inherited; they prefer exaggerated ornaments; exaggerated ornaments are a burden to males.”

— Matt Ridley

Source: The Red Queen (1993), Ch. 5

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Matt Ridley 65

economist 1958

Steve Stewart-Williams (1971)

(p. 138)
The Ape that Thought It Was a Peacock: Does Evolutionary Psychology Exaggerate Human Sex Differences? (2013)

“An ornament and a safeguard.”
Decus et tutamen.

Virgil Aeneid

Source: Aeneid (29–19 BC), Book V, Line 262; inscription on some British one-pound coins up until 2015. The line was suggested by John Evelyn for the edge legend on the new milled coinage of Charles II of England from 1662 on to discourage clipping. He had seen it on the edge of a mirror belonging to Cardinal Richelieu (recorded in his book Numismata in 1697). The suggestion was adopted.

“Human beings are an exception to many general rules in biology. In many species, female mate choice alone is important; in our species, male mate choice is important as well. In many species, males alone are showy and ornamented; in our species, females are as well. In many species, males alone compete for mates; in our species, females compete as well. In many species, males invest nothing other than sperm in their offspring; in our species, men typically invest a great deal. Not only are human beings exceptional in these ways, but they all tie together into a cohesive story.”

Steve Stewart-Williams (1971)

Source: The Ape that Thought It Was a Peacock: Does Evolutionary Psychology Exaggerate Human Sex Differences? (2013), p. 144

“One must never allow oneself to acquire an exaggerated sense of one's own importance. There's no necessity to burden oneself with absolutes”

Ayn Rand book The Fountainhead

Source: The Fountainhead

“The papers exaggerate. They exaggerate everything, just to sell papers. The government exaggerates, to keep our minds off what morons they are.”

John Updike book Rabbit at Rest

Rabbit at Rest (1990)

“the esteemed ornament of Filipino Culture.”

Epifanio de los Santos (1871–1928) Filipino politician

As a quote by Wenceslao Retana in "81 Years of Premio Zobel Legacy of Philippine Literature in Spanish" by Lourdes Castrillo Brillantes. Vibal Publishing House, Inc. 2006.
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