People who bite the hand that feeds them usually lick the boot that kicks them.

People who bite the hand that feeds them usually lick the boot that kicks them.

He who is unable to live in society, or who has no need because
he is sufficient for himself, read more

He who is unable to live in society, or who has no need because
he is sufficient for himself, must be either a beast or a god.

Society is like a large piece of frozen water; and skating well
is the great art of social life.

Society is like a large piece of frozen water; and skating well
is the great art of social life.

It is common to assume that human progress affects everyone- that even the dullest man, in these bright days, knows read more

It is common to assume that human progress affects everyone- that even the dullest man, in these bright days, knows more than any man of, say, the Eighteenth Century, and is far more civilized. This assumption is quite erroneous...The great masses of men, even in this inspired republic, are precisely where the mob was at the dawn of history. They are ignorant, they are dishonest, they are cowardly, they are ignoble. They know little if anything that is worth knowing, and there is not the slightest sign of a natural desire among them to increase their knowledge.

The criterion of truth is that it works even if nobody is prepared to acknowledge it.

The criterion of truth is that it works even if nobody is prepared to acknowledge it.

It is the test of a good religion whether you can make a joke about it.

It is the test of a good religion whether you can make a joke about it.

We believe at once in evil, we only believe in good upon reflection. Is this not sad?.

We believe at once in evil, we only believe in good upon reflection. Is this not sad?.

We must think of human progress, not as of something going on in the race in general, but as something read more

We must think of human progress, not as of something going on in the race in general, but as something going on in a small minority, perpetually beleaguered in a few walled towns. Now and then the horde of barbarians outside breaks through, and we have an armed effort to halt the process. That is, we have a Reformation, a French Revolution, a war for democracy, a Great Awakening. The minority is decimated and driven to cover. But a few survive- and a few are enough to carry on.

The more backwoodish a social group, juvenile or adult, the stricter its conception of the normal, and the readier it read more

The more backwoodish a social group, juvenile or adult, the stricter its conception of the normal, and the readier it will ridicule any departure from it.