Jean Jacques Rousseau Quotes

The world of reality has its limits, the world of imagination is boundless. Man is born free but everywhere he is in chains. Falsehood has an infinity of combinations but truth has only one mode of being. The people is never corrupted, but it is often deceived. Every man has a right to risk his own life for the preservation of it. Swearing is the arguments of those who are wrong. People in their natural state are basically good. But this natural innocence, however, is corrupted by the evils of society. The great secret of education is to exercise of mind and body as relaxation one to the other. Although modesty is natural to man, it is not natural to children. Modesty only begins with the knowledge of evil. Reading, solitude, idleness, a soft and sedentary life, intercourse with women and young people, these are perilous paths for a young man and these lead him constantly into danger. Women, in general, are not attracted to art all, nor knowledge and not at all to genius. True politeness is the favorable attitude towards people. Freedom is the power to choose our own chains. Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves. Man speak from knowledge, women from imagination. Absolute silence leads to sadness. It is the image of death. What wisdomcan you find greater than kindness. All human morality is in its intent. Happiness: a good bank account, a good cook and a good digestion. Accent is the soul of language; it gives to it both feeling and truth. Eloquence makes a strong but momentary influence. People that are easily excited, calm down as easily. The money you have gives you freedom; the money you pursude enslaves you. I would rather be a man of paradoxes than a man of prejudices. To write a love letter, you have to start, without knowing, what you want to say and end, without knowing what you have said. Equality, because without it there can be no liberty. One thinks himself the master of others and still remains a greater slave than they. Once you teach people to say what they do not understand. It is easy enough to get them to say anything you like. So, decide to raise them like men. The men will gladly consent to it! The more women want to resemble them, the less women will govern them and then men will truly be the masters. In almost all cases the most difficult thing is the beginning. No man has any natural authority over his fellow men. Force does not constitude right... obedience is due only to legitimade powers. Whoever blushes is already guilty; true innocence is ashamed of nothing. We should not teach children the sciences but give them a taste for them. He who is most slow in making a promise is the most faithful in performance of it. Virtue is a state of war and to live in it we have always to combat with ourselves. Plant and your spouse plants with you weed and you weed alone.

Jean Jacques Rousseau

1712 - 1778