A Quote by Francois de La Rochefoucauld

Passions often produce their contraries: avarice sometimes leads to prodigality, and prodigality to avarice; we are often obstinate through weakness and daring through timidity.

Francois de La Rochefoucauld

Quote Topics

Avarice Daring Leads Obstinate Often Passions Produce Sometimes Through Timidity Weakness

Quote Author

Francois de La Rochefoucauld
French - Writer
September 15, 1613 - March 17, 1680

The passions do very often give birth to others of a nature most contrary to their own. Thus avarice sometimes brings forth prodigality, and prodigality avarice; a man's resolution is very often the effect of levity, and his boldness that of cowardice and fear.

Francois de La Rochefoucauld

Gaming is the child of avarice, but the parent of prodigality.

Charles Caleb Colton

Avarice has ruined more men than prodigality, and the blindest thoughtlessness of expenditure has not destroyed so many fortunes as the calculating but insatiable lust of accumulation.

Charles Caleb Colton

Prodigality is indeed the vice of a weak nature, as avarice is of a strong one; it comes of a weak craving for those blandishments of the world which are easily to be had for money, and which, when obtained, are as much worse than worthless as a harlot's love is worse than none.

Henry Taylor

The passions often engender their contraries.

Francois de La Rochefoucauld

That plenty should produce either covetousness or prodigality is a perversion of providence; and yet the generality of men are the worse for their riches.

William Penn

Avarice, the spur of industry, is so obstinate a passion, and works its way through so many real dangers and difficulties, that it is not likely to be scared by an imaginary danger, which is so small, that it scarcely admits of calculation. Commerce, therefore, in my opinion, is apt to decay in absolute governments, not because it is there less secure, but because it is less honourable.

David Hume

The injury of prodigality leads to this, that he who will not economize will have to agonize.

Confucius

Great nations are never impoverished by private, though they sometimes are by public prodigality and misconduct.

Adam Smith

Often we are firm from weakness, and audacious from timidity.

Francois de La Rochefoucauld

The prodigality of millionaires is comparable only to their greed of gain. Let some whim or passion seize them and money is of no account. In fact these Croesuses find whims and passions harder to come by than gold.

Honore de Balzac

We are more often treacherous through weakness than through calculation.

Francois de La Rochefoucauld

Whatever thrift is, it is not avarice. Avarice is not generous; and, after all, it is the thrifty people who are generous.

Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery

It is by bribing, not so often by being bribed, that wicked politicians bring ruin on mankind. Avarice is a rival to the pursuits of many.

Edmund Burke

It is not the nature of avarice to be satisfied with anything but money. Every passion that acts upon mankind has a peculiar mode of operation. Many of them are temporary and fluctuating; they admit of cessation and variety. But avarice is a fixed, uniform passion.