A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
307 Aristotle Quotes and Sayings Score
Knowledge is power 88
First¸ have a definite¸ clear practical ideal¸ a goal¸ an objective. Second¸ have the necessary means to achieve your ends¸ wisdom¸ money¸ materials¸ and methods. Third¸ adjust all your means to that end 88
The one exclusive sign of thorough knowledge is the power of teaching 88
The secret to humor is surprise 86
The wise man does not expose himself needlessly to danger¸ since there are few things for which he cares sufficiently¸ but he is willing¸ in great crises¸ to give even his life - knowing that under certain conditions it is not worthwhile to live 86
Educated men are as much superior to uneducated men as the living are to the dead 85
We should behave to our friends as we would wish our friends to behave to us 85
The only stable state is the one in which all men are equal before the law 85
In making a speech one must study three points: first¸ the means of producing persuasion¸ second¸ the language¸ third the proper arrangement of the various parts of the speech 85
We become just by performing just action¸ temperate by performing temperate actions¸ brave by performing brave action 85
Well begun is half done 84
Good habits formed at youth make all the difference 84
What we have to learn to do¸ we learn by doing 83
The ideal man bears the accidents of life with dignity and grace¸ making the best of circumstances 83
It is the mark of an instructed mind to rest assured with that degree of precision that the nature of the subject admits¸ and not to seek exactness when only an approximation of the truth is possible 83
We cannot learn without pain 82
He who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander 82
With regard to excellence¸ it is not enough to know¸ but we must try to have and use it 82
The aim of the wise is not to secure pleasure¸ but to avoid pain 82
Dignity consists not in possessing honors¸ but in the consciousness that we deserve them 81
The whole is more than the sum of its parts 81
The mould of a man's fortune is in his own hands 79
The roots of education are bitter¸ but the fruit is sweet 79
A true friend is one soul in two bodies 79
Quality is not an act¸ it is a habit 79
Moral excellence comes about as a result of habit. We become just by doing just acts¸ temperate by doing temperate acts¸ brave by doing brave acts 79
Those who excel in virtue have the best right of all to rebel¸ but then they are of all men the least inclined to do so 79
Fear is pain arising from the anticipation of evil 78
They should rule who are able to rule best 77
It is more difficult to organize a peace than to win a war¸ but the fruits of victory will be lost if the peace is not organized 77
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence¸ then¸ is not an act¸ but a habit 77
To run away from trouble is a form of cowardice and¸ while it is true that the suicide braves death¸ he does it not for some noble object but to escape some ill 77
The beginning of reform is not so much to equalize property as to train the noble sort of natures not to desire more¸ and to prevent the lower from getting more 77
No notice is taken of a little evil¸ but when it increases it strikes the eye 76
Bad men are full of repentance 76
People become house builders through building houses¸ harp players through playing the harp. We grow to be just by doing things which are just 76
The beginning is the most important part of the work 76
Misfortune shows those who are not really friends 75
There are three classes of men - lovers of wisdom¸ lovers of honour¸ lovers of gain 75
You will never do anything in this world without courage. It is the greatest quality of the mind next to honor 75
Inferiors revolt in order that they may be equal¸ and equals that they may be superior. Such is the state of mind which creates revolutions 75
Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence¸ but we rather have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence¸ then¸ is not an act but a habit 75
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it 75
Every action must be due to one or other of seven causes: chance¸ nature¸ compulsion¸ habit¸ reasoning¸ anger¸ or appetite 74
Youth is easily deceived because it is quick to hope 74
Man is a goal seeking animal. His life only has meaning if he is reaching out and striving for his goals 74
Poverty is the parent of revolution and crime 74
The antidote for fifty enemies is one friend 74
Happiness depends upon ourselves 74
There is a cropping-time in the races of men¸ as in the fruits of the field¸ and sometimes¸ if the stock be good¸ there springs up for a time a succession of splendid men¸ and then comes a period of barrenness 74
Friendship is essentially a partnership 74
Between friends there is no need of justice 73
The greatest thing in style is to have a command of metaphor 73
A friend to all is a friend to none 73
The beauty of the soul shines out when a man bears with composure one heavy mischance after another¸ not because he does not feel them¸ but because he is a man of high and heroic temper 73
Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies 73
Men acquire a particular quality by constantly acting in a particular way 73
As empty vessels make the loudest sound¸ so they that have the least wit are the greatest blabbers 72
How many a dispute could have been deflated into a single paragraph if the disputants had dared to define their terms? 72
A flatterer is a friend who is your inferior¸ or pretends to be so 72
The most perfect political community is one in which the middle class is in control¸ and outnumbers both of the other classes 72
Excellence¸ then¸ is a state concerned with choice¸ lying in a mean¸ relative to us¸ this being determined by reason and in the way in which the man of practical wisdom would determine it 72
Nature does nothing in vain 72
No one loves the man whom he fears 71
It is the nature of desire not to be satisfied¸ and most men live only for the gratification of it 71
We make war that we may live in peace 71
All who have meditated on the art of governing mankind have been convinced that the fate of empires depends on the education of youth 71
Nature does nothing uselessly 71
We must as second best take the least of the evils 70
Boys should abstain from all use of wine until their eighteenth year¸ for it is wrong to add fire to fire 70
Happiness is the utilization of one's talents along lines of excellence 70
A good style must have an air of novelty¸ at the same time concealing its art 70
Men are swayed more by fear than by reverence 70
The law is reason¸ free from passion 70
In short¸ the habits we form from childhood make no small difference¸ but rather they make all the difference 69
Happiness belongs to the self-sufficient 69
The high minded man must care more for the truth than for what people think 69
It concerns us to know the purposes we seek in life¸ for then¸ like archers aiming at a definite mark¸ we shall be more likely to attain what we want 69
There is a foolish corner in the brain of the wisest man 69
In revolutions the occasions may be trifling but great interests are at stake 68
One day unfolds it and one day destroys 68
And yet the true creator is necessity¸ which is the mother of invention 68
That which is common to the greatest number has the least care bestowed upon it 68
If at first the idea is absurd¸ then there is no hope for it 67
Suffering becomes beautiful when anyone bears great calamities with cheerfulness¸ not through insensibility but through greatness of mind 67
Never discourage anyone who continually makes progress¸ no matter how slow 67
Law is mind without reason 67
Consider pleasures as they depart¸ not as they come 67
Virtue is more clearly shown in the performance of fine actions than in the non-performance of base ones 67
Friendship is a single soul dwelling in two bodies 67
If one way be better than another¸ that you may be sure is nature's way 67
The man who gets angry at the right things and with the right people¸ and in the right way and at the right time and for the right length of time¸ is commended 66
Law is order¸ and good law is good order 66
Be not arrogant when fortune smiles¸ or dejected when she frowns 66
Some men are just as sure of the truth of their opinions as are others of what they know 66
The family is the association established by nature for the supply of man's everyday wants 66
In the arena of human life the honors and rewards fall to those who show their good qualities in action 66
A likely impossibility is always preferable to an unconvincing possibility 66
To be conscious that we are perceiving or thinking is to be conscious of our own existence 66
Even when laws have been written down¸ they ought not always to remain unaltered 66
We give up leisure in order that we may have leisure¸ just as we go to war in order that we may have peace 65
Men in general desire the good¸ and not merely what their fathers had 65
If women are expected to do the same work as men¸ we must teach them the same things 65
It will contribute towards one's object¸ who wishes to acquire a facility in the gaining of knowledge¸ to doubt judiciously 65
He who hath many friends hath none 65
One swallow does not make a summer¸ neither does one fine day¸ similarly one day or brief time of happiness does not make a person entirely happy 65
Every rascal is not a thief¸ but every thief is a rascal 64
Bodily exercise¸ when compulsory¸ does no harm to the body¸ but knowledge acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind 64
Revolutions are not about trifles¸ but spring from trifles 64
It is well to be up before daybreak¸ for such habits contribute to health¸ wealth¸ and wisdom 64
Democracy¸ for example¸ arises out of the notion that those who are equal in any respect are equal in all respects¸ because men are equally free¸ they claim to be absolutely equal 64
Equality consists in the same treatment of similar persons 63
The goal of war is peace¸ of business¸ leisure 63
To give a satisfactory decision as to the truth it is necessary to be rather an arbitrator than a party to the dispute 63
Character is that which reveals moral purpose¸ exposing the class of things a man chooses or avoids 63
Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work 63
Time crumbles things¸ everything grows old under the power of time and is forgotten through the lapse of Time 63
Evil brings men together 62
The ideal man is his own best friend and takes delight in privacy 62
Wicked men obey from fear¸ good men¸ from love 62
The educated differ from the uneducated as much as the living from the dead 62
No one will dare maintain that it is better to do injustice than to bear it 62
One swallow does not make spring 62
To write well¸ express yourself like common people¸ but think like a wise man. Or¸ think as wise men do¸ but speak as the common people do 62
I have gained this from philosophy: that I do without being commanded what others do only from fear of the law 62
Liars¸ when they speak the truth are not believed 61
In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous 61
In poverty and other misfortunes of life¸ true friends are a sure refuge. The young they keep out of mischief¸ to the old they are a comfort and aid in their weakness¸ and those in the prime of life they incite to noble deeds 61
What is a friend? A single soul dwelling in two bodies 61
It is simplicity that makes the uneducated more effective than the educated when addressing popular audiences 60
Thou wilt find rest from vain fancies if thou doest every act in life as though it were thy last 60
Those who are too smart to engage in politics are punished by being governed by those who are dumber 59
The two qualities which chiefly inspire regard and affection are that a thing is your own and that it is your only one 59
While both [Plato and truth] are dear¸ piety requires us to honor truth above our friends 59
We can do noble acts without ruling the earth and sea 59
Of mankind in general¸ the parts are greater than the whole 59
Men create gods after their own image¸ not only with regard to their form but with regard to their mode of life 59
The best political community is formed by citizens of the middle class 59
Whosoever is delighted in solitude is either a wild beast or a god 58
All persons ought to endeavor to follow what is right¸ and not what is established 58
Man is by nature a political animal 58
To live happily is an inward power of the soul 58
Those that know¸ do. Those that understand¸ teach 57
Personal beauty is a greater recommendation than any letter of reference 57
Bring your desires down to your present means. Increase them only when your increased means permit 57
No one would choose a friendless existence on condition of having all the other things in the world 57
There are things which seem incredible to most men who have not studied mathematics 57
It is not once nor twice but times without number that the same ideas make their appearance in the world 57
Mothers are fonder than fathers of their children because they are more certain they are their own 56
The life which is unexamined is not worth living 56
Men regard it as their right to return evil for evil - and if they cannot¸ feel they have lost their liberty 56
Repentant tears wash out the stain of guilt 56
It is not always the same thing to be a good man and a good citizen 56
A friend is a second self 56
Education is the best provision for old age 56
The continuum is that which is divisible into indivisibles that are infinitely divisible 56
The generality of men are naturally apt to be swayed by fear rather than reverence¸ and to refrain from evil rather because of the punishment that it brings than because of its own foulness 56
All men by nature desire knowledge 56
He who can be¸ and therefore is¸ another's¸ and he who participates in reason enough to apprehend¸ but not to have¸ is a slave by nature 55
Piety requires us to honor truth above our friends 55
If happiness is activity in accordance with excellence¸ it is reasonable that it should be in accordance with the highest excellence 55
The body is most fully developed from thirty to thirty-five years of age¸ the mind at about forty-nine 55
The basis of a democratic state is liberty 55
A man is the origin of his action 55
It is easy to perform a good action¸ but not easy to acquire a settled habit of performing such actions 55
It was through the feeling of wonder that men now and at first began to philosophize 55
It is best to rise from life as from a banquet¸ neither thirsty nor drunken 55
Wit is educated insolence 55
No man will revel long in the indulgence of crime 54
The true end of tragedy is to purify the passions 54
It is in justice that the ordering of society is centered 54
Man¸ when perfected¸ is the best of animals¸ but¸ when separated from law and justice¸ he is the worst of all 54
Where some people are very wealthy and others have nothing¸ the result will be either extreme democracy or absolute oligarchy¸ or despotism will come from either of those excesses 54
Politicians also have no leisure¸ because they are always aiming at something beyond political life itself¸ power and glory¸ or happiness 54
A whole is that which has beginning¸ middle and end 54
To Thales the primary question was not what do we know¸ but how do we know it 54
But Nature flies from the infinite¸ for the infinite is unending or imperfect¸ and Nature ever seeks an end 54
The energy of the mind is the essence of life 54
It is just that we should be grateful¸ not only to those with whose views we may agree¸ but also to those who have expressed more superficial views¸ for these also contributed something¸ by developing before us the powers of thought 54
Those who educate children well are more to be honored than they who produce them¸ for these only gave them life¸ those the art of living well 53
In nine cases out of ten¸ a woman had better show more affection than she feels 53
He who is to be a good ruler must have first been ruled 53
It seems that ambition makes most people wish to be loved rather than to love others 53
I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies¸ for the hardest victory is over self 53
Thinking is sometimes injurious to health 53
We praise a man who feels angry on the right grounds and against the right persons and also in the right manner at the right moment and for the right length of time 53
Humor is the only test of gravity¸ and gravity of humor¸ for a subject which will not bear raillery is suspicious¸ and a jest which will not bear serious examination is false wit 53
There is no great genius without a mixture of madness 53
Every art and every inquiry¸ and similarly every action and choice¸ is thought to aim at some good¸ and for this reason the good has rightly been declared to be that at which all things aim 53
We cannot prove geometrical truths by arithmetic 52
The mathematical sciences particularly exhibit order¸ symmetry¸ and limitation¸ and these are the greatest forms of the beautiful 52
The so-called Pythagoreans¸ who were the first to take up mathematics¸ not only advanced this subject¸ but saturated with it¸ they fancied that the principles of mathematics were the principles of all things 52
There was never a genius without a tincture of madness 52
A tragedy is the imitation of an action that is serious and also¸ as having magnitude¸ complete in itself¸ with incidents arousing pity and fear¸ wherewith to accomplish its catharsis of such emotions 52
The moral virtues¸ then¸ are produced in us neither by nature nor against nature. Nature¸ indeed¸ prepares in us the ground for their reception¸ but their complete formation is the product of habit 52
If this is a straight line¸ then it necessarily ensues that the sum of the angles of the triangle is equal to two right angles¸ and conversely¸ if the sum is not equal to two right angles¸ then neither is the triangle rectilinear 52
Wretched¸ ephemeral race¸ children of chance and tribulation¸ why do you force me to tell you the very thing which it would be most profitable for you not to hear? The very best thing is utterly beyond your reach: not to have been born¸ not to be¸ to be nothing. However¸ the second best thing for you is: to die soon 51
The worst form of inequality is to try to make unequal things equal 51
The coward calls the brave man rash¸ the rash man calls him a coward 51
What it lies in our power to do¸ it lies in our power not to do 51
Hippocrates is an excellent geometer but a complete fool in everyday affairs 51
A state is not a mere society¸ having a common place¸ established for the prevention of mutual crime and for the sake of exchange. Political society exists for the sake of noble actions¸ and not of mere companionship 51
Our account does not rob mathematicians of their science¸ by disproving the actual existence of the infinite in the direction of increase¸ in the sense of the untraceable. In point of fact they do not need the infinite and do not use it. They postulate any that the finite straight line may be produced as far as they wish 51
The end of labor is to gain leisure 50
Plato is dear to me¸ but dearer still is truth 50
Numbers are intellectual witnesses that belong only to mankind 50
Every science and every inquiry¸ and similarly every activity and pursuit¸ is thought to aim at some good 50
The flute is not an instrument that has a good moral effect¸ it is too exciting 49
Obstinate people can be divided into the opinionated¸ the ignorant¸ and the boorish 49
It is possible to fail in many ways¸ while to succeed is possible only in one way 49
For as the eyes of bats are to the blaze of day¸ so is the reason in our soul to the things which are by nature most evident of all 49
Of this alone even God is deprived¸ the power of making things that are past never to have been 49
Praise invariably implies a reference to a higher standard 49
Philosophy is the science which considers truth 49
Ancient laws remain in force long after the people have the power to change them 49
Custom is second nature 49
Courage is a mean with regard to fear and confidence 49
Republics decline into democracies and democracies degenerate into despotisms 48
Beauty is the gift of God 48
Young people are in a condition like permanent intoxication¸ because youth is sweet and they are growing 48
Man is by nature a civic animal 48
There are some who¸ because the point is the limit and extreme of the line¸ the line of the plane¸ and the plane of the solid¸ think there must be real things of this sort 48
The brain is not responsible for any of the sensations at all. The correct view is that the seat and source of sensation is the region of the heart 48
Now that practical skills have developed enough to provide adequately for material needs¸ one of these sciences which are not devoted to utilitarian ends [mathematics] has been able to arise in Egypt¸ the priestly caste there having the leisure necessary for disinterested research 48
It is unbecoming for young men to utter maxims 48
The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things¸ but their inward significance 47
Great men are always of a nature originally melancholy 47
Art not only imitates nature¸ but also completes it deficiencies 47
Man is manifestly the most bald of all animals 47
A sense is what has the power of receiving into itself the sensible forms of things without the matter¸ in the way in which a piece of wax takes on the impress of a signet-ring without the iron or gold 47
No great genius has ever existed without some touch of madness 46
No excellent soul is exempt from a mixture of madness 46
It often happens¸ that misery will follow a marriage when the dowry is too large 45
The price of justice is eternal publicity 45
No one finds fault with defects which are the result of nature 45
All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind 45
My best friend is the man who in wishing me well wishes it for my sake 45
The best friend is the man who in wishing me well wishes it for my sake 45
If the consequences are the same it is always better to assume the more limited antecedent¸ since in things of nature the limited¸ as being better¸ is sure to be found¸ wherever possible¸ rather than the unlimited 45
Memory is the scribe of the soul 44
A nose which varies from the ideal of straightness to a hook or snub may still be of good shape and agreeable to the eye 44
At his best¸ man is the noblest of all animals¸ separated from law and justice he is the worst 44
Education is an ornament in prosperity and a refuge in adversity 44
We must no more ask whether the soul and body are one than ask whether the wax and the figure impressed on it are one 44
The least initial deviation from the truth is multiplied later a thousandfold 43
Stay a little¸ that we may make an end the sooner 43
To perceive is to suffer 43
Temperance is a mean with regard to pleasures 43
The chief forms of beauty are order and symmetry and definiteness¸ which the mathematical sciences demonstrate in a special degree 43
Anybody can become angry - that is easy¸ but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose¸ and in the right way - that is not within everybody's power and is not easy 43
Law means good order 42
Without friends no one would choose to live¸ though he had all other goods 42
The soul never thinks without a picture 42
For as the interposition of a rivulet¸ however small¸ will occasion the line of the phalanx to fluctuate¸ so any trifling disagreement will be the cause of seditions 42
A great city is not to be confounded with a populous one 42
While those whom devotion to abstract discussions has rendered unobservant of the facts are too ready to dogmatize on the basis of a few observations 41
If purpose¸ then¸ is inherent in art¸ so is it in Nature also. The best illustration is the case of a man being his own physician¸ for Nature is like that - agent and patient at once 41
The virtue of justice consists in moderation¸ as regulated by wisdom 41
To enjoy the things we ought and to hate the things we ought has the greatest bearing on excellence of character 41
The greatest virtues are those which are most useful to other persons 41
A tyrant must put on the appearance of uncommon devotion to religion. Subjects are less apprehensive of illegal treatment from a ruler whom they consider god-fearing and pious. On the other hand¸ they do less easily move against him¸ believing that he has the gods on his side 40
All that we do is done with an eye to something else 40
What the statesman is most anxious to produce is a certain moral character in his fellow citizens¸ namely a disposition to virtue and the performance of virtuous actions 40
Let the blacksmith wear the chains he has himself made 39
Wishing to be friends is quick work¸ but friendship is a slow ripening fruit 39
Bashfulness is an ornament to youth¸ but a reproach to old age 39
The actuality of thought is life 39
Character may almost be called the most effective means of persuasion 39
Homer has taught all other poets the art of telling lies skillfully 38
It is Homer who has chiefly taught other poets the art of telling lies skillfully 38
The young are permanently in a state resembling intoxication 38
The gods too are fond of a joke 38
Change in all things is sweet 38
Justice is that virtue of the soul which is distributive according to desert 38
All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance¸ nature¸ compulsions¸ habit¸ reason¸ passion¸ desire 38
For one swallow does not make a summer¸ nor does one day¸ and so too one day¸ or a short time¸ does not make a man blessed and happy 38
For though we love both the truth and our friends¸ piety requires us to honor the truth first 38
Poetry is finer and more philosophical than history¸ for poetry expresses the universal¸ and history only the particular 38
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 37
You ask me if I keep a notebook to record my great ideas. I've only ever had one 37
A tragedy is a representation of an action that is whole and complete and of a certain magnitude. A whole is what has a beginning and middle and end 37
Most people would rather give than get affection 37
It is of itself that the divine thought thinks¸ and its thinking is a thinking on thinking 37
Hope is a waking dream 36
Hope is the dream of a waking man 36
If you are dreaded by many then beware of many 36
This is the reason why mothers are more devoted to their children than fathers: it is that they suffer more in giving them birth and are more certain that they are their own 36
Probable impossibilities are to be preferred to improbable possibilities 36
Perfect friendship is the friendship of men who are good¸ and alike in excellence¸ for these wish well alike to each other equal good¸ and they are good in themselves 36
In a democracy the poor will have more power than the rich¸ because there are more of them¸ and the will of the majority is supreme 36
Democracy is when the indigent¸ and not the men of property¸ are the rulers 35
The final cause¸ then¸ produces motion through being loved 35
How God ever brings like to like 35
If liberty and equality¸ as is thought by some¸ are chiefly to be found in democracy¸ they will be best attained when all persons alike share in government to the utmost 35
The ultimate value of life depends upon awareness and the power of contemplation rather than upon mere survival 33
Of all the varieties of virtues¸ liberalism is the most beloved 33
Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees the others 33
Democracy arises out of the notion that those who are equal in any respect are equal in all respects¸ because men are equally free¸ they claim to be absolutely equal 32
A constitution is the arrangement of magistracies in a state 32
Anaxagoras avails himself of mind as an artificial device for producing order¸ and drags it in whenever he is at a loss to explain some necessary result¸ but otherwise he makes anything rather than mind the cause of what happens 31
It is clearly better that property should be private¸ but the use of it common¸ and the special business of the legislator is to create in men this benevolent disposition 30
Jealousy is both reasonable and belongs to reasonable men¸ while envy is base and belongs to the base¸ for the one makes himself get good things by jealousy¸ while the other does not allow his neighbour to have them through envy 29
Both oligarch and tyrant mistrust the people¸ and therefore deprive them of their arms 28
Different men seek after happiness in different ways and by different means¸ and so make for themselves different modes of life and forms of government 28
All virtue is summed up in dealing justly 26
The state is a creation of nature and man is by nature a political animal 24
Therefore¸ the good of man must be the end of the science of politics 24