French playwright, Moliere, gave French literature a new life when he started writing comedies, tragicomedies, farces, and comédie-ballets.
While he is famous for bringing comedy into French literature, he is also best known for his controversial work, 'Tartuffe'. The controversy around this led to the Catholic Church banning the piece.
One of the main reasons Moliere's quotes should be read is that he blatantly speaks of reality without sugar-coating, like he has called man to be a 'nasty creature' and also how there is 'more glory' in overcoming a tougher hurdle. Not only what he has spoken about is the harsh reality of human behavior but also society.
Let us look at some of his quotes to know ourselves and the people around us better!
Interesting Moliere Quotes
Let us take a sneak peek into Moliere'sunique perspective!
“Of all the noises known to man, opera is the most expensive.” - Moliere.
“All the ills of mankind, all the tragic misfortunes that fill the history books, all the political blunders, all the failures of the great leaders have arisen merely from a lack of skill at dancing.” - Moliere.
“A heart that is in love can never offend, and finds excuses for whatever love may do.” - Moliere, 'Don Garcia of Navarre or the Jealous Prince', Act II, Scene VI, 1661.
“It is the public scandal that offends; to sin in secret is no sin at all.” - Moliere.
“There is no secret of the heart which our actions do not disclose.” - Moliere.
"Love is a great master. It teaches us to be what we never were." - Moliere, 'The School for Wives', Act III, Scene IV, 1662.
“Each day my reason tells me so; But reason doesn’t rule in love, you know.” - Moliere.
“A learned fool is more a fool than an ignorant fool.” - Moliere, 'The Learned Ladies', Act IV, Scene III, 1672.
“The true touchstone of wit is the impromptu.” - Moliere
“We die only once, and for such a long time.” - Moliere,'The Love-Tiff ', Act V, Scene III, 1656.
"If everyone were clothed with integrity,
If every heart were just, frank, kindly,
The other virtues would be well-nigh useless,
Since their chief purpose is to make us bear with patience
The injustice of our fellows."
- Moliere, 'The Misanthrope', Act V, Scene I, 1666.
“I prefer an interesting vice to a virtue that bores.” - Moliere.
“A woman's head is like a weathercock on the top of a house, which veers about at the slightest breeze.” - Moliere, 'The Love-Tiff', Act IV, Scene II, 1656.
“Beauty without intelligence is like a hook without bait.” - Moliere.
“Solitude terrifies the soul at twenty.” - Moliere.
“It is better to die according to rule than to recover in violation of it.” - Moliere, 'Love Is the Doctor', Act II, Scene V, 1665.
“It is a wonderful seasoning of all enjoyments to think of those we love.” - Moliere.
“It's always the most ridiculous people who are the first to slander others.” - Moliere, 'Tartuffe', Act I, Scene I, 1664.
“He who wants to drown his dog accuses him of being mad.” - Moliere, 'The Learned Ladies', Act II, Scene VI, 1672.
“I have the fault of being a little more sincere than is proper.” - Moliere.
“Silence itself is enough to show the impulses of a heart.” - Moliere, 'Don Garcia of Navarre'/'The Jealous Prince', Act I, Scene I, 1661.
“The more we love our friends, the less we flatter them; It is by excusing nothing that pure love shows itself.” - Moliere, The Misanthrope, 1666.
“People are easily duped by those whom they love, and conceit is apt to deceive itself.” - Moliere, 'Tartuffe', Act IV, Scene III, 1664.
“Reason is not what decides love.” - Moliere.
“Curiosity is the daughter of jealousy.” - Moliere, 'Don Garcia of Navarre or the Jealous Prince', Act II, Scene V, 1661.
“The proof of true love is to be unsparing in criticism.” - Moliere.
Moliere Quotes About Life
Let's see through Moliere's quotes how he spoke about life and people and their ways!
(Moliere's plays are widely regarded among the best even after centuries)
“Nearly all men die of their remedies, not of their diseases.” - Moliere, 'The Imaginary Invalid', Act III, Scene III, 1673.
“It infuriates me to be wrong when I know I'm right.” - Moliere.
“A fool who says nothing cannot be distinguished from a wise man who holds his tongue.” - Moliere, 'The Love-Tiff', Act II, Scene VI, 1656.
“One ought to look a good deal at oneself before thinking of condemning others.” - Moliere.
“Doubts are more cruel than the worst of truths.” - Moliere.
“True love shows itself by overlooking nothing.” - Moliere, 'The Misanthrope', Act II, Scene IV, 1666.
“Without knowledge, life is no more than the shadow of death.” - Moliere.
“I hate all men, the ones because they are mean and vicious, and the others for being complaisant with the vicious ones.” - Moliere
“The greatest failing in men is their love of life.” - Moliere, 'Love Is the Doctor', Act III, Scene I, 1665.
“Man, I can assure you, is a nasty creature.” - Moliere.
“All men are alike in their words; their actions only show them to be different.” - Moliere, 'The Miser', Act I, Scene I, 1668.
“Men are alike in their promises. It is only in their deeds that they differ.” - Moliere.
“I want people to be sincere; a man of honor shouldn't speak a single word that doesn't come straight from his heart.” - Moliere.
“It is pleasant for money to come into our purse; but when the time comes that we have to give it back, then the pangs of labour seize us.” - Moliere, 'The Blunderer'/ 'The Counterplots', Act I, Scene V, 1655.
“Gold makes the ugly beautiful.” - Moliere.
“Don't appear so scholarly, pray. Humanize your talk, and speak to be understood.” - Moliere.
“People do not mind being wicked, but they object to being made ridiculous.” - Moliere, 'Tartuffe', Preface, 1664.
“Of all follies, there is none greater than wanting to make the world a better place.” - Moliere.
“It is not only what we do, but also what we do not do, for which we are accountable.” - Moliere.
“Hypocrisy is a fashionable vice, and all fashionable vices pass for virtue.” - Moliere, 'Don Juan'/'The Stone Banquet', Act V, Scene II, 1665.
“People spend most of their lives worrying about things that never happen.” - Moliere.
“I find medicine is the best of all trades because whether you do any good or not you still. Get your money.” - Moliere.
“The most effective way of attacking vice is to expose it to public ridicule. People can put up with rebukes but they cannot bear being laughed at: they are prepared to be wicked but they dislike appearing ridiculous.” - Moliere, 'The Misanthrope and Other Plays'.
Motivating Moliere Quotes
Here are some Moliere quotes to get inspired and pull up our socks!
“A wise man is superior to any insults which can be put upon him, and the best reply to unseemly behavior is patience and moderation.” - Moliere, 'The Bourgeois Gentleman', Act II, Scene IV, 1670.
“The absence of what love, however short, is always too long.” - Moliere, 'Amphitryon', Act II, Scene II, 1668.
“Unbroken happiness is a bore: it should have ups and downs.” - Moliere.
“The less we deserve a happiness which has been promised us, the greater is the difficulty we feel in believing in it.” - Moliere, 'Don Garcia of Navarre or the Jealous Prince', Act II, Scene VI, 1661.
“Every good act is charity. A man's true wealth hereafter is the good that he does in this world to his fellows.” - Moliere.
“Words and deeds are far from being one. Much that is talked about is left undone.” - Moliere.
“To inspire love is a woman's greatest ambition, believe me. It's the one thing woman care about and there's no woman so proud that she does not rejoice at heart in her conquests.” - Moliere.
“Appearances very often deceive us. You must not always judge by what you see.” - Moliere, 'Tartuffe', Act V, Scene III, 1664.
“Some of the most famous books are the least worth reading. Their fame was due to their having done something that needed to be done in their day. The work is done and the virtue of the book has expired.” - Moliere.
“The trees that are slow to grow, bear the best fruit.” - Moliere, 'The Imaginary Invalid', Act II, Scene V, 1673.
“If we are too wise, we may be equally to blame.” - Moliere, 'The Misanthrope', Act I, Scene I, 1666.
“No one is safe from slander. The best way is to pay no attention to it, but live in innocence and let the world talk.” - Moliere.
“The more exalted my rank, the more glaring becomes the insult.” - Moliere, 'Psyche', Prologue, 1671.
Moliere Quotes About Success
Moliere talks about how patience and moderation are the best way to succeed!
"One of the weaknesses of human nature is the curiosity to learn things which it would not like to know."
- Moliere, 'Amphitryon', Act II, Scene III, 1668.
“The less we deserve good fortune, the more we hope for it.” - Moliere.
“Preference must be based on esteem, and to esteem everyone, is to esteem no one.” - Moliere, 'The Misanthrope', Act I, Scene I, 1666.
“When you model yourself on people, you should try to resemble their good sides.” - Moliere.
“There is no fate more distressing for an artist than to have to show himself off before fools, to see his work exposed to the criticism of the vulgar and ignorant.” - Moliere.
“Consult Reason, take her for your guide.” - Moliere, 'Don Garcia of Navarre or the Jealous Prince', Act II, Scene IV, 1661.
“True enough, none so deaf as those who will not hear.” - Moliere, 'Love Is the Doctor', Act I, Scene IV, 1665.
“The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it.” - Moliere.
“There is no doubt that he will do all he can, and if he has money he can do all he will.” - Moliere, 'The Blunderer'/'The Counterplots', Act II, Scene VII, 1655.
“The secret to fencing consists in two things: to give and to not receive.” - Moliere.
“That virtue here is persecuted ever, that envious men may die, but envy never.” - Moliere, 'Tartuffe', Act V, Scene III, 1664.
“The art of flatterers is to take advantage of the foibles of the great, to foster their errors, and never to give advice which may annoy.” - Moliere.
“In the age in which we live, people give nothing for nothing.” - Moliere, 'The School for Wives', Act III, Scene II, 1662.
“Great is the fortune of he who possesses a good bottle, a good book, and a good friend.” - Moliere.
“People of quality know everything without ever having learned anything.” - Moliere, 'The Ridiculous Précieuses', Scene 9, 1659.
