Quotes and anectdotes from the wise to the foolish, and the courageous to the drunk

Denis Diderot Philosopher

  • Gender: Male
  • Citizenship: France
  • Born: Oct 5, 1713
  • Died: Jul 31, 1784

Denis Diderot was a French philosopher, art critic and writer. He was a prominent figure during the Enlightenment and is best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor and contributor to the Encyclopédie along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert.

Diderot also contributed to literature, notably with Jacques le fataliste et son maître, which was influenced by Laurence Sterne's novel Tristam Shandy in challenging conventions regarding novels and their structure and content, while also examining philosophical ideas about free will. Diderot is also known as the author of the dialogue Le Neveu de Rameau, upon which many articles and sermons about consumer desire have been based.

The best doctor is the one you run to and can't find. best & medical

Man will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest. government

Poetry must have something in it that is barbaric, vast and wild. poetry

Pithy sentences are like sharp nails which force truth upon our memory. truth

There is only one passion, the passion for happiness. happiness

Good music is very close to primitive language. music

People praise virtue, but they hate it, they run away from it. It freezes you to death, and in this world you've got to keep your feet warm. death

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has killed a great many philosophers. great

We swallow greedily any lie that flatters us, but we sip only little by little at a truth we find bitter. truth

No man has received from nature the right to command his fellow human beings. nature

The general interest of the masses might take the place of the insight of genius if it were allowed freedom of action. freedom

Morals are in all countries the result of legislation and government they are not African or Asian or European: they are good or bad. government

There are things I can't force. I must adjust. There are times when the greatest change needed is a change of my viewpoint. change

It is not human nature we should accuse but the despicable conventions that pervert it. nature

Patriotism is an ephemeral motive that scarcely ever outlasts the particular threat to society that aroused it. patriotism & society

Only passions, great passions can elevate the soul to great things. great