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

Joseph Addison Playwright

  • Gender: Male
  • Citizenship: England
  • Born: May 1, 1672
  • Died: Jun 17, 1719

Joseph Addison was an English essayist, poet, playwright, and politician. He was the eldest son of The Reverend Lancelot Addison. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend, Richard Steele, with whom he founded The Spectator magazine.

Cheerfulness is the best promoter of health and is as friendly to the mind as to the body. best & health

I will indulge my sorrows, and give way to all the pangs and fury of despair. sympathy

The greatest sweetener of human life is Friendship. To raise this to the highest pitch of enjoyment, is a secret which but few discover. friendship

A man must be both stupid and uncharitable who believes there is no virtue or truth but on his own side. truth

Young men soon give, and soon forget, affronts old age is slow in both. age

Music, the greatest good that mortals know and all of heaven we have hear below. music

To be an atheist requires an indefinitely greater measure of faith than to recieve all the great truths which atheism would deny. faith & great

What sculpture is to a block of marble, education is to the soul. education

A just and reasonable modesty does not only recommend eloquence, but sets off every great talent which a man can be possessed of. great

Nothing is more gratifying to the mind of man than power or dominion. power

To be perfectly just is an attribute of the divine nature to be so to the utmost of our abilities, is the glory of man. nature

Mutability of temper and inconsistency with ourselves is the greatest weakness of human nature. nature

Men may change their climate, but they cannot change their nature. A man that goes out a fool cannot ride or sail himself into common sense. change & nature

No oppression is so heavy or lasting as that which is inflicted by the perversion and exorbitance of legal authority. legal

Nothing is capable of being well set to music that is not nonsense. music

A woman seldom asks advice before she has bought her wedding clothes. wedding

There is nothing more requisite in business than despatch. business

A cloudy day or a little sunshine have as great an influence on many constitutions as the most recent blessings or misfortunes. great

If we hope for what we are not likely to possess, we act and think in vain, and make life a greater dream and shadow than it really is. hope

The utmost extent of man's knowledge, is to know that he knows nothing. knowledge

The fear of death often proves mortal, and sets people on methods to save their Lives, which infallibly destroy them. death & fear

There is not so variable a thing in nature as a lady's head-dress. nature

Three grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love, and something to hope for. happiness, hope, life & love

There is nothing that makes its way more directly into the soul than beauty. beauty