Quotes of Georg C. Lichtenberg

“ One’s first step in wisdom is to question everything—and one’s last is to come to terms with everything. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Wisdom

“ A person reveals his character by nothing so clearly as the joke he resents. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Character

“ The fly that does not want to be swatted is safest if it sits on the fly-swat. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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908

Sit

“ Do we write books so that they shall merely be read? Don't we also write them for employment in the household? For one that is read from start to finish, thousands are leafed through, other thousands lie motionless, others are jammed against mouse holes, thrown at rats, others are stood on, sat on, drummed on, have gingerbread baked on them or are used to light pipes. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Sit

“ The fly that does not want to be swatted is safest if it sits on the fly-swat. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Fly

“ The fly that doesn't want to be swatted is most secure when it lights on the fly-swatter. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Fly

“ The fly that does not want to be swatted is safest if it sits on the fly-swat. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Speed

“ Good taste is either that which agrees with my taste or that which subjects itself to the rule of reason. From this we can see how useful it is to employ reason in seeking out the laws of taste. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Rule

“ There is no more important rule of conduct in the world than this: attach yourself as much as you can to people who are abler than you and yet not so very different that you cannot understand them. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Rule

“ What most clearly characterizes true freedom and its true employment is its misemployment. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Freedom

“ Reason now gazes above the realm of the dark but warm feelings as the Alpine peaks do above the clouds. They behold the sun more clearly and distinctly, but they are cold and unfruitful. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Area

“ If this is philosophy it is at any rate a philosophy that is not in its right mind. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Appraise

“ We cannot remember too often that when we observe nature, and especially the ordering of nature, it is always ourselves alone we are observing. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Arrangement

“ There exists a species of transcendental ventriloquism by means of which men can be made to believe that something said on earth comes from Heaven. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Augury

“ With prophecies the commentator is often a more important man than the prophet. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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1.2K

Augury

“ The most perfect ape cannot draw an ape; only man can do that; but, likewise, only man regards the ability to do this as a sign of superiority. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Augury

“ The fly that does not want to be swatted is safest if it sits on the fly-swat. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Blow

“ Every man has his moral backside which he refrains from showing unless he has to and keeps covered as long as possible with the trousers of decorum. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Backside

“ Erudition can produce foliage without bearing fruit. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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4K

Bearing

“ Man is always partial and is quite right to be. Even impartiality is partial. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Biased

“ With a pen in my hand I have successfully stormed bulwarks from which others armed with sword and excommunication have been repulsed. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Bulwark

“ Man can acquire accomplishments or he can become an animal, whichever he wants. God makes the animals, man makes himself. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Bodily

“ One cannot demand of a scholar that he show himself a scholar everywhere in society, but the whole tenor of his behavior must none the less betray the thinker, he must always be instructive, his way of judging a thing must even in the smallest matters be such that people can see what it will amount to when, quietly and self-collected, he puts this power to scholarly use. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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21

Behavior

“ Man can acquire accomplishments or he can become an animal, whichever he wants. God makes the animals, man makes himself. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Beast

“ One might call habit a moral friction: something that prevents the mind from gliding over things but connects it with them and makes it hard for it to free itself from them. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Behaviour

“ A vacuum of ideas affects people differently than a vacuum of air, otherwise readers of books would be constantly collapsing. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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832

Book

“ To err is human also in so far as animals seldom or never err, or at least only the cleverest of them do so. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Blunder

“ Prejudices are so to speak the mechanical instincts of men: through their prejudices they do without any effort many things they would find too difficult to think through to the point of resolving to do them. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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Bias

“ There is a great difference between still believing something and believing it again. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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565

Believing

“ First we have to believe, and then we believe. ”

- Georg C. Lichtenberg

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3.8K

Believe

Quotes of Georg C. Lichtenberg - somelinesforyou

“ One’s first step in wisdom is to question everything—and one’s last is to come to terms with everything. ”

“ A person reveals his character by nothing so clearly as the joke he resents. ”

“ The fly that does not want to be swatted is safest if it sits on the fly-swat. ”

“ The fly that does not want to be swatted is safest if it sits on the fly-swat. ”

“ The fly that doesn't want to be swatted is most secure when it lights on the fly-swatter. ”

“ The fly that does not want to be swatted is safest if it sits on the fly-swat. ”

“ Good taste is either that which agrees with my taste or that which subjects itself to the rule of reason. From this we can see how useful it is to employ reason in seeking out the laws of taste. ”

“ There is no more important rule of conduct in the world than this: attach yourself as much as you can to people who are abler than you and yet not so very different that you cannot understand them. ”

“ What most clearly characterizes true freedom and its true employment is its misemployment. ”

“ Reason now gazes above the realm of the dark but warm feelings as the Alpine peaks do above the clouds. They behold the sun more clearly and distinctly, but they are cold and unfruitful. ”

“ If this is philosophy it is at any rate a philosophy that is not in its right mind. ”

“ We cannot remember too often that when we observe nature, and especially the ordering of nature, it is always ourselves alone we are observing. ”

“ There exists a species of transcendental ventriloquism by means of which men can be made to believe that something said on earth comes from Heaven. ”

“ With prophecies the commentator is often a more important man than the prophet. ”

“ The most perfect ape cannot draw an ape; only man can do that; but, likewise, only man regards the ability to do this as a sign of superiority. ”

“ The fly that does not want to be swatted is safest if it sits on the fly-swat. ”

“ Every man has his moral backside which he refrains from showing unless he has to and keeps covered as long as possible with the trousers of decorum. ”

“ Erudition can produce foliage without bearing fruit. ”

“ Man is always partial and is quite right to be. Even impartiality is partial. ”

“ With a pen in my hand I have successfully stormed bulwarks from which others armed with sword and excommunication have been repulsed. ”

“ Man can acquire accomplishments or he can become an animal, whichever he wants. God makes the animals, man makes himself. ”

“ Man can acquire accomplishments or he can become an animal, whichever he wants. God makes the animals, man makes himself. ”

“ One might call habit a moral friction: something that prevents the mind from gliding over things but connects it with them and makes it hard for it to free itself from them. ”

“ A vacuum of ideas affects people differently than a vacuum of air, otherwise readers of books would be constantly collapsing. ”

“ To err is human also in so far as animals seldom or never err, or at least only the cleverest of them do so. ”

“ Prejudices are so to speak the mechanical instincts of men: through their prejudices they do without any effort many things they would find too difficult to think through to the point of resolving to do them. ”

“ There is a great difference between still believing something and believing it again. ”

“ First we have to believe, and then we believe. ”