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Quotation by Sydney J. Harris
More Quotes From
Sydney J. Harris (9)Additional Sources
"Atheists, Like Fundamentalists, are Dogmatic" Pieces of Eight, Houghton Mifflin (1985)"Confusing 'Character' with 'Temperament'" Clearing the Ground, Houghton Mifflin (1986)"Love and Its Loveless Counterfeits" Strictly Personal, Regnery (1953)On the Contrary (1962)"Purely Personal Prejudices" Strictly Personal, Regnery (1953)
As we grow older, we should learn that these are two quite different things. Character is something you forge for yourself; temperament is something you are born with and can only slightly modify. Some people have easy temperaments and weak characters; others have difficult temperaments and strong characters. We are all prone to confuse the two in assessing people we associate with. Those with easy temperaments and weak characters are more likable than admirable; those with difficult temperaments and strong characters are more admirable than likable.
Sydney J. Harris (1917–1986), British-born U.S. journalist, reviewer. "Confusing 'Character' with 'Temperament'," Clearing the Ground, Houghton Mifflin (1986).
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Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. Except as otherwise permitted by written agreement, the following are prohibited: copying substantial portions or the entirety of the work in machine readable form, making multiple printouts thereof, and other uses of the work inconsistent with U.S. and applicable foreign copyright and related laws.
