Logic is the procession or proportionate unfolding of the intuition; but its virtue is as silent method; the moment it would appea...r as propositions, and have a separate value, it is worthless.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
The secret of the demagogue is to appear as dumb as his audience so that these people can believe themselves as smart as he is.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
To the eyes of a god, mankind must appear as a species of bacteria which multiply and become progressively virulent whenever they ...find themselves in a congenial culture, and whose activity diminishes until they disappear completely as soon as proper measures are taken to sterilise them.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
We want in every man a long logic; we cannot pardon the absence of it, but it must not be spoken. Logic is the procession or propo...rtionate unfolding of the intuition; but its virtue is as silent method; the moment it would appear as propositions and have a separate value, it is worthless.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
Would mankind be but contented without the continual use of that little but significant pronoun "mine" or "my own," with what luxu...rious delight might they revel in the property of others!... But if envy makes me sicken at the sight of everything that is excellent out of my own possession, then will the sweetest food be sharp as vinegar, and every beauty will in my depraved eyes appear as deformity.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
The great secret of succeeding in conversation is to admire little, to hear much; always to distrust our own reason, and sometimes... that of our friends; never to pretend to wit, but to make that of others appear as much as possibly we can; to hearken to what is said and to answer to the purpose.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
A convention is a social pattern we have chosen to prefer over whatever the raw world simply proffers. It is a sign of the operati...on of the mind, drawing the assent of a sufficient number of other minds so that the agreement will be widely operative. A convention is not a custom; a custom is a habit in which a sufficient number acquiesce. A custom can appear as a convention, but it is really a lesser act, the result of passive acceptance rather than of the imposition of design. It is the difference between learning to live by the annual flooding of the river or by a calendar.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
The art of leadership ... consists in consolidating the attention of the people against a single adversary and taking care that no...thing will split up that attention.... The leader of genius must have the ability to make different opponents appear as if they belonged to one category.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
Since men do not really respect anything unless it was established long ago and has developed slowly over time, those who want to ...keep on living after their death must take worry not only about their future generations but even more about their past: that is why tyrants of all kinds (including tyrannical artists and politicians) like to do violence to history, so that it will appear as a preparation and stepladder to themselves.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »
Murderous desire, hatred, distrust are nowadays the accompanying signs of physical illness: so thoroughly have we embodied our mor...al prejudices.--Perhaps cowardice and pity appear as symptoms of illness in savage ages. Perhaps even virtues might be symptoms.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »