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Quotations by Samuel Johnson
Samuel JohnsonTo speak or act un-civil - A man has no more right to say an un-civil thing than to act one; no more right to say a rude thing to another than to knock him down.
Making new acquaintences through life - If a man does not make new acquaintance as he advances through life, he will soon find himself left alone. A man, Sir, should keep his friendship in constant repair.
No man will be a sailor. . . - No man will be a sailor who has contrivance enough to get himself into a jail; for being in a ship is being in a jail, with the chance of being drowned. . .A man in a jail has more room, better food, and commonly better company.
Equal happiness is not true - That all who are happy, are equally happy, is not true. A peasant and a philosopher may be equally satisfied, but not equally happy. Happiness consists in the multiplicity of agreeable consciousness.
How one dies versus how they live - It matters not how a man dies, but how he lives. The act of dying is not of importance, it lasts so short a time.
State of being in marriage is not natural - It is so far from being natural for a man and woman to live in a state of marriage, that we find all the motives which they have for remaining in that connection, and the restraints which civilized society imposes to prevent separation, are hardly sufficient to keep them together.
The greatest part of a writers time - The greatest part of a writer's time is spent in reading, in order to write: a man will turn over half a library to make one book.
A madman with a stick - If a madman were to come into this room with a stick in his hand, no doubt we should pity the state of his mind; but our primary consideration would be to take care of ourselves. We should knock him down first, and pity him afterwards.
The right to utter truth - Every man has a right to utter what he thinks truth, and every other man has a right to knock him down for it. Martyrdom is the test.
Resolve not to be poor - Resolve not to be poor: whatever you have, spend less. Poverty is a great enemy to human happiness; it certainly destroys liberty, and it makes some virtues impracticable, and others extremely difficult.
A fellow who growls from the corner - I hate a fellow whom pride, or cowardice, or laziness drives into a corner, and who does nothing when he is there but sit and growl; let him come out as I do, and bark.
Lowered expectations for goodness - As I know more of mankind I expect less of them, and am ready now to call a man a good man, upon easier terms than I was formerly.


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