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Quotes about virtue

884 quotes from 395 people

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Woe to him whose good name is more to him than goodness!
Herman Melville1819–1891Moby-Dick (1851), Chapter IXIn context
- Honor
Delight is to him⁠—a far, far upward, and inward delight⁠—who against the proud gods and commodores of this earth, ever stands forth his own inexorable self.
Herman Melville1819–1891Moby-Dick (1851), Chapter IXIn context
- Character
- Courage
Oh, man! admire and model thyself after the whale! Do thou, too, remain warm among ice. Do thou, too, live in this world without being of it. Be cool at the equator; keep thy blood fluid at the Pole. Like the great dome of St. Peter’s, and like the great whale, retain, O man! in all seasons a temperature of thine own.
Herman Melville1819–1891Moby-Dick (1851), Chapter LXVIIIIn context
- Advice
- Character
It contributes greatly towards a man’s moral and intellectual health to be brought into habits of companionship with individuals unlike himself, who care little for his pursuits, and whose sphere and abilities he must go out of himself to appreciate.
Nathaniel Hawthorne1804–1864The Scarlet Letter (1850), The Custom-HouseIn context
- Character
- Friendship
The pitifulest thing out is a mob; that’s what an army is⁠—a mob; they don’t fight with courage that’s born in them, but with courage that’s borrowed from their mass, and from their officers. But a mob without any man at the head of it is beneath pitifulness.
Mark Twain1835–1910Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), Chapter XXIIIn context
- Courage
- War & Peace
To promise not to do a thing is the surest way in the world to make a body want to go and do that very thing.
Mark Twain1835–1910The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), Chapter XXIIIn context
- Character
Simple, sincere people seldom speak much of their piety; it shows itself in acts, rather than in words, and has more influence than homilies or protestations.
Louisa May Alcott1832–1888Little Women (1868–1869), Part Second, Chapter XXXVIIn context
- Character
- Religion
I’m not afraid of storms, for I’m learning how to sail my ship.
Louisa May Alcott1832–1888Little Women (1868–1869), Part Second, Chapter XLIVIn context
- Courage
The truth was that Jay Gatsby of West Egg, Long Island, sprang from his Platonic conception of himself.
F. Scott Fitzgerald1896–1940The Great Gatsby (1925), Chapter VIIn context
- Character
They were careless people, Tom and Daisy⁠—they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made
F. Scott Fitzgerald1896–1940The Great Gatsby (1925), Chapter IXIn context
- Money
- Responsibility
The world breaks every one and afterward many are strong at the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially. If you are none of these you can be sure it will kill you too but there will be no special hurry.
Ernest Hemingway1899–1961A Farewell to Arms (1929), Book IV, Chapter XXXIVIn context
- Courage
- Life & Death
He lived at a little distance from his body, regarding his own acts with doubtful side-glances.
James Joyce1882–1941Dubliners (1914), A Painful CaseIn context
- Character
“It is hard to be brave,” said Piglet, sniffing slightly, “when you’re only a Very Small Animal.”
A. A. Milne1882–1956Winnie-the-Pooh (1926), Chapter VIIIn context
- Courage
Strength is the outcome of need; security sets a premium on feebleness.
H. G. Wells1866–1946The Time Machine (1895), Chapter VIIn context
- Character
“Oh, no, my dear; I’m really a very good man; but I’m a very bad Wizard, I must admit.”
L. Frank Baum1856–1919The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900), Chapter XVIn context
- Character
- Comedy