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Whosoever loves not picture is injurious to truth, and all the wisdom of poetry. Picture is the invention of heaven, the most ancient and most akin to nature. It is itself a silent work, and always one and the same habit.

Ben Jonson

How Fortune piles her sports when she begins to practise them!
BEN JONSON

Fortune Practise Sports
Tis no sin love’s fruits to steal; But the sweet thefts to reveal; To be taken, to be seen, These have crimes accounted been.
BEN JONSON

Fruit Sweet Taken
A good life is a main argument.
BEN JONSON

Argument Good Inspirational Life
What excellent fools religion makes of men.
BEN JONSON

Men Religion Religious
Good men are the stars, the planets of the ages wherein they live, and illustrate the times.
BEN JONSON

Good Time Illustrate Men Stars
Ambition, like a torrent, ne’er looks back; And is a swelling, and the last affection A high mind can put off; being both a rebel Unto the soul and reason, and enforceth All laws, all conscience, treads upon religion, and offereth violence to nature’s self.
BEN JONSON

Ambition Conscience Law Rebel Self Soul
All the wise world is little else, in nature, But parasites or subparasites.
BEN JONSON

Little Wise World
Reader look, not on his picture but his book.
BEN JONSON

Book Looks Reader
Passions are spiritual rebels and raise sedition against the understanding.
BEN JONSON

Passion Spiritual Understanding
Art hath an enemy call’d ignorance .
BEN JONSON

Art Enemy Ignorance
Love that is ignorant and hatred have almost the same ends.
BEN JONSON

Hate Hatred Ignorant
A lily of a day Is fairer far in May, Although it fall and die that night, It was the plant and flower of light. In small proportions we just beauties see, And in short measures life may perfect be.
BEN JONSON

Die Fall Flower Night Proportion
Tis the common disease of all your musicians that they know no mean, to be entreated, either to begin or end.
BEN JONSON

Disease Mean Music
Prevent your day at morning.
BEN JONSON

Day Morning Prevent
One woman reads another’s character Without the tedious trouble of deciphering
BEN JONSON

Character Trouble Women
Ambition makes more trusty slaves than need
BEN JONSON

Ambition Needs Slave
It is less dishonor to hear imperfectly than to speak imperfectly. The ears are excused; the understanding is not.
BEN JONSON

Ears Speak Understanding
A valiant man Ought not to undergo, or tempt a danger, But worthily, and by selected ways, He undertakes with reason, not by chance. His valor is the salt t’ his other virtues, They’re all unseason’d without it.
BEN JONSON

Men Salt Way
A good man will avoid the spot of any sin. The very aspersion is grievous, which makes him choose his way in his life, as he would in his journey.
BEN JONSON

Aspersion Choose Good Journey Men
[The play] is like to be a very conceited scurvy one, in plain English.
BEN JONSON

Conceited English Plain Play
Where it concerns himself, Who’s angry at a slander, makes it true.
BEN JONSON

Angry Concern Slander
I have discovered that a famed familiarity in great ones is a note of certain usurpation on the less; for great and popular men feign themselves to be servants to others to make those slaves to them.
BEN JONSON

Men Popularity Slave
Soul of the age! The applause! delight! The wonder of our stage!
BEN JONSON

Age Delight Soul Wonder
There is no doctrine will do good where nature is wanting.
BEN JONSON

Creeds Doctrine Good Waiting
O! How vain and vile a passion is this fear! What base uncomely things it makes men do.
BEN JONSON

Fear Men Passion
Give me a look, give me a face, That makes simplicity a grace Robes loosely flowing, hair as free Such sweet neglect more taketh me Than all the adulteries of art: They strike mine eyes, but not my heart.
BEN JONSON

Art Eye Neglect Simplicity Sweet
Success hath made me wanton.
BEN JONSON

Hath Made Success Wanton

Whosoever loves not picture is injurious to truth, and all the wisdom of poetry. Picture is the invention of heaven, the most ancient and most akin to nature. It is itself a silent work, and always one and the same habit.

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Whosoever loves not picture is injurious to truth, and all the wisdom of poetry. Picture is the invention of heaven, the most ancient and most akin to nature. It is itself a silent work, and always one and the same habit.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More Ben Jonson Quotes