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He who speaks evil only differs from his who does evil in that he lacks opportunity.

Quintilian

A religion without mystics is a philosophy.
QUINTILIAN

One Liner Philosophy Religion
The mind is exercised by the variety and multiplicity of the subject matter, while the character is moulded by the contemplation of virtue and vice.
QUINTILIAN

Exercise Mindset Subject Vice Virtue
The prosperous can not easily form a right idea of misery.
QUINTILIAN

Easy Ideas Misery Prosperity Right
A liar must have a good memory.
QUINTILIAN

Goodness Lying Memories
We should not speak so that it is possible for the audience to understand us, but so that it is impossible for them to misunderstand us.
QUINTILIAN

Impossible Misunderstand Possible Talk Understand
God, that all-powerful Creator of nature and architect of the world, has impressed man with no character so proper to distinguish him from other animals, as by the faculty of speech.
QUINTILIAN

Animal Creation Faculty God Impression Nature Powerful Talk
The learned understand the reason of art; the unlearned feel the pleasure.
QUINTILIAN

Art Feeling Learning Pleasure Reason Understand
For comic writers charge Socrates with making the worse appear the better reason.
QUINTILIAN

Appearance Better Comic Reason Worst Writing
One thing, however, I must premise, that without the assistance of natural capacity, rules and precepts are of no efficacy.
QUINTILIAN

Assistance Capacity Natural Rule
While we ponder when to begin, it becomes too late to do.
QUINTILIAN

Action Beginning Late
Let us never adopt the maxim, Rather lose our friend than our jest.
QUINTILIAN

Adopt Friendship Ourselves
Our minds are like our stomaches; they are whetted by the change of their food, and variety supplies both with fresh appetite.
QUINTILIAN

Change Food Fresh Mindset Stomach
Forbidden pleasures alone are loved immoderately; when lawful, they do not excite desire.
QUINTILIAN

Alone Desire Excite Feeling Law
For it would have been better that man should have been born dumb, nay, void of all reason, rather than that he should employ the gifts of Providence to the destruction of his neighbor.
QUINTILIAN

Better Born Destruction Dumb Man Neighbor Reason
Verse satire indeed is entirely our own.
QUINTILIAN

Ourselves Verse
One should aim not at being possible to understand, but at being impossible to misunderstand.
QUINTILIAN

Goal Perspective Possible

He who speaks evil only differs from his who does evil in that he lacks opportunity.

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He who speaks evil only differs from his who does evil in that he lacks opportunity.

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