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While we ponder when to begin, it becomes too late to do.

Quintilian

To swear, except when necessary, is becoming to an honorable man.
QUINTILIAN

Exception Honor Man Necessary
One should aim not at being possible to understand, but at being impossible to misunderstand.
QUINTILIAN

Goal Perspective Possible
Consequently the student who is devoid of talent will derive no more profit from this work than barren soil from a treatise on agriculture.
QUINTILIAN

Agriculture Profit Student Talent Work
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
For comic writers charge Socrates with making the worse appear the better reason.
QUINTILIAN

Appearance Better Comic Reason Worst Writing
He who speaks evil only differs from his who does evil in that he lacks opportunity.
QUINTILIAN

Evil Himself Opportunity Talk
She abounds with lucious faults.
QUINTILIAN

Flaw Herself
Let us never adopt the maxim, Rather lose our friend than our jest.
QUINTILIAN

Adopt Friendship Ourselves
A Woman who is generous with her money is to be praised; not so, if she is generous with her person.
QUINTILIAN

Generosity Herself Money Person Woman
We excuse our sloth under the pretext of difficulty.
QUINTILIAN

Difficult Excuse Ourselves
The obscurity of a writer is generally in proportion to his incapacity.
QUINTILIAN

Capacity Writing
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
(Slaughter) means blood and iron.
QUINTILIAN

Blood Death Iron
To my mind the boy who gives least promise is one in whom the critical faculty develops in advance of the imagination.
QUINTILIAN

Criticism Development Imagination Mindset Promise
Nothing is more dangerous to men than a sudden change of fortune.
QUINTILIAN

Change Dangerous Fortune
A liar ought to have a good memory.
QUINTILIAN

Goodness Lying Memories

While we ponder when to begin, it becomes too late to do.

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While we ponder when to begin, it becomes too late to do.

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Popular Authors

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