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Scoundrels & Villains


Scoundrels & Villains

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Quotations

VoltaireReligion began when the first scoundrel met the first fool.

—  Voltaire, 1694-1778, French philosopher & writer

126 likes
George OrwellA people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves and traitors are not victims... but accomplices.

—  George Orwell, 1903-1950, British writer

80 likes
Samuel JohnsonPatriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.

—  Samuel Johnson, 1709-1784, English writer

20 likes
Theodore RooseveltThis country has nothing to fear from the crooked man who fails. We put him in jail. It is the crooked man who succeeds who is a threat to this country.

—  Theodore Roosevelt, 1858-1919, American President [1901-1909]

18 likes
Albert EinsteinForce always attracts men of low morality.

—  Albert Einstein, 1879-1955, German-Jewish physicist

17 likes
H.L. MenckenDemocracy is the worship of jackals by jackasses.

—  H.L. Mencken, 1880-1956, American columnist & cultural critic

16 likes
Anton ChekhovDoctors are just the same as lawyers; the only difference is that lawyers merely rob you, whereas doctors rob you and kill you too.

—  Anton Chekhov, 1860-1904, Russian writer

14 likes
Lord ActonAnd remember, where you have a concentration of power in a few hands, all too frequently men with the mentality of gangsters get control.

—  Lord Acton, 1834-1902, English historian

13 likes
Friedrich NietzscheMerchant and pirate were for a long period one and the same person. Even today mercantile morality is really nothing but a refinement of piratical morality.

—  Friedrich Nietzsche, 1844-1900, German philosopher

10 likes
Dr. Thomas FullerThe Thief is sorry he is to be hanged, but not that he is a Thief.

—  Dr. Thomas Fuller, 1654-1734,  English physician and adage collector

10 likes
George Bernard ShawEvery man over forty is a scoundrel.

—  George Bernard Shaw, 1856-1950, Irish writer, Nobel 1925

9 likes
Jean Jacques RousseauReligious persecutors are not believers, they are rascals.

—  Jean Jacques Rousseau, 1712-1778, Swiss-French philosopher

8 likes
Samuel JohnsonWhoever thinks of going to bed before twelve o'clock is a scoundrel.

—  Samuel Johnson, 1709-1784, English writer

7 likes
Francis BaconThe worst men often give the best advice.

—  Francis Bacon, 1561-1626, English philosopher

7 likes
Frank HerbertAll governments suffer a recurring problem: Power attracts pathological personalities. It is not that power corrupts but that it is magnetic to the corruptible.

—  Frank Herbert, 1920-1986, American sci-fi writer

7 likes
H.L. MenckenAll men are frauds. The only difference between them is that some admit it. I myself deny it.

—  H.L. Mencken, 1880-1956, American columnist & cultural critic

6 likes
Franklin RooseveltHe's a son-of-a-bitch, but he’s our son-of-a-bitch.

—  Franklin Roosevelt, 1882-1945, American President [1936-1945]

     (on Anastasio Somoza García, president of Nicaragua)

6 likes
William Hazlitt A knave thinks himself a fool, all the time he is not making a fool of some other person.

—  William Hazlitt , 1778-1830, English essayist & critic

5 likes
William ShakespeareThe first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers.

—  William Shakespeare, 1564-1616, English poet & playwright ‐ Henry VI

5 likes
Dr. Thomas FullerKnaves imagine nothing can be done without knavery.

—  Dr. Thomas Fuller, 1654-1734,  English physician and adage collector

4 likes
Thomas HobbesGive an inch, he'll take an ell.

—  Thomas Hobbes, 1588-1679, English philosopher

Orson WellesThe best of them were the kind of people you’d expect to drive a beer truck. They had no class. The classy gangster is a Hollywood invention.

—  Orson Welles, 1915-1985, American actor & film director

Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.If you want to know the law and nothing else, you must look at it as a bad man.

—  Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., 1841-1935, 

Jean RostandComing out of some mouths, the truth itself smells bad.

—  Jean Rostand, 1894-1977, French scientist & philosopher

Aldοus HuxleyA man can smile and smile and be a villain.

—  Aldοus Huxley, 1894-1963, English writer

Jean de La BruyèreEven the best intentioned of great men need a few scoundrels around them; there are some things you cannot ask an honest man to do.

—  Jean de La Bruyère, 1645-1696, French writer

Noam ChomskyUnfortunately, you can’t vote the rascals out, because you never voted them in, in the first place

—  Noam Chomsky, 1928-, American linguist, philosopher, social activist

Joseph De MaistreThe history of the 9 Thermidor is not long: a few scoundrels killed a few scoundrels.

—  Joseph De Maistre, 1753-1821, Savoyard diplomat & philosopher

     (27 July 1794 – Robespierre and his supporters were arrested and guillotined)

Joseph De MaistreI don’t know what a scoundrel is like, but I know what a respectable man is like, and it’s enough to make one’s flesh creep.

—  Joseph De Maistre, 1753-1821, Savoyard diplomat & philosopher

H.L. MenckenWhen A annoys or injures B on the pretense of saving or improving X, A is a scoundrel.

—  H.L. Mencken, 1880-1956, American columnist & cultural critic

Joseph ConradHe struggled with himself, too. I saw it – I heard it. I saw the inconceivable mystery of a soul that knew no restraint, no faith, and no fear, yet struggling blindly with itself.

—  Joseph Conrad, 1857-1924, British-Polish writer

StendhalLife is very short, and it ought not to be spent crawling at the feet of miserable scoundrels.

—  Stendhal, 1783-1842, French writer

Charles BukowskiPeople with no morals often considered themselves more free, but mostly they lacked the ability to feel or love.

—  Charles Bukowski, 1920-1994, American writer

Remy de GourmontThe pleasure of being a scoundrel can be adequately savored in silence.

—  Remy de Gourmont, 1858-1915, French poet

Quotes in Verse

Bertolt BrechtOh the shark has pretty teeth dear,
And he shows them pearly white
Just a jack-knife has Macheath dear
And he keeps it out of sight.

—  Bertolt Brecht, 1898-1956, German writer

6 likes

Funny Quotes

Howard ScottA criminal is a person with predatory instincts without sufficient capital to form a corporation.

—  Howard Scott, 1890-1970, American engineer

11 likes

Ancient Greek

Ancient Greek proverbThief knows thief and wolf knows wolf.

Έγνω δε φωρ τε φώρα και λύκος λύκον.

—  Ancient Greek proverb

34 likes
MenanderIt’s a shame to the gods that bad men prosper.

Θεών όνειδος τους κακούς ευδαιμονείν.

—  Menander, 4th cent. BC, Ancient Greek dramatist (New Comedy)

10 likes
Ancient Greek proverbThe bad guys dare it all.

Πάντα κακοί τολμώσι.

—  Ancient Greek proverb

5 likes
DemocritusWe should guard against bad men lest they seize the opportunity.

Τον φαύλον παραφυλάττειν δει, μη καιρού λάβηται.

—  Democritus, 470-370 BC, Ancient Greek philosopher

4 likes

Proverbs

The big thieves hang the little ones.

—  Czech proverb

4 likes
English proverbThere's honour among thieves.

—  English proverb

2 likes



Similar categories & topics of Quotations






Similar Topics

Wickedness

Corruption

Deception

Crime

Cruelty

Despite

Cunning

Betrayal

Stealing

Snakes

Good & Evil

Exploitation

Vulgarity

Contrary Topics

Kindness

Honesty

Innocence

 Popular Topics
1 Friendship
2 Victory & Defeat
3 Solitude
4 Seduction
5 Self-reliance
6 Ego
7 Drinking
8 Cunning
9 Eroticism
10 Nudity
11 Vanity
12 Self-deprecation
13 Incompetence
14 Sex
15 Religion
16 Meaning of Life
17 Life
18 Death
19 Corruption
20 Democracy
 

2024: Manolis Papathanassiou