Pierre Corneille Quotes

63 Sourced Quotes

Do your duty, and leave the rest to heaven.

Pierre Corneille
The manner of giving is worth more than the gift.

Pierre Corneille
The universe has no prince or king
That it [Rome] would consider equal to its humblest citizen.

Pierre Corneille
To take revenge halfheartedly is to court disaster:
Either condemn or crown your hatred.

Pierre Corneille
Its fury aims to shatter but our altars: It scorns only the gods and never the mortals.

Pierre Corneille
The worst of all states is the people's state.

Pierre Corneille
He has served me too well;
By increasing my power he has stolen it away:
He is now my subject only so long as he pleases.
He who allows me to rule is in fact my master.

Pierre Corneille
Death was to be my glory, but destiny has refused it.

Pierre Corneille
It is an imprudence common to kings To listen to too much advice and to err in their choice.

Pierre Corneille
Love is a tyrant, sparing none.

Pierre Corneille
Love lives on hope, and dies when hope is dead; It is a flame which sinks for lack of fuel.

Pierre Corneille
Such subjects are the very strength of kings, And are thus above the law.

Pierre Corneille
I don't know how to defend myself: surprised innocence
Cannot imagine being under suspicion.

Pierre Corneille
True, I am young, but for souls nobly born
Valor doesn't await the passing of years.

Pierre Corneille
An impulsive action has never been classed as a crime.
In French: Un premier mouvement ne fut jamais un crime

Pierre Corneille
Rome is no longer in Rome, it is here where I am.

Pierre Corneille
He who punishes the vanquished fears not the victor.

Pierre Corneille
After having won a scepter, few are so generous
As to disdain the pleasures of ruling.

Pierre Corneille
Sir, what does it matter whom I serve, so long as I am right?

Pierre Corneille
The fate of States decides theirs:
Clauses of treaties determine their affections.

Pierre Corneille
An example is often a deceptive mirror,
And the order of destiny, so troubling to our thoughts,
Is not always found written in things past.

Pierre Corneille
To die for one's country is such a worthy fate That all compete for so beautiful a death.

Pierre Corneille
Oh! how many actions, how many fabulous exploits
Remain without glory in the midst of the night.

Pierre Corneille
The greater the effort, the greater the glory.

Pierre Corneille
All evils are equal when they are extreme.

Pierre Corneille
When obedience is so impious,
Revolt is a necessity.

Pierre Corneille
Self-love is the source of all our other loves.

Pierre Corneille
One half of my life has put the other half in the grave.

Pierre Corneille
The people you killed seem to be in excellent health.

Pierre Corneille
By speaking of our misfortunes we often relieve them.

Pierre Corneille