Pride is founded not on the sense of happiness, but on the sense of power.
William HazlittRead
Every man, in his own opinion, forms an exception to the ordinary rules of morality.
Interpretation
What this quote means
People often believe they are unique and exempt from common moral standards.
This quote by William Hazlitt suggests that every individual tends to see themselves as a special case, believing that their circumstances or reasoning set them apart from the typical ethical guidelines that govern others. It highlights a common human tendency to rationalize our actions and choices, implying that we often excuse ourselves from the moral limitations we impose on others.
Themes
MoralityExceptionOpinionIndividualismEthics
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate about personal ethics, one might quote Hazlitt to emphasize the subjective nature of moral standards.
More from William Hazlitt
All quotes βThe world loves to be amused by hollow professions, to be deceived by flattering appearances, to live in a state of hallucination; and can forgive everything but the plain, downright, simple, honest truth.
William HazlittRead
Our repugnance to death increases in proportion to our consciousness of having lived in vain.
William HazlittRead
We can bear to be deprived of everything but our self-conceit.
William HazlittRead
There are few things in which we deceive ourselves more than in the esteem we profess to entertain for our firends. It is little better than a piece of quackery. The truth is, we think of them as we please, that is, as they please or displease us.
William HazlittRead
Prosperity is a great teacher; adversity is a greater. Possession pampers the mind; privation trains and strengthens it.
William HazlittRead
Similar quotes
That man can destroy life is just as miraculous a feat as that he can create it, for life is the miracle, the inexplicable. In the act of destruction, man sets himself above life; he transcends himself as a creature. Thus, the ultimate choice for a man, inasmuch as he is driven to transcend himself, is to create or to destroy, to love or to hate.
Erich FrommRead
One principle I've been fighting for that doesn't endear me to a lot of people is that black people can be just as complicated and screwed up as white people. Our motives can be just as base and violent. Suffering does not necessarily ennoble you.
Henry Louis GatesRead
My grandfather was dying, and told the family he had decided to die. ... At that moment I wanted so badly to write and tell him that he was never going to die, that somehow he would always be present in my life, because he had a theory that death didn't exist, only forgetfulness did. He believed that if you can keep people in your memory, they will live forever. That's what he did with my grandmother.
Isabel AllendeRead
There is a very fine line between loving life and being greedy for it.
Maya AngelouRead
The gospel is not a truth among other truths. Rather, it sets a question mark against all truths.
Karl BarthRead
History is a novel for which the people is the author.
Alfred De VignyRead