Unbounded courage and compassion join'd, Tempering each other in the victor's mind, Alternately proclaim him good and great, And make the hero and the man complete.
Joseph AddisonRead
If gratitude, when exerted towards another, naturally produces a very pleasing sensation in the mind of a grateful man, it exalts the soul into rapture when it is employed on this great object of gratitude to the beneficent Being who has given us everything we already possess, and from whom we expect everything we yet hope for.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Gratitude towards others elevates the soul, especially when directed towards a higher power.
This quote emphasizes the profound impact of gratitude, suggesting that when a person extends gratitude to others, it brings joy to their mind. However, when this same gratitude is directed towards a higher being who has provided everything, it transcends ordinary appreciation and elevates the spirit to a state of deep joy and fulfillment, reinforcing the importance of recognizing a greater source of blessings.
Themes
GratitudeBlessingsSoulAppreciationHigher Power
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about the importance of gratitude in our lives.
More from Joseph Addison
All quotes →Good nature is more agreeable in conversation than wit and gives a certain air to the countenance which is more amiable than beauty.
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Ridicule is generally made use of to laugh men out of virtue and good sense, by attacking everything praiseworthy in human life.
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Admiration is a very short lived passion that immediately decays upon growing familiar with its object, unless it still be fed with fresh discoveries, and kept alive by a new perpetual succession of miracles rising up to its view.
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It is impossible for us, who live in the latter ages of the world, to make observations in criticism, morality, or in any art or science, which have not been touched upon by others. We have little else left us but to represent the common sense of mankind in more strong, more beautiful, or more uncommon lights.
Joseph AddisonRead
An ostentatious man will rather relate a blunder or an absurdity he has committed, than be debarred from talking of his own dear person.
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