Human nature is pretty well balanced; for every lacking virtue there is a rough substitute that will serve at a pinch--as cunning is the wisdom of the unwise, and ferocity the courage of the coward.
Interpretation
Human beings compensate for their shortcomings with alternative qualities.
This quote suggests that every virtue that a person might lack is often balanced by a substitute quality that can fulfill a similar purpose, albeit in a less noble or commendable way. For instance, someone who lacks wisdom may resort to cunning to navigate challenges, while a person lacking true courage might display ferocity to cover their fear. This reflects the nuanced and complex nature of human behavior.
In practice
This quote could be used during a discussion on personality traits at a psychology seminar.
PALM, n. A species of tree . . . of which the familiar "itching palm" ("Palma hominis") is most widely distributed . . . . This noble vegetable exudes a kind of invisible gum, which may be detected by applying to the bark a piece of gold or silver.
Indigestion: A disease which the patient and his friends frequently mistake for deep religious conviction and concern for the salvation of mankind. As the simple Red Man of the Western Wild put it, with, it must be confessed, a certain force: 'Plenty well, no pray; big belly ache, heap God.'
Disobey n:To celebrate with an appropriate ceremony the maturity of a command
NOUMENON, n. That which exists, as distinguished from that which merely seems to exist, the latter being a phenomenon. The noumenon is a bit difficult to locate; it can be apprehended only by a process of reasoning - which is a phenomenon.
PARDON, v. To remit a penalty and restore to the life of crime. To add to the lure of crime the temptation of ingratitude.
Kiss. n. A word invented by the poets as a rhyme for "bliss".
Life is never fair, and perhaps it is a good thing for most of us that it is not.
Cinna wishes to seem poor, and is poor
There's this romantic idea that's built up around war. But the pragmatic view is there are tons of people of my generation who have lost their lives, lost their marriages, or lost their health as a consequence of being sent to wars which could have been avoided.
Rebellion cannot exist without the feeling that somewhere, in some way, you are justified.
War does horrible things to human beings, to societies. It brings out the best, but most often the worst, in our human nature.
The Hopi, an Indian tribe, have a language as sophisticated as ours, but no tenses for past, present and future. The division does not exist. What does this say about time? Matter, that thing the most solid and the well-known, which you are holding in your hands and which makes up your body, is now known to be mostly empty space. Empty space and points of light. What does this say about the reality of the world?
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