A great empire and little minds go ill together.
Edmund BurkeRead
It is the nature of all greatness not to be exact.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Greatness cannot be defined by strict standards or precision.
The quote suggests that true greatness is characterized by its inherent complexity and unpredictability, rather than strictly adhering to exact definitions or parameters. This idea implies that exceptional qualities often cannot be captured or measured precisely, and that to strive for greatness might involve embracing uncertainty and ambiguity.
Themes
GreatnessNatureExactPhilosophyComplexity
In practice
Example use cases
This quote by Edmund Burke can be used in a motivational speech to encourage creativity and risk-taking.
More from Edmund Burke
All quotes βTo read without reflecting is like eating without digesting.
Edmund BurkeRead
Flattery corrupts both the receiver and the giver.
Edmund BurkeRead
The hottest fires in hell are reserved for those who remain neutral in times of moral crisis.
Edmund BurkeRead
Society can overlook murder, adultery or swindling; it never forgives preaching of a new gospel.
Edmund BurkeRead
The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
Edmund BurkeRead
Similar quotes
Fear is the parent of cruelty, and therefore it is no wonder if cruelty and religion have gone hand-in-hand. It is because fear is at the basis of those two things. In this world we can now begin a little to understand things, and a little to master them by the help of science, which has forced its way step by step against the Christian religion, against the churches, and against the opposition of all the old precepts.
Bertrand RussellRead
All diseases of Christians are to be ascribed to demons; chiefly do they torment freshly-baptized Christians, yea, even the guiltless new-born infants.
Saint AugustineRead
What does it mean to regret when you have no choice? It's what you can bear. And there it is... It was death. I chose life.
Michael CunninghamRead
How strange that excision β female circumcision, with several languages using the same term for both kinds of mutilation β of little girls should revolt the westerner but excite no disapproval when it is performed on little boys. Consensus on the point seems absolute. But ask your interlocutor to think about the validity of this surgical procedure, which consists of removing a healthy part of a nonconsenting childβs body on nonmedical grounds β the legal definition ofβ¦ mutilation.
Michel OnfrayRead
Great causes and little men go ill together.
Jawaharlal NehruRead
The Eucharist is a fire that inflames us, that, like lions breathing fire, we may retire from the altar being made terrible to the devil.
Saint John ChrysostomRead