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
Prejudice and self-sufficiency naturally proceed from inexperience of the world, and ignorance of mankind.
Interpretation
Prejudice and a reliance on oneself arise from a lack of worldly experience and understanding of others.
In this quote, Joseph Addison highlights how a limited understanding of the world and human nature can lead to biases and an overestimation of one's self-reliance. By emphasizing the importance of experience and knowledge, he suggests that true wisdom comes from exposure to diverse perspectives and a deeper understanding of humanity, which can help to mitigate prejudice and cultivate a more collaborative approach to life.
In practice
During a seminar on diversity, one could use this quote to highlight the importance of understanding different backgrounds.
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.
Good nature is more agreeable in conversation than wit and gives a certain air to the countenance which is more amiable than beauty.
Ridicule is generally made use of to laugh men out of virtue and good sense, by attacking everything praiseworthy in human life.
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.
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.
An ostentatious man will rather relate a blunder or an absurdity he has committed, than be debarred from talking of his own dear person.
The devotee of truth is often obliged to grope in the dark.
O Lord! Unhappy is the man whom man can make unhappy.
No sacrifice is worth the name unless it is a joy. Sacrifice and a long face go ill together. Sacrifice is 'making sacred'. He must be a poor specimen of humanity who is in need of sympathy for his sacrifice.
BELOVED, gaze in thine own heart, The holy tree is growing there.
Recognize negativism and inferiority attitudes as enemies - do not try to dress them as your friends. you will be tempted to look upon negativism as prudence and inferiorities as humility. Strip off those false cloaks and see these attitudes in their nakedness - as enemies of you and of your possibilities.
When you get into your car, shut the door and be there for just half a minute. Breathe, feel the energy inside your body, look around at the sky, the trees. The mind might tell you, 'I don't have time.' But that's the mind talking to you. Even the busiest person has time for 30 seconds of space.
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