Pride is founded not on the sense of happiness, but on the sense of power.
William HazlittRead
The thing is plain. All that men really understand, is confined to a very small compass; to their daily affairs and experience; to what they have an opportunity to know, and motives to study or practice. The rest is affectation and imposture.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Humans often focus only on their immediate experiences and knowledge, while much of their behavior can be superficial.
William Hazlitt suggests that people's understanding is largely limited to their personal experiences and daily lives. He comments on the human condition, highlighting that beyond what individuals genuinely know or practice, much of what they present may be feigned or pretentious. This reflects a broader commentary on authenticity versus performance in social interactions.
Themes
UnderstandingExperienceAuthenticityKnowledgeImposture
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about authenticity in modern society.
More from William Hazlitt
All quotes →The 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
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