When what you read elevates your mind and fills you with noble aspirations, look for no other rule by which to judge a book; it is good, and is the work of a master-hand.
Jean De La BruyereRead
From time to time there appear on the face of the earth men of rare and consummate excellence, who dazzle us by their virtue, and whose outstanding qualities shed a stupendous light. Like those extraordinary stars of whose origins we are ignorant, and of whose fate, once they have vanished, we know even less, such men have neither forebears nor descendants: they are the whole of their race.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on extraordinary individuals whose exceptional qualities illuminate the world around them.
Jean De La Bruyere's quote emphasizes the rare nature of truly exceptional individuals who shine brightly through their virtues and abilities. These individuals resemble extraordinary stars whose origins and eventual fates remain a mystery, and their uniqueness transcends their lineage, marking them as singular representations of their entire race. They captivate us with their brilliance and leave a lasting impact on humanity.
Themes
ExcellenceGreatnessVirtueIndividualsImpact
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about leadership, one might say, 'As Jean De La Bruyere noted, there are exceptional individuals whose virtues can light the path for others.'
More from Jean De La Bruyere
All quotes βWe perceive when love begins and when it declines by our embarrassment when alone together.
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We seldom repent of speaking little, very often of speaking too much: a vulgar and trite maxim, which all the world knows and, but which all the world does not practice
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False greatness is unsociable and remote: conscious of its own frailty, it hides, or at least averts its face, and reveals itself only enough to create an illusion and not be recognized as the meanness that it really is. True greatness is free, kind, familiar and popular; it lets itself be touched and handled, it loses nothing by being seen at close quarters; the better one knows it, the more one admires it.
Jean De La BruyereRead
Every man is valued in this world as he shows by his conduct that he wishes to be valued.
Jean De La BruyereRead
A man of the world must seem to be what he wishes to be thought.
Jean De La BruyereRead
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