Quotes by Moliere

About Moliere:

Jean-Baptiste Poquelin is considered to be one of the greatest masters of comedy in Western literature. Among Molière's best known works are The Misanthrope, The School for Wives, Tartuffe, The Miser, The Imaginary Invalid, and The Bourgeois Gentleman.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

If perchance a friend should betray you; if he forms a subtle plot to get hold of what is yours; if people should try to spread evil reports about you, would you tamely submit to all this without flying into a rage?

Moliere

You may plainly perceive the traitor through his mask; he is well-known everywhere in his true colors; his rolling eyes and his honeyed tones impose only on those who do not know him.

Moliere

Betrayed and wronged in everything, I’ll flee this bitter world where vice is king, And seek some spot unpeopled and apart Where I’ll be free to have an honest heart.

Moliere

My hate is general, I detest all men; Some because they are wicked and do evil, Others because they tolerate the wicked, Refusing them the active vigorous scorn Which vice should stimulate in virtuous minds.

Moliere

We ought to punish pitilessly that shameful pretence of friendly intercourse. I like a man to be a man, and to show on all occasions the bottom of his heart in his discourse. Let that be the thing to speak, and never let our feelings be beneath vain ...

Moliere

Hé quoi ? vous ne ferez nulle distinction Entre l'hypocrisie et la dévotion? Vous les voulez traiter d'un semblable langage, Et rendre même honneur au masque qu'au visage, Égaler l'artifice à la sincérité, Confondre l'apparence avec la vérit�...

Moliere

I become quite melancholy and deeply grieved to see men behave to each other as they do. Everywhere I find nothing but base flattery, injustice , self-interest, deceit and roguery. I cannot bear it any longer; I'm furious; and my intention is to brea...

Moliere

There is nothing I detest so much as the contortions of these great time-and-lip servers, these affable dispensers of meaningless embraces, these obliging utterers of empty words, who view every one in civilities

Moliere

Sur quelque préférence une estime se fonde, Et c'est n'estimer rien qu'estimer tout le monde.

Moliere

If the king had given me for my own Paris, his citadel, And I for that must leave alone Her whom I love so well, I'd say then to the Crown Take back your glittering town My darling is more fair, I swear. My darling is more fair.

Moliere

Presque tous les hommes meurent de leurs remèdes, et non pas de leurs maladies.

Moliere

La musique est accoutumée à ne point faire ce qu'on veut.

Moliere

Its as if you think you'd never find Reason and the Sacred intertwined

Moliere

Malicious men may die, but malice never.

Moliere

A wise man is superior to any insults which can be put upon him, and the best reply to unseemly behavior is patience and moderation.

Moliere

The trees that are slow to grow bear the best fruit.

Moliere

Of all the noises known to man, opera is the most expensive.

Moliere

There's nothing quite like tobacco: it's the passion of decent folk, and whoever lives without tobacco doesn't deserve to live.

Moliere

It is not only for what we do that we are held responsible, but also for what we do not do.

Moliere

It infuriates me to be wrong when I know I'm right.

Moliere

Author Bio

  • NameMoliere
  • DescriptionFrench playwright and actor
  • AliasesJean-Baptiste Poquelin
  • BornJanuary 15, 1622
  • DiedFebruary 17, 1673
  • CountryKingdom Of France
  • ProfessionPlaywright; Stage Actor; Poet; Satirist; Theatre Director; Writer
  • WorksLes Fourberies De Scapin; Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme; The Imaginary Invalid; The Misanthrope; Tartuffe; Dom Juan; The School For Wives