Joubert, Joseph -- Pensées [Thoughts], ch. 16 “Des Mœurs publiques et privées; du Caractère des Nations [On Morality and the Character of Nations],” ¶ 57 (1850 ed.) [tr. Lyttelton (1899), ch. 15, ¶ 26]

Dave — Tue, 24 Dec 2024 20:45:35 +0000

It seems as though nations love perils, and when they have none, they create them.

[Il semble que les peuples aiment les périls, et que lorsqu’ils en manquent, ils s’en créent.]

Joseph Joubert (1754-1824) French moralist, philosopher, essayist, poet
Pensées [Thoughts], ch. 16 “Des Mœurs publiques et privées; du Caractère des Nations [On Morality and the Character of Nations],” ¶ 57 (1850 ed.) [tr. Lyttelton (1899), ch. 15, ¶ 26]
(Source)

(Source (French)). Alternate translation:

It seems to me that nations love dangers, and when there are none to be found create them to fill the want.
[tr. Collins (1928), ch. 15]

WIST Quotations

Joubert, Joseph -- Pensées [Thoughts], ch. 16 “Des Mœurs publiques et privées; du Caractère des Nations [On Morality and the Character of Nations],” ¶ 57 (1850 ed.) [tr. Lyttelton (1899), ch. 15, ¶ 26]