WIST Quotations

Shakespeare, William -- Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, sc. 6, l. 9ff (2.6.9-11) (1595)

Dave — Mon, 04 May 2026 16:02:30 +0000

FRIAR LAWRENCE: These violent delights have violent ends
And in their triumph die, like fire and powder,
Which, as they kiss, consume.

William Shakespeare (1564–1616) English dramatist and poet
Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, sc. 6, l. 9ff (2.6.9-11) (1595)
(Source)

Urging Romeo to moderate his reckless passion for Juliet.

Stevenson, Robert Louis -- Essay (1888-09), “A Letter to a Young Gentleman Who Proposes to Embrace the Career of Art,” Scribner’s Magazine, Vol. 4, No. 3

Dave — Fri, 27 Feb 2026 21:57:03 +0000

The book, the statue, the sonata, must be gone upon with the unreasoning good faith and the unflagging spirit of children at their play. Is it worth doing? — when it shall have occurred to any artist to ask himself that question, it is implicitly answered in the negative. It does not occur to the child as he plays at being a pirate on the dining-room sofa, nor to the hunter as he pursues his quarry; and the candour of the one and the ardour of the other should be united in the bosom of the artist.

Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) Scottish essayist, novelist, poet
Essay (1888-09), “A Letter to a Young Gentleman Who Proposes to Embrace the Career of Art,” Scribner’s Magazine, Vol. 4, No. 3
(Source)

Collected in Across the Plains, ch. 10 (1892).

Moliere -- Tartuffe, or the Hypocrite [Le Tartuffe, ou L’Imposteur], Act 1, sc. 6 (1669) [tr. Wilbur (1963), 1.5]

Dave — Thu, 10 Jul 2025 17:26:00 +0000

CLÉANTE: And just as there is nothing I more revere
Than a soul whose faith is steadfast and sincere,
Nothing that I more cherish and admire
Than honest zeal and true religious fire,
So there is nothing that I find more base
Than specious piety’s dishonest face.

[Et, comme je ne vois nul genre de héros
Qui soient plus à priser que les parfaits dévots,
Aucune chose au monde et plus noble et plus belle
Que la sainte ferveur d’un véritable zèle,
Aussi ne vois-je rien qui soit plus odieux
Que le dehors plâtré d’un zèle spécieux.]

Molière (1622–1673) French playwright, actor [stage name for Jean-Baptiste Poquelin]
Tartuffe, or the Hypocrite [Le Tartuffe, ou L’Imposteur], Act 1, sc. 6 (1669) [tr. Wilbur (1963), 1.5]
(Source)

The references to plaster, whitewashing, etc., come from the Bible, Matthew 23:27-28, condemning hypocrisy.

(Source (French)). Other translations:

And as I see no Character in Life more great or valuable than to be truly devout, nor any thing more noble, or more beautiful, than the Fervor of a sincere Piety; so I think nothing more abominable than the outside Daubing of a pretended Zeal.
[tr. Clitandre (1672)]

And as I know no character more worthy of esteem than the truly devout, nor anything in the world more noble or beautiful than the holy fervour of sincere piety, so I know nothing more odious than the whited sepulchre of a pretended zealot, than those downright imposters, those devotees for public show.
[tr. Van Laun (1876)]

And as I know nothing in the world so noble and so beautiful as the holy fervour of genuine piety, so there is nothing, I think, so odious as the whitewashed outside of a specious zeal.
[tr. Wall (1879)]

And as I see nothing in life more noble or beautiful than the fervour of sincere piety, so I think nothing more odious than the plastered exterior of a false zeal.
[tr. Mathew (1890)]

And since I do not know any character more admirable than the truly devout, nor anything in the world more noble and more beautiful than the righteous fervor of a sincere piety, neither do I know anything more odious than the whited sepulchre of a specious zeal.
[tr. Waller (1903)]

And as I find no kind of hero more
To be admired than men of true religion,
Nothing more noble or more beautiful
Than is the holy zeal of true devoutness;
Just so I think there's naught more odious
Than whited sepulchres of outward unction.
[tr. Page (1909)]

And as I see no kind of character
More honorable than true devotion is,
Nothing more noble and more beautiful
Than fervent, genuine, holy piety,
So I find nothing on earth more odious
Than the false show of whited sepulchres.
[tr. Bishop (1957)]

And, as there are no heroes I revere
More than those whose devoutness is sincere,
And nothing worthier of veneration
Than genuine religious dedication,
So, nothing seems more odious to me
Than the disguise of specious piety.
[tr. Frame (1967)]

What jewel more precious can there be
Than perfect, unfeigned piety,
A fervour that is felt, and real?
But this ... this squashed flea kind of zeal,
Worn, as a lady wears her paint,
The posturing of the plaster saint,
This, above all things, I deplore.
Nothing on earth disgusts me more.
[tr. Bolt (2002)]

I don’t know any heroes more worthy of respect than the truly pious or anything more noble and beautiful than holy passion and saintly zeal. And I don’t know anything more hateful than those whited sepulchres, the phony zealots.
[tr. Steiner (2008)]

Hoffer, Eric -- Passionate State of Mind, Aphorism 60 (1955)

Dave — Thu, 03 Apr 2025 18:34:36 +0000

Vehemence is the expression of a blind effort to support and uphold something that can never stand on its own — something rootless, incoherent, and incomplete. Whether it is our own meaningless self we are upholding or some doctrine devoid of evidence, we can do it only in a frenzy of faith.

Eric Hoffer (1902–1983) American writer, philosopher, longshoreman
Passionate State of Mind, Aphorism 60 (1955)
(Source)

James, William -- Letter to E. L. Godkin (24 Dec 1895)

Dave — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 17:13:45 +0000

We are all ready to be savage in some cause. The difference between a good man and a bad one is the choice of the cause.

William James (1842–1910) American psychologist and philosopher
Letter to E. L. Godkin (24 Dec 1895)
(Source)

Stacy, Walter P -- State v. Beal, 199 N.C. 278 (1930)

Dave — Fri, 03 Oct 2014 12:06:11 +0000

It would be almost unbelievable, if history did not record the tragic fact that men have gone to war and cut each other’s throat because they could not agree as to what was to become of them after their throats were cut. Many sins have been committed in the name of religion. Alas! the spirit of proscription is never kind. It is the unhappy quality of religious disputes that they are always bitter. For some reason, too deep to fathom, men contend more furiously over the road to heaven, which they cannot see, than over their visible walks on earth.

Walter P. Stacy (1884–1951) American jurist
State v. Beal, 199 N.C. 278 (1930)
(Source)

Hume, David -- An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals, Sec. 9.13 “Conclusion, Pt. 1” (1751)

Dave — Mon, 23 Dec 2013 15:13:57 +0000

Where men are the most sure and arrogant, they are commonly the most mistaken, and have there given reins to passion, without that proper deliberation and suspense, which can alone secure them from the grossest absurdities.

David Hume (1711–1776) Scottish philosopher, economist, historian, empiricist
An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals, Sec. 9.13 “Conclusion, Pt. 1” (1751)

Schnitzler, Arthur -- Book of Thoughts and Sayings [Buch der Sprüche und Bedenken], “Hunches and Questions” No. 2 (1927)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

Martyrdom has always been a proof of the intensity, never of the correctness, of a belief.

[Das Martyrium war immer nur ein Beweis für die Intensität, niemals für die Richtigkeit eines Glaubens.]

Arthur Schnitzler (1862–1931) Austrian physician, playwright, novelist
Book of Thoughts and Sayings [Buch der Sprüche und Bedenken], “Hunches and Questions” No. 2 (1927)
(Source)

(Source (German)). See Ingersoll (1881). This translation is common, but unattributed. Another translation:

Martyrdom was only ever a proof of the intensity, never of the correctness of a belief.
[E.g.]