ALCESTE: Whenever his name comes up in conversation,
None will defend his wretched reputation;
Call him knave, liar, scoundrel, and all the rest,
Each head will nod, and no one will protest.
And yet his smirk is seen in every house,
He’s greeted everywhere with smiles and bows,
And when there’s any honor that can be got
By pulling strings, he’ll get it, like as not.
[Quelques titres honteux qu’en tous lieux on lui donne,
Son misérable honneur ne voit pour lui personne;
Nommez-le fourbe, infâme et scélérat maudit,
Tout le monde en convient, et nul n’y contredit.
Cependant sa grimace est partout bienvenue:
On l’accueille, on lui rit, partout il s’insinue;
Et s’il est, par la brigue, un rang à disputer,
Sur le plus honnête homme on le voit l’emporter.]Molière (1622-1673) French playwright, actor [stage name for Jean-Baptiste Poquelin]
Le Misanthrope, Act 1, sc. 1, l. 133ff (1666) [tr. Wilbur (1954)]
(Source)
(Source (French)). Alternate translations:Yet whatever dishonourable epithets may be launched against him everywhere, nobody defends his wretched honour. Call him a rogue, an infamous wretch, a confounded scoundrel if you like, all the world will say "yea," and no one contradicts you. But for all that, his bowing and scraping are welcome everywhere; he is received, smiled upon, and wriggles himself into all kinds of society; and, if any appointment is to be secured by intriguing, he will carry the day over a man of the greatest worth.
[tr. Van Laun (1878)]Whatever shameful titles people give him everywhere, his wretched honour hears no one call him infamous knave and cursed villain; everybody agrees to it, and no one contradicts it. In the meanwhile his hypocritical smile is everywhere welcome -- he is entertained, well received, and he insinuates himself into all companies; and if there is any position to be gained by canvassing for it, he will carry it against men of the greatest worth.
[tr. Mathew (1890)]No cries of "shame" can make his miserable honor hear them. Call him a knave, a scoundrel, a damned villain, all the world agrees, and no man contradicts you; but -- he is welcomed everywhere; wherever he may worm himself he's greeted; men smile upon him; and if there's a canvass to be made, a place to be intrigued for, you will see him get the better of honest men.
[tr. Wormeley (1894)]Yet whatever insulting names are given him by all, no one is seen on the side of his wretched honour; call him a villain, a cursed and infamous scoundrel: all the world will agree with you, and no one will contradict you. But, for all that, his hypocritical countenance is welcomed by all; he is received and smiled upon and he worms himself in everywhere. If any preferment is to be secured by intrigue, he will gain it over the heads of the worthiest.
[tr. Waller (1903)]Whatever shameful names you heap upon him,
There's no one to defend his wretched honour;
Call him a cheat, a rogue, a cursed rascal,
And every one agrees, none contradicts you.
But yet his grinning face is always welcomed;
He worms in everywhere, he’s greeted, smiled on;
And if there is preferment to compete for,
Intrigue will win it for him, from the worthiest.
[tr. Page (1913)]Whatever eminence he may have gained,
There's no one to respect his reputation.
Call him an infamous swindler, filthy sneak,
You'll hear no contradiction; all agree.
And yet his fawning face is widely welcomed,
He crawls in everywhere, he is accepted;
And if intrigue can gain some precedence,
You see him win, over the worthiest man.
[tr. Bishop (1957)]Whatever notoriety he's won,
Such honor lacks support from anyone;
Call him a cheat, knave, curséd rogue to boot,
Everyone will agree, no one refute.
Yet everywhere his false smile seems to pay:
Everywhere welcomed, hailed, he worms his way
And if by pulling strings he stands to gain
Some honor, decent men compete in vain.
[tr. Frame (1967)]
Quotations about:
rogue
Note not all quotations have been tagged, so Search may find additional quotes on this topic.
No great scoundrel is ever uninteresting.
Murray Kempton (1917-1997) American journalist.
(Attributed)
When a rogue kisses you, count your teeth.
[Ven a ganef kusht, darf men zikh di tseyn ibertseyln.]
[װען אַ גנבֿ קושט, דאַרף מען זיך די צײן איבערצײלן.]
Proverbs, Sayings, and Adages
Yiddish proverb
(Source)
Alt. trans.: "When a thief kisses you, count your teeth."
The honest Man takes Pains, and then enjoys Pleasures;
the Knave takes Pleasure, and then suffers Pains.Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American statesman, scientist, philosopher, aphorist
Poor Richard’s Almanack (May 1755)
Education must be based on two things: ethics and prudence; ethics in order to develop your good qualities, prudence to protect you from other people’s bad ones. If you attach too great an importance to goodness, you produce credulous fools; if you’re too prudent, you produce self-serving, scheming rogues.
[L’Éducation doit porter sur deux bases, la morale et la prudence ; la morale, pour appuyer la vertu ; la prudence, pour vous défendre contre les vices d’autrui. En faisant pencher la balance du côté de la morale, vous ne faites que des dupes ou des martyrs; en la faisant pencher de l’autre côté, vous faites des calculateurs égoïstes.]
Nicolas Chamfort (1741-1794) French writer, epigrammist (b. Nicolas-Sébastien Roch)
Products of Perfected Civilization [Produits de la Civilisation Perfectionée], Part 1 “Maxims and Thoughts [Maximes et Pensées],” ch. 5, ¶ 321 (1795) [tr. Parmée (2003), ¶ 205]
(Source)
(Source (French)). Alternate translations:Education must have two foundations -- morality as a support for virtue, prudence as a defence for self against the vices of others. By letting the balance incline to the side of morality, you only make dupes or martyrs; by letting it incline to the other, you make calculating egoists.
[tr. Hutchinson (1902)]Education should rest on the dual support of moral philosophy and prudence, moral philosophy as the stay of virtue, and prudence as a shield against the vice in others. If you tip the scale on the moral side you will produce none but dupes and martyrs, and by tilting it in the other direction you will develop a quality of selfish calculation only.
[tr. Mathers (1926)]Education should be constructed on two bases: morality and prudence. Morality in order to assist virtue, and prudence in order to defend you against the vices of others. In tipping the scales toward morality, you merely produce dupes and martyrs. In tipping it the other way, you produce egotistical schemers.
[tr. Merwin (1969)]Education must have two foundations, morality and carefulness: morality to support virtue; carefulness to defend against others' vices. By inclining this balance to the side of morality, you only make dupes and martyrs; by inclining it to carefulness, you make calculating egoists.
[tr. Siniscalchi (1994)]
Good-nature is more agreeable in conversation than wit, and gives a certain air to the countenance which is more amiable than beauty. It shows virtue in the fairest light, takes off in some measure from the deformity of vice, and makes even folly and impertinence supportable.
Joseph Addison (1672-1719) English essayist, poet, statesman
Essay (1711-09-13), The Spectator, No. 169
(Source)
Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.
Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) English writer, lexicographer, critic
Comment (1775-04-07)
(Source)
In James Boswell, The Life of Samuel Johnson (1791). The full quote:Patriotism having become one of our topicks, Johnson suddenly uttered, in a strong determined tone, an apophthegm, at which many will start: "Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel." But let it be considered, that he did not mean a real and generous love of our country, but that pretended patriotism which so many, in all ages and countries, have made a cloak of self-interest.
Ambrose Bierce wrote in his Devil's Dictonary, under "Patriotism," "In Dr. Johnson's famous dictionary patriotism is defined as the last resort of a scoundrel. With all due respect to an enlightened but inferior lexicographer I beg to submit that it is the first."
The saying is famous and noteworthy enough that many others have riffed on it beyond Bierce: see Wilde (and again), Roosevelt, Broun, Asimov, Lewis, and Ehrenreich.
