Honor is the inner garment of the Soul; the first thing put on by it with the flesh, and the last it layeth down at its separation from it.
—Akhenaten (1378BCE–1348BCE) Egyptian Monarch, Religious Leader
Honor has not to be won; it must only not be lost.
—Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) German Philosopher
How much better to pursue a straight course and eventually reach that destination where the things that are pleasant are the things that are honorable finally become, for you, the same.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
It was just him and me. He fought with honor. If it weren’t for his honor, he and the others would have beaten me together. They might have killed me, then. His sense of honor saved my life. I didn’t fight with honor… I fought to win.
—Orson Scott Card (b.1951) American Author
I love the name of honor, more than I fear death.
—Julius Caesar (c.100–44BCE) Roman Statesman, Military General
There’s no honorable way to kill, no gentle way to destroy. There is nothing good in war. Except its ending.
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–65) American Head of State
Happiness is beneficial for the body but it is grief that develops the powers of the mind.
—Marcel Proust (1871–1922) French Novelist
Disarm, disarm. The sword of murder is not the balance of justice. Blood does not wipe out dishonor, nor violence indicate possession.
—Julia Ward Howe (1819–1910) American Feminist, Reformer, Writer
Honor is like an island, rugged and without a landing-place; we can nevermore re-enter when we are once outside of it.
—Nicolas Boileau-Despreaux (1636–1711) French Poet, Satirist, Literary Critic
Men of integrity, by their very existence, rekindle the belief that as a people we can live above the level of moral squalor. We need that belief; a cynical community is a corrupt community.
—John W. Gardner (1912–2002) American Activist
Honor is simply the morality of superior men.
—H. L. Mencken (1880–1956) American Journalist, Literary Critic
Don’t look for more honor than your learning merits.
—Hebrew Proverb
The only thing of weight that can be said against modern honor is that it is directly opposite to religion. The one bids you bear injuries with patience, the other tells you if you don’t resent them, you are not fit to live.
—Bernard Mandeville (1670–1733) Anglo-Dutch Philosopher, Satirist
Treat your enemies with courtesy, and you’ll see how valuable it really is. It costs little but pays a nice dividend: those who honor are honored. Politeness and a sense of honor have this advantage: we bestow them on others without losing a thing.
—Baltasar Gracian (1601–58) Spanish Scholar, Prose Writer
Integrity can neither be lost nor concealed nor faked nor quenched nor artificially come by nor outlived nor, I believe, in the long run denied.
—Eudora Welty (1909–2001) American Short Story Writer, Novelist
Since an intelligence common to us all makes things known to us and formulates them in our minds, honorable actions are ascribed by us to virtue, and dishonorable actions to vice; and only a madman would conclude that these judgments are matters of opinion, and not fixed by nature.
—Cicero (106BCE–43BCE) Roman Philosopher, Orator, Politician, Lawyer
Mine honor is my life; both grow in one; take honor from me and my life is done.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
A person dishonored is worst than dead.
—Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616) Spanish Novelist
Life is never incomplete if it is an honorable one. At whatever point you leave life, if you leave it in the right way, it is whole.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
A prophet is not without honor, save in his own country.
—The Holy Bible Scripture in the Christian Faith
Be honorable with yourself if you wish to associate with honorable people.
—Welsh Proverb
No amount of ability is of the slightest avail without honor.
—Andrew Carnegie (1835–1919) Scottish-American Industrialist
Teachers who educate children deserve more honor than parents who merely gave them birth; for bare life is furnished by the one, the other ensures a good life.
—Aristotle (384BCE–322BCE) Ancient Greek Philosopher, Scholar
For one who has been honored, dishonor is worse than death.
—The Bhagavad Gita Hindu Scripture
Be not ashamed of thy virtues; honor’s a good brooch to wear in a man’s hat at all times.
—Ben Jonson (1572–1637) English Dramatist, Poet, Actor
As to honor, you know, it’s a very fine mediaeval inheritance which women never got hold of. It wasn’t theirs.
—Joseph Conrad (1857–1924) Polish-born British Novelist
Do it no matter what. If you believe in it, it is something very honorable. If somebody around you or your family does not understand it, then that’s their problem. But if you do have a passion, an honest passion, just do it.
—Mario Andretti (b.1940) Italian-American Racing Driver, Entrepreneur
Your word can never be as good as your bond because your memory can never be as trustworthy as your honor.
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) Irish Playwright
Honor is the reward of virtue.
—Cicero (106BCE–43BCE) Roman Philosopher, Orator, Politician, Lawyer
The ultimate foundation of honor is the conviction that moral character is unalterable: a single bad action implies that future actions of the same kind will, under similar circumstances, also be bad.
—Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) German Philosopher
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