Virtue is that perfect good which is the complement of a happy life; the only immortal thing that belongs to mortality.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
For what is done or learned by one class of women becomes, by virtue of their common womanhood, the property of all women.
—Elizabeth Blackwell (1821–1910) American Physician
When we live habitually with the wicked, we become necessarily their victims or their disciples; on the contrary, when we associate with the virtuous we form ourselves in imitation of their virtues, or at least lose, every day, something of our faults.
—Unknown
You are a man, not God; you are human, not an angel. How can you expect to remain always in a constant state of virtue, when this was not possible even for an angel of Heaven, nor for the first man in the Garden?
—Thomas a Kempis (1379–1471) German Religious Priest, Writer
What is virtue but the Trade Unionism of the married?
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) Irish Playwright
The past is a bucket of ashes, so live not in your yesterdays, nor just for tomorrow, but in the here and now. Keep moving and forget the post-mortems. And remember, no one can get the jump on the future.
—Carl Sandburg (1878–1967) American Biographer, Novelist, Socialist
Virtue and decency are so nearly related that it is difficult to separate them from each other but in our imagination.
—Cicero (106BCE–43BCE) Roman Philosopher, Orator, Politician, Lawyer
Time, which alone makes the reputation of men, ends by making their defects respectable.
—Voltaire (1694–1778) French Philosopher, Author
That virtue we appreciate is as much ours as another s. We see so much only as we possess.
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–62) American Philosopher
Vice, in its true light, is so deformed, that it shocks us at first sight; and would hardly ever seduce us, if it did not at first wear the mask of some virtue.
—Earl of Chesterfield (1694–1773) English Statesman, Man of Letters
There is no substitute for virtue. Keep your thoughts virtuous. Rise above the filth that’s all around you in this world and stand tall in strength and virtue. You can do this and you will be happier for it for as long as you live. God bless you in cherishing, developing and holding on to this great gift, the quality of personal virtue.
—Gordon B. Hinckley (1910–2008) American Mormon Religious Leader
However evil men may be they dare not be openly hostile to virtue, and so when they want to attack it they pretend to find it spurious , or impute crimes to it.
—Francois de La Rochefoucauld (1613–80) French Writer
Vices are sometimes only virtues carried to excess!
—Charles Dickens (1812–70) English Novelist
The highest virtue found in the tropics is chastity, and in the colder regions, temperance.
—Christian Nestell Bovee (1820–1904) American Writer, Aphorist
The less a man thinks or knows about his virtues, the better we like him.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
I willingly confess that it likes me better when I find virtue in a fair lodging than when I am bound to seek it in an ill-favored creature.
—Philip Sidney (1554–86) English Soldier Poet, Courtier
The most beautiful things in the universe are the starry heavens above us and the feeling of duty within us.
—Indian Proverb
The tragedy of life is not that man loses,
but that he almost wins.
—Heywood Hale Broun (1918–2001) American Journalist, Commentator, Actor
Modesty and unselfishness – these are virtues which men praise – and pass by.
—Andre Maurois (1885–1967) French Novelist, Biographer
Modesty is a vastly overrated virtue.
—John Kenneth Galbraith (1908–2006) Canadian-Born American Economist
The only reward of virtue is virtue; the only way to have a friend is to be one.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
Wisdom is knowing what to do next; virtue is doing it.
—David Starr Jordan (1851–1931) American Zoologist, Educator, Peace Activist
Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth, so virtue appears from good deeds, and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind. To walk safely through the maze of human life, one needs the light of wisdom and the guidance of virtue.
—Buddhist Teaching
Do not be too moral. You may cheat yourself out of much life. So aim above morality. Be not simply good; be good for something.
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–62) American Philosopher
Blessed is the memory of those who have kept themselves unspotted from the world! Yet more blessed and more dear the memory of those who have kept themselves unspotted in the world!
—Anna Brownell Jameson (1794–1860) Irish-born Literary, Art Critic
Virtuous and vicious everyone must be; few in extremes, but all in degree.
—Alexander Pope (1688–1744) English Poet
I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826) American Head of State, Lawyer
The cardinal virtue of a teacher (is) to protect the pupil from his own influence
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
The virtues of society are vices of the saint. The terror of reform is the discovery that we must cast away our virtues, or what we have always esteemed such, into the same pit that has consumed our grosser vices.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
If virtue promises happiness, prosperity and peace, then progress in virtue is progress in each of these; for to whatever point the perfection of anything brings us, progress is always an approach toward it.
—Epictetus (55–135) Ancient Greek Philosopher