An aphorism is nothing else but the slightest
QUOTES AND APHORISMS ON CHARACTER 1
Character is to man what carbon is to steel.
Napoleon Hill (1883-1970, American speaker, author, "Think And Grow Rich") The highest qualities of character… must be earned.
Lyman Abbott (1835-1922, American congregational clergyman and editor)
It is in the character of very few men to honor without envy a friend who has prospered.
Aeschylus (525-456 BC, Greek dramatist)
Be thou incapable of change in that which is right, and men will rely upon thee. Establish unto thyself principles of action; and see that thou ever act according to them. First know that thy principles are just, and then be thou
Akhenaton (1375 BC, Egyptian king, monotheist)
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.
Akhenaton (1375 BC, Egyptian king, monotheist)
It is not what he had, or even what he does which expresses the worth of a man, but what he is.
Henri Frederic Amiel (1821-1881, Swiss philosopher, poet, critic)
The quality of strength lined with tenderness is an unbeatable combination, as are intelligence and necessity when unblunted by formal education.
Maya Angelou (1928-, African-American poet, writer, performer) Author's website: www.mayaangelou.com
Temperance is simply a disposition of the mind which binds the passion.
St. Thomas Aquinas
Character is that which reveals moral purpose, exposing the class of things a man chooses or avoids.
Aristotle (BC 384-322, Greek philosopher)
My father told me that if you saw a man in a Rolls Royce you could be sure he was not a gentleman unless he was the chauffeur.
Earl of Arran
The hardest job kids face today is learning good manners without seeing any.
Fred Astaire (1899-1987, American dancer, singer, actor)
If you don't run your own life, somebody else will.
John Atkinson
When about to commit a base deed, respect thyself, though there is no witness.
Decimus Magnus Ausonius (310-395, Latin poet, man of letters)
Property may be destroyed and money may lose its purchasing power; but, character, health, knowledge and good judgment will always be in demand under all conditions.
Roger Babson (1875-1967, American statistician, columnist)
You don't get in life what you want; you get in life what you are.
Les Brown (1945-, American speaker, author, trainer, motivator,)
Character builds slowly, but it can be torn down with incredible swiftness.
Faith Baldwin
During my eighty-seven years, I have witnessed a whole succession of technological revolutions. But none of them has done away with the need for character in the individual or the ability to think.
Bernard M. Baruch (1870-1965, American financier)
The foundation of excellence lies in self-control.
H.L. Baugher
A man's character is the reality of himself; his reputation, the opinion others have formed about him; character resides in him, reputation in other people; that is the substance, this is the shadow.
Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887, American preacher, orator, writer)
As a man is, so he sees. As the eye is formed, such are its powers.
William Blake (1757-1827, British poet, painter)
Let us not say, every man is the architect of his own fortune; but let us say, every man is the architect of his own character.
George D. Boardman
Character is victory organized.
Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821, French general, emperor)
I have discovered that we may be in some degree whatever character we choose. Besides, practice forms a man to anything.
James Boswell (1740-1795, British writer, journalist)
Few persons are made of such strong fiber that they will make a costly outlay when surface work will pass as well in the market.
E.M. Bounds
All men are alike in their lower natures; it is in their higher characters that they differ.
John Christian Bovee (1820-1904, American author, lawyer)
Beauty can't amuse you, but brainwork -- reading, writing, thinking -- can.
Helen Gurley Brown (1922-, American businesswoman, founder of Cosmopolitan Magazine)
Temperance is a tree which as for its root very little contentment, and for its fruit calm and peace.
Buddha (568-488 BC, Indian born, founder of Buddhism)
There is never a better measure of what a person is than what he does when he is absolutely free to choose.
William M. Bulger
Too often the strong, silent man is silent only because he does not know what to say, and is reputed strong only because he has remained silent.
Winston Churchill (1874-1965, British statesman, Prime Minister)
Candor is the brightest gem of criticism.
Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881, British statesman, Prime Minister)
Characters do not change. Opinions alter, but characters are only developed.
Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881, British statesman, Prime Minister)
You can construct the character of a man and his age not only from what he does and says, but from what he fails to say and do.
Norman Douglas (1868-1952, British author)
You must look into people, as well as at them.
Philip Dormer Stanhope Chesterfield (1694-1773, British statesman, author)
Our character is basically a composite of our habits. Because they are consistent, often unconcious patterns, they constantly, daily, express our character…
Stephen R. Covey (1932-, American speaker, trainer, author of "The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People")
Show me the man you honor, and I will know what kind of a man you are. It shows me what your ideal of manhood is, and what kind of a man you long to be.
Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881, Scottish philosopher, author)
Character in a saint means the disposition of Jesus Christ persistently manifested.
Oswald Chambers (1874-1917, Scottish preacher, author)
Every human being is intended to have a character of his own; to be what no others are, and to do what no other can do.
William Ellery Channing (1780-1842, American Unitarian minister, author)
Be your character what it will, it will be known; and nobody will take it upon your word.
Philip Dormer Stanhope Chesterfield (1694-1773, British statesman, author)
Character must be kept bright as well as clean.
Philip Dormer Stanhope Chesterfield (1694-1773, British statesman, author)
Artistic temperament is the disease that afflicts amateurs.
Gilbert K. Chesterton (1874-1936, British author)
Never does a man portray his character more vividly than his proclaiming the character of another.
Winston Churchill (1874-1965, British statesman, Prime Minister)
As fire when thrown into water is cooled down and put out, so also a false accusation when brought against a man of the purest and holiest character, boils over and is at once dissipated, and vanishes and threats of heaven and sea, himself standing unmoved.
Marcus T. Cicero (c. 106-43 BC, Roman orator, politician)
Can there be greater foolishness than the respect you pay to people collectively when you despise them individually?
Marcus T. Cicero (c. 106-43 BC, Roman orator, politician)
Of all the properties which belong to honorable men, not one is so highly prized as that of character.
Henry Clay (1777-1852, American statesman, orator)
As for an authentic villain, the real thing, the absolute, the artist, one rarely meets him even once in a lifetime. The ordinary bad hat is always in part a decent fellow.
Sidonie Gabrielle Colette (1873-1954, French author)
Character is what you know you are, not what others think you have.
Marva Collins (1936- African-American educator)
See a person's actions. Observe his motives. Examine in what things he rests. How can a person conceal his character? How can a person conceal his character?
Confucius (BC 551-479, Chinese ethical teacher, philosopher)
The superior man will watch over himself when he is alone. He examines his heart that there may be nothing wrong there, and that he may have no cause of dissatisfaction with himself.
Confucius (BC 551-479, Chinese ethical teacher, philosopher)
To be fond of learning is near to wisdom; to practice with vigor is near to benevolence; and to be conscious of shame is near to fortitude.
Confucius (BC 551-479, Chinese ethical teacher, philosopher)
When we see men of a contrary character, we should turn inwards and examine ourselves.
Confucius (BC 551-479, Chinese ethical teacher, philosopher)
Candor is a proof of both a just frame of mind, and of a good tone of breeding. It is a quality belonging equally to the honest man and to the gentleman.
James F. Cooper (1789-1851, American novelist)
It takes a great deal of character strength to apologize quickly out of one's heart rather than out of pity. A person must possess himself and have a deep sense of security in fundamental principles and values in order to genuinely apologize.
Stephen R. Covey (1932-, American speaker, trainer, author of "The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People")
Though intelligence is powerless to modify character, it is a dab hand at finding euphemisms for its weaknesses.
Quentin Crisp (1908-1999, British author)
No artist work is so high, so noble, so grand, so enduring, so important for all time, as the making of character in a child.
Charlotte Saunders Cushman (1816-1876, American actor)
There is no greater index of character so sure as the voice.
Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881, British statesman, Prime Minister)
Therefore keep in the midst of life. Do not isolate yourself. Be among men and things, and among troubles, and difficulties, and obstacles.
Henry Drummond (1786-1860, British banker, politician, religious leader)
What you possess in the world will be found at the day of your death to belong to someone else. But what you are will be yours forever.
Henry Van Dyke (1852--1933, American protestant clergyman and writer)
Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882, American poet, essayist)
For character too is a process and an unfolding... among our valued friends is there not someone or other who is a little too self confident and disdainful; whose distinguished mind is a little spotted with commonness; who is a little pinched here and protuberant there with native prejudices; or whose better energies are liable to lapse down the wrong channel under the influence of transient solicitations?
George Eliot (1819-1880, British novelist)
A character is like an acrostic or Alexandrian stanza; read it forward, backward, or across, it still spells the same thing.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882, American poet, essayist)
Character is higher than intellect. A great soul will be strong to live as well as think.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882, American poet, essayist)
Do what you know and perception is converted into character.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882, American poet, essayist)
Gross and obscure natures, however decorated, seem impure shambles; but character gives splendor to youth, and awe to wrinkled skin and gray hairs.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882, American poet, essayist)
Judge of your natural character by what you do in dreams.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882, American poet, essayist)
No change of circumstances can repair a defect of character.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882, American poet, essayist)
People seem not to see that their opinion of the world is also a confession of character.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882, American poet, essayist)
That which we call character is a reserved force which acts directly by presence, and without means. It is conceived of as a certain undemonstrable force, a familiar or genius, by whose impulses the man is guided, but whose counsels he cannot impart.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882, American poet, essayist)
One stumble is enough to deface the character of an honorable life.
L. Estrange
Wealth stays with us a little moment if at all: only our characters are steadfast, not our gold.
Euripides (BC 480-406, Greek tragic poet)
Character is the sum and total of a person's choices.
P. B. Fitzwater
You can easily judge the character of others by how they treat those who can do nothing for them or to them.
Malcolm S. Forbes (1919-1990, American publisher, businessman)
I have only got down on to paper, really, three types of people: the person I think I am, the people who irritate me, and the people I'd like to be.
Edward M. Forster (1879-1970, British novelist, essayist)
You can buy a person's time; you can buy their physical presence at a given place; you can even buy a measured number of their skilled muscular motions per hour. But you can not buy enthusiasm... you can not buy loyalty. You can not buy the devotion of hearts, minds, or souls. You must earn these.
Clarence Francis
Parents can only give good advice or put [their children] on the right paths, but the final forming of a person's character lies in their own hands.
Anne Frank (1929-1945, German Jewish refugee, diarist)
The final forming of a person's character lies in their own hands.
Anne Frank (1929-1945, German Jewish refugee, diarist)
Old age and sickness bring out the essential characteristics of a man.
Felix Frankfurter (1882-1965, Austrian-born American law teacher, judge)
Character is not made in a crisis -- it is only exhibited.
Robert Freeman
Don't tell me where your priorities are. Show me where you spend your money and I'll tell you what they are.
James W. Frick
Human improvement is from within outward.
James A. Froude (1818-1894, British historian)
You cannot dream yourself into a character; you must hammer and forge yourself one.
James A. Froude (1818-1894, British historian)
Deep down, I'm pretty superficial.
Ava Gardner (1922-1990, American actress)
Some people strengthen the society just by being the kind of people they are.
John W. Gardner (1912-2002, American educator, social activist)
Tell me what you pay attention to and I will tell you who you are.
Jose Ortega Y Gasset (1883-1955, Spanish essayist, philosopher)
Faced with crisis, the man of character falls back on himself. He imposes his own stamp of action, takes responsibility for it, makes it his own.
Charles De Gaulle (1890-1970, French president during World War II)
A rich rogue nowadays is fit company for any gentleman; and the world, my dear, hath not such a contempt for roguery as you imagine.
John Gay (1688-1732, British playwright, poet)
Success is always temporary. When all is said and one, the only thing you'll have left is your character.
Vince Gill (1957-, American country singer)
Character develops itself in the stream of life.
Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (1749-1832, German poet, dramatist, novelist)
Character is formed in the stormy billows of the world.
Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (1749-1832, German poet, dramatist, novelist)
Character, in great and little things, means carrying through what you feel able to do.
Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (1749-1832, German poet, dramatist, novelist)
Men show their character in nothing more clearly than what they think laughable.
Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (1749-1832, German poet, dramatist, novelist)
The formation of one's character ought to be everyone's chief aim.
Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (1749-1832, German poet, dramatist, novelist)
You can preach a better sermon with your life than with your lips.
Oliver Goldsmith (1728-1774, Anglo-Irish author, poet, playwright)
Fame is a vapor, popularity an accident, and riches take wings. Only one thing endures and that is character.
Horace Greeley (1811-1872, American newspaper editor)
The happiness of every country depends upon the character of its people, rather than the form of its government.
Thomas C. Haliburton (1796-1865, Canadian jurist, author)
A man without ethics is a wild beast loosed upon this world.
Manly Hall (1901-1990, American philosopher, founder Philosophical Research Society)
There's a fine line between character building and soul destroying.
Colin Hay
To keep your character intact you cannot stoop to filthy acts. It makes it easier to stoop the next time.
Katharine Hepburn (1907-2003, American actress, writer)
A man's character is his guardian divinity.
Heraclitus (BC 535-475, Greek philosopher)
Character is our destiny.
Heraclitus (BC 535-475, Greek philosopher)
Man's character is his fate.
Heraclitus (BC 535-475, Greek philosopher)
Character is to man what carbon is to steel.
Napoleon Hill (1883-1970, American speaker, author, "Think And Grow Rich")
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