Bernard de Mandeville Quotes


"There is no intrinsic worth in money but what is alterable with the times, and whether a guinea goes for twenty pounds or for a shilling, it is the labor of the poor and not the high and low value that is set on gold or silver, which all the comforts of life must arise from."
- Bernard de Mandeville
(Related: Life, Money, Gold, Labor, Poor, Value, Worth)

"We seldom call anybody lazy, but such as we reckon inferior to us, and of whom we expect some service."
- Bernard de Mandeville
(Related: Service)

"People of substance may sin without being exposed for their stolen pleasure; but servants and the poorer sort of women have seldom an opportunity of concealing a big belly, or at least the consequences of it."
- Bernard de Mandeville
(Related: Women, People, Opportunity, Being, Consequences, May, Pleasure, Sin)

"Because impudence is a vice, it does not follow that modesty is a virtue; it is built upon shame, a passion in our nature, and may be either good or bad according to the actions performed from that motive."
- Bernard de Mandeville
(Related: Nature, Virtue, Actions, May, Modesty, Motive, Passion, Shame, Vice)

"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 de Mandeville
(Related: Religion, Honor, Patience, Weight)