Samuel Johnson Quotes

Truth will not afford sufficient food to their vanity; so they have betaken, themselves to errour. Truth, Sir, is a cow which will yield such people no more milk, and so they are gone to milk the bull.

The vanity of being known to be trusted with a secret is generally one of the chief motives to disclose it; for, however absurd it may be thought to boast an honour by an act which shows that it was conferred without merit, yet most men seem rather inclined to confess the want of virtue than of importance.

Men more frequently require to be reminded than informed.

Much may be made of a Scotchman if he be caught young.

Your manuscript is both good and original but the parts that are good are not original and the parts that are original are not good.

When an author is yet living we estimate his powers by his worst performance and when he is dead we rate them by his best.

The man who is asked by an author what he thinks of his work is put to the torture and is not obliged to speak the truth.

Read over your compositions and when you meet a passage which you think is particularly fine strike it out.