Famous quotes containing the word fortune:
“When the philosophers despised riches, it was because they had a mind to vindicate their own merit, and take revenge upon the injustice of fortune by vilifying those enjoyments which she had not given them.”
—François, Duc De La Rochefoucauld (1613–1680)
“All things have their ends and cycles. And when they have reached their highest point, they are in their lowest ruin, for they cannot last for long in such a state. Such is the end for those who cannot moderate their fortune and prosperity with reason and temperance.”
—François Rabelais (1494–1553)
“There was ... a large, shaggy dog, whose nose, report said, was full of porcupine quills. I can testify that he looked very sober. This is the usual fortune of pioneer dogs, for they have to face the brunt of the battle for their race.... When a generation or two have used up all their enemies’ darts, their successors lead a comparatively easy life. We owe to our fathers analogous blessings.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)