The world is a looking-glass, and gives back to every man the reflection of his own face. Frown at it, and it will in turn look sourly upon you; laugh at it and with it, and it is a jolly kind companion; and so let all young persons take their choice.
William Makepeace ThackerayWhat is a gentleman? It is to be honest, to be gentle, to be generous, to be brave, to be wise; and possessed of all these qualities to exercise them in the most graceful manner.
William Makepeace ThackerayIt is best to love wisely, no doubt; but to love foolishly is better than not to be able to love at all.
William Makepeace ThackerayI set it down as a maxim, that it is good for a man to live where he can meet his betters, intellectual and social.
William Makepeace ThackerayAs an occupation in declining years, I declare I think saving is useful, amusing and not unbecoming. It must be a perpetual amusement. It is a game that can be played by day, by night, at home and abroad, and at which you must win in the long run. . . . What an interest it imparts to life!.
William Makepeace Thackeray