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It is not necessary to retain facts that we may reason concerning them.

— Pierre Beaumarchais Le Barbier de Séville (1773)

Il n'est pas nécessaire de tenir les choses pour en raisonner.

Original text (French)

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Notes from Wikiquote

It is by no means necessary to understand things to speak confidently about them. | Ramage (1866) p. 3

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Mind

More quotes by Pierre Beaumarchais

Without freedom to blame, no praise is flattering, and none but little men are afraid of little writings.

The Marriage of Figaro (1778)

I hasten to laugh at everything, for fear of being obliged to weep.

Le Barbier de Séville (1773)

To drink without thirst, to make love without cessation: this is what distinguishes us from the lower animals.

The Marriage of Figaro (1778)

Calumniate, calumniate; there will always be something which sticks.

Le Barbier de Séville (1773)

Be commonplace and creeping, and you attain all things.

Le Barbier de Séville (1773)

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Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Pierre Beaumarchais (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.