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Reader, I think proper, before we proceed any farther together, to acquaint thee that I intend to digress, through this whole history, as often as I see occasion, of which I am myself a better judge than any pitiful critic..."

— Henry Fielding The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling (1749)

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More quotes by Henry Fielding

It is a trite but true observation, that examples work more forcibly on the mind than precepts.

Joseph Andrews (1742)

Can any man have a higher notion of the rule of right and the eternal fitness of things?

The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling (1749)

Guilt has very quick ears to an accusation.

Amelia (1751)

When widows exclaim loudly against second marriages, I would always lay a wager that the man, if not the wedding day, is absolutely fixed on.

Amelia (1751)

In reality, the world have payed too great a compliment to critics, and have imagined them men of much greater profundity than they really are.

The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling (1749)

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