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'Tis a hydra's head contention; the more they strive the more they may: and as Praxiteles did by his glass, when he saw a scurvy face in it, brake it in pieces; but for that one he saw many more as bad in a moment.

— Robert Burton The Anatomy of Melancholy (1621)

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More quotes by Robert Burton

The Chinese say that we Europeans have one eye, they themselves two, all the world else is blinde.

The Anatomy of Melancholy (1621)

The fear of some divine and supreme powers keeps men in obedience.

The Anatomy of Melancholy (1621)

He that will not when he may,
When he will he shall have nay.

Anatomy of a Melancholy (1621)

Every man for himself, his own ends, the Devil for all.

The Anatomy of Melancholy (1621)

As clear and as manifest as the nose in a man's face.

The Anatomy of Melancholy (1621)

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