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If one does not possess what one loves, one should love what one has.

— Jean-François Marmontel Hoyt's New Cyclopedia of Practical Quotations (1922)

Quand on n'a pas ce que l'on aime, il faut aimer ce que l'on a.

Original text (French)

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Source and credibility

Wikiquote does not flag this quote as disputed or misattributed.

Source: Quoted by Moore in Irish Melodies, no. 3 (1810), "The Irish Peasant to His Mistress", note
Work: Hoyt's New Cyclopedia of Practical Quotations, 1922
Source quality: Secondhand citation Quoted from another book or article rather than from the original.

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Topics

Love

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It is not permitted to all men to be great, but all can be good.

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Generally the ridiculous touches the sublime.

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Heaven and hell are in the heart of the man.

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As a rule the ridiculous touches the sublime, and to follow the line of demarcation between them without ever overstepping it requires constant watchfulness.

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Attribution

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