It is an imprudence common to kings
To listen to too much advice and to err in their choice.
D'écouter trop d'avis et se tromper au choix.
Original text (French)
Original text (French)
As great as kings may be, they are what we are: they can err like other men.
Oh, how sweet it is to pity the fate of an enemy, when we have no longer anything to fear from him!
He who is insulted has a right to be outraged, as unpunished audacity only increases!
A man must serve his time to every trade
Save censure — critics are ready-made.
The physician can bury his mistakes, but the architect can only advise his clients to plant vines.
Parodies and caricatures are the most penetrating of criticisms.
Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Pierre Corneille (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.