"This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap; the being a force of Nature instead of a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy."

"We must either breed political capacity or be ruined by Democracy, which was forced on us by the failure of the older alternatives. Yet if Despotism failed only for want of a capable benevolent despot, what chance has Democracy, which requires a whole population of capable voters."

"No specific virtue or vice in a man implies the existence of any other specific virtue or vice in him, however closely the imagination may associate them. Virtue consists, not in abstaining from vice, but in not desiring it. Self-denial is not a virtue : it is only the effect of prudence on rascality. Obedience simulates subordination as fear of the police simulates honesty. Disobedience, the rarest and most courageous of the virtues, is seldom distinguished from neglect, the laziest and commonest of the vices. Vice is waste of life. Poverty, obedience and celibacy are the canonical vices. Economy is the art of making the most of life. The love of economy is the root of all virtue."

"In heaven an angel is nobody in particular."

"Happiness and beauty are by-products."

"The unconscious self is the real genius. Your breathing goes wrong the moment your conscious self meddles with it."

"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world: the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man."

"Men are wise in proportion, not to their experience, but to their capacity for experience."

"Hell is paved with good intentions, not with bad ones."

"The right to live is abused whenever it is not constantly challenged."

"Civilization is a disease produced by the practice of building societies with rotten material."

"Every man over forty is a scoundrel."

"Youth, which is forgiven everything, forgives itself nothing: age, which forgives itself everything, is forgiven nothing."

"Take care to get what you like or you will be forced to like what you get. Where there is no ventilation fresh air is declared unwholesome. Where there is no religion hypocrisy becomes good taste. Where there is no knowledge ignorance calls itself science."

"If history repeats itself, and the unexpected always happens, how incapable must Man be of learning from experience!"

"Those who understand evil pardon it: those who resent it destroy it."

"It is dangerous to be sincere unless you are also stupid."

"Beware of the man who does not return your blow: he neither forgives you nor allows you to forgive yourself."

"Two starving men cannot be twice as hungry as one; but two rascals can be ten times as vicious as one."

"Self-sacrifice enables us to sacrifice other people without blushing."

"If you begin by sacrificing yourself to those you love, you will end by hating those to whom you have sacrificed yourself."

"Ryse, hyrd men heynd! for now is he borne That shall take fro the feynd that adam had lorne: That warloo to sheynd this nyght is he borne. God is made youre freynd now at this morne. He behestys, At bedlem go se, Ther lygys that fre In a cryb full poorely, Betwyx two bestys."

"For I am he that may make or mar a man; My self if I it say as men of cowrte now can; Supporte a man to day to-morn agans hym than, On both parties thus I play and fenys me to ordan The right."

"Here is a bag full, lokys, Of pride and of lust, Of Wraggers and wrears a bag full of brefes, Of carpars and cryars of mychers and thefes, Of lurdans and lyars that no man lefys, Of flytars, of flyars and renderars of reffys; This can I."

"Say, felows, how semys now me To sit in seyte of trynyte? I am so bright of ich a lym I trow me seme as well as hym."

"We, that were angels so fare, And sat so hie above the ayere, Now ar we waxen blak as any coyll, And ugly, tatyrd as a foyll. What alyd the, lucifer, to fall?"

"Lord, I were at ese and hertely full hoylle, Might I onys have a measse of wedows coyll; For thi saull, without lese shuld I dele penny doyll, So wold mo, no frese that I se on this sole Of wifis that ar here, For the life that thay leyd, Wold thare husbandis were dede, For, as ever ete I brede, So wold I oure syre were."

"He shall out of preson pas, For that he begyled was Thrugh the edder, and his wyfe; Thay gart hym towch the tree of lyfe, And ete the frute that I forbed, And he was dampned for that dede. Ryghtwysnes wyll we make; I wyll that my son manhede take, For reson wyll that ther be thre, A man, a madyn, and a tre: Man for man, tre for tre, Madyn for madyn; thus shal it be."

"Ffyrst must us crepe and sythen go."

"Now god gyf you care foles all sam; Sagh I neuer none so fare bot the foles of gotham."

"Bot we sely shepardes that walkys on the moore, In fayth we are nere handys outt of the doore; No wonder as it standys if we be poore, For the tylthe of oure landys lyys falow as the floore."

"We ar so hamyd, For-taxed and ramyd, We ar mayde hand tamyd, With thyse gentlery men. Thus thay refe vs oure rest oure lady theym wary! These men that ar lord fest thay cause the ploghe tary."

"Thus hold, thay us hunder, Thus thay bryng us in blonder; It were greatte wonder, And ever shuld we thryfe. For may he gett a paynt slefe or a broche now on dayes, Wo is hym that hym grefe or onys agane says!"

"He can make purveance, With boste and bragance, And all is thrugh maintenance Of men that are gretter. Ther shall com a swane as prowde as a po, He must borow my wane my ploghe also, Then I am full fane to graunt or he go. Thus lyf we in payne anger, and wo, By nyght and day; He must have if he langyd, If I shuld, forgang it, I were better be hangyd Then oones say hym nay."

"Whoso couthe take hede and lett the warld pas, It is ever in drede and brekyll as glas, And slythys. This warld, fowre never so, With mervels mo and mo, Now in weyll, now in wo, And all thyng wrythys."

"Herod, the king, in his raging, Chargid he hath this day His men of might in his owne sight All yonge children to slay. That wo is me, pore child, for thee, And ever morne and say For thi parting nether say nor singe By by, lully lullay."

"The weykist gothe eyuer to the walle."

"As I out rode this enderes night, Of thre ioli sheppardes I saw a sight, And all abowte there fold a star shone bright; They sange "terli terlowe"; So mereli the sheppards ther pipes can blow."

"By by, lully lullay, þow littell tyne child, By by, lully lullay."

"O, what I am fetys and fayre and fygured full fytt! The forme of all fayrehede apon me es feste, All welth in my weelde es, I wote be my wytte; The bemes of my brighthede are bygged with the beste. My schewyng es schemerande and schynande, So bygly to blys am I broghte; Me nedes for to noy me righte noghte, Here sall never payne me be pynande."

"Owe, certes, what I am worthely wroghte with wyrschip, iwys! For in a glorius gle my gleteryng it glemes; I am so mightyly made my mirth may noghte mys- Ay sall I byde in this blys thorowe brightnes of bemes. Me nedes noghte of noy for to neven, All welth in my welde have I weledande; Abowne yohit sall I be beeldand, On heghte in the hyeste of hewuen."

"I sall be lyke unto hym that es hyeste on heghte. Owe, what I am derworth and defte-Owe! Dewes! All goes downe! My mighte and my mayne es all marrande- Helpe, felawes! In faythe I am fallande."

"Nowe in my sawle grete joie have I, I am all cladde in comforte clere, Now will be borne of my body Both God and man togedir in feere."

"Hayle my lord God, hayle prince of pees, Hayle my fadir, and hayle my sone; Hayle sovereyne sege all synnes to sesse, Hayle God and man in erth to wonne. Hayle, thurgh whos myht All this worlde was first begonne, Merknes and light."

"Thus schall the sothe be bought and solde And treasoune schall for trewthe be tolde."

"This woffull worlde is brought till ende, Mi fadir of heuene he woll it be; Therfore till erthe nowe will I wende Miselve to sitte in magesté. To deme my domes I woll descende; This body will I bere with me – Howe it was dight, mannes mys to mende, All mankynde there schall it see."

"O Death, thou comest when I had thee least in mind."

"Death: What, wenest thou thy lyfe is gyven thee And thy wordely gooddes also? Everyman: I had wende so, verely. Death: Ney, nay, it was but lend thee, For as sone as thou arte go Another a whyle shall have it, and than go therfro Even as thou hast done. Everyman, thou arte mad, that hast thy wyttes five And here on erth wyll not amende thy lyve, For sodenly I do cume."

"The tyde abydeth no man."

"Loo, fayre wordes maketh fooles fayne; They promyse, and nothynge wyll do certayne."