Oscar Wilde Quotes: Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wilde is a renowned author known for his quirky personality, flamboyant style, sarcastic wit, and ingenious observational social commentary.
‘“If you cannot write well, you cannot think well; if you cannot think well, others will do your thinking for you.””“Live! Live the wonderful life that is in you! Let nothing be lost upon you. Be always searching for new sensations. Be afraid of nothing.”’
Oscar Wilde Quotes
‘“Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.”’
‘“We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell.”’
‘“No man is rich enough to buy back his past.”’
‘“Death must be so beautiful. To lie in the soft brown earth, with the grasses waving above one’s head, and listen to silence. To have no yesterday, and no tomorrow. To forget time, to forgive life, to be at peace.”’
‘“Some cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go.”’
‘“A good friend will always stab you in the front.”’
‘“Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.”’
‘“An idea that is not dangerous is unworthy of being called an idea at all.”’
‘“Men marry because they are tired; women, because they are curious: both are disappointed.”’
‘ “Women are meant to be loved, not to be understood.”’
‘“A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.”’
‘“The truth is rarely pure and never simple.”’
‘“Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months.”’
‘“You can never be overdressed or overeducated.”’
‘“You don’t love someone for their looks, or their clothes, or for their fancy car, but because they sing a song only you can hear.”’
‘“I am so clever that sometimes I don’t understand a single word of what I am saying.”’
‘One should never trust a woman who tells one her real age. A woman who would tell one that would tell one anything.”’
‘“Never love anyone who treats you like you’re ordinary.”’
‘“Sin is a thing that writes itself across a man’s face. It cannot be concealed.”’
‘“Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.”’
‘“There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it.”’
‘ “Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.”’
‘“Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination.”’
‘“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.”’
‘“A cynic is a man who knows the price of everything, and the value of nothing.”’
‘“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.”’
‘“To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance.”’
‘”Everyone may not be good, but there is always something good in everyone. Never judge anyone shortly because every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.”‘
‘“A bore is someone who deprives you of solitude without providing you with company.”’
‘“People who count their chickens before they are hatched act very wisely because chickens run about so absurdly that it’s impossible to count them accurately.”’
‘”To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.”‘
‘“The most terrible thing about it is not that it breaks one’s heart – hearts are made to be broken – but that it turns one’s heart to stone.”’
‘“When a woman marries again, it is because she detested her first husband. When a man marries again, it is because he adored his first wife. Women try their luck; men risk theirs.”’
‘“Hear no evil, speak no evil, and you’ll never be invited to a party.”’
‘“There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. That is all.”’
‘“The books that the world calls immoral are books that show the world its own shame.”’
‘“He wanted to be where no one would know who he was. He wanted to escape from himself.”’
‘“One’s real life is so often the life that one does not lead.”’
‘“Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.”’
‘“Humanity takes itself too seriously. It is the world’s original sin. If the cave-man had known how to laugh, History would have been different.”’
‘“It is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it.”’
‘“Arguments are to be avoided, they are always vulgar and often convincing.”’
‘“The heart was made to be broken.”’
‘“When I like people immensely I never tell their names to anyone. It is like surrendering a part of them. I have grown to love secrecy.”’
‘“The best way to appreciate your job is to imagine yourself without one.”’
‘“I like men who have a future and women who have a past.”’
‘“Experience is merely the name men gave to their mistakes.”’
‘“I knew nothing but shadows and I thought them to be real.”’
‘“It is through art, and through art only, that we can realise our perfection.”’
‘“Life is far too important a thing ever to talk seriously about.”’
‘“To be popular one must be a mediocrity.”’
‘“No good deed goes unpunished.”’
‘“Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious.”’
‘I have nothing to declare except my genius.”’
‘“The basis of optimism is sheer terror.”’
‘“If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.”’
‘“Man is many things, but he is not rational.”’
‘“I am not young enough to know everything.”’
‘“A little sincerity is a dangerous thing, and a great deal of it is absolutely fatal.”’
‘“I don’t want to go to heaven. None of my friends are there.”’
‘“Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness.”’
‘“I have the simplest tastes. I am always satisfied with the best.”’
‘“I love acting. It is so much more real than life.”’
‘“Democracy means simply the bludgeoning of the people by the people for the people.”’
‘“There is only one thing in life worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.”’
‘“If you don’t get everything you want, think of the things you don’t get that you don’t want.”’
‘“Children begin by loving their parents; as they grow older they judge them; sometimes they forgive them.”’
‘“Every woman is a rebel.”’
‘“Between the optimist and the pessimist, the difference is droll. The optimist sees the doughnut; the pessimist the hole!”’
‘“There are moments when one has to choose between living one’s own life, fully, entirely, completely-or dragging out some false, shallow, degrading existence that the world in its hypocrisy demands.”’
‘“A flower blossoms for its own joy.”’
‘“Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead. The consciousness of loving and being loved brings a warmth and a richness to life that nothing else can bring.”’
‘“Punctuality is the thief of time.”’
‘“Behind every exquisite thing that existed, there was something tragic.”’
‘“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars. We all have clouds above us but some see their silver linings. We all face difficulties but some of us are grateful that they aren’t worse.”’
‘“Ordinary riches can be stolen, real riches cannot. In your soul are infinitely precious things that cannot be taken from you.”’
‘“The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it.”’
‘“A writer is someone who has taught his mind to misbehave.”’
‘“I may not agree with you, but I will defend to the death your right to make an ass of yourself.”’
‘“Life has been your art. You have set yourself to music. Your days are your sonnets.”’
‘“Marriage is the triumph of imagination over intelligence. Second marriage is the triumph of hope over experience.”’
‘“A passion for pleasure is the secret of remaining young.”’
‘“It is absurd to divide people into good and bad. People are either charming or tedious.”’
‘“Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live, it is asking others to live as one wishes to live.”’
‘“To do nothing at all is the most difficult thing in the world, the most difficult and the most intellectual.”’
‘“A man who does not think for himself does not think at all.”’
‘“Talent borrows, genius steals!”’
‘“The very essence of romance is uncertainty.”’
‘“Two men look out a window. One sees mud, the other sees the stars.”’
‘“Society often forgives the criminal; it never forgives the dreamer.”’
‘“Nothing worth knowing can be taught.”’
‘“I am too fond of reading books to care to write them.”’
‘“Love is a misunderstanding between two fools.”’
‘ “You will always be fond of me. I represent to you all the sins you never had the courage to commit.”’
‘“Without order nothing can exist-without chaos nothing can evolve. Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.”’
‘“Never regret thy fall, O Icarus of the fearless flight For the greatest tragedy of them all Is never to feel the burning light.”’
‘“What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings in disguise.”’
‘“Everything in the world is about sex except sex. Sex is about power.”’
‘“It takes great deal of courage to see the world in all its tainted glory, and still to love it.”’
‘“Life is not complex. We are complex. Life is simple, and the simple thing is the right thing.”’
‘“Many of the great achievements of the world were accomplished by tired and discouraged men who kept on working.”’
‘“The old believe everything, the middle-aged suspect everything, the young know everything.”’
‘“Every little action of the common day makes or unmakes character.”’
‘ “Whenever people agree with me I always feel I must be wrong.”’
‘“Success is a science; if you have the conditions, you get the result.”’
‘“With age comes wisdom, but sometimes age comes alone.”’
‘“Life is never fair, and perhaps it is a good thing for most of us that it is not.”’
‘“The gods are strange. It is not our vices only they make instruments to scourge us. They bring us to ruin through what in us is good, gentle, humane, loving.”’
‘“What fire does not destroy, it hardens.”’
‘“Whenever life sucks, remember you’re going to die someday.”’
‘“I am very glad I have travelled. Travel improves the mind wonderfully, and does away with all one’s prejudices.”’
‘“With freedom, books, flowers, and the moon, who could not be happy?”’
‘“The world belongs to the discontented.”’
‘“A woman will flirt with anybody in the world as long as other people are looking on.”’
‘“Our ambition should be to rule ourselves, the true kingdom for each one of us; and true progress is to know more, and be more, and to do more.”’
‘ “Everything in moderation, including moderation.”’
‘“Love is like a war; easy to start but hard to end and you never know where it might take you.”’
‘“Being natural is simply a pose, and the most irritating pose I know.”’
‘“Work is the curse of the drinking classes.”’
‘“The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention.”’
‘“Life is a nightmare that prevents one from sleeping.”’
‘“Don’t be afraid. There are exquisite things in store for you. This is merely the beginning.”’
‘“Everyone may not be good, but there’s always something good in everyone. Never judge anyone shortly because every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.”’
‘“What the hell is an oboe?”’
‘“Life is too short to be in a hurry.”’
‘“When one is in love, one always begins by deceiving one’s self, and one always ends by deceiving others. That is what the world calls a romance.”’
‘“Moderation is a fatal thing. Nothing succeeds like excess.”’
‘“A red rose is not selfish because it wants to be a red rose. It would be horribly selfish if it wanted all the other flowers in the garden to be both red and roses.”’
‘“The universe is God. I am God so that means I am the universe.”’
‘“When you really want love you will find it waiting for you.”’
‘“Discontent is the first step in the progress of a man or a nation.”’
‘“Always keep love in your heart.”’
‘“The answers are all out there, we just need to ask the right questions.”’
‘“Nothing can cure the soul but the senses, just as nothing can cure the senses but the soul.”’
‘“To live in this world is a rare thing; most people just exist.”’
‘“It seems to me that we all look at Nature too much, and live with her too little.”’
‘“Wisdom is to have dreams big enough not to lose sight when we pursue them.”’
‘“When the gods wish to punish us they answer our prayers.”’
‘“Memory is the diary we all carry about with us.”’
‘“The only good thing to do with good advice is pass it on; it is never of any use to oneself.”’
‘“The best people to work for are me, myself and I.”’
‘“You know more than you think you know, just as you know less than you want to know.”’
‘ “Don’t use big words. They mean so little.”’
‘“The aim of love is to love. No more, no less.”’
‘ “Life is a great disappointment.”’
‘“Illusion is the first of all pleasures.”’
‘“Sometimes it takes courage to give into temptation.”’
‘“I adore simple pleasures. They are the last refuge of the complex.”’
‘“The essence of thought, as the essence of life, is growth.”’
‘“Between men and women there is no friendship possible. There is passion, enmity, worship, love, but no friendship.”’
‘“Cultivated leisure is the aim of man.”’
‘“Progress is the realization of utopia.”’
‘“Sooner or later we have all to pay for what we do.”’
‘“If you are not long, I will wait for you all my life.”’
‘“We live in an age when unnecessary things are our only necessities.”’
‘“It’s beauty that captures your attention. personality which captures your heart.”’
‘“Life under a good government is rarely dramatic; life under a bad government is always so.”’
‘“Beauty is a form of genius – is higher, indeed, than genius, as it needs no explanation.”’
‘“There are two ways to dislike poetry: One is to dislike it; the other is to read Pope.”’
‘“The world was my oyster but I used the wrong fork.”’
‘“There is no sin except stupidity.”’
‘“When a love comes to an end, weaklings cry, efficient ones instantly find another love, and the wise already have one in reserve.”’
‘“Only dull people are brilliant at breakfast.”’
‘“The only one you need in your life is that person who shows you he needs you in his.”’
‘“The mystery of love is greater than the mystery of death.”’
‘“Cats are put on earth to remind us that not everything has a purpose.”’
‘“Don’t feed the trolls; nothing fuels them so much.”’
‘“Everything popular is wrong.”’
‘“History is a lie commonly agreed upon.”’
‘“Only the shallow know themselves.”’
‘“How does one cure the soul? Through the senses.”’
‘“Where your life leads you, you must go.”’
‘“The tragedy of growing old is not that one is old but that one is young.”’
‘“The true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible.”’
‘“Deceiving others. That is what the world calls a romance.”’
‘“Religion is like a blind man looking in a black room for a black cat that isn’t there, and finding it.”’
‘“Music is the perfect type of art.”’
‘“To give and not expect return, that is what lies at the heart of love.”’
‘“Everyone is born a king, and most people die in exile.”’
‘“Some things are more precious because they don’t last long.”’
‘“I can’t stand people that do not take food seriously.”’
‘“Only good questions deserve good answers.”’
‘“I love to talk about nothing. It’s the only thing I know anything about.”’
‘“All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does, and that is his.”’
‘“The moment you think you understand a great work of art, it’s dead for you.”’
‘“There is no Mystery so great as Misery.”’
‘“A gentleman is one who never hurts anyone’s feelings unintentionally.”’
‘“If I am occasionally a little over-dressed, I make up for it by being always immensely over-educated.”’
‘“All great ideas are dangerous.”’
‘“The optimist sees the donut, the pessimist sees the hole.”’
‘“I was wrong. God’s law is only Love.”’
‘“Every portrait that is painted with feeling is a portrait of the artist, not of the sitter.”’
‘“Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit.”’
‘“The world is a stage and the play is badly cast.”’
‘“To be good is to be in harmony with oneself. Discord is to be forced to be in harmony with others.”’
‘“A man can be happy with any woman as long as he does not love her.”’
‘“Art is the only serious thing in the world. And the artist is the only person who is never serious.”’
‘“Beauty is the only thing that time cannot harm.”’
‘“Marriage is a long, dull meal with dessert served at the beginning.”’
‘“One should always be a little improbable.”’
‘“The suspense is terrible. I hope it will last.”’
‘“It is always with the best intentions that the worst work is done.”’
‘“Music is the art which is most nigh to tears and memories.”’
‘“I refuse to have a battle of wits with an unarmed man.”
