Émile Chartier Quotes
March 3, 1868 – June 2, 1951
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Never be insolent unless it is a deliberate decision, and only toward a man more powerful than yourself.
Giving Pleasure 
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More Émile Chartier Quotes
As opposed to the incoherent spectacle of the world, the real is what is expected, what is obtained and what is discovered by our own movement. It is what is sensed as being within our own power and always responsive to our action.
Émile Chartier— Book I, ch. 3
On prouve tout ce qu'on veut, et la vraie difficulté est de savoir ce qu'on veut prouver.
Émile Chartier— We prove what we want to prove, and the real difficulty is to know what we want to prove.Système des Beaux-Arts (1920), as quoted in The Most Brilliant Thoughts of All Time (In Two Lines or Less) by John M. Shanahan, p. 34
Thought is saying no, and it is to itself that thought says no.
Émile Chartier— Propos sur la religion [Remarks on religion] (1924)
— Variant: To think is to say no.Le Citoyen contre les Pouvoirs [The Citizen against the Powers] (1926)
When people ask me if the division between parties of the right and parties of the left, men of the right and men of the left, still makes sense, the first thing that comes to mind is that the person asking the question is certainly not a man of the left.
Émile Chartier— 1931, as quoted by Marcel Gauchet. Realms of Memory: Rethinking the French Past, Vol. 1 - Conflicts and Divisions. Nora, Pierre and Kritzman, Lawrence (1996). New York: Columbia University Press, p. 266. ISBN 9780231084048
Nothing is more dangerous than an idea, when it's the only one we have.
Émile Chartier— Libres-propos
If religion is only human, and its form is man’s form, it follows that everything in religion is true.
Émile Chartier— Introduction
It is the human condition to question one god after another, one appearance after another, or better, one apparition after another, always pursuing the truth of the imagination, which is not the same as the truth of appearance.
Émile Chartier— Introduction
When we speak, in gestures or signs, we fashion a real object in the world; the gesture is seen, the words and the song are heard. The arts are simply a kind of writing, which, in one way or another, fixes words or gestures, and gives body to the invisible.
Émile Chartier— Introduction
Many men have refuted fear, and with sound arguments. But a man who is afraid does not listen to arguments; he listens to the beating of his heart and the pulsating of his blood.
Émile Chartier— Becephalus
It is clear that in mulling over harsh judgments, sinister predictions, and bad memories, we fashion our own sadness; in a certain sense, we savor it.
Émile Chartier— Sad Mary (Alain On Happiness (1973))
In short, the important thing is to get started. No matter how; then there will be time to ask yourself where you are going.
Émile Chartier— Fate (Alain On Happiness (1973))
We must clear away, simplify, eradicate.
Émile Chartier— The Prophetic Soul
Our errors perish before we do. Let's not mummify them and keep them around.
Émile Chartier— Our Future (Alain On Happiness (1973))
Everybody continually tries to get away with as much as he can; and society is a marvelous machine which allows decent people to be cruel without realizing it.
Émile Chartier— Attitudes Toward Neighbors
Politeness is for people toward whom we feel indifferent, and moods, both good and bad, are for those we love.
Émile Chartier— Domestic Tranquility
Any kind of barbarism, once established, will last.
Émile Chartier— Men of Action
Idleness is the mother of all vices, but also of all virtues.
Émile Chartier— Men of Action
Work is the best and worst of all things; the best of it is voluntary, the worst of it is servile.
Émile Chartier— Happy Farmers
Every menial condition is bearable as long as one can exercise authority over one's work and be assured that the job is permanent.
Émile Chartier— Happy Farmers
We are advised and led along by second-rate moralists who only know how to work themselves into a delirium and pass their illness onto others.
Émile Chartier— The Eloquence of Our Passions
An author of antiquity said that every event has two handles, and that, in order to carry it, there is no sense in choosing the one that hurts the hand.
Émile Chartier— In The Rain (Alain On Happiness (1973))
Certainly thinking is pleasant, but the pleasure of thinking must be subordinated to the art of making decisions.
Émile Chartier— Ceremonies (Alain On Happiness (1973))
Obligation spoils everything.
Émile Chartier— Happy New Year
Happiness is a reward that comes to those that have not looked for it.
Émile Chartier— Victories
Untie, liberate, and do not be afraid. He who is free is disarmed.
Émile Chartier— Poets
It is very true that we ought to think of the happiness of others; but it is not often enough said that the best thing we can do for those who love us is to be happy ourselves.
Émile Chartier— Happiness if Generous
When the pack is out hunting, the dogs do not fight among themselves.
Émile Chartier— One Must Vow
