John Stuart Mill ( 9 of 19 )
Commemoration of Richard Rolle of Hampole, Writer, Hermit, Mystic, 1349 It is of no use to say that Christ, read more
Commemoration of Richard Rolle of Hampole, Writer, Hermit, Mystic, 1349 It is of no use to say that Christ, as exhibited in the Gospels, is not historical, and that we know not how much of what is admirable has been super-added by the tradition of his followers. Who among his disciples or among their proselytes was capable of inventing the sayings of Jesus or of imagining the life and character revealed in the Gospels? Certainly not the fishermen of Galilee; as certainly not St. Paul, whose character and idiosyncrasies were of a totally different sort; still less the early Christian writers, in whom nothing is more evident than that the good which was in them was all derived, as they always professed that it was derived, from the higher source.
That which seems the height of absurdity in one generation often becomes the height of wisdom in the next.
That which seems the height of absurdity in one generation often becomes the height of wisdom in the next.
Eccentricity has always abounded when and where strength of character has abounded; and the amount of eccentricity in a society read more
Eccentricity has always abounded when and where strength of character has abounded; and the amount of eccentricity in a society has generally been proportional to the amount of genius, mental vigor, and moral courage which it contained.
Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.
Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.
That miscellaneous collection of a few wise and many foolish individuals, called the public.
That miscellaneous collection of a few wise and many foolish individuals, called the public.
We can never be sure that the opinion we are endeavoring to stifle is a false opinion; and even if read more
We can never be sure that the opinion we are endeavoring to stifle is a false opinion; and even if we were sure, stifling it would be an evil still.
The only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community against his will read more
The only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community against his will is to prevent harm to others.
When the land is cultivated entirely by the spade, and no horses
are kept, a cow is kept for read more
When the land is cultivated entirely by the spade, and no horses
are kept, a cow is kept for every three acres of land.
A party of order or stability, and a party of progress or reform, are both necessary elements of a healthy read more
A party of order or stability, and a party of progress or reform, are both necessary elements of a healthy state of political life.
