Anton Chekhov Quotes

For our vanity is such that we hold our own characters immutable, and we are slow to acknowledge that they have changed, even for the better.

Throughout the centuries, man has considered himself beautiful. I rather suppose that man only believes in his own beauty out of pride; that he is not really beautiful and he suspects this himself; for why does he look on the face of his fellow-man with such scorn?

Men blush less for their crimes than for their weaknesses and vanity.

Such is the nature of men, that howsoever they may acknowledge many others to be more witty, or more eloquent, or more learned; yet they will hardly believe there be many so wise as themselves.

Pampered vanity is a better thing perhaps than starved pride.

As a person I'm perfectly vain, I'm just vainer as an actor about my ability. My acting vanity trumps my human vanity.

Pride is an established conviction of one’s own paramount worth in some particular respect, while vanity is the desire of rousing such a conviction in others, and it is generally accompanied by the secret hope of ultimately coming to the same conviction oneself. Pride works from within; it is the direct appreciation of oneself. Vanity is the desire to arrive at this appreciation indirectly, from without.

I don't think anyone gets bored of being called good-looking. We are all vain in one way or another.

Pride... is a very common failing, I believe. By all that I have ever read, I am convinced that it is very common indeed; that human nature is particularly prone to it, and that there are very few of us who do not cherish a feeling of self-complacency on the score of some quality or the other, real or imaginary. Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us.

The vanity of others runs counter to our taste only when it runs counter to our vanity.

Imperfections would not be half so much taken notice of, if vanity did not make proclamation of them.

It is difficult to divest one's self of vanity; because impossible to divest one's self of self-love.

What mortal is there of us, who would find his satisfaction enhanced by an opportunity of comparing the picture he presents to himself of his doings, with the picture they make on the mental retina of his neighbours? We are poor plants buoyed up by the air-vessels of our own conceit.

There is this paradox in pride - it makes some men ridiculous, but prevents others from becoming so.

Every man has just as much vanity as he wants understanding.

Vanity, indeed, is the very antidote to conceit; for while the former makes us all nerve to the opinion of others, the latter is perfectly satisfied with its opinion of itself.

Every man is prompted by the love of himself to imagine that he possesses some qualities superior, either in kind or degree, to those which he sees allotted to the rest of the world.

Every one at the bottom of his heart cherishes vanity; even the toad thinks himself good-looking,--"rather tawny perhaps, but look at his eye!

It would be next to impossible to discover a handsome woman who was not also a vain woman.

What really flatters a man is that you think him worth flattering.

The love of fame is a love that even the wisest of men are reluctant to forgo.

One can never outlive one's vanity.

A vain man finds his account in speaking good or evil of himself.

Every man, however little, makes a figure in his own eyes.

Is there any vanity greater than the vanity of those who believe themselves without it?