Jean de la Bruyere Quotes

Men sometimes feel injured by praise because it assigns a limit to their merit; few people are modest enough not to take offense that one appreciates them.

Today self-consciousness no longer means anything but reflection on the ego as embarrassment, as realization of impotence: knowing that one is nothing.

Men are much more unwilling to have their weaknesses and their imperfections known, than their crimes; and, if you hint to a man that you think him silly, ignorant, or even ill-bred or awkward, he will hate you more, and longer, than if you tell him plainly that you think him a rogue.

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

Vanity is really the least bad and most pardonable sort. The vain person wants praise, applause, admiration too much and is always angling for it. It is a fault, but a childlike and even (in an odd way) a humble fault. It shows that you are not yet completely contented with your own admiration. You value other people enough to want them to look at you. You are in fact still human.

Vanity's ridiculous, but we all fall prey to it from time to time.

In reality, there is, perhaps, no one of our natural passions so hard to subdue as pride.

Whatever talents I possess may suddenly diminish or suddenly increase. I can with ease become an ordinary fool. I may be one now. But it doesn't do to upset one's own vanity.

I've spent my life being embarrassed.

I have a bit of pride, which is always my downfall.

Some men never feel small, but these are the few men who are.

Our vanity is hardest to wound precisely when our pride has just been wounded.

I'm just like anyone. I cut and I bleed. And I embarass easily.

In falling over in heels while trying to look attractive, you don't just hurt your body, you bear the humiliation of injuring your very soul. Physical pain? Whatever, bring it on. But the humiliation? Oh, you have seen to the very weakest part of me.

I never want to be a showoff or attention getter or something that, truthfully, is kind of repulsive to me, but I get uncomfortable.

I don't get self-conscious. I'm not vain in that way.

Women don't like men who know they're good looking. They'd much prefer a man who doesn't know he's good looking.

Not that I am ashamed of my mind or body, my birth or breeding, my actions or fortunes, for my bashfulness is in my nature, not for any crime.

What makes the pain we feel from shame and jealousy so cutting is that vanity can give us no assistance in bearing them.

I have to say that I am embarrassed about how emotional I am.

I had this giant ego of an athlete, but I was self-conscious at everything else.

Even people who despise ego and aspire to humility, who plan to be humble once they are successful, are worried that actually enacting those beliefs would sentence them to a life of obscurity or weakness or failure.

I always thought that I wasn't the type of person to show off my cuteness.

Men are much more unwilling to have their weaknesses and their imperfections known than their crimes.