John Dryden Quotes

It is often our own imperfection which makes us reprove the imperfection of others; a sharp-sighted self-love of others

The human race is inquisitive about other people's lives, but negligent to correct their own.

Nothing shows our weakness more than to be so sharp-sighted at spying other men's faults, and so purblind about our own.

It is good to see ourselves as others see us. Try as we may, we are never able to know ourselves fully as we are, especially the evil side of us. This we can do only if we are not angry with our critics but will take in good heart whatever they might have to say.

It is a whole lot easier to see our problems in others than it is to see them in ourselves.

Were we faultless, we would not derive such satisfaction from remarking the faults of others.

If those persons, who fancy themselves gifted with both the power and the right to define and punish other men's vices, would but turn their thoughts inwardly, they would probably find that they have a great work to do at home; and that, when that shall have been completed, they will be little disposed to do more towards correcting the vices of others, than simply to give to others the results of their experience and observation.

I've been criticized for not having perspective in the past and I thought that of myself many times but not there.

My personality doesn't interest me.

'What am I missing?' is a much more important question than 'How cool am I?'

I study myself more than any other subject. That is my metaphysics, that is my physics.

Occupy yourself in beholding and bewailing your own imperfections rather than contemplating the imperfections of others.

No one has ever learned fully to know themselves.

The greatest magnifying glasses in the world are a man's own eyes when they look upon his own person.

It is more profitable to be mindful of our own faults than of those of our age.

I think I'm pretty self-aware.

I resolve for 1920 to sit down all by myself and take a personal stock-taking once a month. To be no more charitable in viewing my own faults than I am an viewing the faults of others. To face the facts candidly and courageously. To address myself carefully, prayerfully, to remedying defects.

Only those faults which we encounter in ourselves are insufferable to us in others.

Do you remember when you told me I couldn't see myself clearly? You obviously have the same blindness

Every man has a bag hanging before him, in which he puts his neighbour's faults, and another behind him in which he stows his own.

Every man carries two bags about him, one in front and one behind, and both are full of faults. The bag in front contains his neighbors' faults, the one behind his own. Hence it is that men do not see their own faults, but never fail to see those of others.

That is the hardest thing of all. It is much harder to judge yourself than to judge others. If you succeed in judging yourself, it's because you're truly a wise man.

Golf is said to be an humbling game, but it is surprising how many people are either not aware of their weaknesses of else reckless of consequences.

I don't pretend for a second that I'm that great of a person on a day-to-day basis. I'm a deeply flawed human.

whatever our ignorance left to itself, and whatever the wounds that other human beings are, we ought to study ourselves with a sort of devotion.