Francis Bacon – 73 Quotes

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73 Quotes by Francis Bacon

 

Life, an age to the miserable, and a moment to the happy.

– Francis Bacon


I will never be an old man. To me, old age is always 15 years older than I am.

– Francis Bacon


Wives are young men’s mistresses, companions for middle age, and old men’s nurses.

– Francis Bacon


Age appears to be best in four things old wood best to burn, old wine to drink, old friends to trust, and old authors to read.

– Francis Bacon


Anger makes dull men witty, but it keeps them poor.

– Francis Bacon


A man that studieth revenge keeps his own wounds green.

– Francis Bacon


The momentous thing in human life is the art of winning the soul to good or evil.

– Francis Bacon


Fashion is only the attempt to realize art in living forms and social intercourse.

– Francis Bacon


Beauty itself is but the sensible image of the Infinite.

– Francis Bacon


The best part of beauty is that which no picture can express.

– Francis Bacon


There is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the proportion.

– Francis Bacon


The worst men often give the best advice.

– Francis Bacon


Virtue is like a rich stone, best plain set.

– Francis Bacon


Certainly the best works, and of greatest merit for the public, have proceeded from the unmarried, or childless men.

– Francis Bacon


There is a wisdom in this beyond the rules of physic: a man’s own observation what he finds good of and what he finds hurt of is the best physic to preserve health.

– Francis Bacon


Young people are fitter to invent than to judge fitter for execution than for counsel and more fit for new projects than for settled business.

– Francis Bacon


Things alter for the worse spontaneously, if they be not altered for the better designedly.

– Francis Bacon


He that will not apply new remedies must expect new evils for time is the greatest innovator.

– Francis Bacon


I do not believe that any man fears to be dead, but only the stroke of death.

– Francis Bacon


Men fear death as children fear to go in the dark and as that natural fear in children is increased by tales, so is the other.

– Francis Bacon


Travel, in the younger sort, is a part of education in the elder, a part of experience.

– Francis Bacon


Studies perfect nature and are perfected still by experience.

– Francis Bacon


Natural abilities are like natural plants, that need pruning by study and studies themselves do give forth directions too much at large, except they be bounded in by experience.

– Francis Bacon


Prosperity is not without many fears and distastes adversity not without many comforts and hopes.

– Francis Bacon


Friendship increases in visiting friends, but in visiting them seldom.

– Francis Bacon


God Almighty first planted a garden. And indeed, it is the purest of human pleasures.

– Francis Bacon


God’s first creature, which was light.

– Francis Bacon


God hangs the greatest weights upon the smallest wires.

– Francis Bacon


Small amounts of philosophy lead to atheism, but larger amounts bring us back to God.

– Francis Bacon


God has placed no limits to the exercise of the intellect he has given us, on this side of the grave.

– Francis Bacon


But men must know, that in this theatre of man’s life it is reserved only for God and angels to be lookers on.

– Francis Bacon


Acorns were good until bread was found.

– Francis Bacon


He that gives good advice, builds with one hand he that gives good counsel and example, builds with both but he that gives good admonition and bad example, builds with one hand and pulls down with the other.

– Francis Bacon


The great end of life is not knowledge but action.

– Francis Bacon


When a man laughs at his troubles he loses a great many friends. They never forgive the loss of their prerogative.

– Francis Bacon


He that hath wife and children hath given hostages to fortune for they are impediments to great enterprises, either of virtue or mischief.

– Francis Bacon


There is a difference between happiness and wisdom: he that thinks himself the happiest man is really so but he that thinks himself the wisest is generally the greatest fool.

– Francis Bacon


Antiquities are history defaced, or some remnants of history which have casually escaped the shipwreck of time.

– Francis Bacon


Hope is a good breakfast, but it is a bad supper.

– Francis Bacon


Imagination was given to man to compensate him for what he is not a sense of humor to console him for what he is.

– Francis Bacon


They are ill discoverers that think there is no land, when they can see nothing but sea.

– Francis Bacon


Knowledge is power.

– Francis Bacon


He that hath knowledge spareth his words.

– Francis Bacon


Knowledge and human power are synonymous.

– Francis Bacon


The desire of excessive power caused the angels to fall the desire of knowledge caused men to fall.

– Francis Bacon


People usually think according to their inclinations, speak according to their learning and ingrained opinions, but generally act according to custom.

– Francis Bacon


A bachelor’s life is a fine breakfast, a flat lunch, and a miserable dinner.

– Francis Bacon


It is impossible to love and to be wise.

– Francis Bacon


By indignities men come to dignities.

– Francis Bacon


Wise men make more opportunities than they find.

– Francis Bacon


Nothing doth more hurt in a state than that cunning men pass for wise.

– Francis Bacon


The root of all superstition is that men observe when a thing hits, but not when it misses.

– Francis Bacon


A little philosophy inclineth man’s mind to atheism, but depth in philosophy bringeth men’s minds about to religion.

– Francis Bacon


Money is like manure, of very little use except it be spread.

– Francis Bacon


Nature, to be commanded, must be obeyed.

– Francis Bacon


We cannot command Nature except by obeying her.

– Francis Bacon


Nature is often hidden, sometimes overcome, seldom extinguished.

– Francis Bacon


The subtlety of nature is greater many times over than the subtlety of the senses and understanding.

– Francis Bacon


Revenge is a kind of wild justice, which the more a man’s nature runs to, the more ought law to weed it out.

– Francis Bacon


Who ever is out of patience is out of possession of their soul.

– Francis Bacon


It is a strange desire, to seek power, and to lose liberty or to seek power over others, and to lose power over a man’s self.

– Francis Bacon


Next to religion, let your care be to promote justice.

– Francis Bacon


Science is but an image of the truth.

– Francis Bacon


If a man’s wit be wandering, let him study the mathematics.

– Francis Bacon


Many a man’s strength is in opposition, and when he faileth, he grows out of use.

– Francis Bacon


Friends are thieves of time.

– Francis Bacon


Truth is the daughter of time, not of authority.

– Francis Bacon


Truth emerges more readily from error than from confusion.

– Francis Bacon


What is truth? said jesting Pilate and would not stay for an answer.

– Francis Bacon


Truth is so hard to tell, it sometimes needs fiction to make it plausible.

– Francis Bacon


Truth is a good dog but always beware of barking too close to the heels of an error, lest you get your brains kicked out.

– Francis Bacon


A prudent question is one-half of wisdom.

– Francis Bacon


Silence is the sleep that nourishes wisdom.

– Francis Bacon