Socrates

I would rather die having spoken after my manner, than speak in your manner and live.

The highest form of human excellence is to question oneself and others.

By all means, marry. If you get a good wife, you'll become happy; if you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher.

The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.

Not life, but good life, is to be chiefly valued.

Be slow to fall into friendship, but when you are in, continue firm and constant.

Let him that would move the world, first move himself.

Once made equal to man, woman becomes his superior.

The envious person grows lean with the fatness of their neighbor.

My advice to you is get married: if you find a good wife you'll be happy; if not, you'll become a philosopher.

The shortest and surest way to live with honor in the world is to be in reality what we would appear to be.

If all misfortunes were laid in one common heap whence everyone must take an equal portion, most people would be contented to take their own and depart.

The beginning of wisdom is a definition of terms.

The greatest blessing granted to mankind come by way of madness, which is a divine gift.

One who is injured ought not to return the injury, for on no account can it be right to do an injustice; and it is not right to return an injury, or to do evil to any man, however much we have suffered from him.

I was really too honest a man to be a politician and live.

The nearest way to glory is to strive to be what you wish to be thought to be.

Sometimes you put walls up not to keep people out, but to see who cares enough to break them down.

Every action has its pleasures and its price.

To move the world we must first move ourselves.