To err is human, to repent divine; to persist devilish.

Poor Richard (Benjamin Franklin)

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Read this proverb at the National Archives website

More information about this quote

Topic

Learning from mistakes Mistakes Human nature

Author

Poor Richard (Benjamin Franklin)

Source

Poor Richard's Almanack

Medium

Almanac

Statement Type

Proverbs, aphorisms and adages

Language

English

Time

1742 1740s 18th century

Era

Colonial America

Authentication Score 2

Original Citation

Franklin, Benjamin [published as Richard Saunders]. Poor Richard's Almanack. Philadelphia, 1742.

Current Citation

Franklin, Benjamin. "Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1742." Benjamin Franklin: Autobiography, Poor Richard, and Later Writings, edited by J. A. Leo Lemay. Library of America, 2005.

Illustrated Quote

A quote from Poor Richard's Almanack about learning from mistakes: “To err is human, to repent divine; to persist devilish.”
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A quote from Poor Richard's Almanack about learning from mistakes: “To err is human, to repent divine; to persist devilish.”
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A quote from Poor Richard's Almanack about learning from mistakes: “To err is human, to repent divine; to persist devilish.”
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Related Quotes

Below are one or more quotes that share at least one tag with the quote at the top of the page

Another quote from the 1740s

The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked: his wrath towards you burns like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing else, but to be cast into the fire.

Jonathan Edwards

Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

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More information about this quote
Topic
God's wrath God and man

Author

Jonathan Edwards
Source
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God
Medium
Sermon
Genre
Religious literature
Language
English
Time
1741 1740s 18th century
Authentication Score 3
Original Citation

Edwards, Jonathan. "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." 8 July 1741, Edwards Church, Northampton, MA, USA. Sermon.

Current Citation

Edwards, Jonathan. "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." Jonathan Edwards: Writings from the Great Awakening. Library of America, 2013.

Another quote about Human nature

It may be a reflection on human nature, that such devices should be necessary to control the abuses of government. But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary.

James Madison

Federalist 51

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Read Federalist No. 51 at the Library of Congress website
More information about this quote
Topic
Political theory Politics Government Human nature

Author

James Madison
Source
Federalist 51 The Federalist Papers
Medium
Essay
Genre
Political literature
Language
English
Time
1788 1780s 18th century
Era
American Revolutionary Period
Authentication Score 2
Original Citation

Madison, James [published as Publius]. "Federalist No. 51, The Structure of the Government Must Furnish the Proper Checks and Balances Between the Different Departments." New York Packet, 8 Feb. 1788.

Current Citation

Madison, James. "No. 51: How to maintain: make the parts check each other. Also, a federal system divides power further.--Madison (or Hamilton)." The Federalist: A Commentary on the Constitution of the United States, edited by Robert Scigliano. The Modern Library, 2001.

Another quote from Colonial America

Remember that Time is Money.

Benjamin Franklin

The American Instructor: or Young Man's Best Companion

Read Advice to a Young Tradesman at the National Archives website
More information about this quote
Topic
Time is money Capitalism Efficiency

Author

Benjamin Franklin
Source
Advice to a Young Tradesman The American Instructor: or Young Man's Best Companion
Medium
Essay
Statement Type
Proverbs, aphorisms and adages
Language
English
Time
1748 1740s 18th century
Era
Colonial America
Authentication Score 2
Original Citation

Franklin, Benjamin. "Advice to a Young Tradesman." The American Instructor: or Young Man's Best Companion. Philadelphia: George Fisher, 1748.

Current Citation

Franklin, Benjamin. "Advice to a Young Tradesman." Benjamin Franklin: Silence Dogood, The Busy-Body and Early Writings, edited by J. A. Leo Lemay. Library of America, 2005.

Another quote of the following type Proverbs, aphorisms and adages

Living well is the best revenge.

George Herbert

Jacula Prudentum

More information about this quote
Topic
Living well Revenge

Author

George Herbert
Source
Jacula Prudentum
Statement Type
Proverbs, aphorisms and adages
Language
English
Time
1633 1630s 17th century
Authentication Score 3
Original Citation

Herbert, George. Jacula Prudentum, or, Outlandish Proverbs, Sentences, &c. Microform. London: Humphrey Blunden, 1640.

Current Citation

Herbert, George. "Outlandish Proverbs." Herbert: The Complete English Works, edited by Ann Pasternak Slater. Everyman's Library, 1995, no. 520.