W. Somerset Maugham quotes - page 7

He was always seeking for a meaning in life, and here it seemed to him that a meaning was offered; but it was obscure and vague. He was profoundly troubled. He saw what looked like the truth as by flashes of lightning on a dark, stormy night you might see a mountain range. He seemed to see that a man need not leave his life to chance, but that his will was powerful; he seemed to see that self-control might be as passionate and as active as the surrender to passion; he seemed to see that the inward life might be as manifold, as varied, as rich with experience, as the life of one who conquered realms and explored unknown lands. (W. Somerset Maugham)
Passion is destructive; if it does not destroy, it dies. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
One of the falsest of proverbs is that you must lie on the bed that you have made. The experience of life shows that people are constantly doing things which must lead to disaster, and yet by some chance manage to evade the result of their folly. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
Bob Forestier had pretended for so many years to be a gentleman that in the end, forgetting that it was all a fake, he had found himself driven to act as in that stupid, conventional brain of his he thought a gentleman must act. No longer knowing the difference between sham and real, he had sacrificed his life to a spurious heroism. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
She was making money. But she could not get over the idea that to earn her living was somewhat undignified, and she was inclined to remind you that she was a lady by birth. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
Self-doubt, which is the artist's bitterest enemy. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
I have been forced to conclude from this that we know our friends by their defects rather than by their merits. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
Of course it was cause and effect, but in the necessity with which follows the other lay all tragedy of life. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
It is very natural that clever young men should be rather odious. They are conscious of gifts that they do not know how to use. They are exasperated with the world that will not recognize their merit. They have something to give, and no hand is stretched out to receive it. They are impatient for the fame they regard as their due. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
Men are always the same. Fear makes them cruel. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
I am a little shy of any assumption of moral indignation. There is always in it an element of self-satisfaction which makes it awkward to anyone who has a sense of humour. (W. Somerset Maugham)
He had a bitter pain in his heart, for he knew that she was still a stranger to him and his hungry love was destined ever to remain unsatisfied. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
Whatever anguish she suffered she concealed. She saw shrewdly that the world is quickly bored by the recital of misfortune, and willingly avoids the sight of distress. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
Perhaps some deep-rooted atavism urges the wanderer back to lands which his ancestors left in the dim beginnings of history. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
In Hollywood, the women are all peaches. It makes one long for an apple occasionally. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
No egoism is so insufferable as that of the Christian with regard to his soul. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
Let us develop the resources of our land, call forth its powers, build up its institutions, promote all its great interests, and see whether we also, in our day and generation, may not perform something worthy to be remembered. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
The great American novel has not only already been written, it has already been rejected. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
When you choose your friends, don't be short-changed by choosing personality over character. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
An unfortunate thing about this world is that the good habits are much easier to give up than the bad ones. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
I can imagine no more comfortable frame of mind for the conduct of life than a humorous resignation. (W. Somerset Maugham)
If you want to eat well in England, eat three breakfasts. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
You are not angry with people when you laugh at them. Humor teaches tolerance. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
We know our friends by their defects rather than by their merits. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham
The world is quickly bored by the recital of misfortune, and willing avoids the sight of distress. View quote
W. Somerset Maugham