Philosophy Bits
@philosophybits.com
A collection of fine philosophical and literary quotations. Curated by @suliqyre.com
philosophybits.com
philosophybits.com
“The superior man understands what is right; the inferior man understands what will sell.”
— Confucius, Analects
— Confucius, Analects
February 14, 2026 at 2:21 AM
“The superior man understands what is right; the inferior man understands what will sell.”
— Confucius, Analects
— Confucius, Analects
Reposted by Philosophy Bits
“Perhaps the desire to take photographs arises from the observation that on the broadest view, from the standpoint of reason, the world is a great disappointment. In its details, however, and caught by surprise, the world always has a stunning clarity.”
— Jean Baudrillard, The Transparency of Evil
— Jean Baudrillard, The Transparency of Evil
February 14, 2026 at 12:24 AM
“Perhaps the desire to take photographs arises from the observation that on the broadest view, from the standpoint of reason, the world is a great disappointment. In its details, however, and caught by surprise, the world always has a stunning clarity.”
— Jean Baudrillard, The Transparency of Evil
— Jean Baudrillard, The Transparency of Evil
“In a just society the liberties of equal citizenship are taken as settled; the rights secured by justice are not subject to political bargaining or to the calculus of social interests.”
— John Rawls, A Theory of Justice
— John Rawls, A Theory of Justice
February 13, 2026 at 9:07 PM
“In a just society the liberties of equal citizenship are taken as settled; the rights secured by justice are not subject to political bargaining or to the calculus of social interests.”
— John Rawls, A Theory of Justice
— John Rawls, A Theory of Justice
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“Reasons can be motivating and they often are, but compassion is relentless. Once a need has been seen, either in myself or in another living being, compassion will stop at nothing to have it met.”
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267. Rational Motivation
When I have a reason to do something, I’m more likely to do it than another thing I don’t have any reason to do. But often there will be several things that I have at least one reason to do, and I’ll ...
suliqyre.com
February 13, 2026 at 6:41 PM
“Reasons can be motivating and they often are, but compassion is relentless. Once a need has been seen, either in myself or in another living being, compassion will stop at nothing to have it met.”
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“As the ironist does not have the new within his power, it might be asked how he destroys the old, and to this it must be answered: he destroys the given actuality by the given actuality itself.”
— Søren Kierkegaard, The Concept of Irony
— Søren Kierkegaard, The Concept of Irony
February 13, 2026 at 4:32 PM
“As the ironist does not have the new within his power, it might be asked how he destroys the old, and to this it must be answered: he destroys the given actuality by the given actuality itself.”
— Søren Kierkegaard, The Concept of Irony
— Søren Kierkegaard, The Concept of Irony
“It is seldom that the miserable can help regarding their misery as a wrong inflicted by those who are less miserable.”
— George Eliot, Silas Marner
— George Eliot, Silas Marner
February 13, 2026 at 3:27 AM
“It is seldom that the miserable can help regarding their misery as a wrong inflicted by those who are less miserable.”
— George Eliot, Silas Marner
— George Eliot, Silas Marner
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“What did I see? I don’t know what words to use. The words are never there. But between the useless words you’ll see what I saw.”
— John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters
— John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters
February 13, 2026 at 1:52 AM
“What did I see? I don’t know what words to use. The words are never there. But between the useless words you’ll see what I saw.”
— John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters
— John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters
“Of all motives, none is better adapted to secure influence and hold it fast than love; nothing is more foreign to that end than fear.”
— Cicero, De Officiis
— Cicero, De Officiis
February 12, 2026 at 8:35 PM
“Of all motives, none is better adapted to secure influence and hold it fast than love; nothing is more foreign to that end than fear.”
— Cicero, De Officiis
— Cicero, De Officiis
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“You are learning how little you need and how much you need. You are learning that freedom is different from what you thought it was. You are learning to stand on your own.”
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266. What It Means To Be Free
You are learning to stand on your own. You are learning how little you need and how much you need. You are learning that your needs are different from your desires. You are learning that your desires ...
suliqyre.com
February 12, 2026 at 6:48 PM
“You are learning how little you need and how much you need. You are learning that freedom is different from what you thought it was. You are learning to stand on your own.”
Read more:
suliqyre.com/posts/what-i...
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“The poet presents the imagination with images from life and human characters and situations, sets them all in motion and leaves it to the beholder to let these images take his thoughts as far as his mental powers will permit.”
— Arthur Schopenhauer, Parerga and Paralipomena
— Arthur Schopenhauer, Parerga and Paralipomena
February 12, 2026 at 5:17 PM
“The poet presents the imagination with images from life and human characters and situations, sets them all in motion and leaves it to the beholder to let these images take his thoughts as far as his mental powers will permit.”
— Arthur Schopenhauer, Parerga and Paralipomena
— Arthur Schopenhauer, Parerga and Paralipomena
“Man is free at the instant he wants to be.”
— Voltaire, Brutus
— Voltaire, Brutus
February 12, 2026 at 3:37 AM
“Man is free at the instant he wants to be.”
— Voltaire, Brutus
— Voltaire, Brutus
“Bewilderment is true comprehension.”
— Martin Luther, “The Seven Penitential Psalms”, Luther’s Works, vol. 14
— Martin Luther, “The Seven Penitential Psalms”, Luther’s Works, vol. 14
February 11, 2026 at 9:19 PM
“Bewilderment is true comprehension.”
— Martin Luther, “The Seven Penitential Psalms”, Luther’s Works, vol. 14
— Martin Luther, “The Seven Penitential Psalms”, Luther’s Works, vol. 14
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“You are learning that to be free is to be liberated from attachment and to act from compassion towards yourself and others. You are learning that you can be free regardless of what other people say or do to you.”
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“What It Means To Be Free”, etc. (266-270)
You are learning that freedom is different from what you thought it was.
suliqyre.substack.com
February 11, 2026 at 8:15 PM
“You are learning that to be free is to be liberated from attachment and to act from compassion towards yourself and others. You are learning that you can be free regardless of what other people say or do to you.”
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“All definite knowledge — so I should contend — belongs to science; all dogma as to what surpasses definite knowledge belongs to theology. But between theology and science there is a No Man’s Land, exposed to attack by both sides; this No Man’s Land is philosophy.”
— Bertrand Russell
— Bertrand Russell
February 11, 2026 at 5:44 PM
“All definite knowledge — so I should contend — belongs to science; all dogma as to what surpasses definite knowledge belongs to theology. But between theology and science there is a No Man’s Land, exposed to attack by both sides; this No Man’s Land is philosophy.”
— Bertrand Russell
— Bertrand Russell
“Falsehood is not easily exposed when it has had an early start in advance of truth.”
— Frederick Douglass, Life and Times of Frederick Douglass
— Frederick Douglass, Life and Times of Frederick Douglass
February 11, 2026 at 2:43 AM
“Falsehood is not easily exposed when it has had an early start in advance of truth.”
— Frederick Douglass, Life and Times of Frederick Douglass
— Frederick Douglass, Life and Times of Frederick Douglass
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“Physiologically, man in the normal use of technology (or his variously extended body) is perpetually modified by it and in turn finds ever new ways of modifying his technology.
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February 11, 2026 at 12:34 AM
“Physiologically, man in the normal use of technology (or his variously extended body) is perpetually modified by it and in turn finds ever new ways of modifying his technology.
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“An absolute drive toward perfection and completeness is an illness, as soon as it shows itself to be destructive and averse toward the imperfect, the incomplete.”
— Novalis, General Draft
— Novalis, General Draft
February 10, 2026 at 8:31 PM
“An absolute drive toward perfection and completeness is an illness, as soon as it shows itself to be destructive and averse toward the imperfect, the incomplete.”
— Novalis, General Draft
— Novalis, General Draft
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“You're always in the middle, always in the midst of things. This looks like a problem, but it's only a mirage. You can start where you are and explore in all directions.”
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265. Beginnings And Endings
You want to create a new artwork but you can’t seem to get started. You’re worried about beginnings and endings. You aren’t sure where to begin or how you’ll reach an end result that makes any sense.
...
suliqyre.com
February 10, 2026 at 6:24 PM
“You're always in the middle, always in the midst of things. This looks like a problem, but it's only a mirage. You can start where you are and explore in all directions.”
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suliqyre.com/posts/beginn...
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“To say that the world is not worth anything, that life is of no value, and to give evil as the proof is absurd, for if these things are worthless what does evil take from us?”
— Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace
— Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace
February 10, 2026 at 5:08 PM
“To say that the world is not worth anything, that life is of no value, and to give evil as the proof is absurd, for if these things are worthless what does evil take from us?”
— Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace
— Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace
“A man is as miserable as he thinks he is.”
— Seneca, Moral Letters to Lucilius
— Seneca, Moral Letters to Lucilius
February 10, 2026 at 2:56 AM
“A man is as miserable as he thinks he is.”
— Seneca, Moral Letters to Lucilius
— Seneca, Moral Letters to Lucilius
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“I went to look up in the dictionary the word beatitude which I hate as a word and saw that it means spasm of the soul. It speaks of calm happiness — I would however call it transport or levitation.”
— Clarice Lispector, Água Viva
— Clarice Lispector, Água Viva
February 10, 2026 at 12:26 AM
“I went to look up in the dictionary the word beatitude which I hate as a word and saw that it means spasm of the soul. It speaks of calm happiness — I would however call it transport or levitation.”
— Clarice Lispector, Água Viva
— Clarice Lispector, Água Viva
“It isn’t wise to use superlatives. They offend the truth and cast doubt on your judgment. By exaggerating, you squander your praise and reveal a lack of knowledge and taste.”
— Baltasar Gracián, The Art of Worldly Wisdom
— Baltasar Gracián, The Art of Worldly Wisdom
February 9, 2026 at 8:56 PM
“It isn’t wise to use superlatives. They offend the truth and cast doubt on your judgment. By exaggerating, you squander your praise and reveal a lack of knowledge and taste.”
— Baltasar Gracián, The Art of Worldly Wisdom
— Baltasar Gracián, The Art of Worldly Wisdom
Reposted by Philosophy Bits
“In a world of constant connectivity, it can seem like every problem is always present and in need of my immediate attention. But this is never true. There is always more time than it seems.”
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264. Solving Problems
When I’m facing several complicated problems at once, my attention can easily become unstable. I feel like I need to address every problem at the same time, and as a result, I’m not able to solve any ...
suliqyre.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:11 PM
“In a world of constant connectivity, it can seem like every problem is always present and in need of my immediate attention. But this is never true. There is always more time than it seems.”
Read more:
suliqyre.com/posts/solvin...
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“What comparison between the unbought satisfaction of conversation, society, study, even health and the common beauties of nature, but above all the peaceful reflection on one's own conduct: What comparison, I say, between these, and the feverish, empty amusements of luxury and expense?
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February 9, 2026 at 4:54 PM
“What comparison between the unbought satisfaction of conversation, society, study, even health and the common beauties of nature, but above all the peaceful reflection on one's own conduct: What comparison, I say, between these, and the feverish, empty amusements of luxury and expense?
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“All men by nature desire knowledge.”
— Aristotle, Metaphysics
— Aristotle, Metaphysics
February 9, 2026 at 3:15 AM
“All men by nature desire knowledge.”
— Aristotle, Metaphysics
— Aristotle, Metaphysics