Paul Valery Quotes

France, Poet
October 30, 1871 – July, 20, 1945.

Ambroise Paul Toussaint Jules Valéry (30 October 1871 – 20 July 1945) was a French poet, essayist, and philosopher. In addition to his poetry and fiction (drama and dialogues), his interests included aphorisms on art, history, letters, music, and current events. Valéry was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in 12 different years.

Also known as Essayist, Philosopher

Our judgments judge us, and nothing reveals us, exposes our weaknesses, more ingeniously than the attitude of pronouncing upon our fellows.

Paul Valery
- Attitude
- Judge
Power without abuse loses its charm.

Paul Valery
- Power
- Abuse

Books have the same enemies as people: fire, humidity, animals, weather, and their own content.

Paul Valery
- People
- Fire
The folly of mistaking a paradox for a discovery, a metaphor for a proof, a torrent of verbiage for a spring of capital truths, and oneself for an oracle, is inborn in us.

Paul Valery
- Spring
An artist never really finishes his work, he merely abandons it.

Paul Valery
- Work
A businessman is a hybrid of a dancer and a calculator.

Paul Valery
In poetry everything which must be said is almost impossible to say well.

Paul Valery
- Poetry
Politeness is organized indifference.

Paul Valery

The future, like everything else, is not what it used to be.

Paul Valery
- Future
A man's true secrets are more secret to himself than they are to others.

Paul Valery
- True
We are enriched by our reciprocate differences.

Paul Valery
A man who is 'of sound mind' is one who keeps the inner madman under lock and key.

Paul Valery
- Mind
Serious-minded people have few ideas. People with ideas are never serious.

Paul Valery
- People
- Serious