"The thrust and nature of the soul of man have two aspects. The first lies in the appetite ... which pulls a man in different directions; and the second is in the reason, which teaches and expounds what we are to do, and what to avoid. Accordingly the reason commands, and the appetite obeys. Our … Continue reading Cicero on decorum
Month: Apr 2026
The Rev. Sydney Smith on English boarding schools
From the article "Public Schools", Edinburgh Review 1810. "At a public school (for such is the system established by immemorial custom), every boy is alternately tyrant and slave. The power which the elder part of these communities exercises over the younger, is exceedingly great—very difficult to be controlled—and accompanied, not unfrequently, with cruelty and caprice. … Continue reading The Rev. Sydney Smith on English boarding schools
John Locke: how to think
From Locke's Of the Conduct of the Understanding (published 1706). “11. Indifferency.— First, he must not be in love with any opinion, or wish it to be true till he knows it to be so; and then he will not need to wish it; for nothing that is false can deserve our good wishes, nor … Continue reading John Locke: how to think
James Mill on two easy paths to literary fame
"He who desires to obtain a considerable portion of immediate applause, has two well-known, and well-trodden paths, before him. "The first is, to be a zealot for some particular and powerful party; to panegyrize its leaders; attack its opponents; place its principles and practices in the fairest possible light; and labour to bring odium upon … Continue reading James Mill on two easy paths to literary fame
Notes in the Margins of the Days 