Sydney Smith

About

Picture of Sydney Smith

Sydney Smith (3 June 1771 – 22 February 1845) was an English wit, writer, and Anglican cleric. Besides his energetic parochial work, he was known for his writing and philosophy, founding the Edinburgh Review, lecturing at the Royal Institution and remembered for his rhyming recipe for salad dressing.

Quotes from Sydney Smith

It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can only do little.

—Sydney Smith

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power impotence weakness change

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Have the courage to be ignorant of a great number of things, in order to avoid the calamity of being ignorant of everything.

—Sydney Smith

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ignorance knowledge discretion

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You must not think me necessarily foolish because I am facetious, nor will I consider you necessarily wise because you are grave.

—Sydney Smith

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wisdom foolishness gravity

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Human beings cling to their delicious tyrannies and to their exquisite nonsense, till death stares them in the face.

—Sydney Smith

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life death nonsense

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Your ignorance, cramps my conversation.

—Sydney Smith

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ignorance conversation

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Never try to reason the prejudice out of a man. It was not reasoned into him, and cannot be reasoned out.

—Sydney Smith

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prejudice

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