1001Philosophers

Bernard Mandeville Quotes on Knowledge

Bernard Mandeville was a Dutch-born English physician, satirist, and philosopher whose Fable of the Bees scandalized eighteenth-century moralists by arguing that the private vices of pride, vanity, and self-interest are precisely what produce the public benefits of a flourishing commercial society. This page collects quotes attributed to Bernard Mandeville on the topic of knowledge, drawn from across the philosopher's works.

Quotes

  • “Vast Numbers throng'd the fruitful Hive; Yet those vast Numbers made 'em thrive; Millions endeavouring to supply Each other's Lust and Vanity.”

    The Grumbling Hive", line 31, p. 3
  • “The Grumbling Hive", line 31, p. 3”

    Vast Numbers throng'd the fruitful Hive; Yet those vast Numbers made 'em thrive; Millions endeavouring to supply Each other's Lust and Vanity.
  • “They put off hearings wilfully, To finger the refreshing fee.”

    The Grumbling Hive", line 65, p. 4
  • “The Grumbling Hive", line 65, p. 4”

    They put off hearings wilfully, To finger the refreshing fee.
  • “The Grumbling Hive", line 155, p. 9”

    Thus every Part was full of Vice, Yet the whole Mass a Paradise; Flatter'd in Peace, and fear'd in Wars, They were th' Esteem of Foreigners, And lavish of their Wealth and Lives, The Balance of all other Hives.
  • “The Grumbling Hive", line 167, p. 9”

    The worst of all the Multitude Did something for the Common Good.