Lord Shaftesbury Quotes
Anthony Ashley Cooper, third Earl of Shaftesbury, was an English philosopher and one of the most influential moral theorists of the early eighteenth century. His Characteristics of Men, Manners, Opinions, Times collected his philosophical essays and dialogues, in which he developed an account of moral life centered on a natural moral sense and on the harmony of public and private good. The quotes below are attributed to Lord Shaftesbury, organized by topic.
Lord Shaftesbury on Knowledge
-
Attributed to Lord Shaftesbury:
“All habits and customs are wholly the offspring of education.”
Lord Shaftesbury on Mind
-
Attributed to Lord Shaftesbury:
“Inwardly we are all the same.”
Lord Shaftesbury on Politics
-
Attributed to Lord Shaftesbury:
“The interest of the public and of the private cannot be at odds.”
Lord Shaftesbury on Truth
-
Attributed to Lord Shaftesbury:
“Wit and humor are the best test of truth.”
Lord Shaftesbury on Virtue
-
Attributed to Lord Shaftesbury:
“There is a moral sense, as natural as the senses of seeing and hearing.”