“A wise man learns more from his enemies than a fool from his friends.”
Baltasar Gracian (1601-1658)
Born in the Spanish province of Aragon, Gracian studied theology in Zaragoza and took holy orders as a Jesuit in 1633. He was admired as an orator in his lifetime and much sought after for his sermons, which featured such novelties as reading letters purportedly sent from hell. Such flourishes were frowned upon by his superiors, whom he so frequently disobeyed that he was eventually banished to a small village in the Pyrenees. He is best known today for his satirical pilgrimage novel Criticon and his compendium of maxims The Art of Worldly Wisdom. These were so admired by Schopenhauer that he translated them into German. Later thinkers including Nietzsche, Defoe and Gide cite him as an influence.
With this post the Quote of the Week celebrates five years with Good Morning Gloucester, about two hundred and fifty entries. Just so you know, I write the bios based on my research to give the quote context, and one can click on the name or the picture that Joey adds to be connected to a Wikipedia entry for that particular author. Sometimes the adages are only attributed when I can’t find evidence of the direct quote; famous quipsters like Abraham Lincoln and Yogi Berra are often credited with things others actually said first.
I am always encouraged by your comments, and your suggestions are welcome too.
Many thanks to Joey and the GMG team for creating a forum where these lines can be shared. I find it astonishing how much wisdom there is in the world, and how the thoughts of famous men and women can apply to my own life. I hope you do too.
Good Morning Gloucester 
Five years of thoughtful and thought provoking quotes and posts–Thank You Greg.
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Second that what Kim said above very impressive! Thanks! 🙂 Dave & Kim 🙂
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