1.
To have a right estimate of a man's character,
we must see him in misfortune.
Napoleon Bonaparte
Accurately gauge a person's nature by observing them in adversity.
2.
Whoever gives nothing, has nothing. The greatest misfortune is not to be unloved, but not to love.
Albert Camus
Whoever contributes nothing, reaps nothing. The greatest tragedy is not to be unappreciated, but not to appreciate.
5.
But with man, — by Hercules! most of his misfortunes are occasioned by man.
Pliny the Elder
6.
The greatest misfortune of all is not to be able to bear misfortune.
Bias of Priene
7.
By speaking of our misfortunes we often relieve them.
[Fr., A raconter ses maux souvent on les soulage.]
Pierre Corneille
8.
No-one is exempt from speaking nonsense – the only misfortune is to do it solemnly.
Michel de Montaigne
10.
Better to learn wisdom from other people's misfortunes than from your own.
Aesop
11.
The swift wind of compromise is a lot more devastating than the sudden jolt of misfortune.
Charles R. Swindoll
12.
It is a great misfortune to be of use to nobody; scarcely less to be of use to everybody.
Baltasar Gracian
13.
Don Quixote's misfortune is not his imagination, but Sancho Panza.
Franz Kafka
16.
He said that those who have endured some misfortune will always be set apart but that it is just that misfortune which is their gift and which is their strength.
Cormac McCarthy
17.
Le bonheur engloutit nos forces,
comme le malheur e teint nos vertus.
Happiness engulfs our strength,
just as misfortune extinguishes our virtues.
Honore de Balzac
18.
It is no small misfortune and disgrace that, through our own fault, we neither understand our nature nor our origin.
Teresa of Avila
20.
What a misfortune to be a woman! And yet, the worst misfortune is not to understand what a misfortune it is.
Soren Kierkegaard
25.
A tendancy to melancholy...let it be observed, is a misfortune, not a fault.
Abraham Lincoln
26.
We may escape misfortune for a while, but the evil day will come.
Publilius Syrus
28.
Most of our misfortunes are more supportable than the comments of our friends upon them.
Charles Caleb Colton
29.
No misfortune is so bad that whining about it won’t make it worse. (Apr 2007 Gen Conf)
Jeffrey R. Holland
30.
It is my great misfortune that I have to measure your love by the money gifts you give for Daridranarayana.
Mahatma Gandhi
32.
In misfortune, which friend remains a friend?
Euripides
34.
Some dire misfortune to portend, no enemy can match a friend.
Jonathan Swift
37.
It is sad to tell, but after having tried society, which had caused his misfortune, he tried Providence which created society, and condemned it also.
Victor Hugo
39.
Life itself is short, but lasts longer than misfortunes.
Publilius Syrus
40.
I do not myself believe there is any misfortune. What men call such is merely the shadowside of a good.
George MacDonald
41.
When Misfortune is asleep, let no one wake her.
John Dryden
43.
It is one of the misfortunes in life that one must read thousands of books only to discover that one need not have read them.
Thomas de Quincey
44.
We have all been beaten! Each one has to bear his misfortune! Resign yourself!
Gustave Flaubert
45.
Many are those who pity others while being blind to their own misfortunes.
Shinjo Ito