On the record
I do not mean, Sir, to commend the superior morality of this sentiment, which has at least as much pride as virtue in it; but I cannot alter the nature of man.
Said by
Edmund Burke
Source
gutenberg.orgEdmund Burke: “I do not mean, Sir, to commend the superior morality of this sentiment, which has at least as much pride as virtue in…”
Editor's note · Context
Burke acknowledges the complexity of human nature, noting that pride can coexist with virtue in sentiments about liberty.
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But when the leaders choose to make themselves bidders at an auction of popularity, their talents, in the construction of the state, will be of no service.
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They will become flatterers instead of legislators,--the instruments, not the guides of the people.
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They come from one who has been no tool of power, no flatterer of greatness, and who in his last acts does not wish to belie the tenor of his life.
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The improvements of the National Assembly are superficial, their errors fundamental.
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