“The best definition of man is: a being that goes on two legs and is ungrateful.”

— Fyodor Dostoevsky, Notes from Underground (1864), Part 1, Ch. 8 (translation by David Magarshack)

About Fyodor Dostoevsky

1821 – 1881

Russian novelist, author of 'Crime and Punishment' and 'The Brothers Karamazov'.

“A dream! What is a dream? And is not our life a dream?”

“Taking a new step, uttering a new word, is what people fear most.”

“If you want to be respected by others the great thing is to respect yourself.”

“He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has.”

Attribution note: Source disputed or unverified.

“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”

Attribution note: Source disputed or unverified.

“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.”

“He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened.”

Attribution note: Source disputed or unverified.

“The man who asks a question is a fool for a minute, the man who does not ask is a fool for life.”

“The truth is rarely pure and never simple.”