"Virtue is as little to be acquired..." - Quote by Arthur Schopenhauer
Virtue is as little to be acquired by learning as genius; nay, the idea is barren, and is only to be employed as an instrument, in the same way as genius in respect to art. It would be as foolish to expect that our moral and ethical systems would turn out virtuous, noble, and holy beings, as that our aesthetic systems would produce poets, painters, and musicians.
More by Arthur Schopenhauer
More on Virtue
“The virtue of making two blades of grass grow where only one grew before does not begin to be superhuman.”
“The way of the superior person is threefold; virtuous, they are free from anxieties; wise they are free from perplexities; and bold they are free from fear.”
“The sage is sharp but does not cut, pointed but does not pierce, forthright but does not offend, bright but does not dazzle.”
More on Genius
“What is genius but the power of expressing a new individuality?”
“The greatest genius will not be worth much if he pretends to draw exclusively from his own resources”
“In intercourse with scholars and artists one readily makes mistakes of opposite kinds: in a remarkable scholar one not infrequently finds a mediocre man; and often, even in a mediocre artist, one finds a very remarkable man.”