Talk:Anatole France

Citizen
More context (I haven't checked the sources) on the sleeping under bridges quote:

google answers

Original: "Autre motif d’orgueuil, que d’être citoyen! Cela consiste pour les pauvres à soutenir et à conserver les riches dans leur puissance et leur oisivité.  Ils y doivent travailler devant la majestueuse égalité des lois, qui interdit au riche comme au pauvre de coucher sous les ponts, de mendier dans les rues et de voler du pain."

In English: "Another reason for pride, that of being a citizen! For the poor citizenship consists of supporting and sustaining the power and idleness of the rich.  They must work for those goals before the majestic equality of the laws, which forbids rich and poor alike to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets and to steal bread."

I think this one is better with context, even if only key phrases are highly memorable. --Eli the Bearded 19:09, 3 Feb 2005 (UTC)

Attributed Quote
If fifty million people say a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing.

I've seen this quote attributed to "Betrand Russell" on more than one occassion. Is there any source for this quote that anyone is aware of? --Crossmr 01:45, 28 April 2006 (UTC)


 * I've found a source for the quote, and it's neither France nor Russell:
 * If forty million people say a foolish thing it does not become a wise one, but the wise man is foolish to give them the lie.
 * W. Somerset Maugham, A Writer's Notebook (1949), entry for 1901
 * I've moved the version quoted here to "Misattributed" and included the details. ~ Jeff Q (talk) 13:51, 10 October 2006 (UTC)
 * I suspect this may not be from France or if it is from France it is incorrect.
 * My main reason for suspecting this is that I remember first reading it as a section heading in The World of Mathematics, Neumann, ed., many years ago. I cannot locate the set right at the moment but I am almost certain that the version I read involved fifty thousand Frenchmen, a reference to "Fifty thousand Frenchmen can't be wrong."
 * The other reason to suspect it is that there is no original French version. JimCubb 20:13, 7 August 2010 (UTC)

Unsourced
Wikiquote no longer allows unsourced or inadequately sourced quotations, and they are in process of being removed from our pages (see Wikiquote:Limits on quotations); but if you can provide a reliable, precise and verifiable source for any quote on this list please move it to Anatole France. --Antiquary 14:25, 2 May 2009 (UTC)


 * Existence would be intolerable if we were never to dream.


 * Never lend books, for no one ever returns them; the only books I have in my library are books that other folks have left me.


 * Nine tenths of education is encouragement.


 * The average man, who does not know what to do with his life, wants another one which will last forever.
 * Variant: The average man does not know what to do with this life, yet wants another one which will last forever.
 * Variant: We do not know what to do with this short life, yet we want another which will be eternal.


 * The books that everybody admires are those nobody reads.


 * The impotence of God is infinite.


 * There are very honest people who do not think that they have had a bargain unless they have cheated a merchant.


 * Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened.

Original please
I've added one of may favorite AF's quote to the Russian WQ. From Russian to English it can be translated as "I wanted to know everything. It was why I did not become a scientist". But I'd also like to supplement it with the original. It is definitely from France's letter to Albert Langen written in 1904. May be somebody knows how it sounds in French. I was unable to find this letter in Google at least. Thank you in advance.

People under the menace of war
Not only in "The New Age" (1914, vol. 14, p. 363 at MJP), but probably also in "The Indian Review" (1921, vol. 22, p. 594, see "Index" here: /  or  / ; unfortunately, full version is not currently available). --Djadjko (talk) 02:55, 5 January 2017 (UTC)

Quote merge of Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened
@: At Special:Diff/3229035 you suggested merging the quote "Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.” if it could be cited from Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.”. As the contribution was from an anon IP there is nothing to attribute apart from the generic "Anon IP". As the information is now here on the talk page and the source page has been poorly named it should not be retained. -- User:Djm-leighpark(a)talk 04:31, 9 January 2023 (UTC)