Maxims and Moral Reflections

The Maximes (1665) of François VI, Duke de La Rochefoucauld marked one of the high points of the epigram in French, influencing such later practitioners as Voltaire. In England, John Dryden, Alexander Pope, and Jonathan Swift produced some of the most memorable epigrams of their time.

The first edition of the Maximes, published in 1665, was called Réflexions; ou, sentences et maximes morales and did not contain epigrams exclusively; the most eloquent single item, which appeared only in the first edition and was thereafter removed by the author, is a…

The Maximes (1665; Maxims and Moral Reflections), his principal achievement, is a collection of 500 epigrammatic reflections on human behaviour, expressed in the most universal terms: the general tone is bitingly cynical, self-interest being seen as the source of all actions. If a more positive message is to…