"You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him."
"Quite often, as life goes on, when we feel completely secure as we go on our way, we suddenly notice that we are trapped in error, that we have allowed ourselves to be taken in by individuals, by objects, have dreamt up an affinity with them which immediately vanishes before our waking eye; and yet we cannot tear ourselves away, held fast by some power that seems incomprehensible to us. Sometimes, however, we become fully aware and realize that error as well as truth can move and spur us on to action."
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Source: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1897). “Criticisms, reflections, and maxims of Goethe: Tr., with an introduction”
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