We Irish are too poetical¹ to be poets; we are a nation of brilliant failures, but we are the greatest talkers since the Greeks.

我们爱尔兰人太诗意以至不能做诗人，我们的国家里充满才华横溢的失败者，可我们是自希腊人以来最伟大的说空话之人。

What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings² in disguise

看似痛苦的试炼的往往是伪装的祝福。

The advantage of the emotions is that they lead us astray.

情感的好处就是让我们误入歧途。

Over the piano was printed a notice: Please do not shoot the pianist. He is doing his best.

Personal Impressions of America (Leadville) (1883)

钢琴上贴着一条告示：请不要枪杀钢琴师，他已经尽力了。

The heart was made to be broken.

心是用来碎的。

The public is wonderfully tolerant. It forgives everything except genius.

公众惊人地宽容。他们可以原谅一切，除了天才。

Religions die when they are proved to be true. Science is the record of dead religions.

宗教一旦被证明是正确时就会消亡。科学便是已消亡宗教的记录。

Why was I born with such contemporaries

为什么我会和这样同时代的人一块出生呢？

A poet can survive everything but a misprint.

诗人可以从任何事件中存活，印刷错误除外。

Only the shallow know themselves.

只有浅薄的人才了解自己。

The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it... I can resist everything but temptation.

摆脱诱惑的唯一方式是臣服于诱惑……我能抗拒一切，除了诱惑。

Discontent is the first step in the progress of a man or a nation

不满是个人或民族迈向进步的第一步。

I like to do all the talking myself. It saves time, and prevents arguments.

我喜欢自言自语，因为这样节约时间，而且不会有人跟我争论。

Quotation³ is a serviceable substitute for wit.

格言是智慧耐用的替代品。

A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.

梦想家只能在月光下找到前进的方向，他为此遭受的惩罚是比所有人提前看到曙光。

All charming people, I fancy, are spoiled. It is the secret of their attraction

我想所有迷人的人都是被宠爱着的，这是他们吸引力来源的秘密。

Nothing is so aggravating⁴ than calmness.

没有比冷静更让人恼火的。

Popularity is the one insult I have never suffered.

声望是我从未经受的侮辱之一。

Ridicule⁵ is the tribute paid to the genius by the mediocrities.

奚落是庸才对天才的颂歌。

To do nothing at all is the most difficult thing in the world, the most difficult and the most intellectual

什么也不做是世上最难的事情，最困难并且最智慧。

A true friend stabs you in the front.

真朋友才会当面中伤你。

Ordinary riches can be stolen, real riches cannot. In your soul are infinitely⁶ precious things that cannot be taken from you.

平常的财宝会被偷走，而真正的财富则不会。你灵魂里无限珍贵的东西是无法被夺走的。

The well bred contradict other people. The wise contradict themselves.

教养良好的人处处和他人过不去，头脑聪明的人处处和自己过不去。

Hatred⁷ is blind, as well as love.

恨是盲目的，爱亦然。