The Quotation IndexThe trusted reference for quotations and the sources behind them
Tag Tag Reciprocity
There is no such thing as gratitude in international politics.
Arnold J. Toynbee A Study of History · 1934-1961

Quotes

“The absolute balance of Give and Take, the doctrine that every thing has its price—and if that price is not paid, not that thing but something else is obtained, and that it is impossible to get any thing without its price—is not less sublime in the columns of a ledger than in the budgets of states.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Compensation, 1841 · Primary source

“If you would be loved, love and be lovable.”

Benjamin Franklin · Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732-1758 · Primary source

“When you’re good to others, you are best to yourself.”

Benjamin Franklin · Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732-1758 · Primary source

“He that has once done you a kindness will be more ready to do you another, than he whom you yourself have obliged.”

Benjamin Franklin · The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, 1771-1790 · Primary source

“The law holds with equal sureness for all right action. Love, and you shall be loved. All love is mathematically just, as much as the two sides of an algebraic equation.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Compensation, 1841 · Primary source

“The only way to have a friend is to be one.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Friendship, 1841 · Primary source

“We talk of choosing our friends, but friends are self-elected.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson · Friendship, 1841 · Primary source

“The most important thing in any relationship is not what you get but what you give.”

Eleanor Roosevelt · The Autobiography of Eleanor Roosevelt, 1961 · Primary source

“No kind action ever stops with itself. One kind action leads to another. Good example is followed. A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves.”

Amelia Earhart · No reliable source

“Understanding is a two-way street.”

Eleanor Roosevelt · No reliable source

Related Tags

Kindness 7 Example 5 Influence 9 Prosocial behaviour 1 National interest 1 Diplomacy 5 Alliances 3 Realpolitik 1 Love 8 Affection 6 Character 20 Relationships 8 Goodwill 3 Wellbeing 3 Favour 2 Social bonds 1 Obligation 8 Trade-offs 6 Exchange 1 Cost 1 Compensation 6 Moral law 1 Human relationships 1 Friendship 16 Generosity 4 Trust 20 Mutuality 1 Affinity 1 Mutual recognition 1 Connection 1 Care 1 Selflessness 1 Mutual understanding 2 Communication 5 Listening 2 Attribution uncertain 4