"Though nature be ever so generous, yet can she not make a hero alone. Fortune must contribute her part too; and till both concur, the work cannot be perfected"
- Francois de La Rochefoucauld
About this Quote
This quote by Francois de La Rochefoucauld speaks with the idea that success is not entirely determined by one's natural capabilities or talents. It suggests that even if someone is naturally talented, they will not be able to achieve greatness without the aid of luck or fortune. The quote implies that success is a combination of both nature and fortune, and that neither can be neglected. Nature supplies the raw products, however fortune is required to bring them together and make them into something fantastic. Without both, the work can not be completed. This quote functions as a suggestion that success is not almost having the right skills and talents, however also about being in the ideal place at the correct time. It is a suggestion that luck and chance can play a significant role in attaining success.
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"There is a tide in the affairs of men, Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune. Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries. On such a full sea are we now afloat. And we must take the current when it serves, or lose our ventures"
