quotations about enemies
A doubtful friend is worse than a certain enemy. Let a man be one thing or the other, and we then know how to meet him.
AESOP
Aesop's Fables
The necessity of an enemy is based on a provocative idea: that the things we're going through can be opportunities to move ahead.
RON CARPENTER, JR.
The Necessity of an Enemy
The only safe enemy was a headless enemy.
ROBERT E. HOWARD
"Jewels of Gwahlur", Weird Tales, 1935
You can calculate the worth of a man by the number of his enemies, and the importance of a work of art by the harm that is spoken of it.
GUSTAVE FLAUBERT
letter to Madame Louise Colet, Jun. 14, 1853
The foes that are unseen are often stronger than those that are seen.
EDWARD COUNSEL
Maxims
Our worst enemies are those we least suspect--ourselves.
IVAN PANIN
Thoughts
The worst enemy is one whose doctrines are founded in hate and are thus beyond debate.
TOBSHA LEARNER
The Witch of Cologne
It's your own worst enemy
Ringing the bell on the door
And the person inside says nobody's home
So your own worst enemy peeks inside
And sees you softly weeping as some music fills the room
And the song they play
Is that guy with the messed up face
Going, precious and few are the moments that you
And your own worst enemy share
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS
"Your Own Worst Enemy", Factory Showroom
Two enemies sometimes possess a power of clear insight into mental processes, and read each other's minds as two lovers read in either soul.
HONORÉ DE BALZAC
Gobseck
A man falling off a cliff to certain death will stretch out a hand even to his worst enemy.
ROBERT JORDAN
Lord of Chaos
When an intimate friend turns from us, we often find him the most inveterate enemy.
WILLIAM SCOTT DOWNEY
Proverbs
A wise man gets more use from his enemies than a fool from his friends.
BALTASAR GRACIÁN
The Art of Worldy Wisdom
It is at all times more easy to make enemies than friends.
GEORGE WASHINGTON
letter to George Washington Parke Custis, Nov. 28, 1796
Thou shalt not stir one foot to seek a foe.
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
Romeo and Juliet
A single act may create an enemy, but continued warfare will create a foe.
GEORGE CRABB
English Synonyms Explained
The only enemy to fear is the enemy within, the demon that speaks in your own voice, the assassin in the mirror.
BOB LONSBERRY
A Various Language
You know how many friends become enemies and how many enemies become friends -- it's just changing all the time. So many people presume you are something, then they meet you and become proper friends, and the ones who really knew you can't stand it, for whatever reason.
MARINA ABRAMOVIC
"Marina Abramovic talks friends, enemies and fear", The Guardian, October 22, 2016
Enemies are defined in terms of whole categories or groups within society and, therefore, typically encompass hundreds of thousands and even millions of innocent people who in most cases are not "political" by any objective standards.
THOMAS M. MAGSTADT
Understanding Politics
Our enemies ... seem always with us. The greater our hatred the more persistent the memory of them so that a truly terrible enemy becomes deathless. So that the man who has done you great injury or injustice makes himself a guest in your house forever. Perhaps only forgiveness can dislodge him.
CORMAC MCCARTHY
Cities of the Plain
Enemies don't fight with such determined passion. That kind of focus is reserved for friends at odds with one another.
HEATHER BREWER
Twelfth Grade Kills