Bruyère was born in Paris in 1645 into a middle class family, his father as Controller General of Finance to the Hôtel de Ville. After his father's passing, he received a considerable inheritance. Very little is known of the events of his life as most people perceived him to be a silent, observant, but somewhat awkward man. However, his critical book, Caractères, written in 1688, garnered numerous enemies. Despite that, most notations about him are positive, specifically pertaining to his abilities in satire, humor, and "giving of advice" as seen below in some of his most noted quotes:

“Out of difficulties, grow miracles.”

"Politeness makes one appear outwardly as they should be within.”

"When a work lifts your spirits and inspires bold and noble thoughts in you, do not look for any other standard to judge by: the work is good, the product of a master craftsman.”

"Two quite opposite qualities equally bias our minds - habits and novelty."

"Those who make the worst use of their time are the first to complain of its shortness.”

"To be among people one loves, that's sufficient."

We hope that you've been inspired to continue on courtesy of the Words of Wisdom by Bruyere! If learning a new language is on your list of resolutions this year, our team of enthusiastic native instructors want to help you achieve your language goals and advance your fluency!