Comment prétendons-nous qu'un autre puisse garder notre secret, si nous ne pouvons le garder nous-mêmes?" - Meaning and context.">
How can we expect others to keep our secrets if we cannot keep them ourselves?
• Maxim 64 of the Maximes supprimées.
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Comment prétendons-nous qu'un autre puisse garder notre secret, si nous ne pouvons le garder nous-mêmes?

— François de La Rochefoucauld

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "Comment prétendons-nous qu'un autre puisse garder notre secret, si nous ne pouvons le garder nous-mêmes?" in the context of "How can we expect others to keep our secrets if we cannot keep them ourselves?
• Maxim 64 of the Maximes supprimées." to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "François de La Rochefoucauld" (Quotes, Later Additions to the Maxims) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
François de La Rochefoucauld

About François de La Rochefoucauld

François VI, duc de La Rochefoucauld, le Prince de Marcillac (September 15 1613 – March 17 1680) was a noted French author of maxims and memoirs, as well as an example of the accomplished 17th-century nobleman.