A young man is not far from ruin, when he can say, without blushing,
_I don't care what others think of me_. To be insensible to public
opinion, or to the estimation in which we are held by others, by no
means indicates a good and generous spirit.
But to have a due regard to public opinion is one thing, and to make
that opinion the principal rule of action, quite another. There is no
greater weakness than that of letting our happiness depend _too much_
upon the opinion of others. Other people lie under such disadvantages
for coming at our true characters, and are so often misled by prejudice
for or against us, that if our own conscience condemns us, their
approbation can give us little consolation. On the other hand, if we
are sure we acted from honest motives, and with a reference to proper
ends, it is of little consequence if the world should happen to find
fault. Mankind, for the most part, are so much governed by fancy, that
what will win their hearts to-day, will disgust them to-morrow; and he
who undertakes to please every body at all times, places, and
circumstances, will never be in want of employment.
A wise man, when he hears of reflections made upon him, will consider
whether they are _just_. If they are, he will correct the faults in
question, with as much cheerfulness as if they had been suggested by
his dearest friend.
I have sometimes thought that, in this view, enemies were the best of
friends. Those who are merely friends in name, are often unwilling to
tell us a great many things which it is of the highest importance that
we should know. But our enemies, from spite, envy, or some other cause,
mention them; and we ought on the whole to rejoice that they do, and to
make the most of their remarks.