Date: 1778
"Do you think the public opinion, his various doubts of himself, and of her, the pride of his family, and the loud claims of avarice, his ruling passion 'till now, won't prove near an equipoise to his love?"
preview | full record— Foote, Samuel (1720-1777)
Date: 1780
"Once love gets into a man's head, poor reason is brought before a court-martial of the passions, and cashiered without a hearing"
preview | full record— Pilon, Frederick (1750-1788)
Date: 1782
"Perish the barb'rous maxims of the East, / Which basely wou'd enslave the free-born mind, / And plunder it of the best gift of Heav'n, / Its liberty!"
preview | full record— More, Hannah (1745-1833)
Date: 1784
Vanity is more a man's ruling passion than a woman's
preview | full record— Cowley [née Parkhouse], Hannah (1743-1809)
Date: 1785
Play [gambling] may be a ruling passion
preview | full record— MacNally, Leonard (1752-1820)
Date: 1785
"I was surpriz'd, taken unawares, passion ran away with me like an unbroke horse: but I have got him under now; I can govern him with a twine of thread."
preview | full record— Cumberland, Richard (1732-1811)
Date: 1786
Love of admiration may be a ruling passion
preview | full record— Pilon, Frederick (1750-1788)
Date: 1788
Lovers are governed by Cupid and must obey the "laws of a monarch, whose throne is the heart"
preview | full record— Cobb, James (1756-1818)
Date: 1789
"A passion like mine, makes the heart rebellious--it will love on--it will hope, in spite of the rules cold reason dictates"
preview | full record— Inchbald [née Simpson], Elizabeth (1753-1821)