The_Road_To_Hell_Is_Paved_With_Good_Intentions

The Road To Hell Is Paved With Good Intentions The Road to Hell is Paved With Good Intentions “The road to hell is paved with good intentions” has taken on many variations throughout the centuries, and is claimed by many authors as their own, but the essence of this English proverb reaches across generations, and yet retains its meaning, to parallel the lives and situations of all who use it today. Perhaps Samuel Johnson was most credited with a modified version of this proverb, when he was quoted in James Boswell’s biography Life of Johnson, as saying “hell is paved with good intentions”, but he was elaborating on the words of others, they were not his own. As early as the 12th century, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, 1091-1153 A.D., was quoted saying, “hell is paved with good intentions or desires”, and in Notes Theological, political, and Miscellaneous written by Samuel Taylor-Coleridge, he attributes the saying to Richard Baxter, 1615-1691 A.D. Although this saying has been coined as an English proverb, history traces another version to old Portugal that says, “hell is paved with good intentions, and roofed with lost opportunities.” The saying itself has taken on a life of its own, that has evolved into intentions, proverb, good, perhaps, paved, hell, right, act, saying, road, life, human, disabilities, thing, own, even, been, another, very, throughout, suicide, state, reason, noble, hand, english, wrong, words, wisdom, version, today, thought, theological, taking, taken