the former and the latter

The former and the latter are now somewhat stilted in style and can often be ambiguous or at the very least require backtracking by the reader.

Two of the outstanding leaders of our time were Nelson Mandela and Gandhi.
The former was a lawyer in South Africa and the latter imprisoned for his politics.

quite

Quite can be ambiguous as it can mean either relatively or very, for example:

The results were quite poor.
Better: The results were relatively poor.
Or: The results were very poor.

The rate was quite stable.
Better: The rate was relatively stable.
Or: The rate was very stable.

Therefore use a word with a more exact meaning in cases of doubt.

rather

Similarly, rather can be ambiguous as it too can mean either relatively or very, for example:

A rather rare example of …
Better: A relatively rare example of…
Or: A very rare example of …