They establish distinctions and reserves which I cannot apply to myself, for I exist only as a whole; my only claim is to be natural, and the pleasure I feel in an action, I take as a sign that I ought to do it.

It is now, and in this world, that we must live.

Too chaste a youth leads to a dissolute old age.

A caterpillar who seeks to know himself would never become a butterfly

A desire for truth is by no means a need for certitude and it would be unwise to confuse one with the other.

Profound optimism is always on the side of the tortured.

The truth is, I hoped the cure would dislike me. I tried to think of disagreeable things to say to him -- I could hit on nothing that wasn't charming. It's wonderful how hard I find it not to be fascinating.