The bad novelist constructs his characters; he directs them and makes them speak. The true novelist listens to them and watches them act; he hears their voices even before he knows them.

We should enjoy this summer, flower by flower, as if it were to be the last one we’ll see.

Faith can move mountains; true: mountains of stupidity.

When I cease to be indignant I will have begun my old age.

Enduring fame is promised only to those writers who can offer to successive generations a substance constantly renewed; for every generation arrives upon the scene with its own particular hunger.

The young people who come to me in the hope of hearing me utter a few memorable maxims are quite disappointed. Aphorisms are not my forte, I say nothing but banalities.... I listen to them and they go away delighted.

It is easier to lead men to combat, stirring up their passion, than to restrain them and direct them toward the patient labors of peace.