Envying another man's happiness is madness; you wouldn't know what to do with it if you had it.

There are very few monsters who warrant the fear we have of them.

You have to let other people be right' was his answer to their insults. 'It consoles them for not being anything else.

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.

Life never presents us with anything which may not be looked upon as a fresh starting point, no less than as a termination.

Profound optimism is always on the side of the tortured.

Great authors are admirable in this respect: in every generation they make for disagreement. Through them we become aware of our differences.