And this lies in the nature of things: What people are potentially is revealed in actuality by what they produce.

The greatest thing by far is to be a master of metaphor; it is the one thing that cannot be learned from others; and it is also a sign of genius, since a good metaphor implies an intuitive perception of the similarity of the dissimilar.

Some men turn every quality or art into a means of making money; this they conceive to be the end, and to the promotion of the end all things must contribute.

Happiness, whether consisting in pleasure or virtue, or both, is more often found with those who are highly cultivated in their minds and in their character, and have only a moderate share of external goods, than among those who possess external goods to a useless extent but are deficient in higher qualities.

At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst.

All things are full of gods.

Between husband and wife friendship seems to exist by nature, for man is naturally disposed to pairing.