Talent works for money and fame; the motive which moves genius to productivity is, on the other hand, less easy to determine.

To desire immortality is to desire the eternal perpetuation of a great mistake

This actual world of what is knowable, in which we are and which is in us, remains both the material and the limit of our consideration.

There is only one inborn erroneous notion ... that we exist in order to be happy ... So long as we persist in this inborn error ... the world seems to us full of contradictions. For at every step, in great things and small, we are bound to experience that the world and life are certainly not arranged for the purpose of maintaining a happy existence ... hence the countenances of almost all elderly persons wear the expression of ... disappointment.

The first rule for a good style is to have something to say; in fact, this in itself is almost enough.

To read a book is to hold an entire world in the palm of your hand. That world is unique to you; no two readers can ever inhabit the same world

The person who writes for fools is always sure of a large audience.