There are men whom you will never dislodge from an opinion, except by taking possession of it yourself.

Philosophy cannot raise the commonalty up to her level: so, if she is to become popular, she must sink to theirs.

There is as much difference between good poetry and fine verses, as between the smell of a flower-garden and of a perfumer's shop.

Histories used often to be stories: the fashion now is to leave out the story. Our histories are stall-fed: the facts are absorbed by the reflexions, as the meat is sometimes by the fat.

The body too has its rights; and it will have them: they cannot be trampled on without peril. The body ought to be the soul's best friend. Many good men however have neglected to make it such: so it has become a fiend and has plagued them.

Nature is mighty. Art is mighty. Artifice is weak. For nature is the work of a mightier power than man. Art is the work of man under the guidance and inspiration of a mightier power. Artifice is the work of mere man, in the imbecility of his mimic understanding.

How idle it is to call certain things God-sends! as if there was anything else in the world.