I have not the hope of being immortal, because the desire of it has not given me that vanity.

My ideas are my whores.

I am more affected by the attractions of virtue than by the deformities of vice; I turn gently away from the wicked and I fly to meet the good. If there is in a literary work, in a character, in a picture, in a statue, a beautiful spot, that is where my eyes rest; I see only that, I remember only that, all the rest is well-nigh forgotten. What becomes of me when the whole work is beautiful!

What is a monster? A being whose survival is incompatible with the existing order.

When we know to read our own hearts, we acquire wisdom of the heartsof others.

The bad gives rise to the good, the good inspires the better, the better produces the excellent, the excellent is followed by the bizarre

The enjoyment of freedom which could be exercised without any motivation would be the real hallmark of a maniac.