Their long years together had shown him that it did not so much matter if marriage was a dull duty, as long as it kept the dignity of duty: lapsing from that, it became a mere battle of ugly appetites.
Edith WhartonNo insect hangs its nest on threads as frail as those which will sustain the weight of human vanity.
Edith WhartonAh, good conversation - there's nothing like it, is there? The air of ideas is the only air worth breathing.
Edith Wharton