That men have an interest in knowing the world which surrounds them, and consequently that their reflection should have been applied to it at an early date, is something that everyone will readily admit.

While the State becomes inflated and hypertrophied in order to obtain a firm enough grip upon individuals, but without succeeding, the latter, without mutual relationships, tumble over one another like so many liquid molecules, encountering no central energy to retain, fix and organize them.

If religion has given birth to all that is essential in society, it is because the idea of society is the soul of religion.

There is a collective as well as an individual humor inclining peoples to sadness or cheerfulness, making them see things in bright or somber lights. In fact, only society can pass a collective opinion on the value of human life; for this the individual is incompetent.

When morals are sufficient, law is unnecessary; when morals are insufficient, law is unenforceable.

Social life comes from a double source, the likeness of consciences and the division of social labour.

Even one well-made observation will be enough in many cases, just as one well-constructed experiment often suffices for the establishment of a law.