As far as I am concerned, I resign from humanity. I no longer want to be, nor can still be, a man. What should I do? Work for a social and political system, make a girl miserable? Hunt for weaknesses in philosophical systems, fight for moral and esthetic ideals? It’s all too little. I renounce my humanity even though I may find myself alone. But am I not already alone in this world from which I no longer expect anything?

One does not inhabit a country; one inhabits a language. That is our country, our fatherland - and no other.

Basis of society: anonymous sweat.

Speech and silence. We feel safer with a madman who talks than with one who cannot open his mouth.

Every thought derives from a thwarted sensation.

Society is not a disease, it is a disaster. What a stupid miracle that one can live in it.

The Art of Love: knowing how to combine the temperament of a vampire with the discretion of an anemone.