It takes only one child to raze a village.

I don't suffer fools, and I like to see fools suffer.

Men are not very good at loving, but they are experts at admiring and respecting; the woman who goes after their admiration and respect will often come out better than she who goes out after their love.

Misanthropes have some admirable if paradoxical virtues. It is no exaggeration to say that we are among the nicest people you are likely to meet. Because good manners build sturdy walls, our distaste for intimacy makes us exceedingly cordial "ships that pass in the night." As long as you remain a stranger we will be your friend forever.

If you ever meet someone who cannot understand why solitary confinement is considered punishment, you have met a misanthrope.

Democracy is the fig leaf of elitism.

In social matters, pointless conventions are not merely the bee sting of etiquette, but the snake bite of moral order.