Gallantry of mind consists in saying flattering things in an agreeable manner.

Even the most disinterested love is, after all, but a kind of bargain, in which self-love always proposes to be the gainer one wayor another.

It is not enough that we should succeed, but our friends must fail as well.

To establish ourselves in the world, we have to do all we can to appear established. To succeed in the world, we do everything we can to appear successful.

Sometimes there are accidents in our lives the skillful extrication from which demands a little folly.

We are never either so fortunate or so misfortunate as we imagine.

Selfishness is the grand moving principle of nine-tenths of our actions.