Without a notion of the transcendental, human beings would, indeed, be animals; however, only fools can be convinced of it, and only degenerates need such a conviction.

The military and the clergy cause us much annoyance; the clergy and the military, they empty our wallets and rob our intelligence.

Do you think that it is possible to have a mere taste of commonness? Either one hates it or makes common cause with it.

He who takes people for smart pays an expensive lesson.

Bunglers and pedants judge art according to genre; they approve of this and dismiss that genre, but instead of genres, the open-minded connoisseur appreciates only individual works.

Prose and poetry are as different as food and drink.

Historical! Must it be historical to catch your attention? Even though historicity, like notoriety, denotes nothing more than thatsomething has occurred.