Obedience simulates subordination as fear of the police simulates honesty.

The only service a friend can really render is to keep up your courage by holding up to you a mirror in which you can see a noble image of yourself.

Martyrdom, sir, is what these people like: it is the only way in which a man can become famous without ability.

Consistency is the enemy of enterprise, just as symmetry is the enemy of art.

As long as more people will pay admission to a theater to see a naked body than to see a naked brain, the drama will languish.

Perhaps you know some well-off families who do not seem to suffer from their riches. They do not overeat themselves; they find occupations to keep themselves in health; they do not worry about their position; they put their money into safe investments and are content with a low rate of interest; and they bring up their children to live simply and do useful work. But this means that they do not live like rich people at all, and might therefore just as well have ordinary incomes.

When it comes to the point, really bad men are just as rare as really good ones.