... learning to love any one is like an increase of property, -- it increases care, and brings many new fears lest precious things should come to harm.

Few things hold the perception more thoroughly captive than anxiety about what we have got to say

Genius is the capacity for receiving and improving by discipline.

It is very difficult to be learned; it seems as if people were worn out on the way to great thoughts, and can never enjoy them because they are too tired.

It is only a poor sort of happiness that could ever come by caring very much about our own pleasures. We can only have the highest happiness such as goes along with being a great man, by having wide thoughts and much feeling for the rest of the world as well as ourselves.

... the true seeing is within; and painting stares at you with an insistent imperfection.

It is seldom that the miserable can help regarding their misery as a wrong inflicted by those who are less miserable.