I was not much afraid of punishment, I was only afraid of disgrace.But that I feared more than death, more than crime, more than anything in the world. I should have rejoiced if the earth had swallowed me up and stifled me in the abyss. But my invincible sense of shame prevailed over everything . It was my shame that made me impudent, and the more wickedly I behaved the bolder my fear of confession made me. I saw nothing but the horror of being found out, of being publicly proclaimed, to my face, as a thief, as a liar, and slanderer.

Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves.

All through life a man has need of a counsellor and guide.

The French, for example, are a contemptible nation.

We are born, so to speak, twice over; born into existence, and born into life; born a human being, and born a man.

Provided a man is not mad, he can be cured of every folly but vanity.

Our greatest misfortunes come to us from ourselves.