Truth, wisdom, love, seek reasons; malice only seeks causes.

The enemy of art is the enemy of nature; art is nothing but the highest sagacity and exertion of human nature; and what nature will he honour who honours not the human?

Not every one who has the gift of speech understands the value of silence.

He who comes from the kitchen, smells of its smoke; and he who adheres to a sect, has something of its cant; the college air pursues the student; and dry inhumanity him who herds with literary pedants.

He who seldom speaks, and with one calm well-timed word can strike dumb the loquacious, is a genius or a hero.

The proportion of genius to the vulgar is like one to a million.

Be neither too early in the fashion, nor too long out of it; nor at any time in the extremes of it.