God could cause us considerable embarrassment by revealing all the secrets of nature to us: we should not know what to do for sheer apathy and boredom.

By the artist's seizing any one object from nature, that object no longer is part of nature. One can go so far as to say that theartist creates the object in that very moment by emphasizing its significant, characteristic, and interesting aspects or, rather, by adding the higher values.

The formation of one's character ought to be everyone's chief aim.

Why look for conspiracy when stupidity can explain so much

One should not wish anyone disagreeable conditions of life; but for him who is involved in them by chance, they are touchstones of characters and of the most decisive value to man.

In politics as on a sickbed men toss from side to side in hope of lying more comfortably.

It is in the half fools and the half wise that the greatest danger lies.