The novel is born of disillusionment; the poem, of despair.

I fear only that which I love, says man, according to Montaigne. Woman replies: I love only that which I fear.

Those who are scandalized by a naked body--thinks the Devil--are easy prey: they are already doomed.

A rocket is a reed that thinks brilliantly.

When you are listening to music it is better to cover your eyes than your ears.

The man who gets drunk in peacetime is a coward. The man who gets drunk in wartime goes on being a coward.

Morality measured in centimeters: all mothers believe that only their daughters dance decently.