Civilization is nothing else but the attempt to reduce force to being the last resort.

We distinguish the excellent man from the common man by saying that the former is the one who makes great demands on himself, and the latter who makes no demands on himself.

An 'unemployed' existence is a worse negation of life than death itself.

The cynic, a parasite of civilization, lives by denying it, for the very reason that he is convinced that it will not fail.

When you are fed up with the troublesome present, you take your gun, whistle for your dog, go out to the mountain, and, without further ado, give yourself the pleasure during a few hours or a few days of being "Paleolithic."

Romantic poses aside, let us recognize that "falling in love"...is an inferior state of mind, a form of transitory imbecility.

The world is the sum-total of our vital possibilities.