Morality is a venereal disease. Its primary stage is called virtue; its secondary stage, boredom; its tertiary stage, syphilis.

Nowadays the thief cannot be distinguished from his victim. Neither has any valuable objects on him.

Satire chooses and knows no objects. It arises by fleeing from them and their forcing themselves upon it.

Artists have a right to be modest and a duty to be vain.

Matrimony is the union of meanness and martyrdom.

To me it's still a greater miracle when a fly flies than when a human being undertakes to do so.

Insights into erotic life belong to art, not education. But sometimes these have to be spelled out for the illiterates. And it ismainly a matter of convincing the illiterates, for they are the ones who write the penal code.