The few existing writings against Kantian philosophy are the most important documents in the case history of sound common sense.

Ideas are infinite, original, and lively divine thoughts.

From what the moderns want, we must learn what poetry should become; from what the ancients did, what poetry must be.

Prudishness is pretense of innocence without innocence. Women have to remain prudish as long as men are sentimental, dense, and evil enough to demand of them eternal innocence and lack of education. For innocence is the only thing which can ennoble lack of education.

That which reminds us of nature and thus stimulates a feeling for the infinite abundance of life is beautiful. Nature is organic,and therefore the highest beauty is forever vegetative; and the same is true for morality and love.

When ideas become gods, consciousness of harmony becomes devotion, humility, and hope.

A genuinely free and educated man should be able to tune himself, as one tunes a musical instrument, absolutely arbitrarily, at his convenience at any time and to any degree, philosophically or philologically, critically or poetically, historically or rhetorically, in ancient or modern form.