Form your life humanly, and you have done enough: but you will never reach the height of art and the depth of science without something divine.

Poetry can be criticized only through poetry. A critique which itself is not a work of art, either in content as representation of the necessary impression in the process of creation, or through its beautiful form and in its liberal tone in the spirit of the old Roman satire, has no right of citizenship in the realm of art.

Witty inspirations are the proverbs of the educated.

Beauty is that which is simultaneously attractive and sublime.

A priest is he who lives solely in the realm of the invisible, for whom all that is visible has only the truth of an allegory.

Many works of the ancients have become fragments. Many works of the moderns are fragments at the time of their origin.

German writings attain popularity through a great name, or through personalities, or through good connections, or through effort,or through moderate immorality, or through accomplished incomprehensibility, or through harmonious platitude, or through versatile boredom, or through constant striving after the absolute.