The entire social order ... is arrayed against a woman who wants to rise to a man's reputation.

Happy the land where the writers are sad, the merchants satisfied, the rich melancholic, and the populace content.

Prayer is the life of the soul.

Poetry is the apotheosis of sentiment.

[On Napoleon:] One has the impression of an imperious wind blowing about one's ears when one is near that man.

Life resembles Gobelin tapestry; you do not see the canvass on the right side; but when you turn it, the threads are visible.

The universe is in France; outside it, there is nothing.