Do not mistake me. I am not yet weak enough to yield to fearful imaginings, which are almost as absurd as illusions of hope, and are certainly harder to bear. If I must deceive myself, I should prefer to stay on the side of confidence, for I shall lose no more there and shall suffer less.

Our true birthplace is that in which we cast for the first time an intelligent eye on ourselves. My first homelands were my books.

Men who care passionately for women attach themselves at least as much to the temple and to the accessories of the cult as to their goddess herself.

The written word has taught me to listen to the human voice, much as the great unchanging statues have taught me to appreciate bodily motions.

A touch of madness is, I think, almost always necessary for constructing a destiny.

Love is a punishment. We are punished for not having been strong enough to remain alone.

I am not sure that the discovery of love is necessarily more exquisite than the discovery of poetry.