Socrates ... brought human wisdom back down from heaven, where she was wasting her time, and restored her to man.... It is impossible to go back further and lower. He did a great favor to human nature by showing how much it can do by itself.

Why dost thou complain of this world? It detains thee not; thy own cowardice is the cause, if thou livest in pain.

Human understanding is marvellously enlightened by daily conversation with men, for we are, otherwise, compressed and heaped up in ourselves, and have our sight limited to the length of our own noses.

Rejoice in the things that are present; all else is beyond thee.

What kind of truth is it which has these mountains as its boundary and is a lie beyond them?

To how many blockheads of my time has a cold and taciturn demeanor procured the credit of prudence and capacity!

The vulgar and common esteem is seldom happy in hitting right; and I am much mistaken if, amongst the writings of my time, the worst are not those which have most gained the popular applause.