Tragedy has the great moral defect of giving too much importance to life and death.

Most anthologists of poetry or quotations are like those who eat cherries or oysters, first picking the best and ending by eating everything.

Some things are easier to legalize than to legitimate.

Contact with the world either breaks or hardens the heart.

The new friends whom we make after attaining a certain age and by whom we would fain replace those whom we have lost, are to our old friends what glass eyes, false teeth and wooden legs are to real eyes, natrual teeth and legs of flesh and bone.

There are two things that one must get used to or one will find life unendurable: the damages of time and injustices of men.

The philosopher who would fain extinguish his passions resembles the chemist who would like to let his furnace go out.