Interruption, incoherence, surprise are the ordinary conditions of our life. They have even become real needs for many people, whose minds are no longer fed by anything but sudden changes and constantly renewed stimuli. We can no longer bear anything that lasts. We no longer know how to make boredom bear fruit. So the whole question comes down to this: can the human mind master what the human mind has made?

An artist never really finishes his work, he merely abandons it.

The world acquires value only through its extremes and endures only through moderation; extremists make the world great, the moderates give it stability.

Beware of what you do best; its bound to be a trap.

The most ridiculous were those who, on their own authority, made themselves the judges and justices of the tribe. They seemed never to suspect that our judgments judge us, and that nothing exposes our weaknesses and reveals ourselves more naively than the attitude of pronouncing upon our neighbors.

A poet's work consists less in seeking words for his ideas than in seeking ideas for his words and predominant rhythms.

Peace is a virtual, mute, sustained victory of potential powers against probable greeds