For neither birth, nor wealth, nor honors, can awaken in the minds of men the principles which should guide those who from their youth aspire to an honorable and excellent life, as Love awakens them

He is unworthy of the name of man who is ignorant of the fact that the diagonal of a square is incommensurable with its side.

The principles are important. First, the interest of the state or society counts for everything, that of the individual for nothing. Second, the only difference between men and women is one of physical function- one begets, the other bears children. Apart from that, they both can and should perform the same functions - though men on a whole, perform them better and should receive the same education to enable them to do so; for in this way society will get the best value from both.

If there is a good and wise God, then there also exists a progress of humanity toward perfection.

Love is the pursuit of the whole.

The punishment which the wise suffer who refuse to take part in the government, is to live under the government of worse men.

Where it is a general rule that it is wrong to gratify lovers, this can be attributed to the defects of those who make that rule: the government's lust for rule and the subjects' cowardice.