art is at least in part a way of collecting information about the universe.

For the sake of my country, and perhaps a little for the sake of my soul, I have given up the deep peace of being in opposition.

The principle of avoiding the unnecessary expenditure of energy has enabled the species to survive in a world full of stimuli; but it prevents the survival of the aristocracy.

Christianity must be regarded not as a final revelation but as a phase of revelation.

I really write to find out what I know about something and what is to be known about something.

The earth itself is slightly resistant to routine.

The French use cooking as a means of self-expression, and this meal perfectly represented the personality of a cook who had spent the morning resting her unwashed chin on the edge of a tureen, pondering whether she should end her life immediately by plunging her head into her abominable soup.