what about Christianity? Are we right in the face of so long a record of its poverty in international achievement, to keep invoking it as a standard, almost synonymous with civilization?

Why is humanity so excessive in the way it does things? The golden mean seems out of fashion.

the position of women, that sad and well-nigh universal blot on civilizations, was never far from her mind.

Behavior of such cunning cruelty that only a human being could have thought of or contrived it we call 'inhuman,' revealing thus some pathetic ideal standard for our species that survives all betrayals.

To lunch with the important ... that should be the daily goal of those for whom life is not a playground but a ladder.

One never feels such distaste for one's countrymen and countrywomen as when one meets them abroad.

The superior thing ... was to be late. Lateness showed that serene contempt for the illusion we call time which is so necessary to ensure the respect of others and oneself. Only the servile are punctual.