Perception is less of a recording system and more of a protection system against external stimuli.

An unrestricted satisfaction of every need presents itself as the most enticing method of conducting one's life, but it means putting enjoyment before caution, and soon brings its own punishment.

It must be pointed out, however, that strictly speaking it is incorrect to talk of the dominance of the pleasure principle over the course of mental processes. If such a dominance existed, the immense majority of our mental processes would have to be accompanied by pleasure or to lead to pleasure, whereas universal experience completely contradicts any such conclusion.

Psychiatry is the art of teaching people how to stand on their own feet while reclining on couches.

When we attempt to imagine death, we perceive ourselves as spectators.

Perhaps the gods are kind to us, by making life more disagreeable as we grow older. In the end death seems less intolerable than the manifold burdens we carry

Just as no one can be forced into belief, so no one can be forced into unbelief.