The word poet literally means maker: anything which is not well made doesn't exist.
Theophile GautierYes I have loved, as no one on earth ever loved, with an insensate and furious love, so violent that I wonder it did not break my heart
Theophile GautierThose horses must have been Spanish jennets, born of mares mated with a zephyr; for they went as swiftly as the wind, and the moon, which had risen at our departure to give us light, rolled through the sky like a wheel detached from its carriage.
Theophile GautierOnce [a cat] has given its love, what absolute confidence, what fidelity of affection!
Theophile GautierIf you are worthy of its affection, a cat will be your friend but never your slave.
Theophile GautierThe pleasure in traveling consists of the obstacles, the fatigue, and even the danger. What charm can anyone find in an excursion when he is always sure of reaching his destination, of having horses ready waiting for him, a soft bed, an excellent supper, and all the eases and comfort he can enjoy in his own home! One of the great misfortunes of modern life is the want of any sudden surprise, and the absence of all adventure. Everything is so well arranged.
Theophile GautierSometimes he sits at your feet looking into your face with an expression so gentle and caressing that the depth of his gaze startles you.
Theophile GautierYes, the work comes out more beautiful from a material that resists the process, verse, marble, onyx, or enamel.
Theophile Gautier[A cat] will lie the whole evening on your knee, purring and happy in your society.
Theophile GautierArt is beauty, the perpetual invention of detail, the choice of words, the exquisite care of execution.
Theophile GautierWhat well-bred woman would refuse her heart to a man who had just saved her life? Not one; and gratitude is a short cut which speedily leads to love.
Theophile GautierWhite men should exhibit the same insensibility to moral tortures that red men do to physical torments.
Theophile GautierSometimes he will sit on the carpet in front of you, looking at you with eyes so melting, so caressing and so human, that they almost frighten you, for it is impossible to believe that a soul is not there.
Theophile GautierThe years I have squandered in puerile excitement, in going hither and thither, in seeking to force nature and time, I ought to have spent in solitude and meditation, in endeavoring to make myself worthy of being loved.
Theophile GautierWhatever may have been said of the satiety of pleasure and of the disgust which usually follows passion, any man who has anything of a heart and who is not wretchedly and hopelessly blasé feels his love increased by his happiness, and very often the best way to retain a lover ready to leave is to give one's self up to him without reserve.
Theophile GautierIt is a difficult matter to gain the affection of a cat. He is a philosophical, methodical animal, tenacious of his own habits, fond of order and neatness, and disinclined to extravagant sentiment. He will be your friend, if he finds you worthy of friendship, but not your slave.
Theophile GautierThe cat makes himself the companion of your hours of solitude, melancholy and toil.
Theophile GautierThere is nothing truly beautiful but that which can never be of any use whatsoever; everything useful is ugly, for it is the expression of some need, and man's needs are ignoble and disgusting like his own poor and infirm nature. The most useful place in a house is the water-closet.
Theophile GautierFortune loves to give bedroom slippers to people with wooden legs, and gloves to those with no hands.
Theophile GautierIt is difficult to obtain the friendship of a cat. It is a philosophical animal... one that does not place its affections thoughtlessly.
Theophile Gautier[A cat] will make itself the companion of your hours of work, of loneliness, or of sadness.
Theophile GautierGood heavens! what a foolish thing is this pretended perfectibility of the human race which is continually being dinned into our ears!
Theophile Gautier