Animals are nothing but the portrayal of our virtues and vices made manifest to our eyes, the visible reflections of our souls.

Inanimate objects sometimes appear endowed with a strange power of sight. A statue notices, a tower watches, the face of an edifice contemplates.

The learned man knows that he is ignorant.

As the purse is emptied, the heart is filled.

The soul helps the body, and at certain moments raises it. It is the only bird that sustains its cage.

At the shrine of friendship never say die, let the wine of friendship never run dry

Who can be sure that Jean Valjean had not been on the verge of losing heart and giving up the struggle? In loving he recovered his strength. But the truth is that he was no less vulnerable than Cosette. He protected her and she sustained him. Thanks to him she could go forward into life, and thanks to her he could continue virtous. He was the child's support and she his mainstay. Sublime, unfathomable marvel of the balance of destiny!