May God defend me from my friends: I can defend myself from my enemies.

I confess that my stomach does not take to this style of cooking. I cannot accept calves sweetbreads swimming in a salty sauce, nor can I eat mince consisting of turkey, hare, and rabbit, which they try to persuade me comes from a single animal... As for the cooks, I really cannot be expected to put up with this ham essence, nor the excessive quantity of morels and other mushrooms, pepper, and nutmeg with which they disguise perfectly good food.

I have been a hundred times on the point of killing myself, but still was fond of life. This ridiculous weakness is perhaps one of our worst instincts. What can be more absurd than choosing to carry a burden that one really wants to throw to the ground? To detest, and yet to strive to preserve our existence? To caress the serpent that devours us, and hug him close to our bosoms till he has gnawed into our hearts?

To believe in God is impossible not to believe in Him is absurd.

We all look for happiness, but without knowing where to find it: like drunkards who look for their house, knowing dimly that they have one.

It is better to risk saving a guilty man than to condemn an innocent one.

To the wicked, everything serves as pretext.