Despite the enormous quantity of books, how few people read! And if one reads profitably, one would realize how much stupid stuff the vulgar herd is content to swallow every day.

The rude beginnings of every art acquire a greater celebrity than the art in perfection; he who first played the fiddle was looked upon as a demigod.

It is as impossible to translate poetry as it is to translate music.

There is an astonishing imagination, even in the science of mathematics. ... We repeat, there was far more imagination in the head of Archimedes than in that of Homer.

The greatest consolation in life is to say what one thinks.

Monsieur l'abbé, I detest what you write, but I would give my life to make it possible for you to continue to write.

True greatness consists in the use of a powerful understanding to enlighten oneself and others.