It is only the great men who are truly obscene. If they had not dared to be obscene, they could never have dared to be great.
The art of love ... is largely the art of persistence.
The more rapidly a civilization progresses, the sooner it dies for another to rise in its place.
What we call 'Progress' is the exchange of one nuisance for another nuisance.
The absence of flaw in beauty is itself a flaw.
Nothing is more pleasing and engaging than the sense of having conferred benefits. Not even the gratification of receiving them.
People and things do not upset us, rather we upset ourselves by believing that they can upset us.
The place where optimism flourishes the most is the lunatic asylum.
Jealousy - that dragon which slays love under the pretense of keeping it alive.
The art of living lies in a fine mingling of holding on and letting go.