The true critic must dwell more on the qualities than on the defects...
"I only have ninepence cash, but I have a thousand pounds in my bank account" - that's the difference between the art of conversation and the science of expressing yourself in writing on paper.
Our great clubs are based on food and drink, which is what brings most people together.
An indiscreet man is often more dangerous than an evil one, because the latter attacks only his enemies, while the former harms both his enemies and his friends.
It is not difficult to be cheerful when you are in the service of vice.
There is no more pleasant training for the mind than gratitude: the expression of gratitude is accompanied by such inward satisfaction that the duty is fully compensated by its performance.
In nature there is no phenomenon more diverse and changeable than women's head coverings.
There is no defense to defamation other than anonymity.
No wonder that a great amount of knowledge, not being able to make a man clever, often makes him conceited and impudent.
There is no being in the world more agitated than an out-of-fashion idol.
People take nothing with more disgust than advice.
Nothing, short of murder, makes a man so contemptible and vile in the eyes of the world as inconsistency.
A cleverly written pamphlet is like an arrow which not only makes a wound, but makes it unhealable.
The peacock in all its splendor does not expose to everyone's view as many colors as can be counted in the festive outfits of English women.
The first glass - for oneself, the second - for friends, the third - for a good mood, the fourth - for enemies.
One can judge the ignorance or nobility of a nation by its cemeteries, tombstones, and epitaphs.
It sometimes occurs to you that it is better to be a slave on a galley than a spiritual ins, especially if that spirit is the fruit of the inventions of our men of letters, men as educated as they are ungifted.
The lyrics of an opera are usually as bad as their music is beautiful.
Most people can manage with the help of exercise and moderation, and without medicine.
Spouses' separate money is as unnatural as separate beds.
It is easier for the calculated and indifferent cunning to convince a woman that he loves her and to be successful than the passionate lover with his fiery expression of feelings.
The most unbridled passions of all living beings are sensuality and hunger; the first arises from the constant tendency to give birth to offspring, and the second, from self-preservation.
The most important and most difficult thing for a strong spirit is to hold back: the lake sits quietly in a valley, but it needs mountains to hold it in place.
The most irremediable vices are those that delight us.
Modesty is not only an ornament, but also a guardian of virtue.
Words, if carefully chosen, have such power that something written on paper often makes a stronger impression than something seen with one's own eyes.
The meaning of true friendship is that it doubles the joy, and doubles the suffering.
The quarrelers remind me of the fish that, caught on the fishing rod, foams the water around until it is not noticed.
The titles and fame of the forefathers give luster to the name borne with dignity, but they make even more contemptible a shameful name.
He who has a fine nose for all kinds of allusions and attacks, perceives the most innocent words as deception and incitement - while the sky-crying vices and wanderings of all kinds interest him only in books.