A high degree of intellect tends to make a man unsocial.

All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.

It is difficult to find happiness within oneself, but it is impossible to find it anywhere else.

The majority of men... are not capable of thinking, but only of believing, and... are not accessible to reason, but only to authority.

Talent hits a target no one else can hit; Genius hits a target no one else can see.

A man can be himself only so long as he is alone; and if he does not love solitude, he will not love freedom; for it is only when he is alone that he is really free.

Man is the only animal who causes pain to others with no other object than wanting to do so.

Genius and madness have something in common: both live in a world that is different from that which exists for everyone else.

A pessimist is an optimist in full possession of the facts.

Religions are like fireflies. They require darkness in order to shine.

Nature shows that with the growth of intelligence comes increased capacity for pain, and it is only with the highest degree of intelligence that suffering reaches its supreme point.

For us to regard others as worthy, we have to begin by regarding ourselves as worthy.

The only way to get the best out of the diminishing life is to invest it into the fulfillment of your purpose.

There are no necessary evils in government. Its evils exist only in its abuses.

After making music for twenty-six years I can't pretend I don't know anything about it anymore.

She would not shed a tear, she would not waste the rest of her years simmering in the maggot broth of memory.

There's something whimsical, satirical, and silly about British humor, which Americans have always enjoyed, and lots of us come over here because we have an audience of people who enjoy it.

I dreamt that I could paint you with words, but there were no colors bright enough, black or white enough, blue or green enough...they didn't mean enough

The starting point for the understanding of war is the understanding of human nature.

I'm growing as an artist and expanding my range, and not pigeonholing myself by doing the same thing, over and over.

The big win is when you refuse to settle for average or mediocre.