I look upon every day to be lost in which I do not make a new acquaintance.

Cucumber should be well sliced, dressed with pepper and vinegar, and then thrown out.

The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good.

Curiosity is one of the most permanent and certain characteristics of a vigorous intellect.

Kindness is in our power, even when fondness is not.

When a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.

Classical quotation is the parole of literary men all over the world.

A man who uses a great many words to express his meaning is like a bad marksman who, instead of aiming a single stone at an object, takes up a handful and throws at it in hopes he may hit.

There are minds so impatient of inferiority that their gratitude is a species of revenge, and they return benefits, not because recompense is a pleasure, but because obligation is a pain.

When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.

He who has so little knowledge of human nature as to seek happiness by changing anything but his own disposition will waste his life in fruitless efforts.

A BMW can't take you as far as a diploma.

It is not just do do do. It is not just be be be. It is do be do be do.

I think almost always that what gets me going with a story is the atmosphere, the visual imagery, and then I people it with characters, not the other way around.

The massive anti-war movement, which I was a part of and which was a major part of my life, never stopped the war in Vietnam.

Those who write as they speak, even though they speak well, write badly.

Sobriety, severity, and self-respect are the foundations of all true sociality.

Mathematics is a dangerous profession; an appreciable proportion of us go mad.

I'm against people downloading music.

Forever all goodness will be most charming; forever all wickedness will be most odious.

Living a good life may keep you out of jail, but it cannot keep you out of hell.