The degree of civilization in a society can be judged by entering its prisons.

The best way to keep a prisoner from escaping is to make sure he never knows he's in prison.

Pain and suffering are always inevitable for a large intelligence and a deep heart. The really great men must, I think, have great sadness on earth.

If you wish to glimpse inside a human soul and get to know a man ... just watch him laugh. If he laughs well, he's a good man.

Learning to love is hard and we pay dearly for it. It takes hard work and a long apprenticeship, for it is not just for a moment that we must learn to love, but forever.

People speak sometimes about the "bestial" cruelty of man, but that is terribly unjust and offensive to beasts, no animal could ever be so cruel as a man, so artfully, so artistically cruel.

It is better to be unhappy and know the worst, than to be happy in a fool's paradise.

Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him.

I think the devil doesn't exist, but man has created him, he has created him in his own image and likeness.

Don’t be overwise; fling yourself straight into life, without deliberation; don’t be afraid - the flood will bear you to the bank and set you safe on your feet again.

The most offensive is not their lying - one can always forgive lying - lying is a delightful thing, for it leads to truth - what is offensive is that they lie and worship their own lying.

Old age is the most unexpected of all the things that can happen to a man.

We say something every morning when we decide how to dress.

I live in a flat with 3 women, I call it surround sound. I keep the ugly one behind the sofa as a woofer.

The only defensible war is a war of defense.

A person is either the effect of his environment or is able to have an effect upon his environment.

You could love me or hate me I swear it won't make me or break me. I'm goin where ever the money takes me.

‎ When a person is born we rejoice, and when they're married we jubilate, but when they die we try to pretend nothing has happened.

While I am rehearsing a play, I try to read nothing that might distract my concentration from the work in progress.

As I have found out, recognition has its upside, its downside and – you may say – its backside.

Self-reliance is its aversion. It loves not realities and creators, but names and customs.