"Only the contemptible fear contempt."

"Our actions seem to have their lucky and unlucky stars, to which a great part of that blame and that commendation is due which is given to the actions themselves."

"Our concern for the loss of our friends is not always from a sense of their worth, but rather of our own need of them and that we have lost some who had a good opinion of us."

"Our virtues are often, in reality, no better than vices disguised."

"People always complain about their memories, never about their minds."

"People that are conceited of their own merit take pride in being unfortunate, that themselves and others may think them considerable enough to be the envy and the mark of fortune."

"People's personalities, like buildings, have various facades, some pleasant to view, some not."

"Perfect valour consists in doing without witnesses that which we would be capable of doing before everyone."

"Philosophy finds it an easy matter to vanquish past and future evils, but the present are commonly too hard for it."

"Politeness is a desire to be treated politely, and to be esteemed polite oneself."

"The accent of a man's native country remains in his mind and his heart, as it does in his speech."

"The defects and faults of the mind are like wounds in the body; after all imaginable care has been taken to heal them up, still there will be a scar left behind, and they are in continual danger of breaking the skin and bursting out again."

"The defects of the mind, like those of the face, grow worse with age."

"The desire of talking of ourselves, and showing those faults we do not mind having seen, makes up a good part of our sincerity."

"The first lover is kept a long while, when no offer is made of a second."

"The force we use on ourselves, to prevent ourselves from loving, is often more cruel than the severest treatment at the hands of one loved."

"The generality of virtuous women are like hidden treasures, they are safe only because nobody has sought after them."

"The greatest part of intimate confidences proceed from a desire either to be pitied or admired."

"The man that thinks he loves his mistress for her own sake is mightily mistaken."

"The mind cannot long play the heart's role."

"The moderation of people in prosperity is the effect of a smooth and composed temper, owing to the calm of their good fortune."

"The name and pretense of virtue is as serviceable to self-interest as are real vices."

"The principal point of cleverness is to know how to value things just as they deserve."

"The reason that lovers never weary each other is because they are always talking about themselves."

"The surest way to be deceived is to consider oneself cleverer than others."

"The word virtue is as useful to self-interest as the vices."

"There are a great many men valued in society who have nothing to recommend them but serviceable vices."

"There are bad people who would be less dangerous if they were quite devoid of goodness."

"There are but very few men clever enough to know all the mischief they do."

"There are very few things impossible in themselves; and we do not want means to conquer difficulties so much as application and resolution in the use of means."

"There is many a virtuous woman weary of her trade."

"There is no better proof of a man's being truly good than his desiring to be constantly under the observation of good men."

"There is nothing men are so generous of as advice."

"They that apply themselves to trifling matters commonly become incapable of great ones."

"Those that have had great passions esteem themselves for the rest of their lives fortunate and unfortunate in being cured of them."

"Though men are apt to flatter and exalt themselves with their great achievements, yet these are, in truth, very often owing not so much to design as chance."

"Though nature be ever so generous, yet can she not make a hero alone. Fortune must contribute her part too; and till both concur, the work cannot be perfected."

"Too great haste to repay an obligation is a kind of ingratitude."

"Virtue would go far if vanity did not keep it company."

"We always get bored with those whom we bore."

"We always love those that admire us, but we do not always love those we admire."

"We always love those who admire us, but we do not always love those whom we admire."

"We are all strong enough to bear other men's misfortunes."

"We are easily comforted for the misfortunes of our friends, when those misfortunes give us an occasion of expressing our affection and solicitude."

"We are never either so fortunate or so misfortunate as we imagine."

"We are never so ridiculous through what we are as through what we pretend to be."

"We are so used to dissembling with others that in time we come to deceive and dissemble with ourselves."

"We are sometimes as different from ourselves as we are from others."

"We are strong enough to bear the misfortunes of others."

"We are very far from always knowing our own wishes."