Some vices only lay hold of us by means of others, and these, like branches, fall on removal of the trunk

Vanity is so secure in the heart of man that everyone wants to be admired even I who write this, and you who read this

Mathematicians, who are only mathematicians, have exact minds, provided all things are explained to them by means of definitions and axioms; otherwise they are inaccurate and insufferable, for they are only right when the principles are quite clear

We never, then, love a person, but only qualities

We conceal it from ourselves in vain - we must always love something. In those matters seemingly removed from love, the feeling is secretly to be found, and man cannot possibly live for a moment without it

The sum of a man's problems come from his inability to be alone in a silent room

Reason commands us far more imperiously than a master. When we disobey the latter we are punished, when we disobey the former we are fools

Reason is the slow and torturous method by which those who do not know the truth discover it

The supreme function of reason is to show man that some things are beyond reason

Clarity of mind means clarity of passion, too this is why a great and clear mind loves ardently and sees distinctly what he loves