All quotes

It is the monotony of his own nature that makes a man find solitude intolerable.

To have no regular work, no set sphere of activity--what a miserable thing it is!

There is nothing, absolutely nothing, that a man cannot forget,--but not himself, his own character.

There is a direct pleasure in seeing work grow under one's hands day by day, until at last it is finished.

Ordinary people are sociable and complaisant just from the very opposite feeling;--to bear others' company is easier for them than to bear their own.

No man is so formed that he can be left entirely to himself, to go his own ways; everyone needs to be guided by a preconceived plan, and to follow certain general rules.

The present alone is true and actual; it is the only time which possesses full reality, and our existence lies in it exclusively.

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.

the need of society drives the human porcupines together--only to be mutually repelled by the many prickly and disagreeable qualities of their nature

The young should early be trained to bear being left alone; for it is a source of happiness and peace of mind.

Peace of mind is impossible without a considerable amount of solitude.

The prime reason for social intercourse is mutual need; and as soon as that is satisfied, boredom drives people together once more.

The truth is, that our nature is essentially restless in its character: we very soon get tired of having nothing to do; it is intolerable boredom.

Great minds are like eagles, and build their nest in some lofty solitude.

In old age it is indeed a consolation to think that the work of life is over and done with.