“I have to speak my mind. Because what is in my mind is always more interesting than what is happening in the world outside my mind.”

“The entire piece has been devised with the French in mind. In France, fornication in the streets with total strangers is *compulsory*.”

“The steady and undissipated attention to one object is a sure mark of a superior genius; as hurry, bustle, and agitation are the never-failing symptoms of a weak and frivolous mind.”

“Man differs more from man than man from beast”

“any experiment of interest in life will be carried out at your own expense”

“Listen to everything that is said, and see everything that is done. Observe the looks and countenances of those who speak, which is often a surer way of discovering the truth than from what they say. But then keep all those observations to yourself, for your own private use, and rarely communicate them to others. Observe, without being thought an observer, for otherwise people will be upon their guard before you.”

“I wish to be moved. I cannot feel in life. I must have others do it for me in theater.”