“Fathers should be neither seen nor heard. That is the only proper basis for family life.”

“Neither at things, nor at people should one look. Only in mirrors should one look, for mirrors do but show us masks.”

“The proper basis for marriage is a mutual misunderstanding.”

“The proper basis for marriage is mutual misunderstanding. The happiness of a married man depends on the people he has not married. One should always be in love - that's the reason one should never marry.”

“Ultimately the bond of all companionship, whether in marriage or in friendship, is conversation, and conversation must have a common basis, and between two people of widely different culture the only common basis possible is the lowest level.”

“The basis of optimism is sheer terror.”

“The basis of every scandal is immoral certainty.”