“She? You’re not one of those people who name their cars and coffee mugs, are you? It’s an inanimate object. Get over it.”

“Inanimate objects are classified scientifically into three major categories -- those that don't work, those that break down, and those that get lost”

“Inanimate objects are harmless indeed, Mr. Mortmain. But one cannot always say the same of the men who use them.”

“When you’re as charming and physically attractive as myself, it’s easy enough to win over people you meet. But getting strangers to love you...now, that’s the trick.”

“She sits in her usual ample armchair, with piles of books and unopened magazines around her. She sips cautiously from the mug of weak herb tea which is now her substitute for coffee. At one time she thought that she could not live without coffee, but it turned out that it is really the warm large mug she wants in her hands, that is the aid to thought or whatever it is she practices through the procession of hours, or of days.”

“Never fight an inanimate object.”