Quotes from Jean Rostand

Stupidity, outrage, vanity, cruelty, iniquity, bad faith, falsehood - we fail to see the whole array when it is facing in the same direction as we.

In art as in life the valid sacrifices are those that bring no income.

I still understand a few words in life, but I no longer think they make a sentence.

Marriage simplifies life and complicates the day.

I think I am one of those who can manage not to take on a completely different appearance under their own glance.

Theories pass. The frog remains.

To reflect is to disturb one's thoughts.

It may offend us to hear our own thoughts expressed by others: we are not sure enough of their souls.

We spend our time envying people whom we wouldn't wish to be.

Greatness, in order to gain recognition, must all too often consent to ape greatness.

It takes a very deep-rooted opinion to survive unexpressed.

I don't judge a regime by the damning criticism of the opposition, but by the ingenuous praise of the partisan.

Falsity cannot keep an idea from being beautiful; there are certain errors of such ingenuity that one could regret their not ranking among the achievements of the human mind.

Never feel remorse for what you have thought about your wife; she has thought much worse things about you.

To love an idea is to love it a little more than one should.

In order to remain true to oneself one ought to renounce one's party three times a day.

One must credit an hypothesis with all that has had to be discovered in order to demolish it.

A man is not old as long as he is seeking something.

Truth is always served by great minds, even if they fight it.

We find it easy to believe that praise is sincere: why should anyone lie in telling us the truth?

There are moments when very little truth would be enough to shape opinion. One might be hated at extremely low cost.

Somebody told me I should put a pebble in my mouth to cure my stuttering. Well, I tried it, and during a scene I swallowed the pebble. That was the end of that.

The books one has written in the past have two surprises in store: one couldn't write them again, and wouldn't want to.

God, that dumping ground of our dreams.