“The ugly and stupid have the best of it in this world. They can sit at their ease and gape at the play. If they know nothing of victory, they are at least spared the knowledge of defeat. They live as we all should live-- undisturbed, indifferent, and without disquiet. They never bring ruin upon others, nor ever receive it from alien hands. Your rank and wealth, Henry; my brains, such as they are-- my art, whatever it may be worth; Dorian Gray s good looks-- we shall all suffer for what the gods have given us, suffer terribly.”
“The weak are dominated by their ego, the wise dominate their ego, and the intelligent are in a constant struggle against their ego.”
“Pedir perdón es humillante y no arregla nada. La solución no es pedir perdón, sino evitar los estallidos que hacen obligatorias las excusas”
“Every true genius is bound to be naive.”
“I will tell you why we have these extraordinary minds and souls, Miss Whittaker, he continued, as though he had not heard her. We have them because there is a supreme intelligence in the universe, which wishes for communion with us. This supreme intelligence longs to be known. It calls out to us. It draws us close to its mystery, and grants us these remarkable minds, in order that we try to reach for it. It wants us to find it. It wants union with us, more than anything.”
“But if one observes, one will see that the body has its own intelligence; it requires a great deal of intelligence to observe the intelligence of the body.”
“I didn t set out to discover a truth. I was actually sent to the Outer Fringes to conduct a chair census and learn some humility. But the truth inevitably found me, as important truths often do, like a lost thought in need of a mind.”
“Sometimes people think you’re smart if you question the status quo, if nothing else.”
“We ve no use for intellectuals in this outfit. What we need is chimpanzees. Let me give you a word of advice: never say a word to us about being intelligent. We will think for you, my friend. Don t forget it.”
“The purpose of having the orphans study all these diverse fields was not for them to just become geniuses, but to become polymaths – meaning they would be geniuses in a wide variety of fields.”
“Beyond all sciences, philosophies, theologies, and histories, a child s relentless inquiry is truly all it takes to remind us that we don t know as much as we think we know.”
“It s only adults who read the top layers most of the time. I think children read the internal meanings of everything.”
“You seem to think you’re insignificant, but the truth is you’re so intelligent, beautiful, kind and decent, adorable. I can’t be the first person to have fallen in love with you, and I won’t be the last. But I do believe I will love you the most.”
“In God s eyes, a man who teaches one truth and nothing else is more righteous than a man who teaches a million truths and one lie.”
“Incredibly intelligent people always seem odd to those who are not as sharp.”
“Cleverness isn t always true nor is the truth always clever.”
“Whoever prefers the material comforts of life over intellectual wealth is like the owner of a palace who moves into the servants’ quarters and leaves the sumptuous rooms empty.”