“I am a misanthrope yet utterly benevolent.”

A recluse without books and ink is already in life a dead man.

The savants will write excellent volumes. There will be laureates. But wars will continue just the same until the forces of the circumstances render them impossible.

If I have a thousand ideas and only one turns out to be good, I am satisfied.

Contentment is the only real wealth.

My dynamite will sooner lead to peace than a thousand world conventions. As soon as men will find that in one instant, whole armies can be utterly destroyed, they surely will abide by golden peace.

The only true solution would be a convention under which all the governments would bind themselves to defend collectively any country that was attacked.

Lying is the greatest of all sins.

Nature is man’s teacher. She unfolds her treasures to his search, unseals his eye, illumes his mind, and purifies his heart; an influence breathes from all the sights and sounds of her existence.

For me writing biographies is impossible, unless they are brief and concise, and these are, I feel, the most eloquent.

One can state, without exaggeration, that the observation of and the search for similarities and differences are the basis of all human knowledge.

It is not sufficient to be worthy of respect in order to be respected.

I am a misanthrope and yet utterly benevolent, have more than one screw loose yet am a super-idealist who digests philosophy more efficiently than food.

It is my express wish that in awarding the [Nobel Prizes] no consideration be given to the nationality of the candidates, but that the most worthy shall receive the prize, whether he be Scandinavian or not.

A heart can no more be forced to love than a stomach can be forced to digest food by persuasion.

The truthful man is usually a liar.

Lawyers have to make a living, and can only do so by inducing people to believe that a straight line is crooked.

If you look at me as a role model, I agree with it. If you look at me as an idol, I don’t because an idol for me is someone that you want to replicate. You want to be them and I don’t wish that on anyone to lose what they have personally, because that’s when your spark is lost.

Offscreen, I’m a private person. I’m shy and don’t know how to face the public.

I was a naughty kid. Teachers did not like me much.

I am not too intelligent.

Her persona may be quiet, but her observation loud.

I’m just a very tough person when I go on the court, and I really don’t want to lose.

I have designs I like applied to my helmet, motorcycle, riding suits, gloves,and boots. I have a designer friend of mine put the designs on them for me. I think a livery on the helmet is significant in expressing a rider’s personality.

I’m not the next anyone, I’m the first Maria Sharapova.