Gustave Flaubert

"Art requires neither complaisance nor politeness; nothing but faith, faith and freedom."

"Do not read, as children do, to amuse yourself, or like the ambitious, for the purpose of instruction. No, read in order to live."

"Love is a springtime plant that perfumes everything with its hope, even the ruins to which it clings."

"Be steady and well-ordered in your life so that you can be fierce and original in your work."

"One can be the master of what one does, but never of what one feels."

"There is not a particle of life which does not bear poetry within it"

"To be stupid, selfish, and have good health are three requirements for happiness, though if stupidity is lacking, all is lost."

"Love is a springtime plant that perfumes everything with its hope, even the ruins to which it clings."

"I believe that if one always looked at the skies, one would end up with wings."

"There are two infinities that confuse me: the one in my soul devours me; the one around me will crush me"

"There is not a particle of life which does not bear poetry within it"

"One mustn't ask apple trees for oranges, France for sun, women for love, life for happiness."

"Do not read, as children do, to amuse yourself, or like the ambitious, for the purpose of instruction. No, read in order to live."

"You don’t make art out of good intentions."

"The public wants work which flatters its illusions."

"The most glorious moments in your life are not the so-called days of success, but rather those days when out of dejection and despair you feel rise in you a challenge to life, and the promise of future accomplishments."