And wishing to hide from shame, I drink, and wish that I were drunk for ever; then I do not see vice, a society steeped in gloom, then I do not even see the shame that I too am a man.

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  Out of constables we have made grandees, idiots have shared out the honours, thieves are making rich men for us, dark souls have called themselves patriots.

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  Live among men as if God beheld you; speak with God as if men were listening.

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  How quickly we come from nothing and go into nothing.

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  The longer I know the joys of this world, the less I value them.

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  There is no shame in being happy.

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  You know what charm is: a way of getting the answer yes without having asked any clear question.

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