“ ...that tender compunction of the honest-minded, so different from the hateful intoxication of criminals... Marquis de Sade
“ Self-interest lies behind all that men do, forming the important motive for all their actions; this rule has never deceived me Marquis de Sade
“ No lover, if he be of good faith, and sincere, will deny he would prefer to see his mistress dead than unfaithful. Marquis de Sade
“ Happiness lies neither in vice nor in virtue but in the manner we appreciate the one and the other, and the choice we make pursuant to our individual organization. Marquis de Sade
“ Conversation, like certain portions of the anatomy, always runs more smoothly when lubricated. Marquis de Sade
“ To judge from the notions expounded by theologians, one must conclude that God created most men simply with a view to crowding hell. Marquis de Sade
“ Lust is to the other passions what the nervous fluid is to life it supports them all, lends strength to them all ambition, cruelty, avarice, revenge, are all founded on lust. Marquis de Sade
“ All, all is theft, all is unceasing and rigorous competition in nature; the desire to make off with the substance of others is the foremost - the most legitimate - passion nature has bred into us and,… Marquis de Sade
“ In order to know virtue, we must acquaint ourselves with vice. Only then can we know the true measure of a man. Marquis de Sade
“ The imagination is the spur of delights... all depends upon it, it is the mainspring of everything now, is it not by means of the imagination one knows joy? Is it not of the imagination that the sharp… Marquis de Sade
“ The more defects a man may have, the older he is, the less lovable, the more resounding his success. Marquis de Sade
“ Never lose sight of the fact that all human felicity lies in man's imagination, and that he cannot think to attain it unless he heeds all his caprices. The most fortunate of persons is he who has the… Marquis de Sade
“ 'Til the infallibility of human judgements shall have been proved to me, I shall demand the abolition of the penalty of death. Marquis de Sade
