The Alchemist MJ

by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

“I tell you solemnly, that I have many times tried to become an insect. But I was not equal even to that. I swear, gentlemen, that to be too conscious is an illness- a real thorough-going illness.”

“I say let the world go to hell, but I should always have my tea.”

“To love is to suffer and there can be no love otherwise.”

“The best definition of man is: a being that goes on two legs and is ungrateful.”

“The whole work of man really seems to consist in nothing but proving to himself every minute that he is a man and not a piano key!”

“But what can a decent man speak of with most pleasure? Answer: Of himself. Well, so I will talk about myself.”

“In despair there are the most intense enjoyments, especially when one is very acutely conscious of the hopelessness of one’s position.”

“Man is a frivolous and incongruous creature, and perhaps, like a chess player, loves the process of the game, not the end of it.”

“At that time I was only twenty-four years old. My life then was already gloomy, disorderly, and solitary to the point of savagery.”

“It was the exercise of my power that attracted me most.”

“I could never stand more than three months of dreaming at a time without feeling an irresistible desire to plunge into society. To plunge into society meant to visit my superior at the office… I was overcome by a sort of paralysis; but this was pleasant and good for me. On returning home I deferred for a time my desire to embrace all mankind. ”

“If you want to overcome the world, then overcome yourself.”