Jean Cocteau

The poet is a liar who always speaks the truth.

Art is science made clear.

The actual tragedies of life bear no relation to one's preconceived ideas. In the event, one is always bewildered by their simplicity, their grandeur of design, and by that element of the bizzare which seems inherent in them.

We must believe in luck. For how else can we explain the success of those we don't like?

I know that poetry is indispensable, but to what I could not say.

We must believe in luck. For how else can we explain the success of those we don't like.

The worst tragedy for a poet is to be admired through being misunderstood.

The extreme limit of wisdom-- that is what the public calls madness.

The instinct of nearly all societies is to lock up anybody who is truly free. First, society begins by trying to beat you up. If this fails, they try to poison you. If this fails too, they finish by loading honors on your head.