"Women do wrong to complain of the inequality of man-made laws; this inequality is not of man's making, or at any rate it is not the result of mere prejudice, but of reason."

"The first man who, having fenced in a piece of land, said 'This is mine,' and found people naive enough to believe him, was the true founder of civil society. From how many crimes, wars, and murders, …"

"Everything is in a state of flux on this earth. Nothing keeps a form for long, and our affections, which are attached to external things, pass and change as they do."

"Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains. One thinks himself the master of others, and still remains a greater slave than they."

"To be loved is to be useful, to be useful is to be loved."