Man, when he is merely what he seems to be, is almost nothing. – Antonio Porchia, Voces, 1943, translated from Spanish by W.S. Merwin

It is human nature to stand in the middle of a thing. – Mariane Moore, “A Grave,” Collected Poems, 1951

The doctors tell us of a physical disease called fatty degeneration of the heart… there is a moral malady—fatty degeneration of the soul; sooner or later it attacks every man, however noble his career, who puts self forward in his aims; who values fame because a personal possession. – Frank Lee Benedict, The Price She Paid, 1882