I have an idea that the only thing which makes it possible to regard this world we live in without disgust is the beauty which now and then men create out of chaos. The pictures they paint, the music they compose, the books they write, and the lives they lead. Of all these the richest in beauty is the beautiful life. That is the perfect work of art.

More quotes by W. Somerset Maugham

View all
"The greatest tragedy of life is not that men perish, but that they cease to love."

- W. Somerset Maugham

Love

"We are not the same persons this year as last; nor are those we love. It is a happy chance if we, changing, continue to love a changed person."

- W. Somerset Maugham

Love

"Only a mediocre person is always at his best"

- W. Somerset Maugham

Self-awareness

"To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life."

- W. Somerset Maugham

Healing

"A woman can forgive a man for the harm he does her...but she can never forgive him for the sacrifices he makes on her account."

- W. Somerset Maugham

Forgiveness

More Creativity Quotes

View all
"You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have."

- Maya Angelou

Creativity

"Limitations live only in our minds. But if we use our imaginations, our possibilities become limitless."

- Jamie Paolinetti

Creativity

"It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation."

- Herman Melville

Creativity

"I am so clever that sometimes I don’t understand a single word of what I am saying."

- Oscar Wilde

Creativity

"Show up, show up, show up, and after a while the muse shows up, too."

- Isabel Allende

Creativity