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 bizarre which seems inherent in them.

Quote by Jean Cocteau

Topics: Jean Cocteau Quotes

One must be a living man and a posthumous artist.

One must be a living man and a posthumous artist.

The course of a river is almost always disapproved of by the source.

The course of a river is almost always disapproved of by the source.

Style is a simple way of saying complicated things

Style is a simple way of saying complicated things

The poet never asks for admiration; he wants to be believed.

The poet never asks for admiration; he wants to be believed.

Asking an artist to talk about his work is like asking a plant to discuss...

Asking an artist to talk about his work is like asking a plant to discuss...

Here I am trying to live, or rather, I am trying to teach the death...

Here I am trying to live, or rather, I am trying to teach the death...

Whatever the public blames you for, cultivate it; it is yourself

Whatever the public blames you for, cultivate it; it is yourself

There are truths which one can only say after having won the right to say...

There are truths which one can only say after having won the right to say...

The Louvre is a morgue; you go there to identify your friends.

The Louvre is a morgue; you go there to identify your friends.

I believe in luck: how else can you explain the success of those you don't...

I believe in luck: how else can you explain the success of those you don't...

Mystery has its own mysteries, and there are gods above gods. We have ours, they...

Mystery has its own mysteries, and there are gods above gods. We have ours, they...

Take a commonplace, clean it and polish it, light it so that it produces the...

Take a commonplace, clean it and polish it, light it so that it produces the...

Whatever the public blames you for, cultivate it; it is yourself.

Whatever the public blames you for, cultivate it; it is yourself.

The instinct of nearly all societies is to lock up anybody who is truly free....

The instinct of nearly all societies is to lock up anybody who is truly free....

A good upbringing consists in hiding how much you think of yourself, and how little...

A good upbringing consists in hiding how much you think of yourself, and how little...

There is always a period when a man with a beard shaves it off. This...

There is always a period when a man with a beard shaves it off. This...

Poets don't draw. They unravel their handwriting and then tie it up again, but differently.

Poets don't draw. They unravel their handwriting and then tie it up again, but differently.

True realism consists in revealing the surprising things which habit keeps covered and prevents us...

True realism consists in revealing the surprising things which habit keeps covered and prevents us...

The greatest masterpiece in literature is only a dictionary out of order.

The greatest masterpiece in literature is only a dictionary out of order.

Life is a horizontal fall.

Life is a horizontal fall.