Portrait of Albert Camus

Albert Camus

Absurdism, The Stranger

Modern influential 106 sayings

Sayings by Albert Camus

If the world were clear, art would not exist.

1942 — The Myth of Sisyphus
Art & Creativity Unverifiable

A man without ethics is a wild beast loosed upon this world.

Unknown — Attributed, but the exact source is difficult to pinpoint. It aligns with his moral philosophy.
Wisdom Unverifiable

It is not the rebel who is the criminal, but the law that makes him so.

1951 — From 'The Rebel'.
Justice & Rights Unverifiable

I would rather be a man of paradoxes than a man of prejudices.

1935-1942 (Notebooks I) — From 'Notebooks'.
Wisdom Unverifiable

What is freedom? Freedom is the right to be wrong, not the right to do wrong.

Unknown — Attributed, but this precise formulation is not easily found in his works. It echoes his thoughts on…
Justice & Rights Unverifiable

It is a kind of spiritual snobbery that makes people think they can be happy without money.

1971 (published posthumously) — From 'A Happy Death', a novel published posthumously.
Money & Business Unverifiable

The world is not a problem to be solved, but a mystery to be lived.

Unknown — Attributed, but similar to other popular quotes, the exact phrasing is hard to trace to his core wor…
Wisdom Unverifiable

If I had to write a book on ethics, it would have a hundred pages. Ninety-nine of them would be blank. On the last page I would write: 'I recognize only one duty, and that is to love.'

1935-1942 (Notebooks I) — From 'Notebooks'.
Educational Unverifiable

There is no sun without shadow, and it is essential to know the night.

1939 — From 'Summer in Algiers' (Noces).
Nature & World Unverifiable

The absurd man will not commit suicide; he wants to live, without relinquishing any of his certainty, without a future, without hope, without illusions.

1942 — The Myth of Sisyphus
Life & Death Unverifiable

What is happiness? The feeling that power is growing, that resistance is overcome.

N/A (Nietzsche, 'The Antichrist') — This is a quote from Nietzsche, often misattributed to Camus. Camus was influenced by Nietzsche but …
Inspirational Unverifiable

I continue to believe that this world has no ultimate meaning. But I know that something in it has a meaning and that is man, because he is the only creature who insists on having one.

1943-1944 — From 'Letters to a German Friend'.
Inspirational Unverifiable

A man's life is nothing but a slow trek to death.

1971 — A Happy Death
General Unverifiable

Freedom is nothing else but a chance to be better.

1957 — Speech at the Nobel Banquet
General Unverifiable

Nobody realizes that some people expend tremendous energy merely to be normal.

1935-1942 — Notebooks 1935-1942
General Unverifiable

Truth, like light, is not subject to custom.

1942 — The Myth of Sisyphus
General Unverifiable

Always go too far, because that's where you'll find the truth.

1942-1951 — Notebooks 1942-1951
General Unverifiable

The only true creation is to be free.

1935-1942 — Notebooks 1935-1942
General Unverifiable

The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a man's heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy.

1942 — The Myth of Sisyphus
General Unverifiable

Blessed are the hearts that can bend; they shall never be broken.

1942 — The Myth of Sisyphus
General Unverifiable
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