Georg Simmel

"Conflict produces consciousness."

"The form of conversation is more important than its content."

"Time is the only true democracy—everyone receives exactly twenty-four hours per day."

"Modern life demands a hardening of the nervous system."

"Differentiation is the path to higher civilization."

"The individual is both a product of and producer of society."

"Secrecy preserves the autonomy of the individual."

"Art teaches us to see the world as it might be, not as it is."

"Society requires both conformity and innovation to survive."

"The poor are isolated by scarcity; the rich by abundance."

"Exchange is the fundamental form of social interaction."

"Greatness lies in understanding the limits of one's own perspective."

"The city is the seat of social differentiation."

"Adversity reveals the true character of the soul."

"Marriage is the sociological battleground between desire and duty."

"Knowledge without humility is dangerous."

"The bridge and the door are the fundamental structures of human existence."

"We create the reality we fear most."

"Forgiveness is the luxury of the strong."

"The educated mind can hold contradictions without resolving them."

"Power is most effective when unspoken."

"Fashion victims are those who follow without understanding."

"The metropolis creates a psychology of self-preservation through indifference."

"Trust is the extension of faith into the social realm."

"History is written by those who control the narrative."

"The group demands sacrifice of the individual for its perpetuation."

"Imagination is the bridge between what is and what might be."

"Kindness is often the most radical act in a competitive world."

"The self is not a thing but a process of becoming."

"Tradition is merely habit that has hardened into dogma."