That which has always been accepted by everyone, everywhere, is almost certain to be false.
Paul ValeryRead
You have certainly observed the curious fact that a given word which is perfectly clear when you hear it or use it in everyday language, and which does not give rise to any difficulty when it is engaged in the rapid movement of an ordinary sentence becomes magically embarrassing, introduces a strange resistance, frustrates any effort at definition as soon as you take it out of circulation to examine it separately and look for its meaning after taking away its instantaneous function.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Words can lose their clarity and become complex when we try to analyze them outside of their normal context.
In this quote, Paul Valery reflects on the nature of language and communication. He suggests that words, which seem straightforward in everyday conversation, can become perplexing and multifaceted when we attempt to extract and dissect their meanings in isolation. This highlights the intricate relationship between language and thought, emphasizing how context shapes our understanding of words.
Themes
LanguageWordsMeaningContextCommunication
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about communication skills, one might quote Valery to emphasize the importance of context.
More from Paul Valery
All quotes →Oh, hasten not this loving act, Rapture where self and not-self meet: My life has been the awaiting you, Your footfall was my own heart's beat.
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The history of thought may be summed up in these words: it is absurd by what it seeks and great by what it finds.
Paul ValeryRead
The world acquires value only through its extremes and endures only through moderation; extremists make the world great, the moderates give it stability.
Paul ValeryRead
It would be impossible to "love" anyone or anything one knew completely. Love is directed towards what lies hidden in its object.
Paul ValeryRead
Latent in every man is a venom of amazing bitterness, a black resentment; something that curses and loathes life, a feeling of being trapped, of having trusted and been fooled, of being helpless prey to impotent rage, blind surrender, the victim of a savage, ruthless power that gives and takes away, enlists a man, drops him, promises and betrays, and -crowning injury- inflicts on him the humiliation of feeling sorry for himself.
Paul ValeryRead
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