Reality - Dreams = Animal Being Reality + Dreams = A Heart-Ache (usually called Idealism) Reality + Humor = Realism (also called Conservatism) Dreams - Humor = Fanaticism Dreams + Humor = Fantasy Reality + Dreams + Humor = Wisdom
Lin YutangRead
This I conceive to be the chemical function of humor: to change the character of our thought.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Humor serves as a transformative tool for our thinking and perspective.
Lin Yutang suggests that humor plays a critical role in altering how we perceive and process thoughts. By introducing humor into our mindset, we can shift our perspective, rethink our mindset, and potentially even alleviate stress or negativity, showcasing humor's essential function in human psychology.
Themes
HumorThoughtTransformationPerspectivePsychology
In practice
Example use cases
During a speech about mental health, I used this quote to emphasize the role of humor in coping with challenges.
More from Lin Yutang
All quotes βTrue peace of mind comes from accepting the worst. Psychologically, I think it means a release of energy.
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All women's dresses, in every age and country, are merely variations on the eternal struggle between the admitted desire to dress and the unadmitted desire to undress.
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If you can spend a perfectly useless afternoon in a perfectly useless manner, you have learned how to live.
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It is that unoccupied space which makes a room habitable, as it is our leisure hours which make life endurable.
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The wise man reads both books and life itself.
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