Personal relations are the important thing for ever and ever, and not this outer life of telegrams and anger.
E. M. ForsterRead
England has always been disinclined to accept human nature.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote suggests a skepticism towards the recognition of the complexities of human nature in England.
E. M. Forster's quote points to a historical tendency in English society to overlook or resist the acceptance of the inherent complexities and flaws of human nature. This disinclination can be seen as a critique of the cultural attitudes that promote idealized notions of humanity, often ignoring the raw, emotional, and imperfect aspects that define our existence.
Themes
Human NatureEnglandSocietyAcceptancePhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be shared in a discussion about literature that critiques societal norms.
More from E. M. Forster
All quotes βA poem is true if it hangs together. Information points to something else. A poem points to nothing but itself.
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One must be fond of people and trust them if one is not to make a mess of life.
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Oxford is Oxford: not a mere receptacle for youth, like Cambridge. Perhaps it wants its inmates to love it rather than to love one another.
E. M. ForsterRead
The fact is we can only love what we know personally. And we cannot know much. In public affairs, in the rebuilding of civilization, something less dramatic and emotional is needed, namely tolerance.
E. M. ForsterRead
One person with passion is better than forty people merely interested.
E. M. ForsterRead
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