Everything is dangerous, my dear fellow. If it wasn't so, life wouldn't be worth living.
Oscar WildeRead
The great things in life are what they seem to be. And for that reason, strange as it may sound to you, often are very difficult to interpret (understand). Great passions are for the great of souls. Great events can only be seen by people who are on a level with them. We think we can have our visions for nothing. We cannot. Even the finest and most self-sacrificing visions have to be paid for. Strangely enough, that is what makes them fine.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Life's greatest achievements and passions often require deep understanding and sacrifice to appreciate fully.
In this quote, Oscar Wilde reflects on the nature of significant experiences and emotions in life. He suggests that true greatness and profound events are not easily comprehensible to everyone; they demand a certain level of insight and connection to appreciate. Furthermore, Wilde posits that nothing of value comes without a cost, indicating that the noblest visions and passions require effort and sacrifice, which ultimately enhances their worth.
Themes
GreatnessPassionSacrificeUnderstandingVision
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech about perseverance, one might use this quote to illustrate the value of hard work in achieving greatness.
More from Oscar Wilde
All quotes →London is too full of fogs and serious people. Whether the fogs produce the serious people, or whether the serious people produce the fogs, I don't know.
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When one has never heard a man's name in the course of one's life, it speaks volumes for him; he must be quite respectable.
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Men always want to be a woman's first love - women like to be a man's last romance.
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A truth ceases to be true when more than one person believes in it.
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His morality is all sympathy, just what morality should be
Oscar WildeRead
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