Bohemia is nothing more than the little country in which you do not live. If you try to obtain citizenship in it, at once the court and retinue pack the royal archives and treasure and move away beyond the hills.
O. HenryRead
Hospitality in the prairie country is not limited. Even if your enemy passes your way, you must feed him before you shoot him.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the importance of kindness and hospitality, even towards those we consider adversaries.
O. Henry's quote highlights a paradoxical aspect of human interactions, suggesting that true hospitality transcends animosity. It implies that one should prioritize generosity and compassion, offering help or sustenance even to those seen as enemies, before resorting to hostility. This reflects the complex nature of human relationships and the value of empathy in a harsh world.
Themes
HospitalityKindnessRelationshipsEnemyCompassion
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about conflict resolution, one might use this quote to emphasize the importance of empathy.
More from O. Henry
All quotes βIt's said that love makes the world go around. Let me tell you, the announcement lacks verification. It's the wind from the dinner horn that does it.
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Yes, I get dry spells. Sometimes I can't turn out a thing for three months. When one of those spells comes on I quit trying to work and go out and see something of life. You can't write a story that's got any life in it by sitting at a writing table and thinking. You've got to get out into the streets, into the crowds, talk with people, and feel the rush and throb of real life-that's the stimulant for a story writer.
O. HenryRead
But the best, in my opinion, was the home life in the little flat--the ardent, voluble chats after the day's study; the cozy dinners and fresh, light breakfasts; the interchange of ambitions--ambitions interwoven each with the other's or else inconsiderable--the mutual help and inspiration; and--overlook my artlessness--stuffed olives and cheese sandwiches at 11 p.m.
O. HenryRead
You can't appreciate home till you've left it, money till it's spent, your wife till she's joined a woman's club, nor Old Glory till you see it hanging on a broomstick on the shanty of a consul in a foreign town.
O. HenryRead
She had become so thoroughly annealed into his life that she was like the air he breathed--necessary but scarcely noticed.
O. HenryRead
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