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To catch a husband is an art; to hold him is a job.
Simone De Beauvoir
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote highlights the challenge of not only attracting a partner but also maintaining the relationship over time.

Simone De Beauvoir's quote emphasizes the dual nature of romantic relationships. Attracting a partner can be seen as a skill or art form, requiring charm, wit, and appeal. However, the true challenge often lies in the effort and dedication required to sustain that relationship and ensure it remains fulfilling for both parties. It suggests that while initial attraction is important, the ongoing commitment and work involved in a relationship are equally vital.

Themes

RelationshipLoveCommitmentArtMaintenance

In practice

Example use cases

During a wedding speech to emphasize the importance of nurturing love.

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If you live long enough, you'll see that every victory turns into a defeat.
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Sex pleasure in woman is a kind of magic spell; it demands complete abandon; if words or movements oppose the magic of caresses, the spell is broken.
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As long as there have been men and they have lived, they have all felt this tragic ambiguity of their condition, but as long as there have been philosophers and they have thought, most of them have tried to mask it.
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Few tasks are more like the torture of Sisyphus than housework, with its endless repetition: the clean becomes soiled, the soiled is made clean, over and over, day after day. The housewife wears herself out marking time: she makes nothing, simply perpetuates the present … Eating, sleeping, cleaning – the years no longer rise up towards heaven, they lie spread out ahead, grey and identical. The battle against dust and dirt is never won.
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I tore myself away from the safe comfort of certainties through my love for truth - and truth rewarded me.
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