That which is not slightly distorted lacks sensible appeal; from which it follows that irregularity β that is to say, the unexpected, surprise and astonishment, are a essential part and characteristic of beauty.
Charles BaudelaireRead
What men call love is a very small, restricted, feeble thing compared with this ineffable orgy, this divine prostitution of the soul giving itself entire, all its poetry and all its charity, to the unexpected as it comes along, to the stranger as he passes.
Interpretation
What this quote means
True love transcends superficial affection, embodying a profound and selfless connection to the world and others.
In this quote, Baudelaire suggests that what people typically refer to as love is limited and shallow. Instead, he proposes a more profound experience of love, one that is characterized by a total surrender of the soul, embracing the unknown and opening oneself to the beauty and charity of life as it unfolds in the presence of others, especially strangers.
Themes
LoveSoulSelflessnessEmbracePoetryCharity
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a speech about the depth of love in relationships.
More from Charles Baudelaire
All quotes βThe dance can reveal everything mysterious that is hidden in music, and it has the additional merit of being human and palpable. Dancing is poetry with arms and legs.
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Who among us has not dreamt, in moments of ambition, of the miracle of a poetic prose, musical without rhythm and rhyme, supple and staccato enough to adapt to the lyrical stirrings of the soul, the undulations of dreams, and sudden leaps of consciousness.
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There is no sweeter pleasure than to surprise a man by giving him more than he hopes for.
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The priest is an immense being because he makes the crowd believe astonishing things.
Charles BaudelaireRead
I consider it useless and tedious to represent what exists, because nothing that exists satisfies me. Nature is ugly, and I prefer the monsters of my fancy to what is positively trivial.
Charles BaudelaireRead
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