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People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances.
George Bernard Shaw
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Interpretation

What this quote means

People often use their circumstances as excuses for their behavior, but one can choose to rise above them.

This quote by George Bernard Shaw emphasizes the idea that one's character and decisions are not dictated by external circumstances, but rather by personal choices. It challenges the notion of victimhood and encourages individuals to take responsibility for their lives instead of attributing their situation to factors they cannot control.

Themes

CircumstancesResponsibilityChoicesCharacterVictimhood

In practice

Example use cases

During a motivational speech to inspire change in individuals' lives.

More from George Bernard Shaw

What we want is to see the child in pursuit of knowledge, and not knowledge in pursuit of the child.
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Marriage is good enough for the lower classes: they have facilities for desertion that are denied to us.
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Forgive him, for he believes that the customs of his tribe are the laws of nature!
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Those who talk most about the blessings of marriage and the constancy of its vows are the very people who declare that if the chain were broken and the prisoners left free to choose, the whole social fabric would fly asunder. You cannot have the argument both ways. If the prisoner is happy, why lock him in? If he is not, why pretend that he is?
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Treat a friend as a person who may someday become your enemy; an enemy as a person who may someday become your friend.
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The happiness of credulity is a cheap and dangerous quality.
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