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Simple and faithless as a smile and shake of the hand.
T. S. Eliot
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Interpretation

What this quote means

A smile and a handshake represent genuine but often fleeting connections between people.

In this quote, T. S. Eliot emphasizes the simplicity and transience of human interactions, suggesting that gestures like a smile and handshake, while meaningful, can sometimes lack depth and commitment. These actions symbolize friendliness and agreement, yet they may be performed without true intention or connection, highlighting the complex nature of relationships.

Themes

SmileHandshakeRelationshipsConnectionsInteraction

In practice

Example use cases

During a networking event, to emphasize the importance of making genuine connections, one might use this quote.

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There is no feeling, except the extremes of fear and grief, that does not find relief in music.
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I am an Anglo-Catholic in religion, a classicist in literature and a royalist in politics.
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For I have known them all already, known them allβ€” Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons, I have measured out my life with coffee spoons.
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In the faint moonlight, the grass is singing
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