Wendy, Wendy, when you are sleeping in your silly bed you might be flying about with me saying funny things to the stars.
James M. BarrieRead
We should be slower to think that the man at his worst is the real man, and certain that the better we are ourselves the less likely is he to be at his worst in our company. Every time he talks away his own character before us he is signifying contempt for ours.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The worse behavior of a person does not define their true self, and our own goodness influences those around us.
This quote suggests that we should not hastily judge others based on their worst moments, as these do not represent their complete character. Instead, it emphasizes the importance of our own behavior, indicating that by striving to be better individuals, we can positively influence those around us, reducing the likelihood of their negative traits emerging in our presence.
Themes
CharacterBehaviorInfluenceJudgmentSelf-Improvement
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about personal growth at a community event.
More from James M. Barrie
All quotes βHis lordship may compel us to be equal upstairs, but there will never be equality in the servants' hall.
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The secret of happiness is not in doing what one likes, but in liking what one does.
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Never ascribe to an opponent motives meaner than your own.
James M. BarrieRead
It was then that Hook bit him. Not the pain of this but its unfairness was what dazed Peter. It made him quite helpless. He could only stare, horrified. Every child is affected thus the first time he is treated unfairly. All he thinks he has a right to when he comes to you to be yours is fairness. After you have been unfair to him he will love you again, but he will never afterwards be quite the same boy. No one ever gets over the first unfairness; no one except Peter.
James M. BarrieRead
But the years came and went without bringing the careless boy; and when they met again Wendy was a married woman, and Peter was no more to her than a little dust in the box in which she had kept her toys.
James M. BarrieRead
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