You will become way less concerned with what other people think of you when you realize how seldom they do.
David Foster WallaceRead
'This thing I feel, I can't name it straight out but it seems important, do you feel it too?' — this sort of direct question is not for the squeamish. For one thing, it's perilously close to 'Do you like me? Please like me,' which you know quite well that 99% of all the interhuman manipulation and bullshit gamesmanship that goes on goes on precisely because the idea of saying this sort of thing straight out is regarded as somehow obscene.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote expresses the complexity of human emotions and the vulnerability involved in expressing one's feelings toward others.
David Foster Wallace's quote highlights the difficulty and discomfort many people experience when trying to articulate their feelings toward others, particularly in romantic or interpersonal contexts. It suggests that there is a genuine and significant emotion being felt, yet societal norms often discourage open expression, leading to a fear of vulnerability and potential rejection. The quote encourages readers to confront this awkwardness and to consider the importance of honest emotional communication.
Themes
FeelingsVulnerabilityCommunicationRelationshipsEmotions
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the challenges of expressing emotions in relationships.
More from David Foster Wallace
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It seems important to find ways of reminding ourselves that most 'familiarity' is meditated and delusive.
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Under fun's new administration, writing fiction becomes a way to go deep inside yourself and illuminate precisely the stuff you don't want to see or let anyone else see, and this stuff usually turns out (paradoxically) to be precisely the stuff all writers and readers share and respond to, feel.
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Acceptance is usually more a matter of fatigue than anything else.
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