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All young women begin by believing they can change and reform the men they marry. They can't.
George Bernard Shaw
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Young women often think they can change their spouses, but this belief is misguided.

This quote by George Bernard Shaw reflects the common misconception among young women that they can influence or alter the behavior of their partners after marriage. It suggests that attempts to change another person, especially in terms of deep-seated traits or habits, are often futile and can lead to disappointment.

Themes

ChangeRelationshipsBeliefMarriageExpectations

In practice

Example use cases

This quote is relevant in discussions about marriage and expectations during a relationship seminar.

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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