If you have the guts to be yourself, other people'll pay your price.
John UpdikeRead
All love is betrayal, in that it flatters life. The loveless man is best armed.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Love can be seen as a form of deception that enhances our lives, while being loveless may offer protection.
This quote by John Updike suggests that love, while often cherished, can also lead to a sense of betrayal because it creates illusions that make life seem more flattering and enjoyable. In contrast, a loveless existence might make one more resilient and prepared for the harsh realities of life, hinting at the complexity of human emotions and relationships.
Themes
LoveBetrayalLifeIllusionRelationships
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion on the complexities of love in a relationship counseling session.
More from John Updike
All quotes →Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of. _x000D_ _x000D_ Suspect each moment, for it is a thief, tiptoeing away with more than it brings.
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Museums and bookstores should feel, I think, like vacant lots - places where the demands on us are our own demands, where the spirit can find exercise in unsupervised play.
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The reader knows the writer better than he knows himself; but the writer's physical presence is light from a star that has moved on.
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To guarantee the individual maximum freedom within a social frame of minimal laws ensures - if not happiness - its hopeful pursuit.
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Do you want me to tell you something really subversive? Love is everything it's cracked up to be. That's why people are so cynical about it. It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk anything, you risk even more.
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I love you, Dominique. As selfishly as the fact that I exist. As selfishly as my lungs breathe air. I breathe for my own necessity, for the fuel of my body, for my survival. I've given you, not my sacrifice or my pity, but my ego and my naked need. This is the only way I can want you to love me.
Ayn RandRead
Your ordinary acts of love and hope point to the extraordinary promise that every human life is of inestimable value.
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