As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends, / I must not look to have; but, in their stead, / Curses, not loud but deep, mouth-honour, breath, / Which the poor heart would fain deny, and dare not" (5.3.25-28).
William ShakespeareRead
Love is like a child, That longs for everything it can come by
Interpretation
What this quote means
Love is characterized by a child's innocence and desire for everything, reflecting its pure and unselfish nature.
In this quote, Shakespeare likens love to a child, emphasizing its innate curiosity and unrestrained yearning for experiences and feelings. Just as a child seeks to explore and embrace all that comes its way, love embodies a similar longing for connection, affection, and all that life has to offer. This comparison highlights the simplicity, purity, and often ungratified desires that accompany love, suggesting that it is ever-evolving and insatiable in its pursuit of emotional richness.
Themes
LoveChildDesireInnocenceCuriosity
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared during a wedding toast to highlight the purity and innocence of love.
More from William Shakespeare
All quotes βLove bears it out even to the edge of doom.
William ShakespeareRead
Good company, good wine, good welcome, can make good people.
William ShakespeareRead
Absence doth sharpen love, presence strengthens it; the one brings fuel, the other blows it till it burns clear.
William ShakespeareRead
Lord, Lord, how this world is given to lying!
William ShakespeareRead
Give it an understanding, but no tongue.
William ShakespeareRead
Similar quotes
For, verily, great love springs from great knowledge of the beloved object, and if you little know it, you will be able to love it only little or not at all.
Leonardo Da VinciRead
I have loved to the point of madness; That which is called madness, That which to me, Is the only sensible way to love.
Francoise SaganRead
Whatsoever is done out of pure love, be it ever so little or contemptible in the sight of men, is wholly fruitful; for God measures more with how much love one worketh, than the amount he doeth.
Ellen G. WhiteRead
I get no kick from champagne. Mere alcohol doesn't thrill me at all. So, tell me why should it be true, that I get a kick out of you?
Cole PorterRead
We must never expect discretion in first love: it is accompanied by such excessive joy that unless the joy is allowed to overflow, it will choke you.
Alexandre DumasRead
So, fall asleep love, loved by me... for I know love, I am loved by thee.
Robert BrowningRead