Personal relations are the important thing for ever and ever, and not this outer life of telegrams and anger.
E. M. ForsterRead
One minute. You know nothing about him. He probably has his own joys and interests- wife, children, snug little home. That's where we practical fellows'- he smiled-'are more tolerant than you intellectuals. We live and let live, and assume that things are jogging on fairly well elsewhere, and that the ordinary plain man may be trusted to look after his own affairs.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes understanding and tolerance towards others, acknowledging that everyone has their own life and concerns.
E. M. Forster's quote highlights the importance of empathy and the practical perspective of life, suggesting that ordinary individuals possess the ability to manage their affairs. It advocates for a balanced view that respects personal lives and acknowledges the diverse experiences people have, contrasting it with an intellectual's tendency to judge or analyze without understanding the full context.
Themes
EmpathyToleranceUnderstandingOrdinary LifePracticality
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about societal issues, one could use this quote to advocate for empathy.
More from E. M. Forster
All quotes →A poem is true if it hangs together. Information points to something else. A poem points to nothing but itself.
E. M. ForsterRead
One must be fond of people and trust them if one is not to make a mess of life.
E. M. ForsterRead
Oxford is Oxford: not a mere receptacle for youth, like Cambridge. Perhaps it wants its inmates to love it rather than to love one another.
E. M. ForsterRead
The fact is we can only love what we know personally. And we cannot know much. In public affairs, in the rebuilding of civilization, something less dramatic and emotional is needed, namely tolerance.
E. M. ForsterRead
One person with passion is better than forty people merely interested.
E. M. ForsterRead
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