Common sense (which, in truth, is very uncommon) is the best sense I know of: abide by it; it will counsel you best.
Lord ChesterfieldRead
For my own part, I would rather be in company with a dead man than with an absent one; for if the dead man gives me no pleasure, at least he shows me no contempt; whereas the absent one, silently indeed, but very plainly, tells me that he does not think me worth his attention.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote expresses a preference for dead companions over those who are absent, as absence implies disregard.
Lord Chesterfield's quote highlights the emotional pain of being neglected by those who choose to be absent. He suggests that even though the dead cannot provide companionship or joy, they also do not convey contempt or indifference, which makes the absence of a person far more hurtful, as it reflects an absence of value or importance placed on one's presence.
Themes
RelationshipsAbsenceContemptCompanionshipNeglect
In practice
Example use cases
During a speech about the importance of valuing friendships, one can use this quote to emphasize how absence can hurt relationships.
More from Lord Chesterfield
All quotes →Never seem wiser, nor more learned, than the people you are with. Wear your learning, like your watch, in a private pocket: and do not merely pull it out and strike it; merely to show that you have one.
Lord ChesterfieldRead
If you can once engage people's pride, love, pity, ambition on your side, you need not fear what their reason can do against you.
Lord ChesterfieldRead
Merit and knowledge will not gain hearts, though they will secure them when gained.
Lord ChesterfieldRead
Firmness of purpose is one of the best instruments of success.
Lord ChesterfieldRead
Wit is so shining a quality that everybody admires it; most people aim at it, all people fear it, and few love it unless in themselves. A man must have a good share of wit himself to endure a great share of it in another.
Lord ChesterfieldRead
Similar quotes
Craving, not having, is the mother of a reckless giving of oneself.
Eric HofferRead
My kids speak of both subtle slights and blatant racism. It's a narrative I never imagined for them.
Jacqueline WoodsonRead
Stab the body and it heals, but injure the heart and the wound lasts a lifetime.
Mineko IwasakiRead
My fans are who I am. You give meaning to my life. You will never know the connection I feel to you.
Lady GagaRead
Women’s loyalty has to be earned with trust and affection, rather than barbaric rituals. The time has come to leave the old ways of suffering behind
Waris DirieRead
No man who respects his mother or loves his sister, can speak disparagingly of any woman; however low she may seem to have sunk, she is still a woman. I want every man to remember this. Every woman is, or, at some time, has been a sister or daughter.
Victoria WoodhullRead