One drink is to many for me and a thousand not enough.
Brendan BehanRead
I have a total irreverence for anything connected with society except that which makes the roads safer, the beer stronger, the food cheaper and the old men and old women warmer in the winter and happier in the summer.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects a rejection of societal norms in favor of practical improvements that enhance people's lives.
Brendan Behan expresses a clear disdain for societal conventions, suggesting that the only aspects of society he respects are those that contribute directly to the well-being and happiness of individuals. His focus on tangible benefits such as safer roads, better beer, affordable food, and the comfort of the elderly underscores a philosophical approach that values practicality and human kindness over superficial societal standards.
Themes
SocietyWell-BeingPracticalityHappinessHuman Kindness
In practice
Example use cases
In a community meeting addressing safety regulations on roadways.
More from Brendan Behan
All quotes →Similar quotes
As the practical value of altering consciousness becomes recognized, procedures to effect these alterations will become increasingly ordinary and unremarkable. The whole concept of changing states of consciousness will cease to have a threatening or exotic aspect.
Michael CrichtonRead
Philosophy is tested and characterised by the way in which it appropriates its history.
Karl JaspersRead
For the traveler we see leaning on his neighbor is an honest and well-meaning man and full of melancholy, like those Chekhov characters so laden with virtues that they never know success in life.
Orhan PamukRead
If you start trying to figure out yourself from the image everyone has of you, you run into a dead end.
Sam ShepardRead
In talking about the impact of ideas in one field on ideas in another field, one is always apt to make a fool of oneself.
Richard P. FeynmanRead
You imagine the carefully pruned, shaped thing that is presented to you is truth. That is just what it isn't. The truth is improbable, the truth is fantastic; it's in what you think is a distorting mirror that you see the truth.
Jean RhysRead