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Alain De Botton Quotes


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Quotes by Alain De Botton

Showing 1-10 of 156 Quotes by Alain De Botton

The thing is that love gives us a ringside seat on somebody else's flaws, so of course you're gonna spot some things that kinda need to be mentioned. But often the romantic view is to say, 'If you loved me, you wouldn't criticise me.' Actually, true love is often about trying to teach someone how to be the best version of themselves.

~Alain De Botton

Topics: About Actually Best Course Criticise Else Flaws Gives Gonna How Kinda Love Love Is Loved Me Mentioned Need Often Romantic Say Seat Some Some Things Somebody Someone Spot Teach Themselves Thing Things True True Love Trying Us Version View You

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There's a constant tension between the excitement of new people and security with one person. If you go with excitement, you create chaos; you hurt people. There's jealousy, and it gets very messy. If you have security, it can be boring, and you die inside because of all the opportunities missed.

~Alain De Botton

Topics: Because Between Boring Chaos Constant Create Die Excitement Gets Go Hurt Inside Jealousy Messy Missed New New People Opportunities People Person Security Tension Very You

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I think of myself as quite a shy person. But when I'm curious about something, I'll go quite far to satisfy my curiosity.

~Alain De Botton

Topics: About Curiosity Curious Far Go Myself Person Quite Satisfy Shy Shy Person Something Think I Think

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The romantic person instinctively sees marriage in terms of emotions, but what a couple actually gets up to together over a lifetime has much more in common with the workings of a small business. They must draw up work rosters, clean, chauffeur, cook, fix, throw away, mind, hire, fire, reconcile, and budget.

~Alain De Botton

Topics: Actually Away Budget Business Chauffeur Clean Common Cook Couple Draw Emotions Fire Fix Gets Hire Instinctively Lifetime Marriage Mind More Much Must Over Person Reconcile Romantic Sees Small Small Business Terms Throw Together Up Work Workings

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Fantasies can be great, but we shouldn't make the wedding a fantasy, because the wedding is the gateway to married life. It shouldn't be a moment of illusion; it should be a moment of preparation.

~Alain De Botton

Topics: Because Fantasies Fantasy Gateway Great Illusion Life Make Married Married Life Moment Preparation Should Wedding

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Laughter is an important part of a good relationship. It's an immense achievement when you can move from your thinking that your partner is merely an idiot to thinking that they are that wonderfully complex thing called a loveable idiot. And often that means having a little bit of a sense of humour about their flaws.

~Alain De Botton

Topics: About Achievement Bit Complex Flaws Good Good Relationship Having Humour Idiot Immense Important Important Part Laughter Little Little Bit Means Merely Move Often Part Partner Relationship Sense Thing Thinking Wonderfully You Your

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A city like London is sociable in a sense that there are people gathering in bars and restaurants, concerts and lectures. Yet you can partake of all these experiences and never say hello to anyone new. And one of the things that all religions do is take groups of strangers into a space and say it is OK to talk to each other.

~Alain De Botton

Topics: All Religions Anyone Bars City Concerts Each Experiences Gathering Groups Hello Lectures Like London Never New Ok One Of The Things Other People Religions Restaurants Say Sense Sociable Space Strangers Take Talk Things You

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It's very hard to respect people on holiday - everybody looks so silly at the beach, it makes you hate humanity - but when you see people at their work they elicit respect, whether it's a mechanic, a stonemason or an accountant.

~Alain De Botton

Topics: Accountant Beach Elicit Everybody Hard Hate Holiday Humanity Looks Makes Mechanic People Respect See Silly Very Whether Work You

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My dad was a slightly stricter version of Richard Dawkins. The worldview was that there are idiots out there who believe in Santa Claus and fairies and magic and elves, and we're not joining that nonsense.

~Alain De Botton

Topics: Believe Dad Elves Fairies Idiots Joining Magic Nonsense Out Richard Santa Santa Claus Slightly Version Who Worldview

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We are certainly influenced by role models, and if we are surrounded by images of beautiful rich people, we will start to think that to be beautiful and rich is very important - just as in the Middle Ages, people were surrounded by images of religious piety.

~Alain De Botton

Topics: Ages Beautiful Certainly Images Important Influenced Just Middle Middle Ages Models People Piety Religious Rich Rich People Role Role Models Start Surrounded Think Very Were Will

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Biography

Nationality: English

Type: Writer

Born: December 20th, 1969

Links

Find Alain De Botton on Amazon

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