This line, from Hamlet, is proclaimed by Polonius, who is a massive idiot blowhard. So to evaluate a quote, you should also evaluate who said it. The problem here is that, well, Shakespeare wrote plays. One in particular would probably have him not only confused, but maybe even amused by how it’s being used: “This above all: to thine own self be true.” Commonly used today, it’s a statement of self-affirmation and independence, about “being yourself” or “not giving in to peer pressure” or whatever else you told your tattoo artist. Public Domain “Did ANYBODY finish Romeo & Juliet?”Įven without focusing on a single quote, Shakespeare would probably be hot under his ruffles just based on how constantly he’s misquoted these days. It simply brings out the capital importance of all other people for each one of us. But that does not at all mean that one cannot have relations with other people. And there are a vast number of people in the world who are in hell because they are too dependent on the judgment of other people. Still not sunny, but he’s even on record himself as being upset with how it’s misinterpreted, and said of the quote: “ If my relations are bad, I am situating myself in a total dependence on someone else. Unfortunately, the actual quote, in the play it’s from, No Exit, has a much more complex meaning than “Bleh, everybody sucks, and I’m the only person who understands me!” He’s actually talking about the stress of seeing the worst part of ourselves reflected in other people’s perception of us. I get it! It’s a fun thing to say to explain why you don’t want to go to someone’s birthday party, and make sure you won’t get invited to the next one, in four neat little words. Playwright and existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre is responsible for one quote you’ve probably heard venomously spit by the grumpiest person you know: “Hell is other people.” It’s mostly used by people with clinical depression to try to convince themselves they don’t need therapy or medication.
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