All the world knows how to cry but not all the world knows how to sigh. Sighing is extra.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Stein distinguishes crying, a common reaction, from sighing, which is more complex or extra.
- In plain terms
- Everyone can cry, but sighing is a deeper or optional act.
- What can you take from it?
- Some emotional expressions require more than just reaction.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What does a sigh express that tears do not?
- How do you show deep weariness?
Another view
Sighing can be just as basic or involuntary as crying.
More from Gertrude Stein
The deepest thing in any one is the conviction of the bad luck that follows boasting.
Permalink to quote #14 It is always a mistake to be plain-spoken.
Permalink to quote #16 Argument is to me the air I breathe. Given any proposition, I cannot help believing the other side and defending it.
Permalink to quote #13
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