My mother loved children, she would have given anything if I had been one.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- A darkly comedic remark about a mother’s love being conditional on the child being someone else.
- In plain terms
- His mother would have done anything if he were a different child.
- What can you take from it?
- Conditional love is often highlighted through irony and exaggeration.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What makes love feel conditional?
- How do we cope with family expectations?
Another view
The joke minimizes the pain of feeling unwanted by a parent.
More from Groucho Marx
Military intelligence is a contradiction in terms.
Permalink to quote #124 Only one man in a thousand is a leader of men -- the other 999 follow women.
Permalink to quote #126 In Hollywood, brides keep the bouquets and throw away the groom.
Permalink to quote #123
Related quotes
My brothers and sisters all hated me 'cause I was an only child.
Weird Al YankovicWeird Al Yankovic quote #7 Stacey puts a little love in each pasta shell. But it's self-love, so it won't help you that much.
Scott AdamsScott Adams quote #24 My uncle's dying wish: he wanted me on his lap. He was in the electric chair.
Jacob CohenJacob Cohen quote #37