He had discovered a great law of human action, without knowing it - namely, that in order to make a man or a boy covet a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to obtain.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- People desire things more when they are difficult to obtain, a law of human behavior discovered unintentionally.
- In plain terms
- Scarcity increases desire.
- What can you take from it?
- Making something hard to get can boost its appeal.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Why do we value what’s hard to get?
- When does scarcity lose its effect?
Another view
Artificial scarcity can backfire if perceived as unfair.
More from Samuel Langhorne Clemens
Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and a long-handled brush. He surveyed the fence, and all gladness left him and a deep melancholy settle…
Permalink to quote #69 Work consists of whatever a body is OBLIGED to do, and...Play consists of whatever a body is not obliged to do.
Permalink to quote #71 Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts.
Permalink to quote #68
Related quotes
Le desir s'accroit quand l'effet se recule.
Pierre CorneillePierre Corneille quote #33 He had discovered a great law of human action, without knowing it - namely, that in order to make a man or a boy covet a thing, it is only necessary to make th…
Mark TwainMark Twain quote #70 Kinkiness comes from low energy. It's the substitution of lechery for lust.
Germaine GreerGermaine Greer quote #19