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About this quote

What does it mean?
Thackeray references a traditional German saying praising wine, women, and song as essential to a fulfilling life.
In plain terms
Rejecting simple pleasures like wine and song makes life dull.
What can you take from it?
Enjoying life's simple pleasures is key to happiness.

Where it applies

  • lifestyle choices
  • cultural references
  • social gatherings

Putting it to work

  • celebrating life
  • cultural literacy

Questions to consider

  • What makes life worth living?
  • Are some pleasures universal?

Another view

It equates happiness with indulgence which may not suit everyone.

More from William Makepeace Thackeray

  1. Ho, pretty page, with the dimpled chin That never has known the barber's shear, All your wish is woman to win, This is the way that boys begin. Wait till you c…

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  2. How hard it is to make an Englishman acknowledge that he is happy!

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  3. Charlotte, having seen his body Borne before her on a shutter, Like a well-conducted person, Went on cutting bread and butter.

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