“... To know and love one other human being is the root of all wisdom.”
― Brideshead Revisited
― Brideshead Revisited
“One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.”
― Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship
― Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship
“I examine my own being, and find there a world, but a world rather of imagination and dim desires, than of distinctness and living power. Then everything swims before my senses, and I smile and dream while pursuing my way through the world.”
― The Sorrows of Young Werther
― The Sorrows of Young Werther
“The difference between the who and the what at the heart of love, separates the heart. It is often said that love is the movement of the heart. Does my heart move because I love someone who is an absolute singularity, or because I love the way that someone is? Often love starts with some type of seduction. One is attracted because the other is like this or like that. Inversely, love is disappointed and dies when one comes to realize the other person doesn’t merit our love. The other person isn’t like this or that. So at the death of love, it appears that one stops loving another not because of who they are but because they are such and such. That is to say, the history of love, the heart of love, is divided between the who and what. The question of being, to return to philosophy, because the first question of philosophy is: What is it to be? What is “being”? The question of being is itself always already divided between who and what. Is “Being” someone or something? I speak of it abstractly, but I think that whoever starts to love, is in love or stops loving, is caught between this division of the who and the what. One wants to be true to someone—singularly, irreplaceably—and one perceives that this someone isn’t x or y. They didn’t have the properties, the images, that I thought I’d loved. So fidelity is threatened by the difference between the who and the what.”
―
―
Philosophy
— 5801 members
— last activity Jan 22, 2026 12:10PM
What is Philosophy? Why is it important? How do you use it? This group looks at these questions and others: ethics, government, economics, skepticism, ...more
Discovering Russian Literature
— 3000 members
— last activity Oct 20, 2025 06:59AM
Whether you are a newbie or an expert or simply love Russian literature... Welcome! This is a friendly group where you can share your thoughts an ...more
The History Book Club
— 25888 members
— last activity Feb 01, 2026 02:14AM
"Interested in history - then you have found the right group". The History Book Club is the largest history and nonfiction group on Goodread ...more
Joyce’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Joyce’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
More friends…
Favorite Genres
Polls voted on by Joyce
Lists liked by Joyce























































