--- title: "3 Better person Quotes By Donna Tartt" description: "3 Better person quotes by Donna Tartt. Plus more from Donna Tartt and more Better person sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/676/donna-tartt-391_better-person_because-isn-t-it-drilled-into-us-constan_293639.jpg" --- > [“Because--isn't it drilled into us constantly, from childhood on, an unquestioned platitude in the culture--? From William Blake to Lady Gaga, from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/because-isn-t-it-drilled-into-us-constantly-from-childhood-on-an/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/676/donna-tartt-391_better-person_because-isn-t-it-drilled-into-us-constan_293639.jpg) > [“Only here’s what I really, really want someone to explain to me. What if one happens to be possessed of a heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/only-here-s-what-i-really-really-want-someone-to-explain-to-me-what/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/donna-tartt-391_better-person_only-here-s-what-i-really-really-want-so_1819296.jpg) > [“I look at the blanked-out faces of the other passengers--hoisting their briefcases, their backpacks, shuffling to disembark--and I think of what Hobie…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/i-look-at-the-blanked-out-faces-of-the-other-passengers-hoisting-2/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ac/donna-tartt-391_beauty_i-look-at-the-blanked-out-faces-of-the-o_2422086.jpg) ## Other authors on Better person - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b001/author-nishan-panwar-14.jpg) Nishan Panwar 8 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/nishan-panwar/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b001/author-ritu-ghatourey-5.jpg) Ritu Ghatourey 7 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/ritu-ghatourey/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b018/author-nora-ephron-71904.jpg) Nora Ephron 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/nora-ephron/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b007/author-colleen-hoover-24862.jpg) Colleen Hoover 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/colleen-hoover/) ## More by Donna Tartt > [I hope we're all ready to leave the phenomenal world, and enter into the sublime?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/i-hope-we-re-all-ready-to-leave-the-phenomenal-world-and-enter-into/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [And I add my own love to the history of people who have loved beautiful things, and looked out for them, and pulled them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-i-add-my-own-love-to-the-history-of-people-who-have-loved/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [And the flavor of Pippa's kiss--bittersweet and strange--stayed with me all the way back uptown, swaying and sleepy as I sailed home on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-the-flavor-of-pippa-s-kiss-bittersweet-and-strange-stayed-with-me/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“The world won't come to me...so I must go to it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/the-world-won-t-come-to-me-so-i-must-go-to-it/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [There's an expectation these days that novels - like any other consumer product - should be made on a production line, with one dropping…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-novels-like-any-other-consumer/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“A month or two before, I would have been appalled at the idea of any murder at all. But that Sunday afternoon, as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/a-month-or-two-before-i-would-have-been-appalled-at-the-idea-of-any/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [Well, I think storytellers have always found murder a fascinating device.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/well-i-think-storytellers-have-always-found-murder-a-fascinating/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [Always remember, the person we’re really working for is the person who’s restoring the piece a hundred years from now. He’s the one we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/always-remember-the-person-we-re-really-working-for-is-the-person-who/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“The silence between us was happy and strange, connected by the cord and the icy voices thinly echoing. “You don’t have to talk,” she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/the-silence-between-us-was-happy-and-strange-connected-by-the-cord/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“It is a terrible thing to learn as a child that one is a being separate from all the world, that no one and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/it-is-a-terrible-thing-to-learn-as-a-child-that-one-is-a-being/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“You didn’t meet many people who moved freely through the world with such a vigorous contempt for it and at the same time such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/you-didn-t-meet-many-people-who-moved-freely-through-the-world-with/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“maybe that’s what’s waiting for us at the end of the journey, a majesty unimaginable until the very moment we find ourselves walking through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/maybe-that-s-what-s-waiting-for-us-at-the-end-of-the-journey-a/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“lights and moods and seasons was to see it a thousand different ways and to keep it shut in the dark—a thing made of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/lights-and-moods-and-seasons-was-to-see-it-a-thousand-different-ways/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [A great sorrow, and one that I am only beginning to understand: we don’t get to choose our own hearts. We can’t make ourselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/a-great-sorrow-and-one-that-i-am-only-beginning-to-understand-we-don/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“Upon meeting Julian Morrow, one has the impression that he is a man of extraordinary sympathy and warmth. But what you call his 'Asiatic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/upon-meeting-julian-morrow-one-has-the-impression-that-he-is-a-man-of/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/donna-tartt/#itemlist", "name": "3 Better person Quotes By Donna Tartt", "numberOfItems": 3, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Because--isn't it drilled into us constantly, from childhood on, an unquestioned platitude in the culture--? From William Blake to Lady Gaga, from Rousseau to Rumi to Tosca to Mister Rogers, it's a curiously uniform message, accepted from high to low: when in doubt, what to do? How do we know what's right for us? Every shrink, every career counselor, every Disney princess knows the answer: \"Be yourself.\" \"Follow your heart.\" Only here's what I really, really want someone to explain to me. What if one happens to be possessed of a heart that can't be trusted--? What if the heart, for its own unfathomable reasons, leads one willfully and in a cloud of unspeakable radiance away from health, domesticity, civic responsibility and strong social connections and all the blandly-held common virtues and instead straight toward a beautiful flare of ruin, self-immolation, disaster?...If your deepest self is singing and coaxing you straight toward the bonfire, is it better to turn away? Stop your ears with wax? Ignore all the perverse glory your heart is screaming at you? Set yourself on the course that will lead you dutifully towards the norm, reasonable hours and regular medical check-ups, stable relationships and steady career advancement the New York Times and brunch on Sunday, all with the promise of being somehow a better person? Or...is it better to throw yourself head first and laughing into the holy rage calling your name?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Donna Tartt" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/because-isn-t-it-drilled-into-us-constantly-from-childhood-on-an/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/676/donna-tartt-391_better-person_because-isn-t-it-drilled-into-us-constan_293639.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/676/donna-tartt-391_better-person_because-isn-t-it-drilled-into-us-constan_293639.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/676/donna-tartt-391_better-person_because-isn-t-it-drilled-into-us-constan_293639.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Because--isn't it drilled into us constantly, from childhood on, an unquestioned platitude in the culture--?…” — Donna Tartt", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Only here’s what I really, really want someone to explain to me. What if one happens to be possessed of a heart that can’t be trusted—? What if the heart, for its own unfathomable reasons, leads one willfully and in a cloud of unspeakable radiance away from health, domesticity, civic responsibility and strong social connections and all the blandly-held common virtues and instead straight towards a beautiful flare of ruin, self-immolation, disaster? Is Kitsey right? If your deepest self is singing and coaxing you straight toward the bonfire, is it better to turn away? Stop your ears with wax? Ignore all the perverse glory your heart is screaming at you? Set yourself on the course that will lead you dutifully towards the norm, reasonable hours and regular medical check-ups, stable relationships and steady career advancement, the New York Times and brunch on Sunday, all with the promise of being somehow a better person? Or—like Boris—is it better to throw yourself head first and laughing into the holy rage calling your name?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Donna Tartt" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/only-here-s-what-i-really-really-want-someone-to-explain-to-me-what/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/donna-tartt-391_better-person_only-here-s-what-i-really-really-want-so_1819296.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/donna-tartt-391_better-person_only-here-s-what-i-really-really-want-so_1819296.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e7/donna-tartt-391_better-person_only-here-s-what-i-really-really-want-so_1819296.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Only here’s what I really, really want someone to explain to me. What if one happens to be possessed of a…” — Donna Tartt", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I look at the blanked-out faces of the other passengers--hoisting their briefcases, their backpacks, shuffling to disembark--and I think of what Hobie said: beauty alters the grain of reality. And I keep thinking too of the more conventional wisdom: namely, that the pursuit of pure beauty is a trap, a fast track to bitterness and sorrow, that beauty has to be wedded to something more meaningful. Only what is that thing? Why am I made the way I am? Why do I care about all the wrong things, and nothing at all for the right ones? Or, to tip it another way: how can I see so clearly that everything I love or care about is illusion, and yet--for me, anyway--all that's worth living for lies in that charm? A great sorrow, and one that I am only beginning to understand: we don't get to choose our own hearts. We can't make ourselves want what's good for us or what's good for other people. We don't get to choose the people we are. Because--isn't it drilled into us constantly, from childhood on, an unquestioned platitude in the culture--? From William Blake to Lady Gaga, from Rousseau to Rumi to Tosca to Mister Rogers, it's a curiously uniform message, accepted from high to low: when in doubt, what to do? How do we know what's right for us? Every shrink, every career counselor, every Disney princess knows the answer: \"Be yourself.\" \"Follow your heart.\" Only here's what I really, really want someone to explain to me. What if one happens to be possessed of a heart that can't be trusted--? What if the heart, for its own unfathomable reasons, leads one willfully and in a cloud of unspeakable radiance away from health, domesticity, civic responsibility and strong social connections and all the blandly-held common virtues and instead straight toward a beautiful flare of ruin, self-immolation, disaster?...If your deepest self is singing and coaxing you straight toward the bonfire, is it better to turn away? Stop your ears with wax? Ignore all the perverse glory your heart is screaming at you? Set yourself on the course that will lead you dutifully towards the norm, reasonable hours and regular medical check-ups, stable relationships and steady career advancement the New York Times and brunch on Sunday, all with the promise of being somehow a better person? Or...is it better to throw yourself head first and laughing into the holy rage calling your name?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Donna Tartt" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/i-look-at-the-blanked-out-faces-of-the-other-passengers-hoisting-2/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ac/donna-tartt-391_beauty_i-look-at-the-blanked-out-faces-of-the-o_2422086.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ac/donna-tartt-391_beauty_i-look-at-the-blanked-out-faces-of-the-o_2422086.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ac/donna-tartt-391_beauty_i-look-at-the-blanked-out-faces-of-the-o_2422086.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I look at the blanked-out faces of the other passengers--hoisting their briefcases, their backpacks…” — Donna Tartt", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/donna-tartt/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/donna-tartt/", "name": "Better person Quotes by Donna Tartt", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/donna-tartt/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/676/donna-tartt-391_better-person_because-isn-t-it-drilled-into-us-constan_293639.jpg" }, "description": "3 Better person quotes by Donna Tartt. Plus more from Donna Tartt and more Better person sayings from other authors.", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/donna-tartt/#breadcrumb" } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/donna-tartt/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Topics", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/categories/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Better Person", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "name": "Donna Tartt", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-person/donna-tartt/" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```