--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It would scarcely be acceptable, for…" description: "\"It would scarcely be acceptable, for example, to ask in the course of an ordinary conversation what our society holds to be the purpose of work.\" — Ala..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/alain-de-botton-221_acceptable_it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-exam_1505515.jpg" --- # It would scarcely be acceptable, for example, to ask in… ![“It would scarcely be acceptable, for example, to ask in the course of an ordinary conversation what our society holds to be the purpose of work.” quote by Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/alain-de-botton-221_acceptable_it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-exam_1505515.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/alain-de-botton-221_acceptable_it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-exam_1505515.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/alain-de-botton-221_acceptable_it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-exam_1505515.jpg) > “It would scarcely be acceptable, for example, to ask in the course of an ordinary conversation what our society holds to be the purpose of work.” [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Discusses the difficulty of defining work’s purpose in everyday conversation, suggesting deeper philosophical inquiry **In simple terms:** Work’s purpose is hard to pin down casually Key Takeaway Explore meaning behind work Themes philosophy meaning of work societal norms Mood thoughtful contemplative Type book philosophical When to use this quote - career counseling - education - personal development Key Concepts purpose identity fulfillment Questions to Reflect On - What drives your work? - How do you find purpose in daily tasks? A Different Perspective May be too abstract for practical use ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acceptable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptable/) [Asks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asks/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Conversation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation/) [Conversation Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation-society-5092979/) [Courses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courses/) [Example](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/example/) [Example Ask](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/example-ask-3631364/) [Ordinary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ordinary/) [Ordinary Conversation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ordinary-conversation-532996/) [Our society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-society/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [Purpose Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose-work-284772/) [Scarcely Acceptable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scarcely-acceptable-5530508/) ## Related quotes > [Conversation in society is found to be on a platform so low as to exclude science, the saint, and the poet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/conversation-in-society-is-found-to-be-on-a-platform-so-low-as-to/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Children learn from example. So ask yourself, do I want my child to act and talk like me? If the answer is no, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/children-learn-from-example-so-ask-yourself-do-i-want-my-child-to-act/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Method is not less requisite in ordinary conversation than in writing, provided a man would talk to make himself understood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/method-is-not-less-requisite-in-ordinary-conversation-than-in-writing/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [I like to think that the best poetry is or involves a contest between ordinary conversation and ritual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miller-williams/i-like-to-think-that-the-best-poetry-is-or-involves-a-contest-between/) [Miller Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miller-williams/) > [“So hollow and ineffectual, for the most part, is our ordinary conversation. Surface meets surface. When our life ceases to be inward and private,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/so-hollow-and-ineffectual-for-the-most-part-is-our-ordinary/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“For it has come about, by the wise economy of nature, that our modern spirit can almost dispense with language; the commonest expressions do,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/for-it-has-come-about-by-the-wise-economy-of-nature-that-our-modern/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [It is notorious that we speak no more than half-truths in our ordinary conversation, and even a soliloquy is likely to be affected by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-linklater/it-is-notorious-that-we-speak-no-more-than-half-truths-in-our/) [Eric Linklater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-linklater/) > [There are two things in ordinary conversation which ordinary people dislike - information and wit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-leacock/there-are-two-things-in-ordinary-conversation-which-ordinary-people/) [Stephen Leacock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-leacock/) > [I don't know anything that gives me greater pleasure, or profit either, than talking or listening to philosophy. But when it comes to ordinary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/i-don-t-know-anything-that-gives-me-greater-pleasure-or-profit-either/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [We must always bear in mind that the primary purpose of our work, is not to get persons to join the church or to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-a-torrey/we-must-always-bear-in-mind-that-the-primary-purpose-of-our-work-is/) [R. A. Torrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-a-torrey/) > [Work may be your dominant thought, and joy an afterthought. But joy is your true purpose, and work the afterthought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cohen/work-may-be-your-dominant-thought-and-joy-an-afterthought-but-joy-is/) [Alan Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cohen/) > [No matter what our job is, we view it not as our purpose in life but rather as where God has sovereignly placed us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-chandler/no-matter-what-our-job-is-we-view-it-not-as-our-purpose-in-life-but/) [Matt Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-chandler/) > [“it’s work with a purpose, work with meaning, work that constantly reminds you that you’re living the life you’ve dreamed of.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-huling/it-s-work-with-a-purpose-work-with-meaning-work-that-constantly/) [Jim Huling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-huling/) > [The purpose of work is not to make money. The purpose of work is to make the workers, whether working stiffs or top executives,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricardo-semler/the-purpose-of-work-is-not-to-make-money-the-purpose-of-work-is-to/) [Ricardo Semler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricardo-semler/) > [The purpose of the whole (work) is to remove those who are living in this life from a state of wretchedness and lead them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dante-alighieri/the-purpose-of-the-whole-work-is-to-remove-those-who-are-living-in/) [Dante Alighieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dante-alighieri/) ## More by Alain de Botton > [“To be mature is, we're told, to move beyond possessiveness. Jealousy is for babies. The mature person knows that no one owns anyone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/to-be-mature-is-we-re-told-to-move-beyond-possessiveness-jealousy-is/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“He feared that by leaving her he would ruin her life - so he stayed, and did just that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/he-feared-that-by-leaving-her-he-would-ruin-her-life-so-he-stayed-and/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [You have to be quite heavily invested in someone to do them the honour of telling them you're annoyed with them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/you-have-to-be-quite-heavily-invested-in-someone-to-do-them-the/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“The Anxiety of Sunday afternoon: your unlived lives and infinite possibility pressing upon the constraints of reality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-anxiety-of-sunday-afternoon-your-unlived-lives-and-infinite/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [Those who divorce aren't necessarily the most unhappy, just those neatly able to believe their misery is caused by one other person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/those-who-divorce-aren-t-necessarily-the-most-unhappy-just-those/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“We could not be fulfilled if we weren't inauthentic some of the time—inauthentic, that is, in relation to such things as our passing desires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-could-not-be-fulfilled-if-we-weren-t-inauthentic-some-of-the-time/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Insofar as we appreciate order, it is when we perceive it as being accompanied by complexity, when we feel that a variety of elements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/insofar-as-we-appreciate-order-it-is-when-we-perceive-it-as-being/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [I like the values associated with a medical family - common sense, being practical but also thoughtful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/i-like-the-values-associated-with-a-medical-family-common-sense-being/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Anyone who urgently needs us deserves, in the true book of love, to be our friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/anyone-who-urgently-needs-us-deserves-in-the-true-book-of-love-to-be/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“We can then recognize that we invented religions to serve two central needs which continue to this day and which secular society has not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-can-then-recognize-that-we-invented-religions-to-serve-two-central/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Half the ingratitude and complacency in the world down to how slowly and imperceptibly most good and bad things unfold.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/half-the-ingratitude-and-complacency-in-the-world-down-to-how-slowly/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [It is perhaps when our lives are at their most problematic that we are likely to be most receptive to beautiful things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/it-is-perhaps-when-our-lives-are-at-their-most-problematic-that-we/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Does what is praised becomes better? Does an emerald become worse if it isn't praised? And what a gold, ivory, a flower or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/does-what-is-praised-becomes-better-does-an-emerald-become-worse-if/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [The bourgeois thinkers of the eighteenth century thus turned Aristotle's formula on its head: satisfactions which the Greek philosopher had identified with leisure were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-bourgeois-thinkers-of-the-eighteenth-century-thus-turned/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [Reputation matters so much only because people so seldom think for themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/reputation-matters-so-much-only-because-people-so-seldom-think-for/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) [Explore all 850 Alain de Botton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) ## More Acceptable quotes > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [I remember being a kid and seeing the 'National Inquirer' at the grocery store checkout line. When somebody actually picked up a copy, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-jones/i-remember-being-a-kid-and-seeing-the-national-inquirer-at-the/) [Rashida Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-jones/) > [Finally, the scariest thing about abuse of any shape or form, is, in my opinion, not the abuse itself, but that if it continues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cumming/finally-the-scariest-thing-about-abuse-of-any-shape-or-form-is-in-my/) [Alan Cumming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cumming/) > [You cannot have 300-some million Americans - and really, right, the global citizenry be at risk of having their phone conversations intercepted with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-lieu/you-cannot-have-300-some-million-americans-and-really-right-the/) [Ted Lieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-lieu/) > [THE REAL PURPOSE OF HOLOCAUST REVISIONISM IS TO MAKE NATIONAL SOCIALISM AN ACCEPTABLE POLITICAL ALTERNATIVE AGAIN.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-covington/the-real-purpose-of-holocaust-revisionism-is-to-make-national/) [Harold Covington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-covington/) > [The government has once again made the right socially acceptable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/the-government-has-once-again-made-the-right-socially-acceptable/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [The study of Freemasonry is the study of man as a candidate for a blessed eternity. It furnishes examples of holy living, and displays…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-howard-taft/the-study-of-freemasonry-is-the-study-of-man-as-a-candidate-for-a/) [William Howard Taft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-howard-taft/) > [Or why it is acceptable to train fast runners and high jumpers but not to breed them. I can think of some answers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/or-why-it-is-acceptable-to-train-fast-runners-and-high-jumpers-but/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [As the future is never known with certainty, the evaluation of the prospective benefits requires the formation of expectations. An acceptable house, partner or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-t-mortensen/as-the-future-is-never-known-with-certainty-the-evaluation-of-the/) [Dale T. Mortensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-t-mortensen/) > [If a man is pictured chopping off a woman's breast, it only gets an R rating; but if, God forbid, a man is pictured…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-struthers/if-a-man-is-pictured-chopping-off-a-woman-s-breast-it-only-gets-an-r/) [Sally Struthers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-struthers/) > [We cannot guess the outcome of our actions... Which is why our actions must always be acceptable in themselves, and not as strategies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/we-cannot-guess-the-outcome-of-our-actions-which-is-why-our-actions/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [In any case, open-seat presidential elections like 2008 just are different in character from incumbent reelects, and I think that's the most important thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kristol/in-any-case-open-seat-presidential-elections-like-2008-just-are/) [William Kristol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kristol/) > [It's horrible how money and fame can make you acceptable while, if you're not famous or rich, you're not acceptable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-tonioli/it-s-horrible-how-money-and-fame-can-make-you-acceptable-while-if-you/) [Bruno Tonioli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-tonioli/) > [I disagree with the prevailing point of view of some black leaders that special treatment for blacks is acceptable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-thomas/i-disagree-with-the-prevailing-point-of-view-of-some-black-leaders/) [Clarence Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-thomas/) > [We get used to a certain kind of colour of form or format, and it's acceptable. And to puncture that is sticking your neck…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-krasner/we-get-used-to-a-certain-kind-of-colour-of-form-or-format-and-it-s/) [Lee Krasner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-krasner/) [Browse all 750 Acceptable quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acceptable/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It would scarcely be acceptable, for example, to ask in the course of an ordinary conversation what our society holds to be the purpose of work.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alain de Botton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-example-to-ask-in-the-course-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Acceptable" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-example-to-ask-in-the-course-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/alain-de-botton-221_acceptable_it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-exam_1505515.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/alain-de-botton-221_acceptable_it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-exam_1505515.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/alain-de-botton-221_acceptable_it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-exam_1505515.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It would scarcely be acceptable, for example, to ask in the course of an ordinary conversation what our…” — Alain de Botton", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "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": "Alain de Botton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It would scarcely be acceptable, for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-example-to-ask-in-the-course-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/it-would-scarcely-be-acceptable-for-example-to-ask-in-the-course-of/#breadcrumb" }, { "@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 } } ] } ```