--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I know the world is a drawing-room, from…" description: "\"“I know the world is a drawing-room, from which we must retire politely and honestly; that is, with a bow, and our debts of honor paid.”\" — Alexandre D..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/alexandre-dumas-436_drawing-room_i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from_807451.jpg" --- # I know the world is a drawing-room, from which we must… ![“I know the world is a drawing-room, from which we must retire politely and honestly; that is, with a bow, and our debts of honor paid.” quote by Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/alexandre-dumas-436_drawing-room_i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from_807451.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/alexandre-dumas-436_drawing-room_i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from_807451.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/alexandre-dumas-436_drawing-room_i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from_807451.jpg) > ““I know the world is a drawing-room, from which we must retire politely and honestly; that is, with a bow, and our debts of honor paid.”” [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life is a temporary stage; we must leave it with dignity and fulfill our obligations. **In simple terms:** Leave life with honor and settle debts. Key Takeaway Exit gracefully, honor commitments. Themes honor mortality responsibility Mood reflective somber Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - career retirement - end‑of‑life planning - final speeches - legacy projects Key Concepts ethics legacy social contract Questions to Reflect On - What obligations will you fulfill before you depart? - How do you define a graceful exit? A Different Perspective Some may argue duties can be ignored for personal gain. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bow Debts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bow-debts-6162060/) [Debts Honor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/debts-honor-6162059/) [Drawing Room](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drawing-room-405090/) [Retire Politely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retire-politely-6162057/) [Room Retire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/room-retire-6162058/) ## Related quotes > [“So, Byrne, did you and Christabel get lost on the way down? Perhaps we should send you a floor plan for next time. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-jeffries/so-byrne-did-you-and-christabel-get-lost-on-the-way-down-perhaps-we/) [Sabrina Jeffries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-jeffries/) > [“We went back into the drawing room. The evening had passes pleasantly enough, heaven knows, but I was glad that they had gone and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daphne-du-maurier/we-went-back-into-the-drawing-room-the-evening-had-passes-pleasantly/) [Daphne du Maurier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daphne-du-maurier/) > [“here in the drawing room, each lady quietly relaxed and became more real, expanding into the space left by the men. Without visibly changing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-hardinge/here-in-the-drawing-room-each-lady-quietly-relaxed-and-became-more/) [Frances Hardinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-hardinge/) > [“the dark, cluttered, polished mahogany splendor of the Sanborns’ Victorian drawing room. Mr. Sanborn wavered. Roark asked, his arm sweeping out at the room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/the-dark-cluttered-polished-mahogany-splendor-of-the-sanborns/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“We are late, Alexandra,” said the dowager duchess as she stood in Alex’s drawing room idly examining a magnificent fourteenth-century sculpture reposing on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-mcnaught/we-are-late-alexandra-said-the-dowager-duchess-as-she-stood-in-alex-s/) [Judith McNaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-mcnaught/) > [This kind of painting with its large frames is a bourgeois drawing-room art. It is an art dealer's art-and that came in after the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edvard-munch/this-kind-of-painting-with-its-large-frames-is-a-bourgeois-drawing/) [Edvard Munch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edvard-munch/) > [But after all, what have we todo with taverns? 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In future, please join me here promptly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-mcnaught/it-is-my-custom-to-have-sherry-in-the-drawing-room-at-eight-thirty/) [Judith McNaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-mcnaught/) > [“Self-confidence depends on environment: one does not speak in the same tone in the drawing room than in the kitchen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/self-confidence-depends-on-environment-one-does-not-speak-in-the-same/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [Low comedies are written for the drawing-room, the kitchen and the stable, and if you cut out the kitchen and the stable the drawing-room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/low-comedies-are-written-for-the-drawing-room-the-kitchen-and-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [THIS THE MY DRAWING ROOM…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohit-rana/this-the-my-drawing-room/) [Rohit Rana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rohit-rana/) > [My interior is very, very dense - Proustian-looking, sort of Henry James. The walls are covered in pictures, and I transformed the big drawing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hamish-bowles/my-interior-is-very-very-dense-proustian-looking-sort-of-henry-james/) [Hamish Bowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hamish-bowles/) > [“The man in Drawing Room B, Car No. 4, was a newspaper publisher who believed that men are evil by nature and unfit for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/the-man-in-drawing-room-b-car-no-4-was-a-newspaper-publisher-who/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) ## More by Alexandre Dumas > [“What is the sense in recriminations about things over which the will of God itself is powerless? God can change the future, He cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/what-is-the-sense-in-recriminations-about-things-over-which-the-will/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [There is no friendship that cares about an overheard secret.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/there-is-no-friendship-that-cares-about-an-overheard-secret/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [Darling, replied Valentine, has not the count just told us that all human wisdom was contained in these two words,- "Wait and hope"?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/darling-replied-valentine-has-not-the-count-just-told-us-that-all/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“when you have the honour to find yourself in the company of ordinary men and the good fortune to be out of politics for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/when-you-have-the-honour-to-find-yourself-in-the-company-of-ordinary/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“He rose in his turn, and seizing handfuls of confetti and sweetmeats, with which the carriage was filled, cast them with all the force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/he-rose-in-his-turn-and-seizing-handfuls-of-confetti-and-sweetmeats/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“A man is always in a hurry to be happy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/a-man-is-always-in-a-hurry-to-be-happy/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“Speak on, madame, speak on, Queen," said Buckingham; "the sweetness of your voice covers the harshness of your words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/speak-on-madame-speak-on-queen-said-buckingham-the-sweetness-of-your/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“On the 24th of February, 1810, the look-out at Notre-Dame de la Garde signalled the three-master, the Pharaon from Smyrna, Trieste, and Naples.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/on-the-24th-of-february-1810-the-look-out-at-notre-dame-de-la-garde/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“what despair to see a woman one loves longing for those thousand nothings from which women compose their happiness, and to be unable to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/what-despair-to-see-a-woman-one-loves-longing-for-those-thousand/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“Here is a man who was resigned to his fate, who was walking to the scaffold and about to die like a coward, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/here-is-a-man-who-was-resigned-to-his-fate-who-was-walking-to-the/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [I am not proud, but I am happy; and happiness blinds, I think, more than pride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/i-am-not-proud-but-i-am-happy-and-happiness-blinds-i-think-more-than/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [For there are two distinct sorts of ideas: Those that proceed from the head and those that emanate from the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/for-there-are-two-distinct-sorts-of-ideas-those-that-proceed-from-the/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“Besides, what is required of a young man in Paris? To speak its language tolerably, to make a good appearance, to be a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/besides-what-is-required-of-a-young-man-in-paris-to-speak-its/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“Carry your sorrow inside you as the cloud conceals ruin and death like a deadly secret that is understood only when the storm breaks.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/carry-your-sorrow-inside-you-as-the-cloud-conceals-ruin-and-death/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“What fragile and unknown threads the destinies of nations and the lives of men are suspended.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/what-fragile-and-unknown-threads-the-destinies-of-nations-and-the/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) [Explore all 473 Alexandre Dumas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) ## More Drawing Room quotes > [“So, Byrne, did you and Christabel get lost on the way down? Perhaps we should send you a floor plan for next time. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-jeffries/so-byrne-did-you-and-christabel-get-lost-on-the-way-down-perhaps-we/) [Sabrina Jeffries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-jeffries/) > [My interior is very, very dense - Proustian-looking, sort of Henry James. The walls are covered in pictures, and I transformed the big drawing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hamish-bowles/my-interior-is-very-very-dense-proustian-looking-sort-of-henry-james/) [Hamish Bowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hamish-bowles/) > [THIS THE MY DRAWING ROOM…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohit-rana/this-the-my-drawing-room/) [Rohit Rana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rohit-rana/) > [Low comedies are written for the drawing-room, the kitchen and the stable, and if you cut out the kitchen and the stable the drawing-room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/low-comedies-are-written-for-the-drawing-room-the-kitchen-and-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“Self-confidence depends on environment: one does not speak in the same tone in the drawing room than in the kitchen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/self-confidence-depends-on-environment-one-does-not-speak-in-the-same/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [“It is my custom to have sherry in the drawing room at eight-thirty and supper at nine. In future, please join me here promptly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-mcnaught/it-is-my-custom-to-have-sherry-in-the-drawing-room-at-eight-thirty/) [Judith McNaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-mcnaught/) > [“It was the Riverton drawing room. Even the wallpaper was the same. Silver Studios' burgundy Art Nouveau, "Flaming Tulips," as fresh as the day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/it-was-the-riverton-drawing-room-even-the-wallpaper-was-the-same/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) > [“Forgive me if I never visit. I am from the fields, you know, and while quite at home with the dandelions, make a sorry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-dickinson/forgive-me-if-i-never-visit-i-am-from-the-fields-you-know-and-while/) [Emily Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-dickinson/) > [But after all, what have we todo with taverns? Real menacebelongs to the drawing-room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-morgan-forste/but-after-all-what-have-we-todo-with-taverns-real-menacebelongs-to/) [Edward Morgan Forste](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-morgan-forste/) > [This kind of painting with its large frames is a bourgeois drawing-room art. It is an art dealer's art-and that came in after the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edvard-munch/this-kind-of-painting-with-its-large-frames-is-a-bourgeois-drawing/) [Edvard Munch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edvard-munch/) > [“We are late, Alexandra,” said the dowager duchess as she stood in Alex’s drawing room idly examining a magnificent fourteenth-century sculpture reposing on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-mcnaught/we-are-late-alexandra-said-the-dowager-duchess-as-she-stood-in-alex-s/) [Judith McNaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-mcnaught/) > [“the dark, cluttered, polished mahogany splendor of the Sanborns’ Victorian drawing room. Mr. Sanborn wavered. Roark asked, his arm sweeping out at the room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/the-dark-cluttered-polished-mahogany-splendor-of-the-sanborns/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“here in the drawing room, each lady quietly relaxed and became more real, expanding into the space left by the men. Without visibly changing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-hardinge/here-in-the-drawing-room-each-lady-quietly-relaxed-and-became-more/) [Frances Hardinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-hardinge/) > [“We went back into the drawing room. The evening had passes pleasantly enough, heaven knows, but I was glad that they had gone and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daphne-du-maurier/we-went-back-into-the-drawing-room-the-evening-had-passes-pleasantly/) [Daphne du Maurier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daphne-du-maurier/) > [“The man in Drawing Room B, Car No. 4, was a newspaper publisher who believed that men are evil by nature and unfit for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/the-man-in-drawing-room-b-car-no-4-was-a-newspaper-publisher-who/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) [Browse all 28 Drawing Room quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drawing-room-405090/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I know the world is a drawing-room, from which we must retire politely and honestly; that is, with a bow, and our debts of honor paid.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alexandre Dumas" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from-which-we-must-retire-politely/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Drawing Room" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from-which-we-must-retire-politely/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/alexandre-dumas-436_drawing-room_i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from_807451.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/alexandre-dumas-436_drawing-room_i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from_807451.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04c/alexandre-dumas-436_drawing-room_i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from_807451.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I know the world is a drawing-room, from which we must retire politely and honestly; that is, with a bow…” — Alexandre Dumas", "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": "Alexandre Dumas", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I know the world is a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from-which-we-must-retire-politely/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/i-know-the-world-is-a-drawing-room-from-which-we-must-retire-politely/#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 } } ] } ```