---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Enemies could become the best companions…"
description: "\"Enemies could become the best companions. Companionship is based on a common interest, and the greater the interest the closer the companionship. What ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/bernard-berenson-14318_common_enemies-could-become-the-best-companions_849698.jpg"
---

#  Enemies could become the best companions. Companionship is…

![“Enemies could become the best companions. Companionship is based on a common interest, and the greater the interest the closer the companionship. What makes enemies of people, if not the eagerness, the passion for the same thing?” quote by Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/bernard-berenson-14318_common_enemies-could-become-the-best-companions_849698.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/bernard-berenson-14318_common_enemies-could-become-the-best-companions_849698.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/bernard-berenson-14318_common_enemies-could-become-the-best-companions_849698.jpg)

> “Enemies could become the best companions. Companionship is based on a common interest, and the greater the interest the closer the companionship. What makes enemies of people, if not the eagerness, the passion for the same thing?”

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Enemies can become close friends when they share a strong common passion.

**In simple terms:** Shared interests can turn foes into friends.

Key Takeaway

Find common ground to build bonds.

Themes

friendship conflict resolution shared passion

Mood

thoughtful encouraging

Type

philosophical motivational

When to use this quote

- team projects
- community groups
- sports teams
- academic collaborations

Key Concepts

psychology social dynamics empathy

Questions to Reflect On

- What common interests could bridge a divide?
- How do you nurture genuine friendship?

A Different Perspective

Shared interests may be superficial; deeper values matter.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Common Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-interest/) [Companion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/companion/) [Companionship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/companionship/) [Eagerness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eagerness/) [Enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enemy/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Passion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/)

## Related quotes

> [Not romance but companionship makes the happiness of daily life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/not-romance-but-companionship-makes-the-happiness-of-daily-life/)

[Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/)

> [When the citizens at large administer the state for the common interest, the government is called by the generic name - a constitution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/when-the-citizens-at-large-administer-the-state-for-the-common/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [“The talk here makes me quite ill. I would rather we had never come together again; then at least we might still have preserved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/the-talk-here-makes-me-quite-ill-i-would-rather-we-had-never-come/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [Common interest may always be reckoned upon as the surest bond of sympathy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/common-interest-may-always-be-reckoned-upon-as-the-surest-bond-of/)

[Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/)

> [Conversation is the fine art of mutual consideration and communication about matters of common interest that basically have some human importance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ordway-tead/conversation-is-the-fine-art-of-mutual-consideration-and/)

[Ordway Tead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ordway-tead/)

> [Nature seems to have taken a particular care to disseminate her blessings among the different regions of the world, with an eye to their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/nature-seems-to-have-taken-a-particular-care-to-disseminate-her/)

[Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/)

> [“the welfare states of western Europe were not politically divisive. They were socially re-distributive in general intent (some more than others) but not at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-judt/the-welfare-states-of-western-europe-were-not-politically-divisive/)

[Tony Judt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-judt/)

> [The Egyptian military and the government of Israel have long had a common interest in maintaining order and fighting terrorism in Sinai.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/the-egyptian-military-and-the-government-of-israel-have-long-had-a/)

[Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/)

> [“In many instances conflicts arise when people with common interest start to think about themselves only. The moment you start thinking about oneself and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-v-songer/in-many-instances-conflicts-arise-when-people-with-common-interest/)

[Austin V. Songer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-v-songer/)

> [Youth, beauty, graceful action seldom fail: But common interest always will prevail; And pity never ceases to be shown To him who makes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/youth-beauty-graceful-action-seldom-fail-but-common-interest-always/)

[John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/)

> [ \[Intro\] Knockout, yeah Ray J Bobby Brackins, yeah Let's go! \[Chorus:\] 143 I'll make you yell it when we sexin 143 is what you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-nelly-boii-whitmore/intro-knockout-yeah-ray-j-bobby-brackins-yeah-let-s-go-chorus-143-i/)

Corey Nelly Boii Whitmore

> [Joining a band of brothers together, a group with one common interest or mission, whether as a company, a team, or a motorcycle club,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonny-barger/joining-a-band-of-brothers-together-a-group-with-one-common-interest/)

[Sonny Barger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonny-barger/)

> [Russia can fall apart. It's not because of the oil prices ... It's because what sticks a country together is a common interest of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilya-ponomarev/russia-can-fall-apart-it-s-not-because-of-the-oil-prices-it-s-because/)

[Ilya Ponomarev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilya-ponomarev/)

> [That which is common to the greatest number has the least care bestowed upon it. Every one thinks chiefly of his own, hardly at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/that-which-is-common-to-the-greatest-number-has-the-least-care/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [The true forms of government, therefore, are those in which the one, or the few, or the many, govern with a view to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-true-forms-of-government-therefore-are-those-in-which-the-one-or/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

## More by Bernard Berenson

> [The ultimate justification of the work of art is to help the spectator to become a work of art himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/the-ultimate-justification-of-the-work-of-art-is-to-help-the/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [Boast is always a cry of despair, except in the young it is a cry of hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/boast-is-always-a-cry-of-despair-except-in-the-young-it-is-a-cry-of/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [I would willingly stand at street corners, hat in hand, begging passerby to drop their unused minutes into it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/i-would-willingly-stand-at-street-corners-hat-in-hand-begging/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [I would I could stand on a busy corner, hat in hand, and beg people to throw me all their wasted hours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/i-would-i-could-stand-on-a-busy-corner-hat-in-hand-and-beg-people-to/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [Literature in its most comprehensive sense is the autobiography of humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/literature-in-its-most-comprehensive-sense-is-the-autobiography-of/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [From childhood on I have had the dream of life lived as a sacrament... the dream implied taking life ritually as something holy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/from-childhood-on-i-have-had-the-dream-of-life-lived-as-a-sacrament/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [The artist, depicting man disdainful of the storm and stress of life, is no less reconciling and healing than the poet who, while endowing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/the-artist-depicting-man-disdainful-of-the-storm-and-stress-of-life/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [The Renaissance had resulted in the emancipation of the individual, in making him feel that the universe had no other purpose than his happiness.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/the-renaissance-had-resulted-in-the-emancipation-of-the-individual-in/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [Who will free me from hurry, flurry, the feeling of a crowd pushing behind me, of being hustled and crushed? How can I regain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/who-will-free-me-from-hurry-flurry-the-feeling-of-a-crowd-pushing/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [I walk in the garden, I look at the flowers and shrubs and trees and discover in them an exquisiteness of contour, a vitality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/i-walk-in-the-garden-i-look-at-the-flowers-and-shrubs-and-trees-and/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [“A complete life may be one ending in so full identification with the non-self that there is no self to die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/a-complete-life-may-be-one-ending-in-so-full-identification-with-the/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [Pessimism like calumny is easy to do, and attracts immediate attention. The gossiper and the writer may find this out soon enough, and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/pessimism-like-calumny-is-easy-to-do-and-attracts-immediate-attention/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [The average European does not seem to feel free until he succeeds in enslaving and oppressing others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/the-average-european-does-not-seem-to-feel-free-until-he-succeeds-in/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [I am only a picture-taster, the way others are wine-or tea-tasters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/i-am-only-a-picture-taster-the-way-others-are-wine-or-tea-tasters/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

> [“Consistency, commonly thought of as a good thing, requires you to be as ignorant today as you were a year ago.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/consistency-commonly-thought-of-as-a-good-thing-requires-you-to-be-as/)

[Bernard Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

[Explore all 47 Bernard Berenson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/)

## More Common quotes

> [I'm Fine!, the most common LIE in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-m-fine-the-most-common-lie-in-the-world/)

[Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/)

> [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/)

[Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/)

> [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/)

[John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/)

> [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/)

[Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/)

> [Our times demand the declaration of the world's resources as the common heritage of all people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/our-times-demand-the-declaration-of-the-world-s-resources-as-the/)

[Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/)

> [ Neither Italian fascism nor German national "socialism" have anything in common with such a \[Soviet socialistic\] society, primarily because private ownership of factories, plants,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/neither-italian-fascism-nor-german-national-socialism-have-anything/)

[Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/)

> [When you have a cavity in your tooth and you let it get worse, eventually you have to get a root canal. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-newton-john/when-you-have-a-cavity-in-your-tooth-and-you-let-it-get-worse/)

[Olivia Newton-John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-newton-john/)

> [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/)

[Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/)

> [Common sense is nothing more than a deposit of prejudices laid down in the mind before you reach eighteen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/common-sense-is-nothing-more-than-a-deposit-of-prejudices-laid-down/)

[Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/)

> [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/)

[Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/)

> [We can find common qualities and common values that have made Britain the country it is. Our belief in tolerance and liberty which shines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-brown/we-can-find-common-qualities-and-common-values-that-have-made-britain/)

[Gordon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-brown/)

> [A time will come when the science of destruction shall bend before the arts of peace; when the genius which multiplies our powers, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-arago/a-time-will-come-when-the-science-of-destruction-shall-bend-before/)

[Francois Arago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-arago/)

> [… and so he tried to accept the ache in his heart as what Dr. Larch would call the common symptoms of normal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/and-so-he-tried-to-accept-the-ache-in-his-heart-as-what-dr-larch/)

[John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/)

> [It is a tragedy that we live in a world where physical courage is so common, and moral courage is so rare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-monet/it-is-a-tragedy-that-we-live-in-a-world-where-physical-courage-is-so/)

[Claude Monet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-monet/)

> [Those who advocate common usage in philosophy sometimes speak in a manner that suggests the mystique of the 'common man.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/those-who-advocate-common-usage-in-philosophy-sometimes-speak-in-a/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

Browse all 7,866 Common quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Enemies could become the best companions. Companionship is based on a common interest, and the greater the interest the closer the companionship. What makes enemies of people, if not the eagerness, the passion for the same thing?",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Bernard Berenson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/enemies-could-become-the-best-companions-companionship-is-based-on-a/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Common"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/enemies-could-become-the-best-companions-companionship-is-based-on-a/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/bernard-berenson-14318_common_enemies-could-become-the-best-companions_849698.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/bernard-berenson-14318_common_enemies-could-become-the-best-companions_849698.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e37/bernard-berenson-14318_common_enemies-could-become-the-best-companions_849698.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Enemies could become the best companions. Companionship is based on a common interest, and the greater the…” — Bernard Berenson",
                "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": "Bernard Berenson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-berenson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Enemies could become the best companions....",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/enemies-could-become-the-best-companions-companionship-is-based-on-a/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-berenson/enemies-could-become-the-best-companions-companionship-is-based-on-a/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
