--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: …I have never understood the concept of…" description: "\"“…I have never understood the concept of infatuation. It has always been my understanding that being ‘infatuated’ with someone means you think you are ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/065/chuck-klosterman-804_infatuation_i-have-never-understood-the-concept-of-i_1665635.jpg" --- # …I have never understood the concept of infatuation. It… ![“…I have never understood the concept of infatuation. It has always been my understanding that being ‘infatuated’ with someone means you think you are in love, but you’re actually not; infatuation is (supposedly) just a foolish, fleeting feeling. But if being ‘in love’ is an abstract notion, and…” quote by Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/065/chuck-klosterman-804_infatuation_i-have-never-understood-the-concept-of-i_1665635.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/065/chuck-klosterman-804_infatuation_i-have-never-understood-the-concept-of-i_1665635.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/065/chuck-klosterman-804_infatuation_i-have-never-understood-the-concept-of-i_1665635.jpg) > ““…I have never understood the concept of infatuation. It has always been my understanding that being ‘infatuated’ with someone means you think you are in love, but you’re actually not; infatuation is (supposedly) just a foolish, fleeting feeling. But if being ‘in love’ is an abstract notion, and it’s not tangible, and there is no way to physically prove it to anyone else… well, how is being in love any different than having an infatuation? They’re both human constructions. If you think you’re in love with someone and you feel like you’re in love with someone, then you obviously are; thinking and feeling is the sum total of what love is. Why do we feel an obligation to certify emotions with some kind of retrospective, self-imposed authenticity?”” [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Love is defined by personal belief and feeling rather than external validation, making it a self‑authored experience. **In simple terms:** Love is what you feel and believe. Key Takeaway Trust your own feelings. Themes love psychology authenticity Mood thoughtful introspective Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - romantic relationships - self‑reflection - social expectations Key Concepts subjective experience emotional construction Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate love from infatuation? - What role does societal expectation play in defining love? A Different Perspective Love may be idealized, overlooking practical compatibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Infatuation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infatuation/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) ## Related quotes > [“My work expresses an infatuation with human beings. I don’t believe that to understand is necessarily to pardon, but I feel that to understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/my-work-expresses-an-infatuation-with-human-beings-i-don-t-believe/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [Jake was close to tears. In that moment he saw the world in its true light, as a place where nothing had ever been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kingsley-amis/jake-was-close-to-tears-in-that-moment-he-saw-the-world-in-its-true/) [Kingsley Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kingsley-amis/) > [You can't truly love someone if you also love yourself, just as you can't love someone if you are not honest with them and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-stone/you-can-t-truly-love-someone-if-you-also-love-yourself-just-as-you/) [Benjamin Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-stone/) > [“And I hug her again. Because I just can’t stop touching this girl.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mindy-mcginnis/and-i-hug-her-again-because-i-just-can-t-stop-touching-this-girl/) [Mindy McGinnis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mindy-mcginnis/) > [“Marianne would have thought herself very inexcusable had she been able to sleep at all the first night after parting from Willoughby. She would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/marianne-would-have-thought-herself-very-inexcusable-had-she-been/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“How unfortunate is the guy who does not live in the extravagant memory of an infatuated young woman.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manu-joseph/how-unfortunate-is-the-guy-who-does-not-live-in-the-extravagant/) [Manu Joseph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manu-joseph/) > [One does silly things when one is twelve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/one-does-silly-things-when-one-is-twelve/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Love is when you realize that he's as sexy as Woody Allen, as smart as Jimmy Connors, as funny as Ralph Nader, as athletic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-viorst/love-is-when-you-realize-that-he-s-as-sexy-as-woody-allen-as-smart-as/) [Judith Viorst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-viorst/) > [Each moment of the happy lover's hour is worth an age of dull and common life. -](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aphra-behn/each-moment-of-the-happy-lover-s-hour-is-worth-an-age-of-dull-and/) [Aphra Behn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aphra-behn/) > [“Love is the illusion you get in the mids of infatuation and happiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tia-clark/love-is-the-illusion-you-get-in-the-mids-of-infatuation-and-happiness/) Tia Clark > [After a semester or so, my infatuation with computers burnt out as quickly as it had begun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-allin-cornell/after-a-semester-or-so-my-infatuation-with-computers-burnt-out-as/) [Eric Allin Cornell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-allin-cornell/) > [Men outlive their love, but they don’t outlive the consequences of their recklessness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/men-outlive-their-love-but-they-don-t-outlive-the-consequences-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“The smell of her hair lingered just out of reach of his memory and left him with a nervous hum resonating throughout his body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-tomblin/the-smell-of-her-hair-lingered-just-out-of-reach-of-his-memory-and/) [Erik Tomblin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-tomblin/) > [“My whole being is a dark chant that will carry you perpetuating you to the dawn of eternal growths and blossomings in this chant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/forugh-farrokhzad/my-whole-being-is-a-dark-chant-that-will-carry-you-perpetuating-you/) Forugh Farrokhzad > [Love is psychotic infatuation x10](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fade-wane/love-is-psychotic-infatuation-x10/) Fade Wane ## More by Chuck Klosterman > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [“I suppose we'll never know what really happened in that room, though he did tell police, "I did it because I'm a dirty dog."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/i-suppose-we-ll-never-know-what-really-happened-in-that-room-though/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [Do you know people who insist they like 'all kinds of music'? That actually means they like no kinds of music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/do-you-know-people-who-insist-they-like-all-kinds-of-music-that/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [Let's say Twitter existed during the Civil War. We would have a better understanding of people in the Confederacy who were against slavery, people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/let-s-say-twitter-existed-during-the-civil-war-we-would-have-a-better/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [All my friends are rock critics, so we talk about rock criticism a lot. Because of that, in order to be part of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/all-my-friends-are-rock-critics-so-we-talk-about-rock-criticism-a-lot/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [If rain is God crying, I think God is drunk and his girlfriend just slept with Zeus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/if-rain-is-god-crying-i-think-god-is-drunk-and-his-girlfriend-just/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [But no matter how many times we re-rank the presidents, in another 200 years, the top presidents will still be Washington and Lincoln and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/but-no-matter-how-many-times-we-re-rank-the-presidents-in-another-200/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [Different critics go to different lengths to disagree with that sentiment, but ultimately, they're the person experiencing this art, and whatever judgment or taste…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/different-critics-go-to-different-lengths-to-disagree-with-that/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [First, you must love yourself. And if you do that convincingly enough, others will love you too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/first-you-must-love-yourself-and-if-you-do-that-convincingly-enough/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [Anyone who claims to be good at lying is obviously bad at lying. Thus - as a writer myself - I cannot comment on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/anyone-who-claims-to-be-good-at-lying-is-obviously-bad-at-lying-thus/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [“I care about strangers when they're abstractions but feel almost nothing when they are literally in front of me. They seem like unnamed characters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/i-care-about-strangers-when-they-re-abstractions-but-feel-almost/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [“Toby Keith writes songs like 1993's "Should've Been a Cowboy," and what's compelling is that you can't deconstruct its message. "Should've Been a Cowboy"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/toby-keith-writes-songs-like-1993-s-should-ve-been-a-cowboy-and-what/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [Some say that time is like water that flows around us (like a stone in the river) and some say we flow with time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/some-say-that-time-is-like-water-that-flows-around-us-like-a-stone-in/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [ \[On political correctness:\] Any intended message mattered less than the received message, and every received message could be interpreted in whatever way the receiver… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/on-political-correctness-any-intended-message-mattered-less-than-the/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [In baseball and sex, cliches are usually true: pitching beats hitting, and people always want to be loved by anyone who doesn't seem to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/in-baseball-and-sex-cliches-are-usually-true-pitching-beats-hitting/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) [Explore all 364 Chuck Klosterman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) ## More Infatuation quotes > [Love is psychotic infatuation x10](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fade-wane/love-is-psychotic-infatuation-x10/) Fade Wane > [“My whole being is a dark chant that will carry you perpetuating you to the dawn of eternal growths and blossomings in this chant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/forugh-farrokhzad/my-whole-being-is-a-dark-chant-that-will-carry-you-perpetuating-you/) Forugh Farrokhzad > [“The smell of her hair lingered just out of reach of his memory and left him with a nervous hum resonating throughout his body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-tomblin/the-smell-of-her-hair-lingered-just-out-of-reach-of-his-memory-and/) [Erik Tomblin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-tomblin/) > [Men outlive their love, but they don’t outlive the consequences of their recklessness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/men-outlive-their-love-but-they-don-t-outlive-the-consequences-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [After a semester or so, my infatuation with computers burnt out as quickly as it had begun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-allin-cornell/after-a-semester-or-so-my-infatuation-with-computers-burnt-out-as/) [Eric Allin Cornell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-allin-cornell/) > [“Love is the illusion you get in the mids of infatuation and happiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tia-clark/love-is-the-illusion-you-get-in-the-mids-of-infatuation-and-happiness/) Tia Clark > [Each moment of the happy lover's hour is worth an age of dull and common life. -](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aphra-behn/each-moment-of-the-happy-lover-s-hour-is-worth-an-age-of-dull-and/) [Aphra Behn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aphra-behn/) > [Love is when you realize that he's as sexy as Woody Allen, as smart as Jimmy Connors, as funny as Ralph Nader, as athletic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-viorst/love-is-when-you-realize-that-he-s-as-sexy-as-woody-allen-as-smart-as/) [Judith Viorst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-viorst/) > [One does silly things when one is twelve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/one-does-silly-things-when-one-is-twelve/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [“How unfortunate is the guy who does not live in the extravagant memory of an infatuated young woman.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manu-joseph/how-unfortunate-is-the-guy-who-does-not-live-in-the-extravagant/) [Manu Joseph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manu-joseph/) > [“Marianne would have thought herself very inexcusable had she been able to sleep at all the first night after parting from Willoughby. She would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/marianne-would-have-thought-herself-very-inexcusable-had-she-been/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“And I hug her again. Because I just can’t stop touching this girl.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mindy-mcginnis/and-i-hug-her-again-because-i-just-can-t-stop-touching-this-girl/) [Mindy McGinnis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mindy-mcginnis/) > [You can't truly love someone if you also love yourself, just as you can't love someone if you are not honest with them and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-stone/you-can-t-truly-love-someone-if-you-also-love-yourself-just-as-you/) [Benjamin Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-stone/) > [Jake was close to tears. In that moment he saw the world in its true light, as a place where nothing had ever been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kingsley-amis/jake-was-close-to-tears-in-that-moment-he-saw-the-world-in-its-true/) [Kingsley Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kingsley-amis/) > [No one can understand love who has not experienced infatuation. And no one can understand infatuation, no matter how many times he has experienced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mignon-mclaughlin/no-one-can-understand-love-who-has-not-experienced-infatuation-and-no/) [Mignon McLaughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mignon-mclaughlin/) [Browse all 354 Infatuation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infatuation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“…I have never understood the concept of infatuation. 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