--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The difference between the child and the…" description: "\"The difference between the child and the man lies chiefly in the unlimited confidence and buoyancy of youth.\" — Clarence Darrow" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0d/clarence-darrow-1714_buoyancy_the-difference-between-the-child-and-the_2504537.png" --- # The difference between the child and the man lies chiefly… ![“The difference between the child and the man lies chiefly in the unlimited confidence and buoyancy of youth.” quote by Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0d/clarence-darrow-1714_buoyancy_the-difference-between-the-child-and-the_2504537.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0d/clarence-darrow-1714_buoyancy_the-difference-between-the-child-and-the_2504537.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c0d/clarence-darrow-1714_buoyancy_the-difference-between-the-child-and-the_2504537.png) > “The difference between the child and the man lies chiefly in the unlimited confidence and buoyancy of youth.” [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Youth possesses boundless confidence and buoyancy, unlike the more restrained adult mindset. **In simple terms:** Youth is confident and buoyant; adults are less so. Key Takeaway Cultivate youthful confidence. Themes growth confidence age dynamics Mood inspirational reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - education - leadership - personal coaching - mentoring Key Concepts Psychology developmental theory motivation Questions to Reflect On - How can adults retain youthful buoyancy? - What practices nurture confidence? A Different Perspective Adult responsibilities may dampen optimism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Confidence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confidence/) [Differences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [To Nobody, then, will I write my Journal! since to Nobody can I be wholly unreserved, to Nobody can I reveal every thought, every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fanny-burney/to-nobody-then-will-i-write-my-journal-since-to-nobody-can-i-be/) [Fanny Burney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fanny-burney/) > [Every man who accomplishes things sees first in his mind what he wishes to do. He puts away all doubt. 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The difference is when someone says he can keep the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-hill/already-though-she-understood-the-difference-between-being-a-child/) [Joe Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-hill/) > [But from the perspective of the aging parent, there is no major difference between four and fifteen, except that when your child is four,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/but-from-the-perspective-of-the-aging-parent-there-is-no-major/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [“The houses where we lived were still standing, all of them. 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When I am a good artist, the only difference between me and a child is that I am more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-tanton/i-colour-for-a-living-when-i-am-a-good-artist-the-only-difference/) [Janice Tanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-tanton/) > [“In short, I should have liked to have had the lightest license of a child, and yet be man enough to know its value”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/in-short-i-should-have-liked-to-have-had-the-lightest-license-of-a/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [A heart is a heart in a child or a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-hale/a-heart-is-a-heart-in-a-child-or-a-man/) [Shannon Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-hale/) > [“To stomach the world for any prolonged length of time, one must either remain a child or become more than a man”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lieber/to-stomach-the-world-for-any-prolonged-length-of-time-one-must-either/) Michael Lieber ## More by Clarence Darrow > [We know life is futile. A man who considers that his life is of very wonderful importance is awfully close to a padded cell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/we-know-life-is-futile-a-man-who-considers-that-his-life-is-of-very/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [Great wealth often curses all who touch it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/great-wealth-often-curses-all-who-touch-it/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [Punishment as punishment is not admissible unless the offender has had the free will to select his course.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/punishment-as-punishment-is-not-admissible-unless-the-offender-has/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [“One of the bravest, grandest champions of human liberty the world has ever seen. {Darrow on the great Robert Ingersoll }”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/one-of-the-bravest-grandest-champions-of-human-liberty-the-world-has/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [I cannot tell and I shall never know how many words of mine might have given birth to cruelty in place of love and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/i-cannot-tell-and-i-shall-never-know-how-many-words-of-mine-might/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [“As long as the world shall last there will be wrongs, and if no man objected and if no man rebelled, those wrongs would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/as-long-as-the-world-shall-last-there-will-be-wrongs-and-if-no-man/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/i-have-never-killed-a-man-but-i-have-read-many-obituaries-with-great/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [Lost causes are the only ones worth fighting for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/lost-causes-are-the-only-ones-worth-fighting-for/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [One believes in the truthfulness of a man because of his long experience with the man, and because the man has always told a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/one-believes-in-the-truthfulness-of-a-man-because-of-his-long/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [Physical deformity, calls forth our charity. 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I've never killed anyone, but I frequently get satisfaction reading the obituary notices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/everybody-is-a-potential-murderer-i-ve-never-killed-anyone-but-i/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [The first half of our lives are ruined by our parents and the second half by our children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/the-first-half-of-our-lives-are-ruined-by-our-parents-and-the-second/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [If there is a soul, what is it, and where did it come from, and where does it go? 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I stood upside down on one finger and burst out laughing, a shrill, distorted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-yves-cousteau/i-experimented-with-all-possible-maneuvers-loops-somersaults-and/) [Jacques Yves Cousteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-yves-cousteau/) > [Look at the limes in this drink, how they float. That's good news. Next time I'm on a boat, and it capsizes, I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/look-at-the-limes-in-this-drink-how-they-float-that-s-good-news-next/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [A beautiful day with the buoyancy of a bird.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/a-beautiful-day-with-the-buoyancy-of-a-bird/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“the buoyancy of chiliasts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-kermode/the-buoyancy-of-chiliasts/) [Frank Kermode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-kermode/) > [There is no worse mistake in public leadership than to hold out false hopes soon to be swept away. 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Some are swept along, protesting, fighting all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-ingalls-wilder/the-stream-of-passing-years-is-like-a-river-with-people-being-carried/) [Laura Ingalls Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-ingalls-wilder/) > [As buoyancy is not contrary to other characteristics of leadership, including decisiveness, accountability and performance standards, I don't ever think it can be self-defeating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-allen/as-buoyancy-is-not-contrary-to-other-characteristics-of-leadership/) [Kevin Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-allen/) > [Why does one write these books after all? 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