---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And I keep thinking too of the more…"
description: "\"“And I keep thinking too of the more conventional wisdom: namely, that the pursuit of pure beauty is a trap, a fast track to bitterness and sorrow, tha..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/donna-tartt-391_beauty_and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conv_2118029.jpg"
---

#  And I keep thinking too of the more conventional wisdom…

![“And I keep thinking too of the more conventional wisdom: namely, that the pursuit of pure beauty is a trap, a fast track to bitterness and sorrow, that beauty has to be wedded to something more meaningful.” quote by Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/donna-tartt-391_beauty_and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conv_2118029.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/donna-tartt-391_beauty_and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conv_2118029.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/donna-tartt-391_beauty_and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conv_2118029.jpg)

> ““And I keep thinking too of the more conventional wisdom: namely, that the pursuit of pure beauty is a trap, a fast track to bitterness and sorrow, that beauty has to be wedded to something more meaningful.””

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

## About This Quote

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

The pursuit of pure beauty without deeper meaning can become a trap, leading to bitterness; beauty should be linked to purpose.

**In simple terms:** Pure beauty alone can cause sorrow; tie it to meaning.

Key Takeaway

Seek purpose alongside aesthetic appreciation.

Themes

beauty meaning purpose traps art literature

Mood

thoughtful inquisitive

Type

philosophical literary

When to use this quote

- art criticism
- personal goals
- creative projects
- life decisions

Key Concepts

aesthetics philosophy psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- How does meaning prevent beauty from becoming a trap?
- Can beauty exist without purpose?

A Different Perspective

It may discount the value of beauty for its own sake.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Conventional wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conventional-wisdom/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/)

## Related quotes

> [“beauty alters the grain of reality. And I keep thinking too of the more conventional wisdom: namely, that the pursuit of pure beauty is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/beauty-alters-the-grain-of-reality-and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“the pursuit of pure beauty is a trap, a fast track to bitterness and sorrow, that beauty has to be wedded to something more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/the-pursuit-of-pure-beauty-is-a-trap-a-fast-track-to-bitterness-and/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“And I keep thinking too of the more conventional wisdom: namely, that the pursuit of pure beauty is a trap, a fast track to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conventional-wisdom-namely-that/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“I look at the blanked-out faces of the other passengers--hoisting their briefcases, their backpacks, shuffling to disembark--and I think of what Hobie said: beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/i-look-at-the-blanked-out-faces-of-the-other-passengers-hoisting-2/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“I look at the blanked-out faces of the other passengers--hoisting their briefcases, their backpacks, shuffling to disembark--and I think of what Hobie said: beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/i-look-at-the-blanked-out-faces-of-the-other-passengers-hoisting/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“White noise, impersonal roar. Deadening incandescence of the boarding terminals. But even these soul-free, sealed-off places are drenched with meaning, spangled and thundering with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/white-noise-impersonal-roar-deadening-incandescence-of-the-boarding/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [Sometimes beauty can be a trap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-webber/sometimes-beauty-can-be-a-trap/)

[Peter Webber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-webber/)

> [I have not personally suffered from the deprivations, the bitterness and sorrow which bring so many men and women to a realisation of social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmeline-pankhurst/i-have-not-personally-suffered-from-the-deprivations-the-bitterness/)

[Emmeline Pankhurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmeline-pankhurst/)

> [“For there to be light, there must be darkness. For there to be joy, there must be sorrow. For there to be beauty, there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-king/for-there-to-be-light-there-must-be-darkness-for-there-to-be-joy/)

[Penelope King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-king/)

> [If sorrow and beauty are all tied up together, then perhaps maturity brings with it not what Nabhan calls abstraction, but an aesthetic sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/if-sorrow-and-beauty-are-all-tied-up-together-then-perhaps-maturity/)

[Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/)

> [“Two Songs For The World's End I Bombs ripen on the leafless tree under which the children play. And there my darling all alone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-wright/two-songs-for-the-world-s-end-i-bombs-ripen-on-the-leafless-tree/)

[Judith Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-wright/)

> [ “\[T\]here were two musics progressing at one time before the seat of Ilúvatar, and they were utterly at variance. The one was deep and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien/t-here-were-two-musics-progressing-at-one-time-before-the-seat-of-il/)

[J.R.R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien/)

> [Joy and sorrow, beauty and deformity, equally pass away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saadi/joy-and-sorrow-beauty-and-deformity-equally-pass-away/)

[Saadi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saadi/)

> [“Ferguson also takes a swipe at the conventional wisdom surrounding aspects of World War I. “The key to the Allies’ victory was not an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-williams/ferguson-also-takes-a-swipe-at-the-conventional-wisdom-surrounding/)

Luke Williams

> [Contrarian thinking at its best simply asks, Is this really true? It speaks up when the politically correct answer or the conventional wisdom doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-osborne/contrarian-thinking-at-its-best-simply-asks-is-this-really-true-it/)

[Larry Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-osborne/)

## More by Donna Tartt

> [I hope we're all ready to leave the phenomenal world, and enter into the sublime?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/i-hope-we-re-all-ready-to-leave-the-phenomenal-world-and-enter-into/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [And I add my own love to the history of people who have loved beautiful things, and looked out for them, and pulled them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-i-add-my-own-love-to-the-history-of-people-who-have-loved/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [And the flavor of Pippa's kiss--bittersweet and strange--stayed with me all the way back uptown, swaying and sleepy as I sailed home on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-the-flavor-of-pippa-s-kiss-bittersweet-and-strange-stayed-with-me/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“The world won't come to me...so I must go to it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/the-world-won-t-come-to-me-so-i-must-go-to-it/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [There's an expectation these days that novels - like any other consumer product - should be made on a production line, with one dropping…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/there-s-an-expectation-these-days-that-novels-like-any-other-consumer/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“A month or two before, I would have been appalled at the idea of any murder at all. But that Sunday afternoon, as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/a-month-or-two-before-i-would-have-been-appalled-at-the-idea-of-any/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [Well, I think storytellers have always found murder a fascinating device.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/well-i-think-storytellers-have-always-found-murder-a-fascinating/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [Always remember, the person we’re really working for is the person who’s restoring the piece a hundred years from now. He’s the one we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/always-remember-the-person-we-re-really-working-for-is-the-person-who/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“The silence between us was happy and strange, connected by the cord and the icy voices thinly echoing. “You don’t have to talk,” she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/the-silence-between-us-was-happy-and-strange-connected-by-the-cord/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“It is a terrible thing to learn as a child that one is a being separate from all the world, that no one and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/it-is-a-terrible-thing-to-learn-as-a-child-that-one-is-a-being/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“You didn’t meet many people who moved freely through the world with such a vigorous contempt for it and at the same time such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/you-didn-t-meet-many-people-who-moved-freely-through-the-world-with/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“maybe that’s what’s waiting for us at the end of the journey, a majesty unimaginable until the very moment we find ourselves walking through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/maybe-that-s-what-s-waiting-for-us-at-the-end-of-the-journey-a/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“lights and moods and seasons was to see it a thousand different ways and to keep it shut in the dark—a thing made of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/lights-and-moods-and-seasons-was-to-see-it-a-thousand-different-ways/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [A great sorrow, and one that I am only beginning to understand: we don’t get to choose our own hearts. We can’t make ourselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/a-great-sorrow-and-one-that-i-am-only-beginning-to-understand-we-don/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

> [“Upon meeting Julian Morrow, one has the impression that he is a man of extraordinary sympathy and warmth. But what you call his 'Asiatic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/upon-meeting-julian-morrow-one-has-the-impression-that-he-is-a-man-of/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

[Explore all 590 Donna Tartt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

## More Beauty quotes

> [We do not want nowadays temples of worship and outward rites and ceremonies. What we really want is an Asram. We want a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/we-do-not-want-nowadays-temples-of-worship-and-outward-rites-and/)

[Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/)

> [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/)

[Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/)

> [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/)

[John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/)

> [To fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity, and still be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tool/to-fathom-the-power-to-witness-the-beauty-to-bathe-in-the-fountain-to/)

[Tool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tool/)

> [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/)

[Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/)

> [“We've all met people who are beautiful on the outside, however, when they open their mouths to speak, they have nothing of substance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/we-ve-all-met-people-who-are-beautiful-on-the-outside-however-when/)

[Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/)

> [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/)

[George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/)

> [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/)

[Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/)

> [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/)

[Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/)

> [“I already love in you your beauty, but I am only beginning to love in you that which is eternal and ever precious –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-already-love-in-you-your-beauty-but-i-am-only-beginning-to-love-in/)

[Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/)

> [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/)

[Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/)

> [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/)

Tumblr

> [Time can but make her beauty over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/time-can-but-make-her-beauty-over-again/)

[William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/)

> [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/)

[Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/)

> [“What about you? What do you do?” I needed to ask questions, draw him out. I needed to find out all the information I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-avery-ellison/what-about-you-what-do-you-do-i-needed-to-ask-questions-draw-him-out/)

[Kate Avery Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-avery-ellison/)

[Browse all 24,662 Beauty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“And I keep thinking too of the more conventional wisdom: namely, that the pursuit of pure beauty is a trap, a fast track to bitterness and sorrow, that beauty has to be wedded to something more meaningful.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Donna Tartt"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conventional-wisdom-namely-that-2/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Beauty"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conventional-wisdom-namely-that-2/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/donna-tartt-391_beauty_and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conv_2118029.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/donna-tartt-391_beauty_and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conv_2118029.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/donna-tartt-391_beauty_and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conv_2118029.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“And I keep thinking too of the more conventional wisdom: namely, that the pursuit of pure beauty is a trap…” — Donna Tartt",
                "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": "Donna Tartt",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“And I keep thinking too of...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conventional-wisdom-namely-that-2/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-i-keep-thinking-too-of-the-more-conventional-wisdom-namely-that-2/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
