--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What are we when we are alone? Some, when…" description: "\"What are we when we are alone? Some, when they are alone, cease to exist.\" — Eric Hoffer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/215/eric-hoffer-343_cease_what-are-we-when-we-are-alone-some-when_2001008.jpg" --- # What are we when we are alone? Some, when they are alone… ![“What are we when we are alone? Some, when they are alone, cease to exist.” quote by Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/215/eric-hoffer-343_cease_what-are-we-when-we-are-alone-some-when_2001008.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/215/eric-hoffer-343_cease_what-are-we-when-we-are-alone-some-when_2001008.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/215/eric-hoffer-343_cease_what-are-we-when-we-are-alone-some-when_2001008.jpg) > “What are we when we are alone? Some, when they are alone, cease to exist.” [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Isolation can cause some people to feel they lose their sense of self. **In simple terms:** Alone time may erode identity for some. Key Takeaway Cultivate self‑awareness when alone. Themes existentialism loneliness identity Mood reflective introspective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - solitude - therapy - creative work - spiritual practice Key Concepts self‑concept psychology Questions to Reflect On - Do you feel more or less yourself when alone? - What practices help maintain identity? A Different Perspective Some thrive in solitude and find clarity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cease/) [Cease Exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cease-exist-586526/) [Cease to exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cease-to-exist/) [Exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exist/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) ## Related quotes > [When you cease to exist, then who will you blame?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/when-you-cease-to-exist-then-who-will-you-blame/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [“...Juliana. Should you cease to exist, so would I.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-collins/juliana-should-you-cease-to-exist-so-would-i/) [Kathleen Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-collins/) > [Everything that is incomprehensible does not, however, cease to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/everything-that-is-incomprehensible-does-not-however-cease-to-exist/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Cease to exist and do not only dare to live, but actually live](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanyengwa-ndapewoshali-shapwanale/cease-to-exist-and-do-not-only-dare-to-live-but-actually-live/) [Mwanyengwa Ndapewoshali Shapwanale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanyengwa-ndapewoshali-shapwanale/) > [To lose faith in oneself is to cease to create; to cease to create is to cease to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-tisdale-hobart/to-lose-faith-in-oneself-is-to-cease-to-create-to-cease-to-create-is/) [Alice Tisdale Hobart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-tisdale-hobart/) > [The Democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-democracy-will-cease-to-exist-when-you-take-away-from-those-who/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If we one day cease to exist, what will be remarkable is that we were ever here at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-harkaway/if-we-one-day-cease-to-exist-what-will-be-remarkable-is-that-we-were/) [Nick Harkaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-harkaway/) > [Apart from pleasure, beauty also kindles imagination, hope and encouragement. 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We're gonna maybe make it very unhealthy and then we're probably gonna cease to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dinklage/i-think-this-planet-is-far-stronger-than-we-are-we-re-gonna-maybe/) [Peter Dinklage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-dinklage/) > [It appears to me impossible that I should cease to exist, or that this active, restless spirit, equally alive to joy and sorrow, should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft/it-appears-to-me-impossible-that-i-should-cease-to-exist-or-that-this/) [Mary Wollstonecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft/) > [“If your work is your self, when you cease to work, you cease to exist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-soojung-kim-pang/if-your-work-is-your-self-when-you-cease-to-work-you-cease-to-exist/) [Alex Soojung-Kim Pang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-soojung-kim-pang/) > [We cease to exist every time we go to sleep. That break in awareness includes self-awareness. If you aren't there, you won't know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rock-cowles/we-cease-to-exist-every-time-we-go-to-sleep-that-break-in-awareness/) [Rock Cowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rock-cowles/) > [“Poetry will die when love and pain cease to exist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellie-elmore/poetry-will-die-when-love-and-pain-cease-to-exist/) [Kellie Elmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellie-elmore/) > [There has always been war. War is raging throughout the world at the present moment. And there is little reason to believe that war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nachtwey/there-has-always-been-war-war-is-raging-throughout-the-world-at-the/) [James Nachtwey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nachtwey/) > [“How could a person have and do all these stupid things--clip coupons and double lock the front door--and then one day just cease to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-courtney-sullivan/how-could-a-person-have-and-do-all-these-stupid-things-clip-coupons/) [J. Courtney Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-courtney-sullivan/) ## More by Eric Hoffer > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [“We lie the loudest when we lie to ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/we-lie-the-loudest-when-we-lie-to-ourselves/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Our originality shows itself most strikingly not in what we wholly originate but in what we do with that which we borrow from others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/our-originality-shows-itself-most-strikingly-not-in-what-we-wholly/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [The creative mind is the playful mind. 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Compassion alone stands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/in-the-alchemy-of-man-s-soul-almost-all-noble-attributes-courage/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [The act of self-denial seems to confer on us the right to be harsh and merciless toward others. The impression somehow prevails that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-act-of-self-denial-seems-to-confer-on-us-the-right-to-be-harsh/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [A nation without dregs and malcontents, is orderly, decent, peaceful and pleasant, but perhaps without the seed of things to come](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/a-nation-without-dregs-and-malcontents-is-orderly-decent-peaceful-and/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Compassion alone stands apart from the continuous traffic between good and evil proceeding within us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/compassion-alone-stands-apart-from-the-continuous-traffic-between/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [There are many who find a good alibi far more attractive than an achievement. For an achievement does not settle anything permanently. We still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/there-are-many-who-find-a-good-alibi-far-more-attractive-than-an/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [A war is not won if the defeated enemy has not been turned into a friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/a-war-is-not-won-if-the-defeated-enemy-has-not-been-turned-into-a/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Man is the only creature that strives to surpass himself, and yearns for the impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/man-is-the-only-creature-that-strives-to-surpass-himself-and-yearns/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [This food-and-shelter theory concerning man's efforts is without insight. The desire for praise is more imperative than the desire for food and shelter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/this-food-and-shelter-theory-concerning-man-s-efforts-is-without/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) [Explore all 658 Eric Hoffer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) ## More Cease quotes > [So long as we fear the outside world, we must cease to think of Swaraj.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/so-long-as-we-fear-the-outside-world-we-must-cease-to-think-of-swaraj/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [In the name of Jerusalem. If I forget the extermination of the Jews, may my right hand wither, may my tongue stick to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/menachem-begin/in-the-name-of-jerusalem-if-i-forget-the-extermination-of-the-jews/) [Menachem Begin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/menachem-begin/) > [But if you will recall the history of our civil troubles, you will see half the nation bathe itself, out of piety, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-diderot/but-if-you-will-recall-the-history-of-our-civil-troubles-you-will-see/) [Denis Diderot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-diderot/) > [Metallica's the only band i've ever been in. I'm not sure that when it ends in five, ten years, I'm going to put an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lars-ulrich/metallica-s-the-only-band-i-ve-ever-been-in-i-m-not-sure-that-when-it/) [Lars Ulrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lars-ulrich/) > [Cease speaking of enemies when an achievement can kindle a great light. Solitude will transmit the message better than the murmurs of crowds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-roerich/cease-speaking-of-enemies-when-an-achievement-can-kindle-a-great/) [Nicholas Roerich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-roerich/) > [Without a function, we cease to be. So, I will write till I die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/farley-mowat/without-a-function-we-cease-to-be-so-i-will-write-till-i-die/) [Farley Mowat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/farley-mowat/) > [We have won an armistice on a single battlefield, not peace in our world. We may not now relax our guard nor cease our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/we-have-won-an-armistice-on-a-single-battlefield-not-peace-in-our/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [My child, seek those things which make for peace. Cease to stir up the King against the Church, and urge upon him a better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-child-seek-those-things-which-make-for-peace-cease-to-stir-up-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To write is to make oneself the echo of what cannot cease speaking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/to-write-is-to-make-oneself-the-echo-of-what-cannot-cease-speaking/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [Were the life of man prolonged, he would become such a proficient in villainy, that it would become necessary again to drown or to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/were-the-life-of-man-prolonged-he-would-become-such-a-proficient-in/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [When fear ceases to scare you, it cannot stay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/when-fear-ceases-to-scare-you-it-cannot-stay/) [Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/) > [We may argue eloquently that 'Honesty is the best Policy' - unfortunately, the moment honesty is adopted for the sake of policy it mysteriously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/we-may-argue-eloquently-that-honesty-is-the-best-policy-unfortunately/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [He who ceases to pray ceases to prosper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gurney-benham/he-who-ceases-to-pray-ceases-to-prosper/) [William Gurney Benham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gurney-benham/) > [For we must share, if we would keep, that blessing from above; ceasing to give, we cease to have; such is the law of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-chenevix-trench/for-we-must-share-if-we-would-keep-that-blessing-from-above-ceasing/) [Richard Chenevix Trench](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-chenevix-trench/) > [When men are unhappy, they do not imagine they can ever cease to be so; and when some calamity has fallen on them, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/when-men-are-unhappy-they-do-not-imagine-they-can-ever-cease-to-be-so/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) [Browse all 1,358 Cease quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cease/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What are we when we are alone? 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