--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [I]nfidelity has a tenacity that marriage…" description: "\"“[I]nfidelity has a tenacity that marriage can only envy.”\" — Esther Perel" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/esther-perel-3265_envy_i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage_2631767.png" --- # \[I\]nfidelity has a tenacity that marriage can only envy. ![“[I]nfidelity has a tenacity that marriage can only envy.” quote by Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/esther-perel-3265_envy_i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage_2631767.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/esther-perel-3265_envy_i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage_2631767.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/esther-perel-3265_envy_i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage_2631767.png) > ““\[I\]nfidelity has a tenacity that marriage can only envy.”” [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She notes infidelity’s persistence compared to marriage. **In simple terms:** Infidelity endures more than marriage. Key Takeaway Examine why betrayal persists in relationships. Themes relationships infidelity marriage psychology Mood thoughtful analytical Type psychological relationship When to use this quote - counseling - relationship therapy - social commentary Key Concepts trust dynamics sexual desire cultural norms Questions to Reflect On - What drives infidelity in modern relationships? - How can couples strengthen commitment? A Different Perspective Generalization may ignore healthy marriages. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Envy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy/) [Infidelity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/infidelity/) [Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage/) [Tenacity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tenacity/) ## Related quotes > [“despite its widespread denunciation, infidelity has a tenacity that marriage can only envy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/despite-its-widespread-denunciation-infidelity-has-a-tenacity-that/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“Infidelity hurts. But when we grant it a special status in the hierarchy of marital misdemeanors, we risk allowing it to overshadow the egregious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/infidelity-hurts-but-when-we-grant-it-a-special-status-in-the/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“Q: Are there any secrets to long-lasting relationships?     A: Infidelity. Not the act itself, but the threat of it. For Proust, an injection of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/q-are-there-any-secrets-to-long-lasting-relationships-a-infidelity/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [To look at infidelity from the point of view of sex is a complete narrowing of the phenomenon. There's a reason that the commandment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/to-look-at-infidelity-from-the-point-of-view-of-sex-is-a-complete/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [Modern infidelity is different than traditional infidelity and sits on top of the romantic ideal that you find "the one" and that if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/modern-infidelity-is-different-than-traditional-infidelity-and-sits/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [The vast majority of unfaithful people are experiencing a conflict between their values and their behavior, and that is the mess of infidelity. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/the-vast-majority-of-unfaithful-people-are-experiencing-a-conflict/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [For most couples who come to me - especially in the aftermath of the revelation of an affair, when they are in a state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/for-most-couples-who-come-to-me-especially-in-the-aftermath-of-the/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [Adultery itself in its principle is many times nothing but a curious inquisition after, and envy of another man's enclosed pleasures: and there have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-taylor/adultery-itself-in-its-principle-is-many-times-nothing-but-a-curious/) [Jeremy Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-taylor/) > [The resilience, tenacity and zeal of our valiant air warriors is a source of pride for every Indian.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-nath-kovind/the-resilience-tenacity-and-zeal-of-our-valiant-air-warriors-is-a/) [Ram Nath Kovind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-nath-kovind/) > [“Create your environment from your best innate tenacity. Always embrace the abundance of an inspirational mentality. Eliminate distractions, clutter, and work from a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-s-spence-sr/create-your-environment-from-your-best-innate-tenacity-always-embrace/) [Joseph S. Spence Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-s-spence-sr/) > [If your plan isn't working, adjust your plan. Never give up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-martin/if-your-plan-isn-t-working-adjust-your-plan-never-give-up/) Matt Martin > [Part of what makes America strong is our resilience, tenacity, innovation and our willingness to be optimistic about our future. I know that President…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-jarrett/part-of-what-makes-america-strong-is-our-resilience-tenacity/) [Valerie Jarrett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-jarrett/) > [“Do not pray for help when you are facing adversity. Pray for wisdom, strength, and tenacity so that you can overcome it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debasish-mridha/do-not-pray-for-help-when-you-are-facing-adversity-pray-for-wisdom/) [Debasish Mridha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debasish-mridha/) > [My tenacity and determination to be true to the person I had become were sacrosanct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/goldie-hawn/my-tenacity-and-determination-to-be-true-to-the-person-i-had-become/) [Goldie Hawn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/goldie-hawn/) > [But the saddest difference between them was that Zazetsky, as Luria said, 'fought to regain his lost faculties with the indomitable tenacity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-sacks/but-the-saddest-difference-between-them-was-that-zazetsky-as-luria/) [Oliver Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-sacks/) ## More by Esther Perel > [Sometimes it has to do with other longings that are much more existential. Sometimes you go elsewhere not because you are not liking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/sometimes-it-has-to-do-with-other-longings-that-are-much-more/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [ “For \[erotically intelligent couples\], love is a vessel that contains both security and adventure, and commitment offers one of the great luxuries of life:… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/for-erotically-intelligent-couples-love-is-a-vessel-that-contains/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [It’s hard to feel attracted to someone who has abandoned her sense of autonomy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/it-s-hard-to-feel-attracted-to-someone-who-has-abandoned-her-sense-of/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [For some people, a one-night stand doesn't make any difference in a seven-year love affair. I don't believe the degree of betrayal is always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/for-some-people-a-one-night-stand-doesn-t-make-any-difference-in-a/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [I want to engage people in an honest, enlightened, and provocative conversation about the nature of erotic desire and the intricacies of intimacy and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/i-want-to-engage-people-in-an-honest-enlightened-and-provocative/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“The quality of your life ultimately depends on the quality of your relationships . . . which are basically a reflection of your sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/the-quality-of-your-life-ultimately-depends-on-the-quality-of-your/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [If you start to feel that you have given up too many parts of yourself to be with your partner, then one day you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/if-you-start-to-feel-that-you-have-given-up-too-many-parts-of/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“I regret to say that we of the FBI are powerless to act in cases of oral-genital intimacy, unless it has in some way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/i-regret-to-say-that-we-of-the-fbi-are-powerless-to-act-in-cases-of/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [You never know your partner as well as you think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/you-never-know-your-partner-as-well-as-you-think/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [On some level we trade passion for security, that's trading one illusion for another. It's a matter of degree. We can't live in constant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/on-some-level-we-trade-passion-for-security-that-s-trading-one/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“When the impulse to share becomes obligatory, when personal boundaries are no longer respected, when only the shared space of togetherness is acknowledged and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/when-the-impulse-to-share-becomes-obligatory-when-personal-boundaries/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“I do believe that the emphasis on egalitarian and respectful sex—purged of any expressions of power, aggression, and transgression—is antithetical to erotic desire for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/i-do-believe-that-the-emphasis-on-egalitarian-and-respectful-sex/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“If intimacy grows through repetition and familiarity, eroticism is numbed by repetition. It thrives on the mysterious, the novel, and the unexpected. Love is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/if-intimacy-grows-through-repetition-and-familiarity-eroticism-is/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [“She’s beautiful, too, did I mention that? She lives the life I didn’t live. I feel middle-age and middle-class around her. Nothing wrong with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/she-s-beautiful-too-did-i-mention-that-she-lives-the-life-i-didn-t/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) > [In dating, if you say no, your lover goes on to the next person. In marriage, if you say no, the person stays.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/in-dating-if-you-say-no-your-lover-goes-on-to-the-next-person-in/) [Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) [Explore all 135 Esther Perel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/) ## More Envy quotes > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [“He often remembered his dad's admonition that envy was mental theft. If you coveted another man's possessions, Dad said, then you should be willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/he-often-remembered-his-dad-s-admonition-that-envy-was-mental-theft/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“I don't envy "busy." Busy means having a schedule, not living life. What I really covet is leisure and peace of mind. Those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-lynn-hope/i-don-t-envy-busy-busy-means-having-a-schedule-not-living-life-what-i/) [Donna Lynn Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-lynn-hope/) > [There is no sweeter sound than the crumbling of one's fellow man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/there-is-no-sweeter-sound-than-the-crumbling-of-one-s-fellow-man/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [Thinking, or more precisely identification with thinking, gives rise to and maintains the ego, which, in our Western society in particular, is out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/thinking-or-more-precisely-identification-with-thinking-gives-rise-to/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“Is it not strange that the more someone has, the less he feels he has? Envy can never be sated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-wheeler/is-it-not-strange-that-the-more-someone-has-the-less-he-feels-he-has/) [Jeff Wheeler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-wheeler/) > [I avoid envy at all costs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-winkleman/i-avoid-envy-at-all-costs/) [Claudia Winkleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-winkleman/) > [Sometimes I envy painters, it is wonderful to remain in front of a bouquet of flowers a whole morning, or even longer. A photographer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edouard-boubat/sometimes-i-envy-painters-it-is-wonderful-to-remain-in-front-of-a/) [Edouard Boubat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edouard-boubat/) > [avarice breeds envy, a worm that is always gnawing, letting the avaricious enjoy neither their own nor anyone else's good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-catherine-of-siena/avarice-breeds-envy-a-worm-that-is-always-gnawing-letting-the/) [St. Catherine of Siena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-catherine-of-siena/) > [“You don’t see someone flying and you begin to bite yourself for not being able to do that. You do what you can.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/you-don-t-see-someone-flying-and-you-begin-to-bite-yourself-for-not/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [Knowledge forbidden? Suspicious, reasonless. Why should their Lord Envy them that? Can it be sin to know, Can it be death? And do they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/knowledge-forbidden-suspicious-reasonless-why-should-their-lord-envy/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [“Who would have thought you had so many supporters?" she whispered. "Not mine, my love. Yours. I had not a one till you started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-sinclair/who-would-have-thought-you-had-so-many-supporters-she-whispered-not/) [Michele Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-sinclair/) > [“Treachery is always a hairy caterpillar bred of a small butterfly called envy, no matter how lofty the principles involved.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fazil-iskander/treachery-is-always-a-hairy-caterpillar-bred-of-a-small-butterfly/) Fazil Iskander > [Yes, Clay Matthews has a long, golden, Fabio-esque flowing mane that most women would chick-slap someone for. And yes, the shiny, beautiful, dark locks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-foudy/yes-clay-matthews-has-a-long-golden-fabio-esque-flowing-mane-that/) [Julie Foudy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-foudy/) > [“I have known many true connoisseurs, with excellent tastes that range across the humanities and the culinary arts--and they never fail to have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/i-have-known-many-true-connoisseurs-with-excellent-tastes-that-range/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) [Browse all 2,111 Envy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“[I]nfidelity has a tenacity that marriage can only envy.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Esther Perel" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage-can-only-envy/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Envy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage-can-only-envy/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/esther-perel-3265_envy_i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage_2631767.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/esther-perel-3265_envy_i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage_2631767.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/esther-perel-3265_envy_i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage_2631767.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“[I]nfidelity has a tenacity that marriage can only envy.” — Esther Perel", "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": "Esther Perel", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“[I]nfidelity has a tenacity that marriage...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage-can-only-envy/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/i-nfidelity-has-a-tenacity-that-marriage-can-only-envy/#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 } } ] } ```