--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've often found myself preferring…" description: "\"I've often found myself preferring second-rate people to supposedly superior people, simply and solely because of their uncontrollable tendency to bang..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d3/francoise-sagan-3194_bangs_i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-secon_529013.jpg" --- # I've often found myself preferring second-rate people to… ![“I've often found myself preferring second-rate people to supposedly superior people, simply and solely because of their uncontrollable tendency to bang themselves against the sides of life's vast lampshade like fireflies or moths.” quote by Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d3/francoise-sagan-3194_bangs_i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-secon_529013.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d3/francoise-sagan-3194_bangs_i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-secon_529013.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d3/francoise-sagan-3194_bangs_i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-secon_529013.jpg) > “I've often found myself preferring second-rate people to supposedly superior people, simply and solely because of their uncontrollable tendency to bang themselves against the sides of life's vast lampshade like fireflies or moths.” [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often choose flawed companions over ideal ones because they are more relatable and less intimidating. **In simple terms:** Choosing imperfect over perfect. Key Takeaway Embrace authenticity over perfection. Themes authenticity choice human nature Mood thoughtful analytical Type philosophical observational When to use this quote - friendships - dating - team building Key Concepts philosophy social psychology Questions to Reflect On - Why do we fear perfection? - What value do imperfect people bring? A Different Perspective Idealizing perfection can alienate genuine connections. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Firefly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firefly/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Second rate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/second-rate/) ## Related quotes > [There is no shame in preferring happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/there-is-no-shame-in-preferring-happiness/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“Could Stephen have met men on equal terms, she would always have chosen them as her companions; she preferred them because of their blunt,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/radclyffe-hall/could-stephen-have-met-men-on-equal-terms-she-would-always-have/) [Radclyffe Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/radclyffe-hall/) > [It's not about preferring someone, it's about whose ideas are more close to you and whose ideas are more welcomed in Russian public opinion.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dmitry-peskov/it-s-not-about-preferring-someone-it-s-about-whose-ideas-are-more/) [Dmitry Peskov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dmitry-peskov/) > [“I have spent most of my life preferring books to people,” Irene said sharply. “Just because I like a few specific people doesn’t change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/genevieve-cogman/i-have-spent-most-of-my-life-preferring-books-to-people-irene-said/) [Genevieve Cogman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/genevieve-cogman/) > [“Sometimes she feels like a third gender- preferring primary colors to pastels, the radio to singing. At least she's all mermaid: never gets tired…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/sometimes-she-feels-like-a-third-gender-preferring-primary-colors-to/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [He must understand that if he is the world's finest plum and someone he loves does not like plums, he has the choice of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-buscaglia/he-must-understand-that-if-he-is-the-world-s-finest-plum-and-someone/) [Leo Buscaglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-buscaglia/) > [If an enterprise does not aspire to be the best of its kind, it will attract second-rate employees, and it will be soon forgotten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/if-an-enterprise-does-not-aspire-to-be-the-best-of-its-kind-it-will/) [Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/) > [Love is like those second-rate hotels where all the luxury is in the lobby.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-jean-toulet/love-is-like-those-second-rate-hotels-where-all-the-luxury-is-in-the/) Paul-Jean Toulet > [If a company is second rate, the logo will eventually be perceived as second rate. It is foolhardy to believe that a logo will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-rand/if-a-company-is-second-rate-the-logo-will-eventually-be-perceived-as/) [Paul Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-rand/) > [It is a melancholy experience for a professional mathematician to find himself writing about mathematics. The function of a mathematician is to do something,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-h-hardy/it-is-a-melancholy-experience-for-a-professional-mathematician-to/) [G. H. Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-h-hardy/) > [In Formula One, the car can make a difference in a way that a driver cannot. Whereas Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna spent their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-jacques/in-formula-one-the-car-can-make-a-difference-in-a-way-that-a-driver/) [Martin Jacques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-jacques/) > [Why in the hell do journalists insist on coming up with a second rate Freudian evaluation on my lyrics when 90% of the time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-cobain/why-in-the-hell-do-journalists-insist-on-coming-up-with-a-second-rate/) [Kurt Cobain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-cobain/) > [“Nothing is more painful to me than the disdain with which people treat second-rate authors, as if there were room only for the first-raters.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-augustin-sainte-beuve/nothing-is-more-painful-to-me-than-the-disdain-with-which-people/) [Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-augustin-sainte-beuve/) > [Always be a first-rate version of yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audrey-hepburn/always-be-a-first-rate-version-of-yourself/) [Audrey Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audrey-hepburn/) > [You can compromise on anything else in your life but love. It's the one time where under no circumstances should you let yourself have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-sykes/you-can-compromise-on-anything-else-in-your-life-but-love-it-s-the/) [Oliver Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-sykes/) ## More by Francoise Sagan > [It is healthier to see the good points of others than to analyze our own bad ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/it-is-healthier-to-see-the-good-points-of-others-than-to-analyze-our/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [“Every little girl knows about love. It is only her capacity to suffer from it that increases.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/every-little-girl-knows-about-love-it-is-only-her-capacity-to-suffer/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [Writing is just having a sheet of paper, a pen and not a shadow of an idea of what you are going to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/writing-is-just-having-a-sheet-of-paper-a-pen-and-not-a-shadow-of-an/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [“Nicole had put on weight. This is the effect which, in three cases out of four, unhappiness has upon women. The process of eating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/nicole-had-put-on-weight-this-is-the-effect-which-in-three-cases-out/) [Françoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [Art must take reality by surprise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/art-must-take-reality-by-surprise/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [“We always want someone we've treated badly to be gay. It's less upsetting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/we-always-want-someone-we-ve-treated-badly-to-be-gay-it-s-less/) [Françoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [A love affair based on jealousy is doomed from the start ... It is certanly a sign of love, but it's a sign that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/a-love-affair-based-on-jealousy-is-doomed-from-the-start-it-is/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [“There is a certain kind of stupidity reserved for women's dealings with men.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/there-is-a-certain-kind-of-stupidity-reserved-for-women-s-dealings/) [Françoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [One partner is always more in love than the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/one-partner-is-always-more-in-love-than-the-other/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [Life has confirmed for me the thoughts and impressions I had when I was 18, as if it was all intuition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/life-has-confirmed-for-me-the-thoughts-and-impressions-i-had-when-i/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [It would be bad form for me to describe people I don't know and don't understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/it-would-be-bad-form-for-me-to-describe-people-i-don-t-know-and-don-t/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [Whisky, gambling and Ferraris are better than housework.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/whisky-gambling-and-ferraris-are-better-than-housework/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [Illness is the opposite of freedom. It makes everything impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/illness-is-the-opposite-of-freedom-it-makes-everything-impossible/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [“She said she didn't love him, and he said it didn't matter, and the poverty of their words brought tears to their eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/she-said-she-didn-t-love-him-and-he-said-it-didn-t-matter-and-the/) [Françoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [Art must take reality by surprise. It takes those moments which are for us merely a moment, plus a moment, plus another moment, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/art-must-take-reality-by-surprise-it-takes-those-moments-which-are/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) [Explore all 111 Francoise Sagan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) ## More Bangs quotes > [The very first company I started failed with a great bang. The second one failed a little bit less, but still failed. The third…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-levchin/the-very-first-company-i-started-failed-with-a-great-bang-the-second/) [Max Levchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-levchin/) > [Between the idea And the reality Between the motion And the act Falls the Shadow For Thine is the Kingdom Between the conception And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/between-the-idea-and-the-reality-between-the-motion-and-the-act-falls/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [About 120 million of us place the big bang 2,500 years after the Babylonians and Sumerians learned to brew beer. If our polls are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/about-120-million-of-us-place-the-big-bang-2-500-years-after-the/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [And you've actually watched it yourself?' I asked. 'Willingly?' Sure. I had to see it, you know? Besides we should be safe. Only one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-westerfeld/and-you-ve-actually-watched-it-yourself-i-asked-willingly-sure-i-had/) [Scott Westerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-westerfeld/) > [He owned an expensive camera that required thought before you pressed the shutter, and I quickly became his favorite subject, round-faced, missing teeth, my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jhumpa-lahiri/he-owned-an-expensive-camera-that-required-thought-before-you-pressed/) [Jhumpa Lahiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jhumpa-lahiri/) > [Tune your television to any channel it doesn't receive and about 1 percent of the dancing static you see is accounted for by this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/tune-your-television-to-any-channel-it-doesn-t-receive-and-about-1/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Insect politics, indifferent universe. Bang your head against the wall, but apathy is worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-henley/insect-politics-indifferent-universe-bang-your-head-against-the-wall/) [Don Henley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-henley/) > [When people can't abide things as they are, when they can't abide the present, they do one of two things ... either they ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/when-people-can-t-abide-things-as-they-are-when-they-can-t-abide-the/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [I give money to Unicef because I like the 'bang for your buck' aspect. Here's $10, go and save 1,000 kids from blindness!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emo-philips/i-give-money-to-unicef-because-i-like-the-bang-for-your-buck-aspect/) [Emo Philips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emo-philips/) > [how can he love me then not? He went,he ran. And I cannot bring him back. Yet I left the door metaphorically wide open,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freya-north/how-can-he-love-me-then-not-he-went-he-ran-and-i-cannot-bring-him/) [Freya North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freya-north/) > [ Bill Prady and Chuck Lorre, the guys who run that show \[Big Bang Theory\], are really funny and really smart, and the cast is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brent-spiner/bill-prady-and-chuck-lorre-the-guys-who-run-that-show-big-bang-theory/) [Brent Spiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brent-spiner/) > [Working on television is like being shot out of a cannon. They cram you all up with rehearsals, then someone lights a fuse and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tallulah-bankhead/working-on-television-is-like-being-shot-out-of-a-cannon-they-cram/) [Tallulah Bankhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tallulah-bankhead/) > [Everybody was going along thinking that it was a day like any other day, and bang, down went the Twin Towers. Changed everything. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/everybody-was-going-along-thinking-that-it-was-a-day-like-any-other/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [I don't trust anyone who hasn't been self-destructiv e in some way, and who hasn't gone through some sort of bout of self-loathing. You've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-depp/i-don-t-trust-anyone-who-hasn-t-been-self-destructiv-e-in-some-way/) [Johnny Depp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-depp/) > [She folded her arms and then shouted, "Right you thieving scunners! How dare you steal Miss Treason's funeral meats!" "Oh, waily, waily, it's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/she-folded-her-arms-and-then-shouted-right-you-thieving-scunners-how/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) Browse all 462 Bangs quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I've often found myself preferring second-rate people to supposedly superior people, simply and solely because of their uncontrollable tendency to bang themselves against the sides of life's vast lampshade like fireflies or moths.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Francoise Sagan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-second-rate-people-to-supposedly/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bangs" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-second-rate-people-to-supposedly/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d3/francoise-sagan-3194_bangs_i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-secon_529013.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d3/francoise-sagan-3194_bangs_i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-secon_529013.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d3/francoise-sagan-3194_bangs_i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-secon_529013.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I've often found myself preferring second-rate people to supposedly superior people, simply and solely…” — Francoise Sagan", "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": "Francoise Sagan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I've often found myself preferring second-rate...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-second-rate-people-to-supposedly/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-second-rate-people-to-supposedly/#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 } } ] } ```