--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They had tried doing it by themselves in…" description: "\"“They had tried doing it by themselves in her room with a cheap onion, but it wasn't the same. You needed an audience. It was so much easier to cry in ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0aa/gunter-grass-3046_business_they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in_300222.png" --- # They had tried doing it by themselves in her room with a… ![“They had tried doing it by themselves in her room with a cheap onion, but it wasn't the same. You needed an audience. It was so much easier to cry in company. It gave you a real sense of brotherhood in sorrow when to the right and left of you and in the gallery overhead your fellow students were…” quote by Günter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0aa/gunter-grass-3046_business_they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in_300222.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0aa/gunter-grass-3046_business_they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in_300222.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0aa/gunter-grass-3046_business_they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in_300222.png) > ““They had tried doing it by themselves in her room with a cheap onion, but it wasn't the same. You needed an audience. It was so much easier to cry in company. It gave you a real sense of brotherhood in sorrow when to the right and left of you and in the gallery overhead your fellow students were all crying their hearts out.”” [Günter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Shared sorrow creates communal bonds; audience amplifies emotional release. **In simple terms:** Crying together builds brotherhood. Key Takeaway Find community in shared emotions. Themes solidarity empathy community grief Mood poignant introspective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - education - support groups - artistic performances Key Concepts collective catharsis social bonding Questions to Reflect On - Can you find support without an audience? - How does shared grief impact healing? A Different Perspective Reliance on others may hinder personal coping. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) ## Related quotes > [Tis a strange thing, that the only friends I have I found in the same way, lying flat in the meadows, crying as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-george-speare/tis-a-strange-thing-that-the-only-friends-i-have-i-found-in-the-same/) [Elizabeth George Speare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-george-speare/) > [While the godly father and mother spews poison, the baby crying for help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/while-the-godly-father-and-mother-spews-poison-the-baby-crying-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Break up was not made for you to cry.. But to take you away from the wrong man who you thought was the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/break-up-was-not-made-for-you-to-cry-but-to-take-you-away-from-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You took my happiness with you and left this horrible sadness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-took-my-happiness-with-you-and-left-this-horrible-sadness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I love walking in rain coz no one knows that I m crying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idreesbhat/i-love-walking-in-rain-coz-no-one-knows-that-i-m-crying/) Idreesbhat > [When you watch movies and you see people cry from happiness, I've never cried from happiness before in my life. So when I'm crying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-edwards/when-you-watch-movies-and-you-see-people-cry-from-happiness-i-ve/) [Leon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-edwards/) > [When you are not there in my life its like: Shoes without shoe laces A letter without a stamp A flower with no roots…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-are-not-there-in-my-life-its-like-shoes-without-shoe-laces-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I’m desperate to prevent her tears, but not because I’m noble or anything. I’m kind of a contagion cryer. You know how when one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-yoon/i-m-desperate-to-prevent-her-tears-but-not-because-i-m-noble-or/) [Nicola Yoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-yoon/) > [“I swallow hard and yank out my earbuds. I push the tears back down. I'm sick of crying every time I see or hear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-woodfolk/i-swallow-hard-and-yank-out-my-earbuds-i-push-the-tears-back-down-i-m/) Ashley Woodfolk > [Sometimes you have to laugh to keep from crying or getting overly angry or to maintain control.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-haysbert/sometimes-you-have-to-laugh-to-keep-from-crying-or-getting-overly/) [Dennis Haysbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-haysbert/) > [Maybe that was why she couldn't cry, she realized, staring dry-eyed at the ceiling. Because what was the point in crying when there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/maybe-that-was-why-she-couldn-t-cry-she-realized-staring-dry-eyed-at/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [And then theres always the crying and the weeping that we hear-children, women, even men. And these images and these sounds are always with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiane-amanpour/and-then-theres-always-the-crying-and-the-weeping-that-we-hear/) [Christiane Amanpour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiane-amanpour/) > [ That's probably why my face was looking so crazy when I was crying \[in "Hardball"\] because it was some real. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-b-jordan/that-s-probably-why-my-face-was-looking-so-crazy-when-i-was-crying-in/) [Michael B. Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-b-jordan/) > [Skies are crying, I am watching Catching tear drops in my hands Only silence as it's ending Like we never had a chance Do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unkown/skies-are-crying-i-am-watching-catching-tear-drops-in-my-hands-only/) Unkown > [U dount need eny cuz when u get in a relaishondhip u love it forever not for crying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/no-athors-name-i-made-it/u-dount-need-eny-cuz-when-u-get-in-a-relaishondhip-u-love-it-forever/) No Athors Name I Made It ## More by Günter Grass > [Melancholy has ceased to be an individual phenomenon, an exception. It has become the class privilege of the wage earner, a mass state of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/melancholy-has-ceased-to-be-an-individual-phenomenon-an-exception-it/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [Melancholy and utopia are heads and tails of the same coin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/melancholy-and-utopia-are-heads-and-tails-of-the-same-coin/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [If work and leisure are soon to be subordinated to this one utopian principle - absolute busyness - then utopia and melancholy will come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/if-work-and-leisure-are-soon-to-be-subordinated-to-this-one-utopian/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [I have often supported Israel, I have often visited the country and want the country to exist and at last find peace with its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/i-have-often-supported-israel-i-have-often-visited-the-country-and/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [Whenever there has been talk of exterminating rats, others, who were not rats, have been exterminated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/whenever-there-has-been-talk-of-exterminating-rats-others-who-were/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [“You can begin a story in the middle and create confusion by striking out boldly, backward and forward. You can be modern, put aside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/you-can-begin-a-story-in-the-middle-and-create-confusion-by-striking/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [There must be reasons why we men are so hipped on breasts as if we'd all been weaned too soon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/there-must-be-reasons-why-we-men-are-so-hipped-on-breasts-as-if-we-d/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [Often I had to imagine the things I needed. I learned very early to read amidst noise. And so I started writing and drawing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/often-i-had-to-imagine-the-things-i-needed-i-learned-very-early-to/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [Art is hard for a puritan to understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/art-is-hard-for-a-puritan-to-understand/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [What does a river like the Vistula carry away with it? Everything that goes to pieces: wood, glass, pencils, pacts ... chairs, bones, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/what-does-a-river-like-the-vistula-carry-away-with-it-everything-that/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [Love That’s it: The cashless commerce. The blanket always too short. The loose connexion. To search behind the horizon. To brush fallen leaves with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/love-that-s-it-the-cashless-commerce-the-blanket-always-too-short-the/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [ \[To be an artist,\] this desire to conquer all with images. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/to-be-an-artist-this-desire-to-conquer-all-with-images/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [After the collapse of socialism, capitalism remained without a rival. This unusual situation unleashed its greedy and - above all - its suicidal power.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/after-the-collapse-of-socialism-capitalism-remained-without-a-rival/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [“Suppose you're teaching math. You assume that parallel lines meet at infinity. You'll admit that adds up to something like transcendence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/suppose-you-re-teaching-math-you-assume-that-parallel-lines-meet-at/) [Günter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [I have seen and drawn dying, poisoned worlds. I published a book of drawings called 'Death of Wood' about one such world, on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/i-have-seen-and-drawn-dying-poisoned-worlds-i-published-a-book-of/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) [Explore all 128 Günter Grass quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) ## More Business quotes > [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/) [Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/) > [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/) [Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/) [Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/) > [Many early-stage entrepreneurs make one simple mistake: Describing this 'big picture' in vague concepts and words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-nagaraj/many-early-stage-entrepreneurs-make-one-simple-mistake-describing/) [Sunil Nagaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-nagaraj/) > [Nobody has a crystal ball, and part of evolving a business plan is to say, 'I might have said we're going left, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-kavanaugh/nobody-has-a-crystal-ball-and-part-of-evolving-a-business-plan-is-to/) [Ryan Kavanaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-kavanaugh/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [ “\[S\]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-the-possible-irrelevance-of/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) > [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [ If the State does not acquire supremacy over \[vast private\] enterprises, it becomes their puppet, and they become the real State. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/if-the-state-does-not-acquire-supremacy-over-vast-private-enterprises/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/) [Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/) > [I'm not into business at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-mercury/i-m-not-into-business-at-all/) [Freddie Mercury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-mercury/) > [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) [Browse all 39,016 Business quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“They had tried doing it by themselves in her room with a cheap onion, but it wasn't the same. You needed an audience. It was so much easier to cry in company. It gave you a real sense of brotherhood in sorrow when to the right and left of you and in the gallery overhead your fellow students were all crying their hearts out.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Günter Grass" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in-her-room-with-a-cheap-onion/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Business" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in-her-room-with-a-cheap-onion/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0aa/gunter-grass-3046_business_they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in_300222.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0aa/gunter-grass-3046_business_they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in_300222.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0aa/gunter-grass-3046_business_they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in_300222.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“They had tried doing it by themselves in her room with a cheap onion, but it wasn't the same. You needed an…” — Günter Grass", "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": "Günter Grass", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“They had tried doing it by...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in-her-room-with-a-cheap-onion/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/they-had-tried-doing-it-by-themselves-in-her-room-with-a-cheap-onion/#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 } } ] } ```