--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Perfection. Excellence. What a passionate…" description: "\"Perfection. Excellence. What a passionate lover. But once having tasted the lips of excellence, once having given oneself to its perfection, how dreary..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fd/harlan-ellison-2133_acceptable_perfection-excellence-what-a-passionate_1500422.jpg" --- # Perfection. Excellence. What a passionate lover. But once… ![“Perfection. Excellence. What a passionate lover. But once having tasted the lips of excellence, once having given oneself to its perfection, how dreary and burdensome and filled with anomie are the remainder of one's waking hours trapped in the shackled lock-step of the merely ordinary, the barely…” quote by Harlan Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fd/harlan-ellison-2133_acceptable_perfection-excellence-what-a-passionate_1500422.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fd/harlan-ellison-2133_acceptable_perfection-excellence-what-a-passionate_1500422.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fd/harlan-ellison-2133_acceptable_perfection-excellence-what-a-passionate_1500422.jpg) > “Perfection. Excellence. What a passionate lover. But once having tasted the lips of excellence, once having given oneself to its perfection, how dreary and burdensome and filled with anomie are the remainder of one's waking hours trapped in the shackled lock-step of the merely ordinary, the barely acceptable, the just okay and not a stroke better.” [Harlan Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-ellison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Pursuing perfect excellence can become oppressive, making ordinary life feel dull and burdensome. **In simple terms:** Perfection can trap you in dissatisfaction. Key Takeaway Seek excellence but cherish the ordinary. Themes perfection excellence mundanity discontent expectations Mood melancholic contemplative serious Type literary reflective When to use this quote - artistic creation - career ambition - personal goals - daily routines Key Concepts existentialism psychology creative burnout Questions to Reflect On - What limits do you set for perfection? - How can you appreciate mediocrity? A Different Perspective Chasing flawless standards may lead to chronic dissatisfaction and loss of joy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anomie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anomie/) [Excellence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excellence/) [Lips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lips/) [Lovers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lovers/) [Passionate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passionate/) [Passionate love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passionate-love/) [Perfection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfection/) ## Related quotes > [That would be a glorious life, to addict oneself to perfection; to follow the curve of the sentence wherever it might lead, into deserts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/that-would-be-a-glorious-life-to-addict-oneself-to-perfection-to/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [Perfection is an excellence achieved with the multiple corrections in anything or everything that was earlier rated, respected and reckoned as enviable success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anuj-somany/perfection-is-an-excellence-achieved-with-the-multiple-corrections-in/) [Anuj Somany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anuj-somany/) > [I am careful not to confuse excellence with perfection. Excellence I can reach for; perfection is God's business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-fox/i-am-careful-not-to-confuse-excellence-with-perfection-excellence-i/) [Michael J. Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-fox/) > [ Achieve some perfection \[excellence\] yourself, so that you may not fall into sorrow by seeing the perfection in others. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/achieve-some-perfection-excellence-yourself-so-that-you-may-not-fall/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [I am a passionate lover of the snapshot, because of all photographic images it comes closest to truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisette-model/i-am-a-passionate-lover-of-the-snapshot-because-of-all-photographic/) [Lisette Model](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisette-model/) > [Taurus are passionate lovers. They have lots of physical stamina and this makes up for the lack of variety in bed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/taurus-are-passionate-lovers-they-have-lots-of-physical-stamina-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you have not learned to be a passionate lover, do not count your life as lived. On the day of reckoning, it will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/if-you-have-not-learned-to-be-a-passionate-lover-do-not-count-your/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [“In a way, women were asking for men to be poets and driving, passionate lovers at the same time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-james-waller/in-a-way-women-were-asking-for-men-to-be-poets-and-driving-passionate/) [Robert James Waller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-james-waller/) ## More by Harlan Ellison > [Posing the question: does the god of love use underarm deodorant, vaginal spray and fluoride toothpaste?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-ellison/posing-the-question-does-the-god-of-love-use-underarm-deodorant/) [Harlan Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-ellison/) > [They change scapegoats at the networks more regularly than some people change socks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-ellison/they-change-scapegoats-at-the-networks-more-regularly-than-some/) [Harlan Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-ellison/) > [They minute people fall in love they become liars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-ellison/they-minute-people-fall-in-love-they-become-liars/) [Harlan Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-ellison/) > [Repent, Harlequin," said the Ticktock Man. "Get stuffed," the Harlequin replied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-ellison/repent-harlequin-said-the-ticktock-man-get-stuffed-the-harlequin/) [Harlan Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-ellison/) > [“Living under the land, under the sea, in the belly of AM, whom we created...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-ellison/living-under-the-land-under-the-sea-in-the-belly-of-am-whom-we-created/) [Harlan Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-ellison/) > [I have no mouth. 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