--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Oh! not handsome—not at all handsome. I…" description: "\"“Oh! not handsome—not at all handsome. I thought him very plain at first, but I do not think him so plain now. One does not, you know, after a time.”\" ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/366/jane-austen-39_handsome_oh-not-handsome-not-at-all-handsome-i-th_1601704.jpg" --- # Oh! not handsome—not at all handsome. I thought him very… ![“Oh! not handsome—not at all handsome. I thought him very plain at first, but I do not think him so plain now. One does not, you know, after a time.” quote by Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/366/jane-austen-39_handsome_oh-not-handsome-not-at-all-handsome-i-th_1601704.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/366/jane-austen-39_handsome_oh-not-handsome-not-at-all-handsome-i-th_1601704.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/366/jane-austen-39_handsome_oh-not-handsome-not-at-all-handsome-i-th_1601704.jpg) > ““Oh! not handsome—not at all handsome. I thought him very plain at first, but I do not think him so plain now. One does not, you know, after a time.”” [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Initial impressions of a man change over time, revealing deeper qualities. **In simple terms:** First impressions can be misleading. Key Takeaway Give people time before judging them. Themes perception relationships growth Mood thoughtful romantic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - dating - friendship - workplace interactions Key Concepts first impressions character development time Questions to Reflect On - How have your first impressions changed? - What factors reveal deeper traits? A Different Perspective Patience is needed to see true character. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Handsome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/handsome/) [Handsome Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/handsome-thought-6092361/) [Oh Handsome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oh-handsome-3626554/) [Think Plain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-plain-4101753/) [Thought Plain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-plain-6092362/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [I've never seen a human this close before. Oh - he's very handsome, isn't he? -Ariel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/disney-princess/i-ve-never-seen-a-human-this-close-before-oh-he-s-very-handsome-isn-t/) [Disney Princess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/disney-princess/) > [“My handyman is handicapped and oh so handsome, because he’s my clone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/my-handyman-is-handicapped-and-oh-so-handsome-because-he-s-my-clone/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [To make yourself understood you have to think plain and write plain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-feather/to-make-yourself-understood-you-have-to-think-plain-and-write-plain/) [William Feather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-feather/) > [I think of myself as a plain human being who happens to be an American.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-z-hobson/i-think-of-myself-as-a-plain-human-being-who-happens-to-be-an-american/) [Laura Z. Hobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-z-hobson/) > [I think I'm plain. I'm normal. I'm plain. I try not to stand out. I don't wear colors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy-moriarty/i-think-i-m-plain-i-m-normal-i-m-plain-i-try-not-to-stand-out-i-don-t/) [Cathy Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy-moriarty/) > [Of this she was perfectly unaware; to her he was only the man who had made himself agreeable nowhere, and who had not thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/of-this-she-was-perfectly-unaware-to-her-he-was-only-the-man-who-had/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition, seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/emma-woodhouse-handsome-clever-and-rich-with-a-comfortable-home-and/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“ABOUT thirty years ago, Miss Maria Ward of Huntingdon, with only seven thousand pounds, had the good luck to captivate Sir Thomas Bertram, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/about-thirty-years-ago-miss-maria-ward-of-huntingdon-with-only-seven/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“I see no occasion for that. You and the girls may go, or you may send them by themselves, which perhaps will be still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/i-see-no-occasion-for-that-you-and-the-girls-may-go-or-you-may-send-2/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“I see no occasion for that. You and the girls may go, or you may send them by themselves, which perhaps will be still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/i-see-no-occasion-for-that-you-and-the-girls-may-go-or-you-may-send/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [An agreeable manner may set off handsome features, but can never alter plain ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/an-agreeable-manner-may-set-off-handsome-features-but-can-never-alter/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [He is also handsome," replied Elizabeth, "which a young man ought likewise to be, if he possibly can. His character is thereby complete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/he-is-also-handsome-replied-elizabeth-which-a-young-man-ought/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“He was a handsome man, not in the way of mercurial Cesare or the false angel, Morozzi, but with a calm steadiness that sat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-poole/he-was-a-handsome-man-not-in-the-way-of-mercurial-cesare-or-the-false/) [Sara Poole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-poole/) > [Books look handsome and it's a real singular experience getting to go to a bookstore. I don't want to not do that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-goldsmith/books-look-handsome-and-it-s-a-real-singular-experience-getting-to-go/) [Taylor Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-goldsmith/) > [Vienna is a handsome, lively city, and pleases me exceedingly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-chopin/vienna-is-a-handsome-lively-city-and-pleases-me-exceedingly/) [Frederic Chopin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-chopin/) ## More by Jane Austen > [Let us have the luxury of silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/let-us-have-the-luxury-of-silence/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“How earnestly did she then wish that her former opinions had been more reasonable, more moderate!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/how-earnestly-did-she-then-wish-that-her-former-opinions-had-been/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“it is very well worth-while to be tormented for two or three years of one's life, for the sake of being able to read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-is-very-well-worth-while-to-be-tormented-for-two-or-three-years-of/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [ “Everybody is taken in at some period or another. \[...\] In marriage especially. \[...\] There is not one in a hundred of either sex,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/everybody-is-taken-in-at-some-period-or-another-in-marriage/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [She knew that what Marianne and her mother conjectured one moment, they believed the next: that with them, to wish was to hope, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/she-knew-that-what-marianne-and-her-mother-conjectured-one-moment/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“…for I look upon the Frasers to be about as unhappy as most other married people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/for-i-look-upon-the-frasers-to-be-about-as-unhappy-as-most-other/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“It raises my spleen more than any thing, to have the pretence of being asked, of being given a choice, and at the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-raises-my-spleen-more-than-any-thing-to-have-the-pretence-of-being/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [her spirits wanted the solitude and silence which only numbers could give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/her-spirits-wanted-the-solitude-and-silence-which-only-numbers-could/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“But in such cases as these a good memory is unpardonable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/but-in-such-cases-as-these-a-good-memory-is-unpardonable/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“...the pleasantness of an employment does not always evince its propriety.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/the-pleasantness-of-an-employment-does-not-always-evince-its-propriety/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [Such squeamish youths as cannot bear to be connected with a little absurdity are not worth a regret.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/such-squeamish-youths-as-cannot-bear-to-be-connected-with-a-little/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“I must tell you what you will not ask, though I may wish it unsaid the next moment”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/i-must-tell-you-what-you-will-not-ask-though-i-may-wish-it-unsaid-the/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Lady Catherine seemed quite astonished at not receiving a direct answer; and Elizabeth suspected herself to be the first creature who had ever dared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/lady-catherine-seemed-quite-astonished-at-not-receiving-a-direct/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“He had suffered, and he had learnt to think, two advantages that he had never known before…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/he-had-suffered-and-he-had-learnt-to-think-two-advantages-that-he-had/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Vanity was the beginning and the end of Sir Walter Eliot's character; vanity of person and of situation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/vanity-was-the-beginning-and-the-end-of-sir-walter-eliot-s-character/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) [Explore all 2,013 Jane Austen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) ## More Handsome quotes > [Vienna is a handsome, lively city, and pleases me exceedingly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-chopin/vienna-is-a-handsome-lively-city-and-pleases-me-exceedingly/) [Frederic Chopin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-chopin/) > [Books look handsome and it's a real singular experience getting to go to a bookstore. I don't want to not do that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-goldsmith/books-look-handsome-and-it-s-a-real-singular-experience-getting-to-go/) [Taylor Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-goldsmith/) > [“He was a handsome man, not in the way of mercurial Cesare or the false angel, Morozzi, but with a calm steadiness that sat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-poole/he-was-a-handsome-man-not-in-the-way-of-mercurial-cesare-or-the-false/) [Sara Poole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-poole/) > [“opened the door. He was leaning with his arm up on the frame, and his other hand on his hip. The way he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-l-stone/opened-the-door-he-was-leaning-with-his-arm-up-on-the-frame-and-his/) [C.L. 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How a fair maid falls in love with a monster and sees the beauty of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-maitland/you-ve-heard-tales-of-beauty-and-the-beast-how-a-fair-maid-falls-in/) [Karen Maitland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-maitland/) > [“In choosing a mate, don't pick the tallest and most handsome or the most beautiful. Don't choose one just because that person raises your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-quist-milligan/in-choosing-a-mate-don-t-pick-the-tallest-and-most-handsome-or-the/) [Helen Quist Milligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-quist-milligan/) > [The general public have a warped view of the speed at which an investigation proceeds. They like to imagine tense conversations going on behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/the-general-public-have-a-warped-view-of-the-speed-at-which-an/) [Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/) > [Sir, money, money, the most charming of all things; money, which will say more in one moment than the most elegant lover can in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-fielding/sir-money-money-the-most-charming-of-all-things-money-which-will-say/) [Henry Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-fielding/) > [Now I have children of my own. They ask their mother what will I be. Will I be handsome, will I be rich?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-livingston/now-i-have-children-of-my-own-they-ask-their-mother-what-will-i-be/) [Jay Livingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-livingston/) > [You see, she was gonna be an actress and I was gonna learn to fly. 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