--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Memory is of no use to the remembered…" description: "\"“Memory is of no use to the remembered, only to those who remember. We build ourselves with memory and console ourselves with memory.”\" — Laurent Binet" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0b/laurent-binet-20586_memory_memory-is-of-no-use-to-the-remembered-on_917067.jpg" --- # Memory is of no use to the remembered, only to those who… ![“Memory is of no use to the remembered, only to those who remember. We build ourselves with memory and console ourselves with memory.” quote by Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0b/laurent-binet-20586_memory_memory-is-of-no-use-to-the-remembered-on_917067.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0b/laurent-binet-20586_memory_memory-is-of-no-use-to-the-remembered-on_917067.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b0b/laurent-binet-20586_memory_memory-is-of-no-use-to-the-remembered-on_917067.jpg) > ““Memory is of no use to the remembered, only to those who remember. We build ourselves with memory and console ourselves with memory.”” [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Memory serves the living, not the dead; it shapes identity and offers comfort, but can also trap us in the past. **In simple terms:** Memory helps us live, but can hold us back. Key Takeaway Use memory wisely, let go of harmful recollections. Themes memory identity comfort Mood reflective nostalgic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal growth - therapy - historical reflection Key Concepts psychology philosophy Questions to Reflect On - What memories empower you? - When do memories hinder progress? A Different Perspective Memory can be unreliable and selective, leading to distorted self‑perception. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Memory Console](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory-console-1388682/) [Remembered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remembered/) [Remembered Remember](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remembered-remember-703862/) [Use Remembered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use-remembered-1388680/) ## Related quotes > [“When I was me I remembered I could remember what was not there but may have been there once”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin-2/when-i-was-me-i-remembered-i-could-remember-what-was-not-there-but/) [W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/) > [“I think that's what we all want, in the end. To know that we left footprints when we passed by, however briefly. We want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-a-lancaster/i-think-that-s-what-we-all-want-in-the-end-to-know-that-we-left/) [Mike A. Lancaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-a-lancaster/) > [“If I could forget you! Is my love then a work of memory? Even if time expunged everything from its tablets, expunged even memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-ren-kierkegaard/if-i-could-forget-you-is-my-love-then-a-work-of-memory-even-if-time/) [Søren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-ren-kierkegaard/) > [“She remembered when Will had died, her agony, the long nights alone, reaching across the bed every morning when she woke up, for eighty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/she-remembered-when-will-had-died-her-agony-the-long-nights-alone/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Unless we change our ways and our direction, our greatness as a nation will soon be a footnote in the history books, a distant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/unless-we-change-our-ways-and-our-direction-our-greatness-as-a-nation/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [If I were to write my epitaph... Epitaph? Hey, shut-up Albert. I'd want to be remembered as someone who loved his sport and tried…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-ii-prince-of-monaco/if-i-were-to-write-my-epitaph-epitaph-hey-shut-up-albert-i-d-want-to/) [Albert II, Prince of Monaco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-ii-prince-of-monaco/) > [“She was every bit of everything he remembered about her, all at once and all at the same time. That was Kerry McCrae in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-kauffman/she-was-every-bit-of-everything-he-remembered-about-her-all-at-once/) [Donna Kauffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-kauffman/) > [I'd wish for my work to be remembered rather than myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-messud/i-d-wish-for-my-work-to-be-remembered-rather-than-myself/) [Claire Messud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-messud/) > [Everything you wanted to know is already inside you¦ you just haven't remembered it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/everything-you-wanted-to-know-is-already-inside-you-you-just-haven-t/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [One or two years ago, I didn't know who I was on court and I used to swear a lot. But now I've learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-federer/one-or-two-years-ago-i-didn-t-know-who-i-was-on-court-and-i-used-to/) [Roger Federer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-federer/) > [It is moonlight. Alone in the silence I ascend my stairs once more, While waves remote in pale blue starlight Crash on a white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conrad-aiken/it-is-moonlight-alone-in-the-silence-i-ascend-my-stairs-once-more/) [Conrad Aiken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conrad-aiken/) > [A vacation is like love - anticipated with pleasure, experienced with discomfort, and remembered with nostalgia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-esar/a-vacation-is-like-love-anticipated-with-pleasure-experienced-with/) [Evan Esar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-esar/) > [Belief, confidence in yourself.. the world’s your playground. Limitless. My question is... will you be remembered?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-plitt/belief-confidence-in-yourself-the-world-s-your-playground-limitless/) [Greg Plitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-plitt/) > [I don't want to be remembered as the girl who was shot. I want to be remembered as the girl who stood up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malala-yousafzai/i-don-t-want-to-be-remembered-as-the-girl-who-was-shot-i-want-to-be/) [Malala Yousafzai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malala-yousafzai/) > [So many things beat upon us in a lifetime that simply enduring may seem almost beyond us… But the test a loving God has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-b-eyring/so-many-things-beat-upon-us-in-a-lifetime-that-simply-enduring-may/) [Henry B. Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-b-eyring/) ## More by Laurent Binet > [“We always fail to talk about love’. He quickly scans the text – it’s about Stendhal. Simon is moved by the thought of Barthes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/we-always-fail-to-talk-about-love-he-quickly-scans-the-text-it-s/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“Eco listens with interest to the story of a lost manuscript for which people are being killed. He sees a man walk past holding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/eco-listens-with-interest-to-the-story-of-a-lost-manuscript-for-which/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“I’m fighting a losing battle. I can’t tell this story the way it should be told. This whole hotchpotch of characters, events, dates, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/i-m-fighting-a-losing-battle-i-can-t-tell-this-story-the-way-it/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“He liked cock, this intellectual!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/he-liked-cock-this-intellectual/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“What would you do if you ruled the world?” The gigolo replied that he would abolish all laws. Barthes said: “Even grammar?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/what-would-you-do-if-you-ruled-the-world-the-gigolo-replied-that-he/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“The homosexuals are the new Jesuits.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/the-homosexuals-are-the-new-jesuits/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“Sometimes, after all, there is a bit of justice in this mean, cruel world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/sometimes-after-all-there-is-a-bit-of-justice-in-this-mean-cruel-world/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [The good thing about writing a true story is that you don't have to worry about giving an impression of realism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/the-good-thing-about-writing-a-true-story-is-that-you-don-t-have-to/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“As Umberto Eco might say: for communicating, language is perfect; there could be nothing better. And yet, language doesn’t say everything. The body speaks,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/as-umberto-eco-might-say-for-communicating-language-is-perfect-there/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“He downs the contents of his glass in a single gulp and, looking at Simon, adds: “This is as amusing as a novel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/he-downs-the-contents-of-his-glass-in-a-single-gulp-and-looking-at/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“In the provinces, being queer is worse than being Arab.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/in-the-provinces-being-queer-is-worse-than-being-arab/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“Glory to the logos, my friends! Long live dialectics! Let the party begin! May the verb be with you!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/glory-to-the-logos-my-friends-long-live-dialectics-let-the-party/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“And it was you who created us. The notion of male homosexuality didn’t exist in ancient Greece. Socrates could bugger Alcibiades without being seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/and-it-was-you-who-created-us-the-notion-of-male-homosexuality-didn-t/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“This scene is not really useful, and on top of that I practically made it up. I don't think I'm going to keep it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/this-scene-is-not-really-useful-and-on-top-of-that-i-practically-made/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) > [“That scene, like the one before it, is perfectly believable and totally made up”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-binet/that-scene-like-the-one-before-it-is-perfectly-believable-and-totally/) [Laurent Binet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) [Explore all 23 Laurent Binet quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-binet/) ## More Memory quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [“Maybe there is something when it all ends. Maybe there is memory, memory of the person you loved, when you lived. Maybe this is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-ellison/maybe-there-is-something-when-it-all-ends-maybe-there-is-memory/) [Kate Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-ellison/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [Memory is funny. Once you hit a vein the problem is not how to remember but how to control the flow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/memory-is-funny-once-you-hit-a-vein-the-problem-is-not-how-to/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [Once upon a time. Ah forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-upon-a-time-ah-forget-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am told many children block out the memory of trauma. In fact, the healing process can only truly begin when we are willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-stone/i-am-told-many-children-block-out-the-memory-of-trauma-in-fact-the/) [Phoebe Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-stone/) > [“The whole town rushed outside to celebrate this crowded minute when the time of suffering had ended and the time of forgetting had not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-whole-town-rushed-outside-to-celebrate-this-crowded-minute-when/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I have a memory like an elephant. I remember every elephant I've ever met.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/i-have-a-memory-like-an-elephant-i-remember-every-elephant-i-ve-ever/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [Your memory is a monster; you forget - it doesn't. It simply files things away. It keeps things for you, or hides things from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/your-memory-is-a-monster-you-forget-it-doesn-t-it-simply-files-things/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [My first Olympics memory was watching Haile Gebrselassie in Sydney 2000. His sprint finish to defend his title really moved me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mo-farah/my-first-olympics-memory-was-watching-haile-gebrselassie-in-sydney/) [Mo Farah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mo-farah/) > [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/) [Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/) > [My greatest memories as a kid were playing sports with my dad and watching sports with my dad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-teixeira/my-greatest-memories-as-a-kid-were-playing-sports-with-my-dad-and/) [Mark Teixeira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-teixeira/) > [What’s the use of remembering anything? If it was unpleasant it was unpleasant and if it was pleasant it’s over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-dundy/what-s-the-use-of-remembering-anything-if-it-was-unpleasant-it-was/) [Elaine Dundy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-dundy/) > [Always remember a little thing can change everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/always-remember-a-little-thing-can-change-everything/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If God knows me I will never forget him](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trunxbeats/if-god-knows-me-i-will-never-forget-him/) [Trunxbeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trunxbeats/) [Browse all 12,248 Memory quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Memory is of no use to the remembered, only to those who remember. 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