Attraction Quote by Marcel Proust
““Among all the modes by which love is brought into being, among all the agents which disseminate that blessed bane, there are few so efficacious as this gust of feverish agitation that sweeps over us from time to time. For then the die is cast, the person whose company we enjoy at that moment is the person we shall henceforward love. It is not even necessary for that person to have attracted us, up till then, more than or even as much as others. All that was needed was that our predilection should become exclusive. And that condition is fulfilled when — in this moment of deprivation — the quest for the pleasures we enjoyed in his or her company is suddenly replaced by an anxious, torturing need, whose object is the person alone, an absurd, irrational need which the laws of this world make it impossible to satisfy and difficult to assuage — the insensate, agonising need to possess exclusively.””
About This Quote
Source Novel: In Search of Lost Time, Volume 1, 1913
Intense, fleeting passion can create an exclusive, irrational desire for someone, even without prior deep attraction.
In simple terms: Sudden passion makes us obsess over a person.
Key Takeaway
Recognize and examine impulsive infatuations.
Themes
love
desire
obsession
irrationality
Mood
longing
conflicted
Type
romantic
philosophical
When to use this quote
- first crush
- unexpected attraction
- relationship jealousy
Key Concepts
psychology
attachment theory
romantic idealism
Questions to Reflect On
- What triggers your sudden fixation on someone?
- How can you differentiate between genuine love and fleeting obsession?
A Different Perspective
Such intense feelings may be temporary and not reflect lasting compatibility.
![“For her [Françoise], wealth was like a necessary condition without which virtue would lack both merit and charm. She made so little distinction between the two that she came to see their qualities as interchangeable, expecting material comfort from virtue and moral edification from wealth.” quote by Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/573/marcel-proust-114_character_for-her-fran-oise-wealth-was-like-a-nece_2687.jpg)
