---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The reason why a work of genius is not…"
description: "\"The reason why a work of genius is not easily admired from the first is that the man who has created it is extraordinary, that few other men resemble h..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/829/marcel-proust-114_capable_the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-e_1188597.jpg"
---

#  The reason why a work of genius is not easily admired from…

![“The reason why a work of genius is not easily admired from the first is that the man who has created it is extraordinary, that few other men resemble him. It is his work itself that, by fertilising the rare minds capable of understanding it, will make them increase and multiply.” quote by Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/829/marcel-proust-114_capable_the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-e_1188597.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/829/marcel-proust-114_capable_the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-e_1188597.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/829/marcel-proust-114_capable_the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-e_1188597.jpg)

> “The reason why a work of genius is not easily admired from the first is that the man who has created it is extraordinary, that few other men resemble him. It is his work itself that, by fertilising the rare minds capable of understanding it, will make them increase and multiply.”

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Genius work is hard to appreciate initially because its creator is extraordinary; the work nurtures rare minds, leading to intellectual growth.

**In simple terms:** Genius is hard to grasp at first.

Key Takeaway

Seek depth over immediate admiration.

Themes

genius creativity intellectual growth rarity

Mood

inquisitive respectful

Type

educational philosophical

When to use this quote

- literary analysis
- creative mentorship
- academic curricula
- innovation labs

Key Concepts

philosophy art criticism education

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we make genius more accessible?
- What role does education play in nurturing rare minds?

A Different Perspective

Not everyone can grasp the work, leading to elitism.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/)

## Related quotes

> [There is nothing in the world so much admired as a man who knows how to bear unhappiness with courage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-nothing-in-the-world-so-much-admired-as-a-man-who-knows-how/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“she's the genius, she can easily talk to him i'm a lunatic who stalks him”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/priyanka-dhar/she-s-the-genius-she-can-easily-talk-to-him-i-m-a-lunatic-who-stalks/)

Priyanka Dhar

> [Many who later lost faith in Fidel Castro can remember how they once admired the man who needed just a dozen men to launch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-gjelten/many-who-later-lost-faith-in-fidel-castro-can-remember-how-they-once/)

[Tom Gjelten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-gjelten/)

> [Dog is much admired by Man because he believes in the hand which feeds him. A perfect set-up. For 13 cents a day you've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/dog-is-much-admired-by-man-because-he-believes-in-the-hand-which/)

[Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/)

> [“The tension was growing between them. Sully was keenly aware of Moor’s magnetism, but challenged the attraction he felt for the man. “Here you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mock-suns/the-tension-was-growing-between-them-sully-was-keenly-aware-of-moor-s/)

Mock Suns

> [“By 1951, Herbert Hoover was the fifth-most-admired man in the country. Asked how he’d redeemed himself after being turned into a villain, Hoover gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brady-carlson/by-1951-herbert-hoover-was-the-fifth-most-admired-man-in-the-country/)

[Brady Carlson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brady-carlson/)

> [All the extraordinary men I have known were extraordinary in their own estimation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woodrow-wilson/all-the-extraordinary-men-i-have-known-were-extraordinary-in-their/)

[Woodrow Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woodrow-wilson/)

> [It is strange that only extraordinary men make the discoveries, which later appear so easy and simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/it-is-strange-that-only-extraordinary-men-make-the-discoveries-which/)

[Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/)

> [All men are ordinary men; the extraordinary men are those who know it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/all-men-are-ordinary-men-the-extraordinary-men-are-those-who-know-it/)

[Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/)

> [A L L men are ORDINARY men; the EXTRAORDINARY men are those who KNOW it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton-3/a-l-l-men-are-ordinary-men-the-extraordinary-men-are-those-who-know-it/)

[G K Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton-3/)

> [All the extraordinary men I have ever known were chiefly extraordinary in their own estimation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woodrow-wilson/all-the-extraordinary-men-i-have-ever-known-were-chiefly/)

[Woodrow Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woodrow-wilson/)

> [“Ordinary men earns responsibility towards their family, extraordinary men earns duty towards their nation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/ordinary-men-earns-responsibility-towards-their-family-extraordinary/)

[Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/)

> [Some men seem remarkable to the world in whom neither their wives nor their valets saw anything extraordinary. Few men have been admired by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/some-men-seem-remarkable-to-the-world-in-whom-neither-their-wives-nor/)

[Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/)

> [Those men who are commended by everybody must be very extraordinary men; or, which is more probable, very inconsiderable men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sir-fulke-greville/those-men-who-are-commended-by-everybody-must-be-very-extraordinary/)

[Sir Fulke Greville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sir-fulke-greville/)

> [“I think that you appreciate that there are extraordinary men and women and extraordinary moments when history leaps forward on the backs of these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-carter/i-think-that-you-appreciate-that-there-are-extraordinary-men-and/)

[Chris Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-carter/)

## More by Marcel Proust

> [“machinery' of life at Versailles; and was able, too, to persuade herself that her silence, a shade of good humour or of arrogance on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/machinery-of-life-at-versailles-and-was-able-too-to-persuade-herself/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [ “For her \[Françoise\], wealth was like a necessary condition without which virtue would lack both merit and charm. She made so little distinction between… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/for-her-fran-oise-wealth-was-like-a-necessary-condition-without-which/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [Knowing does not always allow us to prevent, but at least the things that we know, we hold them, if not in our hands,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/knowing-does-not-always-allow-us-to-prevent-but-at-least-the-things/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [Death is in truth an illness from which we recover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/death-is-in-truth-an-illness-from-which-we-recover/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [The bonds that unite another person to our self exist only in our mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/the-bonds-that-unite-another-person-to-our-self-exist-only-in-our-mind/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [...a writer's works, like the water in an artesian well, mount to a height which is in proportion to the depth to which suffering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/a-writer-s-works-like-the-water-in-an-artesian-well-mount-to-a-height/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [“Then from those profound slumbers we awake in a dawn, not knowing who we are, being nobody, newly born, ready for anything, the brain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/then-from-those-profound-slumbers-we-awake-in-a-dawn-not-knowing-who/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [“Art extracted from the most familiar reality does indeed exist and its domain is perhaps the largest of any.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/art-extracted-from-the-most-familiar-reality-does-indeed-exist-and/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [I find very reasonable the Celtic belief that the souls of our dearly departed are trapped in some inferior being, in an animal, aplant,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/i-find-very-reasonable-the-celtic-belief-that-the-souls-of-our-dearly/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [“When you heard anyone in the middle of a talk which was being deliberately kept off the Affair announce furtively some piece of political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/when-you-heard-anyone-in-the-middle-of-a-talk-which-was-being/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [“We betroth ourselves by proxy, and then feel obliged to marry the intermediary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/we-betroth-ourselves-by-proxy-and-then-feel-obliged-to-marry-the/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [“But the old lady on the contrary, far from justifying her daughter’s fears, felt every time someone of her own age “disappeared” that she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/but-the-old-lady-on-the-contrary-far-from-justifying-her-daughter-s/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [Often it is just lack of imagination that keeps a man from suffering very much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/often-it-is-just-lack-of-imagination-that-keeps-a-man-from-suffering/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [“When we are nice to others, we generally lose all claim to their respect.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/when-we-are-nice-to-others-we-generally-lose-all-claim-to-their/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

> [“Nobility is often no more than the inner aspect which our egotistical feelings assume when we have not yet named and classified them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/nobility-is-often-no-more-than-the-inner-aspect-which-our-egotistical/)

[Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

[Explore all 1,113 Marcel Proust quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/)

## More Admired quotes

> [To me, true style icons have been few and far between. Elizabeth Taylor comes to mind. I never got to meet her while she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coco-rocha/to-me-true-style-icons-have-been-few-and-far-between-elizabeth-taylor/)

[Coco Rocha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coco-rocha/)

> [Most women you know are very much interested in the man who is reputed to be deeply admired by other women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-desmond/most-women-you-know-are-very-much-interested-in-the-man-who-is/)

[Arthur Desmond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-desmond/)

> [The creation of George Smiley, the retired spy recalled to hunt for just such a high-ranking mole in 'Tinker, Tailor,' was extremely personal. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/the-creation-of-george-smiley-the-retired-spy-recalled-to-hunt-for/)

[John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/)

> [I suppose I'm led to do so by the fact of what happened to my contemporaries - people whom I've admired, people who I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-woodcock/i-suppose-i-m-led-to-do-so-by-the-fact-of-what-happened-to-my/)

[George Woodcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-woodcock/)

> [I always admired virtue - but I could never imitate it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-always-admired-virtue-but-i-could-never-imitate-it/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I've always looked at guys who I've admired, like John Williams and Lalo Schifrin and Max Steiner, and looked at the choices they made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-giacchino/i-ve-always-looked-at-guys-who-i-ve-admired-like-john-williams-and/)

[Michael Giacchino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-giacchino/)

> [Admired as a saint, defined by my rank. Combined with my strength, my time and my length.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-wayne/admired-as-a-saint-defined-by-my-rank-combined-with-my-strength-my/)

[Lil Wayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-wayne/)

> [ \[On her father's death:\] Gone was the person who had known me better than anyone else on earth and who had loved and admired… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-brody/on-her-father-s-death-gone-was-the-person-who-had-known-me-better/)

[Jane Brody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-brody/)

> [I've always admired actors such as Tabu, Nandita Das and Shabana Azmi and I'd like to do the kind of roles that they have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanam-saeed/i-ve-always-admired-actors-such-as-tabu-nandita-das-and-shabana-azmi/)

[Sanam Saeed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanam-saeed/)

> [In life, if you are intelligent then you will be admired but if you are prominent then you are envied meanwhile if you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeka/in-life-if-you-are-intelligent-then-you-will-be-admired-but-if-you/)

[Jeka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeka/)

> [ He \[A. J. Balfour\] was eminently one of the Cole Porter school of famous men, who only fell to rise again. Picking himself up… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-balfour/he-a-j-balfour-was-eminently-one-of-the-cole-porter-school-of-famous/)

[Arthur Balfour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-balfour/)

> [She never felt sorry for herself, and that was something I decided I admired most in people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeannette-walls/she-never-felt-sorry-for-herself-and-that-was-something-i-decided-i/)

[Jeannette Walls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeannette-walls/)

> [Celebrity is never more admired than by the negligent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/celebrity-is-never-more-admired-than-by-the-negligent/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [I have loved, adored and admired Irrfan Khan's work. Some of his movies are remarkable. So, working with him has been an honor and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiku-sharda/i-have-loved-adored-and-admired-irrfan-khan-s-work-some-of-his-movies/)

[Kiku Sharda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiku-sharda/)

> [What! nothing grand and noble to be admired, obeyed, copied? Ah, the lack is not without you, but within you!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-mcnair-wright/what-nothing-grand-and-noble-to-be-admired-obeyed-copied-ah-the-lack/)

[Julia McNair Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-mcnair-wright/)

Browse all 392 Admired quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The reason why a work of genius is not easily admired from the first is that the man who has created it is extraordinary, that few other men resemble him. It is his work itself that, by fertilising the rare minds capable of understanding it, will make them increase and multiply.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Marcel Proust"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-easily-admired-from-the-first/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Admired"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-easily-admired-from-the-first/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/829/marcel-proust-114_capable_the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-e_1188597.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/829/marcel-proust-114_capable_the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-e_1188597.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/829/marcel-proust-114_capable_the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-e_1188597.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The reason why a work of genius is not easily admired from the first is that the man who has created it is…” — Marcel Proust",
                "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": "Marcel Proust",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The reason why a work of...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-easily-admired-from-the-first/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/the-reason-why-a-work-of-genius-is-not-easily-admired-from-the-first/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
