--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They walked on rather aimlessly. He hoped…" description: "\"“They walked on rather aimlessly. He hoped she wouldn't notice he was touched, because he wouldn't have known how to explain why. Here lay the great di..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b6/patrick-white-15190_aesthetics_they-walked-on-rather-aimlessly-he-hoped_3218440.jpg" --- # They walked on rather aimlessly. He hoped she wouldn't… ![“They walked on rather aimlessly. He hoped she wouldn't notice he was touched, because he wouldn't have known how to explain why. Here lay the great discrepancy between aesthetic truth and sleazy reality.” quote by Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b6/patrick-white-15190_aesthetics_they-walked-on-rather-aimlessly-he-hoped_3218440.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b6/patrick-white-15190_aesthetics_they-walked-on-rather-aimlessly-he-hoped_3218440.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b6/patrick-white-15190_aesthetics_they-walked-on-rather-aimlessly-he-hoped_3218440.jpg) > ““They walked on rather aimlessly. He hoped she wouldn't notice he was touched, because he wouldn't have known how to explain why. Here lay the great discrepancy between aesthetic truth and sleazy reality.”” [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A character feels disconnected, fearing exposure of his inner feelings, highlighting the gap between idealized perception and harsh reality. **In simple terms:** He hides his emotions, showing the clash between beauty and truth. Key Takeaway Recognize and accept authentic feelings. Themes identity vulnerability reality appearance truth Mood reflective melancholic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal relationships - self‑reflection - artistic critique Key Concepts psychology existentialism social perception Questions to Reflect On - How do you conceal true feelings? - What costs arise from pretending? A Different Perspective Emotions can be suppressed, leading to misunderstanding. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aesthetics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aesthetics/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [I was repelled by the sleazy reality of the totalitarian countries: politicians were shameless. There were corruption, pollution, shoddy goods, long lines, and suicide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonin-kratochvil/i-was-repelled-by-the-sleazy-reality-of-the-totalitarian-countries/) Antonin Kratochvil > [“Some people keep wandering aimlessly from womb to tomb. They seek nothing and achieve nothing.-RVM”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rvm/some-people-keep-wandering-aimlessly-from-womb-to-tomb-they-seek/) RVM > [“Aimlessly It pounds the shore. White and aimless signals. No One listens to poetry. — from "Thing Language”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-spicer/aimlessly-it-pounds-the-shore-white-and-aimless-signals-no-one/) [Jack Spicer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-spicer/) > [They talked aimlessly back and forth, each speaking for the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/they-talked-aimlessly-back-and-forth-each-speaking-for-the-other/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [We can, if we so choose, wander aimlessly over the continent of the arbitrary. Rootless as some winged seed blown about on a serendipitous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/we-can-if-we-so-choose-wander-aimlessly-over-the-continent-of-the-2/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Wandering through life aimlessly will bring you much frustration.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wandering-through-life-aimlessly-will-bring-you-much-frustration/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A line comes into being. It goes out for a walk, so to speak, aimlessly for the sake of the walk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-klee/a-line-comes-into-being-it-goes-out-for-a-walk-so-to-speak-aimlessly/) [Paul Klee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-klee/) > [“When you are one of several, then you have lost your freedom; you cannot send for your traveling boots whenever you wish, you cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/when-you-are-one-of-several-then-you-have-lost-your-freedom-you/) [SOREN KIERKEGAARD](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [“Sometimes you simply need to drift aimlessly, in order to reach the destination of aim.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-suggs/sometimes-you-simply-need-to-drift-aimlessly-in-order-to-reach-the/) [Lionel Suggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-suggs/) > [“Without purpose, we're zombies aimlessly roaming the earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-mostafa/without-purpose-we-re-zombies-aimlessly-roaming-the-earth/) [Ahmed Mostafa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-mostafa/) > [“I was wondering aimlessly; too many road were open...too many resolves, too complex, allowed of being taken. I took...by far the simplest of them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmond-rostand/i-was-wondering-aimlessly-too-many-road-were-open-too-many-resolves/) [Edmond Rostand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmond-rostand/) > [“By wandering aimlessly, all places became equal, and it no longer mattered where he was.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/by-wandering-aimlessly-all-places-became-equal-and-it-no-longer/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [Until there was you, I wandered aimlessly. For a long time, like a little child, I will cry in anticipation of you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ko-joon-hee/until-there-was-you-i-wandered-aimlessly-for-a-long-time-like-a/) Ko Joon-hee > [I aimlessly travel, meaning I have no agenda other than to get small in the world, be quiet and observe people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walton-goggins/i-aimlessly-travel-meaning-i-have-no-agenda-other-than-to-get-small/) [Walton Goggins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walton-goggins/) > [“Strolling down a white-graveled walk to the cliff above the ocean, he let his eyes rove aimlessly over the expanse of sea and sand:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-thompson/strolling-down-a-white-graveled-walk-to-the-cliff-above-the-ocean-he/) [Jim Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-thompson/) ## More by Patrick White > [“At times his arrogance did resolve itself into simplicity, though it was difficult, especially for strangers, to distinguish these occasions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/at-times-his-arrogance-did-resolve-itself-into-simplicity-though-it/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [I developed the habit of writing novels behind a closed door, or at my uncle's, on the dining table.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/i-developed-the-habit-of-writing-novels-behind-a-closed-door-or-at-my/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [“There are moments when the eyes flow into each other. Then the souls are wrapped around each other across a distance”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/there-are-moments-when-the-eyes-flow-into-each-other-then-the-souls/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [“The worst thing about love between human beings is that when you are prepared to love them they don't want it; when they do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/the-worst-thing-about-love-between-human-beings-is-that-when-you-are/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [In fact I enjoyed every minute of my life at King's, especially the discovery of French and German literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/in-fact-i-enjoyed-every-minute-of-my-life-at-king-s-especially-the/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [Because he had nothing to hide, he did perhaps appear to have forfeited a little of his strength. But that is the irony of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/because-he-had-nothing-to-hide-he-did-perhaps-appear-to-have/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [She would have liked to sit upon a rock and listen to words, not of any man, but detached, mysterious, poetic words that she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/she-would-have-liked-to-sit-upon-a-rock-and-listen-to-words-not-of/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [“Superficially my war was a comfortable exercise in futility carried out in a grand Scottish hotel amongst the bridge players and swillers of easy-come-by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/superficially-my-war-was-a-comfortable-exercise-in-futility-carried/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [To understand the stars would spoil their appearance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/to-understand-the-stars-would-spoil-their-appearance/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [My father and mother were second cousins, though they did not meet till shortly before their marriage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/my-father-and-mother-were-second-cousins-though-they-did-not-meet/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [Then about 1951 I began writing again, painfully, a novel I called in the beginning A Life Sentence on Earth, but which developed into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/then-about-1951-i-began-writing-again-painfully-a-novel-i-called-in/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [“Where have you been, Theodora?," Mrs Goodman asked. "Walking, Mother." "And whom did you see?" Mrs Goodman flung her grammar like a stone. "I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/where-have-you-been-theodora-mrs-goodman-asked-walking-mother-and/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [I expect we are all jealous of the women in their past, but how much less exciting if the women had not kept the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/i-expect-we-are-all-jealous-of-the-women-in-their-past-but-how-much/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [Probably induced by the asthma, I started reading and writing early on, my literary efforts from the age of about nine running chiefly to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/probably-induced-by-the-asthma-i-started-reading-and-writing-early-on/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) > [“He himself, he realized, had always been most abominably frightened, even at the height of his divine power, a frail god upon a rickety…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-white/he-himself-he-realized-had-always-been-most-abominably-frightened/) [Patrick White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) [Explore all 44 Patrick White quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-white/) ## More Aesthetics quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/) [Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/) > [As a result of reading science fiction when I was eight, I grew up with an interest in music, architecture, city planning, transportation, politics,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/as-a-result-of-reading-science-fiction-when-i-was-eight-i-grew-up/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Pleasure is by no means an infallible critical guide, but it is the least fallible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/pleasure-is-by-no-means-an-infallible-critical-guide-but-it-is-the/) [W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/) > [ Probably the high-watermark of \[Bob\] Dylan's career came after he plugged in his guitar ("Judas!" one fan shouted during a concert) and exploded American… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-michaelson/probably-the-high-watermark-of-bob-dylan-s-career-came-after-he/) [Jay Michaelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-michaelson/) > [Road cycling, especially up mountains. It's the heady mixture of endorphins and aesthetics that I love. My wife does it too, and being with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-kemp/road-cycling-especially-up-mountains-it-s-the-heady-mixture-of/) [Gary Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-kemp/) > [“No man sings as beautifully as when his song is accompanied by a woman’s voice.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-payne/no-man-sings-as-beautifully-as-when-his-song-is-accompanied-by-a/) [Roman Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-payne/) > [ \[Alexei Nemov\] has the best feel for the aesthetics of the sport. He doesn't just do a skill; he makes it look gorgeous. Some… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-vidmar/alexei-nemov-has-the-best-feel-for-the-aesthetics-of-the-sport-he/) [Peter Vidmar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-vidmar/) > [The great work of art is the complete banality, and the fault with most banalities is that they are not banal enough. Banality here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asger-jorn/the-great-work-of-art-is-the-complete-banality-and-the-fault-with/) [Asger Jorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asger-jorn/) > [I find the aesthetics of the 20th century hopelessly barren.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/i-find-the-aesthetics-of-the-20th-century-hopelessly-barren/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [For it is a mad world and it will get madder if we allow the minorities, be they dwarf or giant, orangutan or dolphin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/for-it-is-a-mad-world-and-it-will-get-madder-if-we-allow-the/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [We’re surrounded by anonymous, poorly made objects. It’s tempting to think it’s because the people who use them don’t care-just like the people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-ive/we-re-surrounded-by-anonymous-poorly-made-objects-it-s-tempting-to/) [Jonathan Ive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-ive/) > [After a certain high level of technical skill is achieved science and art tend to coalesce in aesthetics, plasticity, and form. The greatest scientists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/after-a-certain-high-level-of-technical-skill-is-achieved-science-and/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [There's only so much you can do until you get on set and see the aesthetics of what you're dealing with. 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