--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I looked into your face / expecting a…" description: "\"“If I looked into your face / expecting a word or a laugh on the old conditions, / it would not be a friend who met my eye”\" — Philip Larkin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/philip-larkin-1822_friendship_if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-w_1008266.jpg" --- # If I looked into your face / expecting a word or a laugh… ![“If I looked into your face / expecting a word or a laugh on the old conditions, / it would not be a friend who met my eye” quote by Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/philip-larkin-1822_friendship_if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-w_1008266.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/philip-larkin-1822_friendship_if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-w_1008266.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/philip-larkin-1822_friendship_if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-w_1008266.jpg) > ““If I looked into your face / expecting a word or a laugh on the old conditions, / it would not be a friend who met my eye”” [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A speaker feels alienated, seeing a familiar face but perceiving no genuine connection. **In simple terms:** Feeling alienated despite familiarity. Key Takeaway Recognize and address emotional distance. Themes loneliness alienation communication Mood melancholic introspective Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - personal relationships - social gatherings Key Concepts psychology poetry human relations Questions to Reflect On - When have you felt unseen by a friend? - How can you bridge emotional gaps? A Different Perspective The quote may overgeneralize emotional distance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) ## Related quotes > [Kazan was an old friend, I met him in 1938. He picked up radio jobs for eating money, so I met him on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-widmark/kazan-was-an-old-friend-i-met-him-in-1938-he-picked-up-radio-jobs-for/) [Richard Widmark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-widmark/) > [“I never knew what a friend was until I met Geordi. He spoke to me as though I were human. He treated me no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/star-trek-the-next-generation/i-never-knew-what-a-friend-was-until-i-met-geordi-he-spoke-to-me-as/) [Star Trek The Next Generation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/star-trek-the-next-generation/) > [If your friend's friend's friend (whom you may not have even met) is obese, a smoker or a zealot of some kind then it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-h-fowler/if-your-friend-s-friend-s-friend-whom-you-may-not-have-even-met-is/) James H. Fowler > [Each of us bears the imprint of a friend met along the way; In each the trace of each.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/primo-levi/each-of-us-bears-the-imprint-of-a-friend-met-along-the-way-in-each/) [Primo Levi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/primo-levi/) > [A stranger is just a friend you never met they could end up your world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean/a-stranger-is-just-a-friend-you-never-met-they-could-end-up-your-world/) Dean > [“We meet in being, in time, and in place. The situations we are in color our experiences very much. A deep friend can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunilla-norris/we-meet-in-being-in-time-and-in-place-the-situations-we-are-in-color/) [Gunilla Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunilla-norris/) > [It was there that, through a mutual friend, I met John Waters - proving what I've always said: you meet the best people on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mink-stole/it-was-there-that-through-a-mutual-friend-i-met-john-waters-proving/) [Mink Stole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mink-stole/) > [He had once thought it was strange to have a friend you'd never met. Now it was even stranger, losing a friend you'd never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/he-had-once-thought-it-was-strange-to-have-a-friend-you-d-never-met/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Friend, we are well met indeed. I think we are a pair of fools and that we should hasten to Nildren's Peak, where I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-livingstone/friend-we-are-well-met-indeed-i-think-we-are-a-pair-of-fools-and-that/) [Ian Livingstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-livingstone/) > [“His hand was on her arm, and he could feel her skin, feel the soft warmth of it, and then when he looked down,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-quinn/his-hand-was-on-her-arm-and-he-could-feel-her-skin-feel-the-soft/) [Julia Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-quinn/) > [“Go back to what you know,” she said. “I don’t know anything,” he said. “You know me,” she said. He looked at her, his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/go-back-to-what-you-know-she-said-i-don-t-know-anything-he-said-you/) [Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/) > [It is a good rule never to look into the face of a man in the morning till you have looked into the face…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/it-is-a-good-rule-never-to-look-into-the-face-of-a-man-in-the-morning/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [“He looked into her face and tossed her sweater on the floor. "I thank God you walked out of my memory and into my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-gibson/he-looked-into-her-face-and-tossed-her-sweater-on-the-floor-i-thank/) [Rachel Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-gibson/) > [She looked up at him and her face was pale and austere in the uplight and her eyes lost in their darkly shadowed hollows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/she-looked-up-at-him-and-her-face-was-pale-and-austere-in-the-uplight/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“Panting, he looked into a face he couldn't see. "What the fuck is your problem?" "I'm bored." With that, she head-butted him right in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-ward/panting-he-looked-into-a-face-he-couldn-t-see-what-the-fuck-is-your/) [J.R. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-ward/) ## More by Philip Larkin > [Deprivation is for me what daffodils were for Wordsworth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/deprivation-is-for-me-what-daffodils-were-for-wordsworth/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [Only one ship is seeking us, a black-Sailed unfamiliar, towing at her backA huge and birdless silence. In her wakeNo waters breed or break.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/only-one-ship-is-seeking-us-a-black-sailed-unfamiliar-towing-at-her/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [And immediately Rather than words comes the thought of high windows: The sun-comprehending glass, And beyond it, the deep blue air, that shows Nothing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/and-immediately-rather-than-words-comes-the-thought-of-high-windows/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“Living toys are something novel, But it soon wears off somehow.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/living-toys-are-something-novel-but-it-soon-wears-off-somehow/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“Once I am sure there's nothing going on I step inside, letting the door thud shut. Another church: matting, seats, and stone, And little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/once-i-am-sure-there-s-nothing-going-on-i-step-inside-letting-the/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [Life is first boredom, then fear. Whether or not we use it, it goes, And leaves what something hidden from us chose, age, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/life-is-first-boredom-then-fear-whether-or-not-we-use-it-it-goes-and/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“It never worked for me. Something to do with violence A long way back, and wrong rewards, And arrogant eternity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/it-never-worked-for-me-something-to-do-with-violence-a-long-way-back/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [Seriously, I think it is a grave fault in life that so much time is wasted in social matters, because it not only takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/seriously-i-think-it-is-a-grave-fault-in-life-that-so-much-time-is/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [So many things I had thought forgotten Return to my mind with stranger pain: Like letters that arrive addressed to someone Who left the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/so-many-things-i-had-thought-forgotten-return-to-my-mind-with/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“One of the quainter quirks of life is that we shall never know who dies on the same day as we do ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/one-of-the-quainter-quirks-of-life-is-that-we-shall-never-know-who/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“I sit in my room like Miss Havisham, about whom I have been reading this week. Better the Dickens you know than the Dickens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/i-sit-in-my-room-like-miss-havisham-about-whom-i-have-been-reading/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“When I throw back my head and howl People (women mostly) say But you've always done what you want, You always get your way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/when-i-throw-back-my-head-and-howl-people-women-mostly-say-but-you-ve/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [I think a young poet, or an old poet, for that matter, should try to produce something that pleases himself personally, not only when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/i-think-a-young-poet-or-an-old-poet-for-that-matter-should-try-to/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [But superstition, like belief, must die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/but-superstition-like-belief-must-die/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“Side by side, their faces blurred, The earl and countess lie in stone, Their proper habits vaguely shown As jointed armour, stiffened pleat, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/side-by-side-their-faces-blurred-the-earl-and-countess-lie-in-stone/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) [Explore all 206 Philip Larkin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) ## More Friendship quotes > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I never believed in trying to do anything. Whatever I set out to do I found I had already accomplished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/i-never-believed-in-trying-to-do-anything-whatever-i-set-out-to-do-i/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/) Maureen Andeson > [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Friends are like stars you can't always see them, but you know they're there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknwon/friends-are-like-stars-you-can-t-always-see-them-but-you-know-they-re/) Unknwon > [I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and always had a penchant for rhyming. I started listening to hip hop through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hoodie-allen/i-ve-been-writing-songs-since-i-was-10-years-old-and-always-had-a/) [Hoodie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hoodie-allen/) > [If you love some one for who they are not for there body or how many friend so when you say I love you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknow/if-you-love-some-one-for-who-they-are-not-for-there-body-or-how-many/) Unknow > [“But my best friend from college was silent for a long time. She, of all of my friends, had seen the parade of sad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/but-my-best-friend-from-college-was-silent-for-a-long-time-she-of-all/) [Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/) > [You smile upon your friend to-day, To-day his ills are over; You hearken to the lover's say, And happy is the lover. 'Tis late…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-smile-upon-your-friend-to-day-to-day-his-ills-are-over-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“way. A true friend isn't the one that agrees with everything you say or do. A true friend is someone that has your back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shameek-speight/way-a-true-friend-isn-t-the-one-that-agrees-with-everything-you-say/) [Shameek Speight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shameek-speight/) > [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [“Kings don’t move mountains as a favor to a friend,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-whalen-turner/kings-don-t-move-mountains-as-a-favor-to-a-friend/) [Megan Whalen Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-whalen-turner/) > [I have friends and family that identify as LGBTQ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mace/i-have-friends-and-family-that-identify-as-lgbtq/) [Nancy Mace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mace/) > [“The real purpose of friendship was to discover and exploit weakness in others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-thompson/the-real-purpose-of-friendship-was-to-discover-and-exploit-weakness/) [Brian Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-thompson/) [Browse all 45,469 Friendship quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If I looked into your face / expecting a word or a laugh on the old conditions, / it would not be a friend who met my eye”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Philip Larkin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-word-or-a-laugh-on-the-old/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Friendship" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-word-or-a-laugh-on-the-old/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/philip-larkin-1822_friendship_if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-w_1008266.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/philip-larkin-1822_friendship_if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-w_1008266.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/philip-larkin-1822_friendship_if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-w_1008266.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If I looked into your face / expecting a word or a laugh on the old conditions, / it would not be a friend…” — Philip Larkin", "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": "Philip Larkin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“If I looked into your face...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-word-or-a-laugh-on-the-old/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/if-i-looked-into-your-face-expecting-a-word-or-a-laugh-on-the-old/#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 } } ] } ```