--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A man must sometimes laugh at himself or…" description: "\"A man must sometimes laugh at himself or go mad,’ said he. ‘Few realize it. That is why there are so many madmen in the world.\" — Rafael Sabatini" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/rafael-sabatini-10387_laughing_a-man-must-sometimes-laugh-at-himself-or_2523497.jpg" --- # A man must sometimes laugh at himself or go mad,’ said he… ![“A man must sometimes laugh at himself or go mad,’ said he. ‘Few realize it. That is why there are so many madmen in the world.” quote by Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/rafael-sabatini-10387_laughing_a-man-must-sometimes-laugh-at-himself-or_2523497.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/rafael-sabatini-10387_laughing_a-man-must-sometimes-laugh-at-himself-or_2523497.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/rafael-sabatini-10387_laughing_a-man-must-sometimes-laugh-at-himself-or_2523497.jpg) > “A man must sometimes laugh at himself or go mad,’ said he. ‘Few realize it. That is why there are so many madmen in the world.” [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self‑deprecation prevents insanity; recognizing one's absurdities keeps sanity. **In simple terms:** Laugh at yourself to stay sane. Key Takeaway Embrace humility, avoid madness. Themes humor self‑awareness mental health Mood reflective lighthearted Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - personal growth - stress management - leadership - social interactions Key Concepts psychology existentialism Questions to Reflect On - Do you mock yourself enough? - How can humor protect mental health? 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You take things personal now a days. You use to laugh and now you get mad...damn I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/lately-i-gotta-watch-what-i-say-you-take-things-personal-now-a-days/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice "You must be," said the cat, "or you wouldn't have come here.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/how-do-you-know-i-m-mad-said-alice-you-must-be-said-the-cat-or-you/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [“You're the mad one,' I said. 'If you could see yourself, hear your own voice, your music - which of course you play for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/you-re-the-mad-one-i-said-if-you-could-see-yourself-hear-your-own/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [“But I don’t want to go among mad people," Alice remarked. "Oh, you can’t help that," said the Cat: "we’re all mad here. I’m…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/but-i-don-t-want-to-go-among-mad-people-alice-remarked-oh-you-can-t-2/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > ['But I dont want to go among mad people,' Alice remarked. 'Oh, you cant help that,' said the Cat. 'Were all mad here. Im…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/but-i-dont-want-to-go-among-mad-people-alice-remarked-oh-you-cant/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [“Maybe he was as mad as he said he was, but she could see only a species of miserable fright. Suddenly, like the thud…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/maybe-he-was-as-mad-as-he-said-he-was-but-she-could-see-only-a/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Why do you persist in being so frivolous, Urgit?" "Why don't we just call it a symptom of my incipient madness?" "You're not going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-eddings/why-do-you-persist-in-being-so-frivolous-urgit-why-don-t-we-just-call/) [David Eddings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-eddings/) > [“Mad?” said Percy airily. “He’s a genius! Best wizard in the world! But he is a bit mad, yes. Potatoes, Harry?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling/mad-said-percy-airily-he-s-a-genius-best-wizard-in-the-world-but-he/) [J.K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling/) > [“You’re mad,” he said in a low voice, “if you think I would leave you now. I’ll see you safe and well no matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/you-re-mad-he-said-in-a-low-voice-if-you-think-i-would-leave-you-now/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > ['Totally mad,' he said, 'utter nonsense. But we'll do it because it's brilliant nonsense.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/totally-mad-he-said-utter-nonsense-but-we-ll-do-it-because-it-s/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“Oh, you ca'n't help that," said the Cat: "we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad." "How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/oh-you-ca-n-t-help-that-said-the-cat-we-re-all-mad-here-i-m-mad-you/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) ## More by Rafael Sabatini > [“If Mr. Blood had condescended to debate the matter with these ladies, he might have urged that having had his fill of wandering and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/if-mr-blood-had-condescended-to-debate-the-matter-with-these-ladies/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [The love that is never to be realized will often remain a mans guiding ideal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/the-love-that-is-never-to-be-realized-will-often-remain-a-mans/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [Gold has at all times been considered the best of testimonies of good faith...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/gold-has-at-all-times-been-considered-the-best-of-testimonies-of-good/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [“Peter Blood judged her- as we are all prone to do- upon insufficient knowledge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/peter-blood-judged-her-as-we-are-all-prone-to-do-upon-insufficient/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [“Mind being the seat of the soul, and literature being the expression of the mind, literature, it follows, is the soul of an age,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/mind-being-the-seat-of-the-soul-and-literature-being-the-expression/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [“Dragostea ce nu ajunge sa se materializeze niciodata ramane adesea idealul care-l ghideaza pe om.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/dragostea-ce-nu-ajunge-sa-se-materializeze-niciodata-ramane-adesea/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [Only those become weary of angling who bring nothing to it but the idea of catching fish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/only-those-become-weary-of-angling-who-bring-nothing-to-it-but-the/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [But I like my madness. There is a thrill in it unknown to such sanity as yours. ~ Book 1, Chapter 9,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/but-i-like-my-madness-there-is-a-thrill-in-it-unknown-to-such-sanity/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [“The inevitable, tragic corollary of civilization is populace.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/the-inevitable-tragic-corollary-of-civilization-is-populace/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [The idea of equality is a by-product of the sentiment of envy. Since it must always prove beyond human ower to raise the inferior…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/the-idea-of-equality-is-a-by-product-of-the-sentiment-of-envy-since/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [“Laughter broke from them. It spread into a roar of acclamation; for bluff is a weapon dear to every adventurer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/laughter-broke-from-them-it-spread-into-a-roar-of-acclamation-for/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [When all is said, a man's final judgment of his fellows must be based upon his knowledge of himself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/when-all-is-said-a-man-s-final-judgment-of-his-fellows-must-be-based/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [“Id is fery boedigal!" he said, his blue eyes twinkling. "Cabdain Blood is fond of boedry - you remember de abble-blossoms. So? Ha, ha!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/id-is-fery-boedigal-he-said-his-blue-eyes-twinkling-cabdain-blood-is/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [They opposed brute force to reason and philosophy, and battalions of foreign mercenaries to ideas. As if ideas were to be impaled on bayonets!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/they-opposed-brute-force-to-reason-and-philosophy-and-battalions-of/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [...it is human nature, I suppose, to be futile and ridiculous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/it-is-human-nature-i-suppose-to-be-futile-and-ridiculous/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) [Explore all 66 Rafael Sabatini quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) ## More Laughing quotes > [Laughing, laughing, laughing, laughing! It is the jester! A voice from the Void, to cheer poor Cicero! I accept your gift, dearest Night Mother.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/laughing-laughing-laughing-laughing-it-is-the-jester-a-voice-from-the/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [(knitting while on a motorcycle) "For several years she knitted in secret (my father would not approve; she was to concentrate on motorcycling and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-zimmermann/knitting-while-on-a-motorcycle-for-several-years-she-knitted-in/) [Elizabeth Zimmermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-zimmermann/) > [“Laugh and grow strong”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-loyola/laugh-and-grow-strong/) [Ignatius of Loyola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-loyola/) > [I really enjoy making people laugh; I've discovered that's a great technique. That's as powerful as stirring their sorrow, stirring their compassion, because that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/i-really-enjoy-making-people-laugh-i-ve-discovered-that-s-a-great/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [We do not claim that punning is legitimate wit. Wit consists in combination of ideas, punning in combination of words only. We wonder at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-hosmer/we-do-not-claim-that-punning-is-legitimate-wit-wit-consists-in/) [Harriet Hosmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-hosmer/) > [Laughter is one of the great beacons in life because we don't refract it by gunning it through our intellectual prism. What makes us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-miller/laughter-is-one-of-the-great-beacons-in-life-because-we-don-t-refract/) [Dennis Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-miller/) > [Nothing's funnier to me than laughing at myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-mcgraw/nothing-s-funnier-to-me-than-laughing-at-myself/) [Phil McGraw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-mcgraw/) > [“I hate the way you talk to me And the way you cut your hair I hate the way you drive my car I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/i-hate-the-way-you-talk-to-me-and-the-way-you-cut-your-hair-i-hate/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [The spring came suddenly, bursting upon the world as a child bursts into a room, with a laugh and a shout and hands full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/the-spring-came-suddenly-bursting-upon-the-world-as-a-child-bursts/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [For war to man, like childbirth to women, is simplifying in its emotions and activities. All the real problems of life can be put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/for-war-to-man-like-childbirth-to-women-is-simplifying-in-its/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [The major caveat in all of comedy is that it's all instinctive. There's no true criteria. There is no right or wrong. Ultimately, often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-charles/the-major-caveat-in-all-of-comedy-is-that-it-s-all-instinctive-there/) [Larry Charles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-charles/) > [In theater, one of the biggest problems when you're rehearsing comedy over and over again is that you stop laughing at each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-ashley-carter/in-theater-one-of-the-biggest-problems-when-you-re-rehearsing-comedy/) [Lauren Ashley Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-ashley-carter/) > [If somebody tells you 'History will never forgive you,' just laugh at him! Because when the history comes, you won't be here! The threat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/if-somebody-tells-you-history-will-never-forgive-you-just-laugh-at/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [We're all basically decent human beings so if 3,000 people are laughing at a joke then it's worth telling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-mack/we-re-all-basically-decent-human-beings-so-if-3-000-people-are/) [Lee Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-mack/) > [I've been a poser for f--ing years. I say, pose your arse off. You know, have a laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-connolly/i-ve-been-a-poser-for-f-ing-years-i-say-pose-your-arse-off-you-know/) [Billy Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-connolly/) [Browse all 6,780 Laughing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laughing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A man must sometimes laugh at himself or go mad,’ said he. ‘Few realize it. 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