Cry Quote by Richard Yates
“He found it so easy and so pleasant to cry that he didn’t try to stop for a while, until he realized he was forcing his sobs a little, exaggerating their depth with unnecessary shudders. … The whole point of crying is to quit before you coined it up. The whole point of grief itself was to cut it out while it was still honest, while it still meant something. Because the thing was so easily corrupted”
About This Quote
Source Novel: The Good Children, 1979
Crying is portrayed as a natural, honest release, but forced emotion becomes performative, losing authenticity and becoming corrupted.
In simple terms: Crying should be genuine, not forced.
Key Takeaway
Allow authentic emotions, avoid performative grief.
Themes
emotion
authenticity
grief
performance
Mood
somber
introspective
Type
literary
philosophical
When to use this quote
- therapy session
- loss of a
- artistic expression
- personal reflection
Key Concepts
psychology
literature
humanity
Questions to Reflect On
- When have you forced an emotion?
- How can you honor genuine feeling?
A Different Perspective
May romanticize suffering as necessary for art.
![“That's probably why my face was looking so crazy when I was crying [in "Hardball"] because it was some real.” quote by Michael B. Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/26f/michael-b-jordan-3540_crazy_that-s-probably-why-my-face-was-looking_4152.jpg)
![“The most important thing I learned [...] was that when a person dies he only appears to die. He is still very much alive in the past, so it is very silly for people to cry at his funeral. All moments, past, present and future, always have existed, always will exist.” quote by Gavin Extence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/89d/gavin-extence-17798_alive_the-most-important-thing-i-learned-was-t_8160.jpg)