--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They were completely vague. They…" description: "\"“They were completely vague. They expressed everything and nothing. 'It is the Æolian harp of style,' thought Julien. 'Amid the most lofty thoughts abo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stendhal-1379_death_they-were-completely-vague-they-expresse_370913.jpg" --- # They were completely vague. They expressed everything and… ![“They were completely vague. They expressed everything and nothing. 'It is the Æolian harp of style,' thought Julien. 'Amid the most lofty thoughts about annihilation, death, the infinite, etc., I can see no reality save a shocking fear of ridicule.” quote by Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stendhal-1379_death_they-were-completely-vague-they-expresse_370913.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stendhal-1379_death_they-were-completely-vague-they-expresse_370913.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stendhal-1379_death_they-were-completely-vague-they-expresse_370913.jpg) > ““They were completely vague. They expressed everything and nothing. 'It is the Æolian harp of style,' thought Julien. 'Amid the most lofty thoughts about annihilation, death, the infinite, etc., I can see no reality save a shocking fear of ridicule.”” [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator feels that lofty philosophical musings lack concrete reality, reduced to fear of ridicule. **In simple terms:** High ideas feel empty without tangible truth. Key Takeaway Ground your thoughts in reality. Themes philosophy existentialism fear artistic expression Mood introspective critical Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - academic debate - creative writing - personal introspection Key Concepts nihilism absurdity self‑doubt Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance abstract thought with concrete experience? - What prevents you from fearing ridicule? A Different Perspective Ideas can become meaningless without authentic experience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Metaphor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metaphor/) [Peer pressure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peer-pressure/) [Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prose/) [Vague](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vague/) ## Related quotes > [“These gentlemen, although of the highest nobility,' thought Julien, 'are not in the least boring like the people who come to dine with M.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/these-gentlemen-although-of-the-highest-nobility-thought-julien-are/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [“The perversity of woman!' thought Julien. 'What pleasure, what instinct leads them to betray us?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-perversity-of-woman-thought-julien-what-pleasure-what-instinct/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The tyranny of public opinion (and what an opinion!) is as fatuous in the small towns of France as it is in the United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/the-tyranny-of-public-opinion-and-what-an-opinion-is-as-fatuous-in/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [I believe more follies are committed out of complaisance to the world, than in following our own inclinations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wortley-montagu/i-believe-more-follies-are-committed-out-of-complaisance-to-the-world/) [Mary Wortley Montagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wortley-montagu/) > [I cannot think of a better way to spread the faith. No thundering from a pulpit, no condemnation from bad churches, no peer pressure,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/i-cannot-think-of-a-better-way-to-spread-the-faith-no-thundering-from/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [It's tough for parents to talk to children about heavy-weight topics such as peer pressure, drugs and morality if they don't already have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-a-bednar/it-s-tough-for-parents-to-talk-to-children-about-heavy-weight-topics/) [David A. Bednar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-a-bednar/) > [The egg of a bird hatches only when the chick within is ready](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liam-williams/the-egg-of-a-bird-hatches-only-when-the-chick-within-is-ready/) Liam Williams > [We must now brace ourselves for disquisitions on peer pressure, adolescent anomie, and rage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/we-must-now-brace-ourselves-for-disquisitions-on-peer-pressure/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [“It's of some interest that the lively arts of the millenial U.S.A. treat anhedonia and internal emptiness as hip and cool. It's maybe the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/it-s-of-some-interest-that-the-lively-arts-of-the-millenial-u-s-a/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [“Fashion is one of the greatest forms of manipulation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-gerard-trotman/fashion-is-one-of-the-greatest-forms-of-manipulation/) [Wayne Gerard Trotman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-gerard-trotman/) > [Of course, peer pressure has a strong positive component. It provides the social cohesion that allows the very development of communal affiliation. But peer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-d-hayes/of-course-peer-pressure-has-a-strong-positive-component-it-provides/) Charles D. Hayes > [“Deprivation or overstimulation, combined with fear and peer pressure, are the conversion tools of many religions. A loud Pentecostal service, an Evangelical revival, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darrel-ray/deprivation-or-overstimulation-combined-with-fear-and-peer-pressure/) [Darrel Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darrel-ray/) > [It's not peer pressure if I decide to do it. it's MY choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-not-peer-pressure-if-i-decide-to-do-it-it-s-my-choice/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There's peer pressure of not being respected of having a certain amount of money, but if you know who you are, then you see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-idk/there-s-peer-pressure-of-not-being-respected-of-having-a-certain/) Jay IDK > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) ## More by Stendhal > [At a distance, we cannot conceive of the authority of a despot who knows all his subjects on sight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/at-a-distance-we-cannot-conceive-of-the-authority-of-a-despot-who/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [The pleasures and the cares of the luckiest ambition, even of limitless power, are nothing next to the intimate happiness that tenderness and love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/the-pleasures-and-the-cares-of-the-luckiest-ambition-even-of/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [The more a race is governed by its passions, the less it has acquired the habit of cautious and reasoned argument, the more intense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/the-more-a-race-is-governed-by-its-passions-the-less-it-has-acquired/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [The tyranny of public opinion (and what an opinion!) is as fatuous in the small towns of France as it is in the United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/the-tyranny-of-public-opinion-and-what-an-opinion-is-as-fatuous-in/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [In love, unlike most other passions, the recollection of what you have had and lost is always better than what you can hope for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/in-love-unlike-most-other-passions-the-recollection-of-what-you-have/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [“The footman burst in, announcing, 'Monsieur le Duc de ---.' 'Hold your tongue, you fool,' said the Duke as he entered the room. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/the-footman-burst-in-announcing-monsieur-le-duc-de-hold-your-tongue/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [Signs cannot be represented, in a spy's report, so damningly as words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/signs-cannot-be-represented-in-a-spy-s-report-so-damningly-as-words/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [“If you think of paying court to those in power, your eternal ruin is assured.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/if-you-think-of-paying-court-to-those-in-power-your-eternal-ruin-is/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [Your career will be a painful one. I divine something in you which offends the vulgar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/your-career-will-be-a-painful-one-i-divine-something-in-you-which/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [On a cold winter morning a cigar fortifies the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/on-a-cold-winter-morning-a-cigar-fortifies-the-soul/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [A forty-year-old woman is only something to men who have loved her in her youth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/a-forty-year-old-woman-is-only-something-to-men-who-have-loved-her-in/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [Perhaps men who cannot love passionately are those who feel the effect of beauty most keenly; at any rate this is the strongest impression…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/perhaps-men-who-cannot-love-passionately-are-those-who-feel-the/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [Who knows whether it is not true that phosphorus and mind are not the same thing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/who-knows-whether-it-is-not-true-that-phosphorus-and-mind-are-not-the/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [“Could anything possibly be more humorous than believing in the depth or in the depravity of the Parisian character?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/could-anything-possibly-be-more-humorous-than-believing-in-the-depth/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [The idea which tyrants find most useful is the idea of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/the-idea-which-tyrants-find-most-useful-is-the-idea-of-god/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) [Explore all 184 Stendhal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) ## More Death quotes > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [I do not want to live at the cost of the life even of a snake. I should let him bite me to death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-do-not-want-to-live-at-the-cost-of-the-life-even-of-a-snake-i/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [Retirement? You're talking about death, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-altman/retirement-you-re-talking-about-death-right/) [Robert Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-altman/) > [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/) [Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/) > [“What did you see?” she asked gently. His brow furrowed, as if he could not understand the question. Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) J. Anthony Torino > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) Alan W. Powers > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [I love life. I love life to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-riva/i-love-life-i-love-life-to-death/) [Emmanuelle Riva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-riva/) > [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/) [Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/) [Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“They were completely vague. They expressed everything and nothing. 'It is the Æolian harp of style,' thought Julien. 'Amid the most lofty thoughts about annihilation, death, the infinite, etc., I can see no reality save a shocking fear of ridicule.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stendhal" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/they-were-completely-vague-they-expressed-everything-and-nothing-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Death" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/they-were-completely-vague-they-expressed-everything-and-nothing-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stendhal-1379_death_they-were-completely-vague-they-expresse_370913.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stendhal-1379_death_they-were-completely-vague-they-expresse_370913.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03d/stendhal-1379_death_they-were-completely-vague-they-expresse_370913.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“They were completely vague. They expressed everything and nothing. 'It is the Æolian harp of style,' thought…” — Stendhal", "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": "Stendhal", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“They were completely vague. They expressed...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/they-were-completely-vague-they-expressed-everything-and-nothing-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/they-were-completely-vague-they-expressed-everything-and-nothing-it/#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 } } ] } ```