--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The actual well seen is ideal." description: "\"The actual well seen is ideal.\" — Thomas Carlyle" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/827/thomas-carlyle-207_actual_the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal-2677326_2677326.png" --- # The actual well seen is ideal. ![“The actual well seen is ideal.” quote by Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/827/thomas-carlyle-207_actual_the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal-2677326_2677326.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/827/thomas-carlyle-207_actual_the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal-2677326_2677326.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/827/thomas-carlyle-207_actual_the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal-2677326_2677326.png) > “The actual well seen is ideal.” [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The ideal is often imagined but rarely realized; reality falls short of perfection. **In simple terms:** Idealism rarely matches reality. Key Takeaway Accept imperfection, aim for improvement. Themes philosophy realism idealism expectation Mood reflective pragmatic Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - personal goals - societal standards - project planning Key Concepts human limitation perfection pursuit Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance ideal and realistic goals? - What compromises are acceptable? A Different Perspective Perfection can be paralyzing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actual/) [Actual Seen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actual-seen-2552248/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Ideal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideal/) [Idealism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idealism/) [Ideals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideals/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Seen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seen/) [Seen Ideal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seen-ideal-2552247/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) ## Related quotes > [All human things do require to have an ideal in them; to have some soul in them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/all-human-things-do-require-to-have-an-ideal-in-them-to-have-some/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [The Ideal is in thyself, the impediments too is in thyself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-ideal-is-in-thyself-the-impediments-too-is-in-thyself/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [You cannot chase a dollar and an ideal at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-o-malley/you-cannot-chase-a-dollar-and-an-ideal-at-the-same-time/) [Austin O'Malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-o-malley/) > [“If you ask me, my ideal would be the society based on liberty, equality and fraternity. An ideal society should be mobile and full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhimrao-ramji-ambedkar/if-you-ask-me-my-ideal-would-be-the-society-based-on-liberty-equality/) [Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhimrao-ramji-ambedkar/) > [I see only the ideal. But no ideals have ever been fully successful on this earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isadora-duncan/i-see-only-the-ideal-but-no-ideals-have-ever-been-fully-successful-on/) [Isadora Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isadora-duncan/) > [The ideal self is the wish to be like God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-barbarulo/the-ideal-self-is-the-wish-to-be-like-god/) [Michael Barbarulo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-barbarulo/) > [Idealism only works in an ideal world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/idealism-only-works-in-an-ideal-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Alas! we know that ideals can never be completely embodied in practice. Ideals must ever lie a great way off--and we will thankfully content…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/alas-we-know-that-ideals-can-never-be-completely-embodied-in-practice/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [The American ideal is, after all, that everyone should be as much alike as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-baldwin/the-american-ideal-is-after-all-that-everyone-should-be-as-much-alike/) [James A. Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-baldwin/) > [Live for an ideal, and that one ideal alone. Let it be so great, so strong, that there may be nothing else left in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/live-for-an-ideal-and-that-one-ideal-alone-let-it-be-so-great-so/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [In many ways, a degree in the history of ideas is the ideal training for an aspiring writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-fortier/in-many-ways-a-degree-in-the-history-of-ideas-is-the-ideal-training/) [Anne Fortier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-fortier/) > [Now is the time to lead your ideal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-cousineau/now-is-the-time-to-lead-your-ideal-life/) [Phil Cousineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-cousineau/) > [I think in an ideal world, one would be able to do everything, however, we don't live in an ideal world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-graziadei/i-think-in-an-ideal-world-one-would-be-able-to-do-everything-however/) [Michael Graziadei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-graziadei/) > [I've always worked closely with the designers and whoever's making the costumes. Comfort is the last thing you want on your mind when you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristi-yamaguchi/i-ve-always-worked-closely-with-the-designers-and-whoever-s-making/) [Kristi Yamaguchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristi-yamaguchi/) > [my definition of the ideal man is 'that particular man with whom a woman happens to be in love at that particular time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-boothe-luce/my-definition-of-the-ideal-man-is-that-particular-man-with-whom-a/) [Clare Boothe Luce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-boothe-luce/) ## More by Thomas Carlyle > [O thou that pinest in the imprisonment of the Actual, and criest bitterly to the gods for a kingdom wherein to rule and create,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/o-thou-that-pinest-in-the-imprisonment-of-the-actual-and-criest/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Whose school-hours are all the days and nights of our existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/whose-school-hours-are-all-the-days-and-nights-of-our-existence/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [No sadder proof can be given by a man of his own littleness than disbelief in great men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/no-sadder-proof-can-be-given-by-a-man-of-his-own-littleness-than/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Fame, we may understand, is no sure test of merit, but only a probability of such: it is an accident, not a property, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/fame-we-may-understand-is-no-sure-test-of-merit-but-only-a/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [The sincere alone can recognize sincerity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-sincere-alone-can-recognize-sincerity/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Be a pattern to others, and then all will go well; for as a whole city is affected by the licentious passions and vices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/be-a-pattern-to-others-and-then-all-will-go-well-for-as-a-whole-city/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [The glory of a workman, still more of a master workman, that he does his work well, ought to be his most precious possession;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-glory-of-a-workman-still-more-of-a-master-workman-that-he-does/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [All human things do require to have an ideal in them; to have some soul in them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/all-human-things-do-require-to-have-an-ideal-in-them-to-have-some/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Insurrection, never so necessary, is a most sad necessity; and governors who wait for that to instruct them are surely getting into the fatalest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/insurrection-never-so-necessary-is-a-most-sad-necessity-and-governors/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [What is philosophy but a continual battle against custom?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/what-is-philosophy-but-a-continual-battle-against-custom/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Let Time and Chance combine, combine! Let Time and Chance combine! The fairest love from heaven above, That love of yours was mine, My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/let-time-and-chance-combine-combine-let-time-and-chance-combine-the/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Thought will not work except in silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/thought-will-not-work-except-in-silence/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [The public is anold woman.Let her maunderand mumble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-public-is-anold-woman-let-her-maunderand-mumble/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Does not every true man feel that he is himself made higher by doing reverence to what is really above him?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/does-not-every-true-man-feel-that-he-is-himself-made-higher-by-doing/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [The press is the fourth estate of the realm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-press-is-the-fourth-estate-of-the-realm/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) [Explore all 917 Thomas Carlyle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) ## More Actual quotes > [Imagination is a pretty powerful thing, and when you're in the moment and you're riding a train and you're asked to look scared, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pine/imagination-is-a-pretty-powerful-thing-and-when-you-re-in-the-moment/) [Chris Pine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pine/) > [Unlike the actual, the fictional explains itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/unlike-the-actual-the-fictional-explains-itself/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [To cover politics in Washington allows you to live in the very, very wide gap between what the actual truth is, and how people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leibovich/to-cover-politics-in-washington-allows-you-to-live-in-the-very-very/) [Mark Leibovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leibovich/) > [If the first bite is with the eye and the second with the nose, some people will never take that third, actual bite if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yotam-ottolenghi/if-the-first-bite-is-with-the-eye-and-the-second-with-the-nose-some/) [Yotam Ottolenghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yotam-ottolenghi/) > [All my notebooks would be filled with lyrics instead of actual notes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/koffee/all-my-notebooks-would-be-filled-with-lyrics-instead-of-actual-notes/) [Koffee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/koffee/) > [In the U.S., it's like, you start with a great script, and then on set - not everybody, but definitely in the Apatow group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hader/in-the-u-s-it-s-like-you-start-with-a-great-script-and-then-on-set/) [Bill Hader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hader/) > [Seeing the actual, 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe', I absolutely loved it. It became one of my favorite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-poulter/seeing-the-actual-the-chronicles-of-narnia-the-lion-the-witch-and-the/) [Will Poulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-poulter/) > [All actual life is encounter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-buber/all-actual-life-is-encounter/) [Martin Buber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-buber/) > [I heard I won 'best butt crack' on television recently. It's true. I did it, you guys. I made it. I wish I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-edelstein/i-heard-i-won-best-butt-crack-on-television-recently-it-s-true-i-did/) [Lisa Edelstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-edelstein/) > [Technically and logically speaking, actual Victorian science fiction writers cannot be dubbed 'steampunks.' Although they utilized many of the same tropes and touchstones employed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-di-filippo/technically-and-logically-speaking-actual-victorian-science-fiction/) [Paul Di Filippo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-di-filippo/) > [Ten years ago, TV cookery shows were about a man or a woman following recipes. Now, it's all about journeys and campaigns and less…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drummond-money-coutts/ten-years-ago-tv-cookery-shows-were-about-a-man-or-a-woman-following/) [Drummond Money-Coutts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drummond-money-coutts/) > [I've had years of psychiatry, and I ask about every six months - it's sort of like getting your oil checked - I ask,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-lowe/i-ve-had-years-of-psychiatry-and-i-ask-about-every-six-months-it-s/) [Rob Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-lowe/) > [Although skin color is undoubtedly the most salient signal of racial identity in America, other actual or imagined bodily features have also been seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-kennedy/although-skin-color-is-undoubtedly-the-most-salient-signal-of-racial/) [Randall Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-kennedy/) > [I cannot remember a time when the question of why people behave as they do was not intensely interesting to me. The desire to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/i-cannot-remember-a-time-when-the-question-of-why-people-behave-as/) [Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/) > [Walmart and other big-boxers could become the center of gravity for the conservation of goods, employ people with actual know-how, and develop deeper, longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gansky/walmart-and-other-big-boxers-could-become-the-center-of-gravity-for/) [Lisa Gansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gansky/) [Browse all 306 Actual quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actual/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The actual well seen is ideal.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Carlyle" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Actual" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/827/thomas-carlyle-207_actual_the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal-2677326_2677326.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/827/thomas-carlyle-207_actual_the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal-2677326_2677326.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/827/thomas-carlyle-207_actual_the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal-2677326_2677326.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The actual well seen is ideal.” — Thomas Carlyle", "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": "Thomas Carlyle", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The actual well seen is ideal.", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-actual-well-seen-is-ideal/#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 } } ] } ```