--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...the figure near at hand suffers on…" description: "\"...the figure near at hand suffers on such occasions, because it shows up its sorriness without shade; while vague figures afar off are honored, in tha..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/thomas-hardy-410_afar_the-figure-near-at-hand-suffers-on-such_1238810.jpg" --- # ...the figure near at hand suffers on such occasions… ![“...the figure near at hand suffers on such occasions, because it shows up its sorriness without shade; while vague figures afar off are honored, in that their distance makes artistic virtues of their stains. In considering what Tess was not, he overlooked what she was, and forgot that the…” quote by Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/thomas-hardy-410_afar_the-figure-near-at-hand-suffers-on-such_1238810.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/thomas-hardy-410_afar_the-figure-near-at-hand-suffers-on-such_1238810.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/151/thomas-hardy-410_afar_the-figure-near-at-hand-suffers-on-such_1238810.jpg) > “...the figure near at hand suffers on such occasions, because it shows up its sorriness without shade; while vague figures afar off are honored, in that their distance makes artistic virtues of their stains. In considering what Tess was not, he overlooked what she was, and forgot that the defective can be more than the entire.” [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote critiques how immediate, imperfect realities are judged harshly, while distant, idealized images are revered, suggesting that flaws can embody greater truth than polished wholes. **In simple terms:** Immediate flaws are judged harshly; distant ideals are praised. Key Takeaway Recognize value in imperfect realities. Themes perception beauty truth judgment imperfection Mood reflective critical thoughtful Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - art criticism - personal relationships - self‑acceptance - social evaluation Key Concepts Aesthetic philosophy human nature subjectivity Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance appreciation for both the flawed and the ideal? - What biases affect your judgments of people close to you? A Different Perspective Idealization can blind us to deeper truths. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Afar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afar/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Artistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artistic/) [Considering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/considering/) [Distance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distance/) [Figure Near](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/figure-near-3860368/) [Figures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/figures/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Honored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honored/) [Occasions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/occasions/) [Shade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shade/) [Shows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shows/) [Shows Sorriness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shows-sorriness-3860371/) [Stains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stains/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Suffers Occasions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffers-occasions-3860369/) [Tess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tess/) [Tess Overlooked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tess-overlooked-3860367/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) [Virtues Stains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtues-stains-3860370/) ## Related quotes > [“This night the woman of his belittling deprecations was thinking how great and good her husband was. But over them both there hung a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/this-night-the-woman-of-his-belittling-deprecations-was-thinking-how/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“In considering what Tess was not, he overlooked what she was and forgot the defective can be more than the entire”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/in-considering-what-tess-was-not-he-overlooked-what-she-was-and/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [Meanwhile, the trees were just as green as before; the birds sang and the sun shone as clearly now as ever. The familiar surroundings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/meanwhile-the-trees-were-just-as-green-as-before-the-birds-sang-and/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [It was the touch of the imperfect upon the would-be perfect that gave the sweetness, because it was that which gave the humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/it-was-the-touch-of-the-imperfect-upon-the-would-be-perfect-that-gave/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [Bless thy simplicity, Tess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/bless-thy-simplicity-tess/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [Did you say the stars were worlds, Tess?" "Yes." "All like ours?" "I don't know, but I think so. 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To all humankind besides Tess was only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/she-was-not-an-existence-an-experience-a-passion-a-structure-of/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [Tis because we be on a blighted star, and not a sound one, isn't it Tess?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/tis-because-we-be-on-a-blighted-star-and-not-a-sound-one-isn-t-it-tess/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [Let truth be told - women do as a rule live through such humiliations, and regain their spirits, and again look about them with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/let-truth-be-told-women-do-as-a-rule-live-through-such-humiliations/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [Her affection for him was now the breath and life of Tess's being; it enveloped her as a photosphere, irradiated her into forgetfulness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/her-affection-for-him-was-now-the-breath-and-life-of-tess-s-being-it/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [Did it never strike your mind that what every woman says, some women may feel?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/did-it-never-strike-your-mind-that-what-every-woman-says-some-women/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“I am only a peasant by position, not by nature!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/i-am-only-a-peasant-by-position-not-by-nature/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/let-not-your-heart-be-troubled-neither-let-it-be-afraid/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [ \[...\] "I recall what you said to me once," Will went on. 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Part of her body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/as-soon-as-she-could-discern-the-outline-of-the-house-it-had-all-its/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [ The perfect woman, you see \[is\] a working-woman; not an idler; not a fine lady; but one who \[uses\] her hands and her head… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/the-perfect-woman-you-see-is-a-working-woman-not-an-idler-not-a-fine/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“The Sinister Spirit sneered: 'It had to be!' And again the Spirit of Pity whispered, 'Why?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/the-sinister-spirit-sneered-it-had-to-be-and-again-the-spirit-of-pity/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“Justice” was done, and the President of the Immortals (in Aeschylean phrase) had ended his sport with Tess.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/justice-was-done-and-the-president-of-the-immortals-in-aeschylean/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) [Explore all 561 Thomas Hardy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) ## More Afar quotes > [The Son of God goes forth to war,A kingly crown to gain;His blood red banner streams afar:Who follows in His train?Who best can drink…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reginald-heber/the-son-of-god-goes-forth-to-war-a-kingly-crown-to-gain-his-blood-red/) [Reginald Heber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reginald-heber/) > [“Can I like you from afar?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bianca-bernardino/can-i-like-you-from-afar/) [Bianca Bernardino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bianca-bernardino/) > [Religion exalts mystery as an unknowable secret that must be sealed in glass like the corpse of an enchanted princess and fearfully worshipped from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lon-milo-duquette/religion-exalts-mystery-as-an-unknowable-secret-that-must-be-sealed/) [Lon Milo DuQuette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lon-milo-duquette/) > [Ah, my brother, it is a far harder thing, and it is afar higher proof of a thorough-going, persistent, Christian principle woven into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-maclaren/ah-my-brother-it-is-a-far-harder-thing-and-it-is-afar-higher-proof-of/) [Alexander MacLaren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-maclaren/) > [Blessed is the servant who loves his brother as much when he is sick and useless as when he is well and an be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/blessed-is-the-servant-who-loves-his-brother-as-much-when-he-is-sick/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Last but not least my family. My brother Tony, I love you. Thank you for beating me up when I was a kid. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-durant/last-but-not-least-my-family-my-brother-tony-i-love-you-thank-you-for/) [Kevin Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-durant/) > [I wasn't a 'Battlestar' fan, but I had a lot of respect for the show. I had a lot of friends who worked on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sasha-roiz/i-wasn-t-a-battlestar-fan-but-i-had-a-lot-of-respect-for-the-show-i/) [Sasha Roiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sasha-roiz/) > [Kindle the taper like the steadfast star Ablaze on evening's forehead o'er the earth, And add each night a lustre till afar An eightfold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-lazarus/kindle-the-taper-like-the-steadfast-star-ablaze-on-evening-s-forehead/) [Emma Lazarus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-lazarus/) > [Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting; The Soul that rises with us, our life's Star, Hath had elsewhere its setting, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/our-birth-is-but-a-sleep-and-a-forgetting-the-soul-that-rises-with-us-2/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [There is so much more to the things that we think we know from afar. 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