--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you're smart enough you realise that…" description: "\"If you're smart enough you realise that your possessions possess you in their turn. Collecting has a neurotic aspect. I find it boring when collectors ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e1/thomas-koerfer-50521_aristocratic_if-you-re-smart-enough-you-realise-that_2962396.jpg" --- # If you're smart enough you realise that your possessions… ![“If you're smart enough you realise that your possessions possess you in their turn. Collecting has a neurotic aspect. I find it boring when collectors found their own private museums or try to establish a memorial to themselves in the form of their collections, it's part of the old aristocratic…” quote by Thomas Koerfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e1/thomas-koerfer-50521_aristocratic_if-you-re-smart-enough-you-realise-that_2962396.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e1/thomas-koerfer-50521_aristocratic_if-you-re-smart-enough-you-realise-that_2962396.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e1/thomas-koerfer-50521_aristocratic_if-you-re-smart-enough-you-realise-that_2962396.jpg) > “If you're smart enough you realise that your possessions possess you in their turn. Collecting has a neurotic aspect. I find it boring when collectors found their own private museums or try to establish a memorial to themselves in the form of their collections, it's part of the old aristocratic mentality. I think a collection ought to be dismantled after the collector's death.” [Thomas Koerfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-koerfer/) ## 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 warns that ownership can dominate the owner, turning collections into self‑serving monuments rather than shared value, and suggests they should be dispersed after death. **In simple terms:** Possessions can control you; collections become ego‑driven memorials. Key Takeaway Distribute collections to benefit others. Themes materialism ego legacy mortality Mood reflective critical contemplative Type philosophical ethical cautionary When to use this quote - museum donations - family inheritance - charitable foundations - digital archiving Key Concepts psychology consumer culture aristocracy Questions to Reflect On - How does your ownership affect your freedom? - What would happen if your collection were shared? A Different Perspective Not all collections are harmful; some preserve heritage. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aristocratic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aristocratic/) [Collectors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collectors/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Memorial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memorial/) [Mentality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mentality/) [Museums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/museums/) [Neurotic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neurotic/) [Possession](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possession/) [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“I have an aristocratic smile and like to punch people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/i-have-an-aristocratic-smile-and-like-to-punch-people/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [In aristocratic societies, rich people used to commission exquisite paintings for their walls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-holland/in-aristocratic-societies-rich-people-used-to-commission-exquisite/) [Brad Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-holland/) > [Though, with the ascendancy of Louis, the political power of the nobles finally came to an end, France remained, in the whole complexion of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lytton-strachey/though-with-the-ascendancy-of-louis-the-political-power-of-the-nobles/) [Lytton Strachey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lytton-strachey/) > [When we consider the close connection between science and industrial development on the one hand, and between literary and aesthetic cultivation and an aristocratic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/when-we-consider-the-close-connection-between-science-and-industrial/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [You are the only woman who has a sense of gaiety, a wise tolerance - no more, you seem to urge me to betray…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/you-are-the-only-woman-who-has-a-sense-of-gaiety-a-wise-tolerance-no/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“He admired her for throwing off her aristocratic shackles -- his terms, that -- and making her own way in the world. 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That is why there has so often been amazing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/where-there-is-no-danger-of-overt-action-there-is-rarely-any/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [Aristocratic depression has this cosmic dimension to it, where it's asking these big questions about, "Why?" "What is the purpose of all this?" Neuroses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-douglas/aristocratic-depression-has-this-cosmic-dimension-to-it-where-it-s/) [Lawrence Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-douglas/) > [Politics of all sorts, I confess, are far beyond my limited powers of comprehension. Those of this country as far as I have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fanny-kemble/politics-of-all-sorts-i-confess-are-far-beyond-my-limited-powers-of/) [Fanny Kemble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fanny-kemble/) ## More by Thomas Koerfer > [Sex is probably one of the last forms of human expression to enjoy such a direct connection with nature. It might be the primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-koerfer/sex-is-probably-one-of-the-last-forms-of-human-expression-to-enjoy/) [Thomas Koerfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-koerfer/) > [Secrets can actually be quite important. A work of art that reveals its meaning or its power too quickly is uninteresting. 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Those of this country as far as I have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fanny-kemble/politics-of-all-sorts-i-confess-are-far-beyond-my-limited-powers-of/) [Fanny Kemble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fanny-kemble/) [Browse all 99 Aristocratic quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aristocratic/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you're smart enough you realise that your possessions possess you in their turn. Collecting has a neurotic aspect. I find it boring when collectors found their own private museums or try to establish a memorial to themselves in the form of their collections, it's part of the old aristocratic mentality. 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