--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Melancholy is the pleasure of being sad." description: "\"Melancholy is the pleasure of being sad.\" — Victor Hugo" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/victor-hugo-32_being-sad_melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad_1341380.jpg" --- # Melancholy is the pleasure of being sad. ![“Melancholy is the pleasure of being sad.” quote by Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/victor-hugo-32_being-sad_melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad_1341380.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/victor-hugo-32_being-sad_melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad_1341380.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/victor-hugo-32_being-sad_melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad_1341380.jpg) > “Melancholy is the pleasure of being sad.” [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Sadness can be appreciated as a deep, enriching emotional experience. **In simple terms:** Sadness can be enriching. Key Takeaway Allow sadness to deepen empathy. Themes emotion philosophy beauty Mood somber introspective Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - grief counseling - artistic expression Key Concepts existentialism aesthetic appreciation Questions to Reflect On - How does sadness inspire you? - When is sadness productive? A Different Perspective Excessive melancholy may hinder action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Being sad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-sad/) [Melancholy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/melancholy/) [Pleasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pleasure/) [Sad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sad/) ## Related quotes > [Spoilt pleasure is a sad, unseemly thing; you can only bury it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bowen/spoilt-pleasure-is-a-sad-unseemly-thing-you-can-only-bury-it/) [Elizabeth Bowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bowen/) > [Melancholy is the happiness of being sad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/melancholy-is-the-happiness-of-being-sad/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Work saves us from melancholy. Pleasure exposes us to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/work-saves-us-from-melancholy-pleasure-exposes-us-to-it/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [“Fear and excitement are chemically the same. Sadness is a hair away from melancholy. Melancholy is almost pleasure, brushing against happiness. It’s all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-hanrahan/fear-and-excitement-are-chemically-the-same-sadness-is-a-hair-away/) Catherine Hanrahan > [“Depression is not sadness, not even a state of mind, it is a (neuro)philosophical (dis)position. Beyond Pop’s bipolar oscillation between evanescent thrill and frustrated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/depression-is-not-sadness-not-even-a-state-of-mind-it-is-a-neuro/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [As we have said, robust souls are sometimes almost, but not entirely, overthrown by strokes of misfortune…Despair has steps leading upward. From total depression…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/as-we-have-said-robust-souls-are-sometimes-almost-but-not-entirely/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [In saying no to progress, it is not the future which they condemn, but themselves. They give themselves a melancholy disease; they inoculate themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/in-saying-no-to-progress-it-is-not-the-future-which-they-condemn-but/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Symmetry is ennui, and ennui is the very essence of grief and melancholy. Despair yawns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/symmetry-is-ennui-and-ennui-is-the-very-essence-of-grief-and/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“A great melancholy was hanging in the air, giving their love a more languid, more tender feeling. It was like the love one feels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-rodenbach/a-great-melancholy-was-hanging-in-the-air-giving-their-love-a-more/) [Georges Rodenbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-rodenbach/) > [“I’ve always been a fan of the melancholy, like Morrissey. I grew up playing classical nocturnes like Chopin and Debussy on piano, so I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blake-lewis/i-ve-always-been-a-fan-of-the-melancholy-like-morrissey-i-grew-up/) [Blake Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blake-lewis/) > [Melancholy has ceased to be an individual phenomenon, an exception. It has become the class privilege of the wage earner, a mass state of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/melancholy-has-ceased-to-be-an-individual-phenomenon-an-exception-it/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [“He presses two fingers against each eye and attempts to account for this crippling melancholy, but is having trouble with rational thought. It feels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/he-presses-two-fingers-against-each-eye-and-attempts-to-account-for/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [In such a diversity it was impossible I should be disposed to melancholy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-boone/in-such-a-diversity-it-was-impossible-i-should-be-disposed-to/) [Daniel Boone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-boone/) > [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/) [Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/) > [“As ofttimes as it rains on my little spot of earth, you'd think I'd grow accustomed to the gloom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/as-ofttimes-as-it-rains-on-my-little-spot-of-earth-you-d-think-i-d/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) ## More by Victor Hugo > [Houses are like the human beings that inhabit them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/houses-are-like-the-human-beings-that-inhabit-them/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“There is still a certain grace in a dead festival. It has been happy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/there-is-still-a-certain-grace-in-a-dead-festival-it-has-been-happy/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [He caught her, she fell, he caught her in his arms, he held her tightly unconscious of what he was doing. He held her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/he-caught-her-she-fell-he-caught-her-in-his-arms-he-held-her-tightly/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“First I loved women, then animals, and now I love stones. They're just as amusing as women and animals and they're much less trecherous.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/first-i-loved-women-then-animals-and-now-i-love-stones-they-re-just/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Nature is pitiless; she never withdraws her flowers, her music, her fragrance, and her sunlight from before human cruelty or suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/nature-is-pitiless-she-never-withdraws-her-flowers-her-music-her/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“Have courage for the great sorrows of life, and patience for the small ones. And when you have finished your daily task, go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/have-courage-for-the-great-sorrows-of-life-and-patience-for-the-small/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [The peasants of the Asturias believe that in every litter of wolves there is one pup that is killed by the mother for fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/the-peasants-of-the-asturias-believe-that-in-every-litter-of-wolves/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Great blunders are often made, like large ropes, of a multitude of fibres.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/great-blunders-are-often-made-like-large-ropes-of-a-multitude-of/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“For love is like a tree; it grows of itself; it send its roots deep into our being, and often continues to grow green…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/for-love-is-like-a-tree-it-grows-of-itself-it-send-its-roots-deep/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“Blacheville smiles with the self-satisfied smugness of a man whose vanity is tickled”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/blacheville-smiles-with-the-self-satisfied-smugness-of-a-man-whose/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“Loving in ignorance, she loved with all the more passion. She did not know whether it was good or evil, beneficent or dangerous, necessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/loving-in-ignorance-she-loved-with-all-the-more-passion-she-did-not/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/laughter-is-the-sun-that-drives-winter-from-the-human-face/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“Our joys have shadows. The perfect smile belongs to God alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/our-joys-have-shadows-the-perfect-smile-belongs-to-god-alone/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“When those we love are in question, our prudence invents every sort of madness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/when-those-we-love-are-in-question-our-prudence-invents-every-sort-of/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Love is a fault; so be it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/love-is-a-fault-so-be-it/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) [Explore all 2,181 Victor Hugo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) ## More Being sad quotes > [Being part of the natural world reminds me that innocence isn't ever lost completely; we just need to maintain our goodness to regain it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jewel/being-part-of-the-natural-world-reminds-me-that-innocence-isn-t-ever/) [Jewel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jewel/) > [Unfortunately, I think I'm going to be typecast in Hollywood as the kid who can cry. I don't like putting audiences through those emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-hill/unfortunately-i-think-i-m-going-to-be-typecast-in-hollywood-as-the/) [Dana Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-hill/) > [The length of this document defends it well against the risk of its being read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/the-length-of-this-document-defends-it-well-against-the-risk-of-its/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [It's, like, you know, if you're sad, it's a way of connecting with other people. And we - a lot of times we sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-docter/it-s-like-you-know-if-you-re-sad-it-s-a-way-of-connecting-with-other/) [Pete Docter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-docter/) > [because wherever I sat—on the deck of a ship or at a street café in Paris or Bangkok—I would be sitting under the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/because-wherever-i-sat-on-the-deck-of-a-ship-or-at-a-street-caf-in/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [Being sad is a big waste of time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-sad-is-a-big-waste-of-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Essentially, if our secrets are secrets because we are told to be ashamed, then we must share them. There is no shame in being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warsan-shire/essentially-if-our-secrets-are-secrets-because-we-are-told-to-be/) [Warsan Shire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warsan-shire/) > [Having emotional connections to things that don't really exist, like looking at a green ball and really loving that green ball, and being sad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shia-labeouf/having-emotional-connections-to-things-that-don-t-really-exist-like/) [Shia LaBeouf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shia-labeouf/) > [When your happy you enjoy music but when your sad, you understand the lyrics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/levita-charin/when-your-happy-you-enjoy-music-but-when-your-sad-you-understand-the/) [Levita Charin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/levita-charin/) > [For a moment, I thought of the word happy and it was a word that just, well, it felt like it was visiting me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/for-a-moment-i-thought-of-the-word-happy-and-it-was-a-word-that-just/) [Benjamin Alire Saenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [ I first foreswore motherhood when I was about eight years old. ... \[Children\] were annoying. We were loud and sneaky and broke things. As… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-shriver/i-first-foreswore-motherhood-when-i-was-about-eight-years-old/) [Lionel Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-shriver/) > [She smiled at the stars like they knew all her secrets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/she-smiled-at-the-stars-like-they-knew-all-her-secrets/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [That is all I want in life: for this pain to seem purposeful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/that-is-all-i-want-in-life-for-this-pain-to-seem-purposeful/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [You need to try to master the ability to feel sad without actually being sad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-anderson/you-need-to-try-to-master-the-ability-to-feel-sad-without-actually/) [Laurie Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-anderson/) > [Being sad is a total waste of time. It doesn't change anything and all it does is to mess up your mind and steal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-sad-is-a-total-waste-of-time-it-doesn-t-change-anything-and-all/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 114 Being sad quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-sad/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Melancholy is the pleasure of being sad.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Victor Hugo" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Being sad" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/victor-hugo-32_being-sad_melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad_1341380.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/victor-hugo-32_being-sad_melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad_1341380.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cc/victor-hugo-32_being-sad_melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad_1341380.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Melancholy is the pleasure of being sad.” — Victor Hugo", "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": "Victor Hugo", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Melancholy is the pleasure of being...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/melancholy-is-the-pleasure-of-being-sad/#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 } } ] } ```