--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Is it true that they always laugh in…" description: "\"“Is it true that they always laugh in Paris?” said Candide. “Yes,” said the Abbé, “but it means nothing, for they complain of everything with great fit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/voltaire-173_laugh_is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-par_2983590.jpg" --- # Is it true that they always laugh in Paris?” said Candide… ![“Is it true that they always laugh in Paris?” said Candide. “Yes,” said the Abbé, “but it means nothing, for they complain of everything with great fits of laughter; they even do the most detestable things while laughing.” quote by Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/voltaire-173_laugh_is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-par_2983590.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/voltaire-173_laugh_is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-par_2983590.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/voltaire-173_laugh_is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-par_2983590.jpg) > ““Is it true that they always laugh in Paris?” said Candide. “Yes,” said the Abbé, “but it means nothing, for they complain of everything with great fits of laughter; they even do the most detestable things while laughing.”” [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Parisians laugh at everything, even detestable acts, showing laughter can mask deeper complaints. **In simple terms:** Laughter can hide true feelings. Key Takeaway Look beyond the humor. Themes society humor complaint human nature Mood wry thoughtful Type philosophical satirical When to use this quote - political commentary - personal relationships - media analysis Key Concepts satire psychology social critique Questions to Reflect On - Why do people laugh at serious matters? - What does laughter reveal about society? A Different Perspective Laughter may also indicate resilience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Laugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laugh/) [Laughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laughter/) ## Related quotes > [In London, theatregoers expect to laugh; in Paris, they wait grimly for proof that they should.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dhery/in-london-theatregoers-expect-to-laugh-in-paris-they-wait-grimly-for/) Robert Dhery > [“Do you think,” said Candide, “that mankind always massacred one another as they do now? Were they always guilty of lies, fraud, treachery, ingratitude,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/do-you-think-said-candide-that-mankind-always-massacred-one-another/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“My dear miss," said Candide, "when one is in love, jealous, and has been whipped by the Inquisition, one becomes a stranger to oneself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/my-dear-miss-said-candide-when-one-is-in-love-jealous-and-has-been/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“Said Candide to Cacambo: My friend, you see how perishable are the riches of this world; there is nothing solid but virtue, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/said-candide-to-cacambo-my-friend-you-see-how-perishable-are-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“Do you believe,' said Candide, 'that men have always massacred each other as they do to-day, that they have always been liars, cheats, traitors,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/do-you-believe-said-candide-that-men-have-always-massacred-each-other/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“Were you ever in France, Mr. Martin?" said Candide. "Yes," said Martin, "I have been in several provinces. In some one-half of the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/were-you-ever-in-france-mr-martin-said-candide-yes-said-martin-i-have/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“How many plays have been written in France?' Candide asked the abbe. 'Five or six thousand.' 'That's a lot,' said Candide. 'How many of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/how-many-plays-have-been-written-in-france-candide-asked-the-abbe/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“Sir, you think doubtless that all is for the best in the moral and physical world, and that nothing could be otherwise than it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/sir-you-think-doubtless-that-all-is-for-the-best-in-the-moral-and/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [You're a bitter man," said Candide. That's because I've lived," said Martin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/you-re-a-bitter-man-said-candide-that-s-because-i-ve-lived-said-martin/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“What's Optimism?' asked Cacambo. 'I'm afraid to say,' said Candide, 'that it's a mania for insisting that all is well when things are going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/what-s-optimism-asked-cacambo-i-m-afraid-to-say-said-candide-that-it/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Edgy is fine - I'm not a prude by any stretch of the imagination - but what's wrong with a good ol' belly laugh?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-burnett/edgy-is-fine-i-m-not-a-prude-by-any-stretch-of-the-imagination-but/) [Carol Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-burnett/) > [Laughter is one of the great beacons in life because we don't refract it by gunning it through our intellectual prism. What makes us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-miller/laughter-is-one-of-the-great-beacons-in-life-because-we-don-t-refract/) [Dennis Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-miller/) > [I do love to laugh!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-giudice/i-do-love-to-laugh/) [Teresa Giudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-giudice/) > [“Laugh and grow strong”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-loyola/laugh-and-grow-strong/) [Ignatius of Loyola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-loyola/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) ## More by Voltaire > [In every province, the chief occupations, in order of importance, are lovemaking, malicious gossip, and talking nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/in-every-province-the-chief-occupations-in-order-of-importance-are/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Fanaticism, to which men are so much inclined, has always served not only to render them more brutalized but more wicked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/fanaticism-to-which-men-are-so-much-inclined-has-always-served-not/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [History is the study of the world's crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/history-is-the-study-of-the-world-s-crime/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [We’re neither pure, nor wise, nor good; we do the best we know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/we-re-neither-pure-nor-wise-nor-good-we-do-the-best-we-know/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is with books as with men: a very small number play a great part, the rest are lost in the multitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/it-is-with-books-as-with-men-a-very-small-number-play-a-great-part/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Meslier was the most singular phenomenon ever seen among all the meteors fatal to the Christian religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/meslier-was-the-most-singular-phenomenon-ever-seen-among-all-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Every sensible man, every honorable man, must hold the Christian sect in horror." "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd and bloody religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/every-sensible-man-every-honorable-man-must-hold-the-christian-sect/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Being unable to make people more reasonable, I preferred to be happy away from them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/being-unable-to-make-people-more-reasonable-i-preferred-to-be-happy/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [When his highness sends a ship to Egypt, does he trouble his head whether the mice on board are at their ease or not?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/when-his-highness-sends-a-ship-to-egypt-does-he-trouble-his-head/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Madness is to think of too many things in succession too fast, or of one thing too exclusively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/madness-is-to-think-of-too-many-things-in-succession-too-fast-or-of/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/god-gave-us-the-gift-of-life-it-is-up-to-us-to-give-ourselves-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is not inequality which is the real misfortune, it is dependence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/it-is-not-inequality-which-is-the-real-misfortune-it-is-dependence/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Providence has given us hope and sleep as a compensation for the many cares of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/providence-has-given-us-hope-and-sleep-as-a-compensation-for-the-many/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Men use thought only to justify their wrong doings, and employ speech only to conceal their thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/men-use-thought-only-to-justify-their-wrong-doings-and-employ-speech/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Work spares us from three evils: boredom, vice, and need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/work-spares-us-from-three-evils-boredom-vice-and-need/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) [Explore all 934 Voltaire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) ## More Laugh quotes > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/) [Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/) > [I wouldn't want people to laugh at me. That's why I have to give all that I can, and at least produce something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhao-wei/i-wouldn-t-want-people-to-laugh-at-me-that-s-why-i-have-to-give-all/) [Zhao Wei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhao-wei/) > [“Laugh and grow strong”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-loyola/laugh-and-grow-strong/) [Ignatius of Loyola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-loyola/) > [I do love to laugh!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-giudice/i-do-love-to-laugh/) [Teresa Giudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-giudice/) > [I really enjoy making people laugh; I've discovered that's a great technique. That's as powerful as stirring their sorrow, stirring their compassion, because that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/i-really-enjoy-making-people-laugh-i-ve-discovered-that-s-a-great/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [Troy was a sweet, good man. We just were never destined to be married. We just didn't have the same values. But I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-pleshette/troy-was-a-sweet-good-man-we-just-were-never-destined-to-be-married/) [Suzanne Pleshette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-pleshette/) > [“Tread softly Breathe peacefully Laugh hysterically”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandel/tread-softly-breathe-peacefully-laugh-hysterically/) Nelson Mandel > [Laughter is one of the great beacons in life because we don't refract it by gunning it through our intellectual prism. What makes us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-miller/laughter-is-one-of-the-great-beacons-in-life-because-we-don-t-refract/) [Dennis Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-miller/) > [Edgy is fine - I'm not a prude by any stretch of the imagination - but what's wrong with a good ol' belly laugh?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-burnett/edgy-is-fine-i-m-not-a-prude-by-any-stretch-of-the-imagination-but/) [Carol Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-burnett/) > [There isn't a sound better than your own child's laugh...There isn't a sight better than your own child's smile...and Nothing is better than being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/there-isn-t-a-sound-better-than-your-own-child-s-laugh-there-isn-t-a/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [You didn't want to laugh, did you? It wasn't very funny, was it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-kennedy/you-didn-t-want-to-laugh-did-you-it-wasn-t-very-funny-was-it/) [Graham Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-kennedy/) > [The major caveat in all of comedy is that it's all instinctive. There's no true criteria. There is no right or wrong. Ultimately, often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-charles/the-major-caveat-in-all-of-comedy-is-that-it-s-all-instinctive-there/) [Larry Charles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-charles/) > [When Americans, who have no idea who I am, laugh at my jokes, it's exactly the same if someone loves you even if you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gad-elmaleh/when-americans-who-have-no-idea-who-i-am-laugh-at-my-jokes-it-s/) [Gad Elmaleh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gad-elmaleh/) > [Sometimes you have to laugh to keep from crying or getting overly angry or to maintain control.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-haysbert/sometimes-you-have-to-laugh-to-keep-from-crying-or-getting-overly/) [Dennis Haysbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-haysbert/) [Browse all 4,999 Laugh quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laugh/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Is it true that they always laugh in Paris?” said Candide. “Yes,” said the Abbé, “but it means nothing, for they complain of everything with great fits of laughter; they even do the most detestable things while laughing.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Voltaire" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-paris-said-candide-yes-said-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Laugh" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-paris-said-candide-yes-said-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/voltaire-173_laugh_is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-par_2983590.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/voltaire-173_laugh_is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-par_2983590.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/voltaire-173_laugh_is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-par_2983590.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Is it true that they always laugh in Paris?” said Candide. “Yes,” said the Abbé, “but it means nothing, for…” — Voltaire", "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": "Voltaire", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Is it true that they always...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-paris-said-candide-yes-said-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/is-it-true-that-they-always-laugh-in-paris-said-candide-yes-said-the/#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 } } ] } ```