---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Perhaps all early love affairs ought to…"
description: "\"Perhaps all early love affairs ought to be strangled or drowned, like so many blind kittens.\" — William Makepeace Thackeray"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_affair_perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to_769031.jpg"
---

#  Perhaps all early love affairs ought to be strangled or…

![“Perhaps all early love affairs ought to be strangled or drowned, like so many blind kittens.” quote by William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_affair_perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to_769031.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_affair_perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to_769031.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_affair_perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to_769031.jpg)

> “Perhaps all early love affairs ought to be strangled or drowned, like so many blind kittens.”

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Early romantic entanglements can feel suffocating, like trying to save something fragile.

**In simple terms:** Early love can feel suffocating.

Key Takeaway

Recognize unhealthy patterns early.

Themes

love relationships vulnerability

Mood

cautious thoughtful

Type

cautionary philosophical

When to use this quote

- dating
- first relationships
- family dynamics

Key Concepts

attachment control emotional health

Questions to Reflect On

- What signs indicate a relationship is harmful?
- How can you protect yourself while staying open?

A Different Perspective

Love can be complex; not all relationships are healthy.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Affair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affair/) [Affairs Ought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affairs-ought-3066765/) [Blind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blind/) [Blind Kittens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blind-kittens-5947819/) [Drowned Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drowned-like-3995076/) [Early love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/early-love/) [Kitten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kitten/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love affair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-affair/) [Ought Strangled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ought-strangled-5947818/) [Strangled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strangled/)

## Related quotes

> [Everything that I have professionally, and so much of what I have personally, is because of this great, fair city, and to see it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-connick-jr/everything-that-i-have-professionally-and-so-much-of-what-i-have/)

[Harry Connick, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-connick-jr/)

> [In great affairs we ought to apply ourselves less to creating chances than to profiting from those that offer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/in-great-affairs-we-ought-to-apply-ourselves-less-to-creating-chances/)

[Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/)

> [Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-diderot/men-will-never-be-free-until-the-last-king-is-strangled-with-the/)

[Denis Diderot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-diderot/)

> [“Intelligent, unscrupulous, determined, and capable of seeing a man strangled without changing color.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/intelligent-unscrupulous-determined-and-capable-of-seeing-a-man/)

[Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/)

> [...the devil on my right shoulder must have brutally strangled the angel on my left...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/the-devil-on-my-right-shoulder-must-have-brutally-strangled-the-angel/)

[Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/)

> [I would like the last of the kings to be strangled by the guts of the last priest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-meslier/i-would-like-the-last-of-the-kings-to-be-strangled-by-the-guts-of-the/)

[Jean Meslier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-meslier/)

> [“FROM A WILD NIGHT'S BRIDE by Victoria Vane: His gaze glued to the bed, Ned made a mechanical backward retreat to the center of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emery-lee/from-a-wild-night-s-bride-by-victoria-vane-his-gaze-glued-to-the-bed/)

[Emery Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emery-lee/)

> [“Mankind will never know peace until the last politician is strangled to death with the entrails of the last priest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-adam-snyder/mankind-will-never-know-peace-until-the-last-politician-is-strangled/)

[J.Adam Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-adam-snyder/)

> [If you're a guy over 30 by yourself in the hotel pool, you automatically look like a murderer who's just relaxing after he strangled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-gaffigan/if-you-re-a-guy-over-30-by-yourself-in-the-hotel-pool-you/)

[Jim Gaffigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-gaffigan/)

> [“Still shuddering, he collapsed atop her on a long, strangled groan. It sounded as if someone had just wrung out his soul. Ella knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-warren/still-shuddering-he-collapsed-atop-her-on-a-long-strangled-groan-it/)

[Christine Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-warren/)

> [“You know what really chokes me up? Being strangled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/you-know-what-really-chokes-me-up-being-strangled/)

[Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/)

> [If your name is Sepp, at the bare minimum you’ve strangled someone in a bar fight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-oliver/if-your-name-is-sepp-at-the-bare-minimum-you-ve-strangled-someone-in/)

[John Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-oliver/)

> [Appreciation of my own mortality stifled every ambition I ever had.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-fowler/appreciation-of-my-own-mortality-stifled-every-ambition-i-ever-had/)

[Steve Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-fowler/)

> [Now death is death! and yet is not one death Another death? Stabbing is not the same As shooting! Would you say a strangled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-laurie/now-death-is-death-and-yet-is-not-one-death-another-death-stabbing-is/)

[Victoria Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-laurie/)

> [“It was less painful being strangled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-was-less-painful-being-strangled/)

[Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/)

## More by William Makepeace Thackeray

> [“To those great geniuses now in petticoats, who shall write novels for the beloved reader's children, these men and things will be as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/to-those-great-geniuses-now-in-petticoats-who-shall-write-novels-for/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [When one fib becomes due as it were, you must forge another to take up the old acceptance; and so the stock of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/when-one-fib-becomes-due-as-it-were-you-must-forge-another-to-take-up/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [Let a man who has to make his fortune in life remember this maxim: Attacking is the only secret. Dare and the world yields,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/let-a-man-who-has-to-make-his-fortune-in-life-remember-this-maxim/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [As nature made every man with a nose and eyes of his own, she gave him a character of his own, too; and yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/as-nature-made-every-man-with-a-nose-and-eyes-of-his-own-she-gave-him/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [It is best to love wisely, no doubt; but to love foolishly is better than not to be able to love at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/it-is-best-to-love-wisely-no-doubt-but-to-love-foolishly-is-better/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [Diffidence is a sort of false modesty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/diffidence-is-a-sort-of-false-modesty/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [Our great thoughts, our great affections, the truths of our life, never leave us. Surely they can not separate from our consciousness, shall follow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/our-great-thoughts-our-great-affections-the-truths-of-our-life-never/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [Charming Alnaschar visions! it is the happy privilege of youth to construct you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/charming-alnaschar-visions-it-is-the-happy-privilege-of-youth-to/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [To see a young couple loving each other is no wonder; but to see an old couple loving each other is the best sight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/to-see-a-young-couple-loving-each-other-is-no-wonder-but-to-see-an/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [An immense percentage of snobs, I believe, is to be found in every rank of this mortal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/an-immense-percentage-of-snobs-i-believe-is-to-be-found-in-every-rank/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [Vanity is often the unseen spur.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/vanity-is-often-the-unseen-spur/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [A good laugh is sunshine in the house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/a-good-laugh-is-sunshine-in-the-house/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [Novelty has charms that our minds can hardly withstand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/novelty-has-charms-that-our-minds-can-hardly-withstand/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [“Picture to yourself, O fair young reader, a worldly, selfish, graceless, thankless, religionless old woman, writhing in pain and fear, and without her wig.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/picture-to-yourself-o-fair-young-reader-a-worldly-selfish-graceless/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [Certain opuscules, denominated 'Christmas Books,' with the ostensible intention of swelling the tide of exhilaration, or other expansive emotions, incident upon the exodus of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/certain-opuscules-denominated-christmas-books-with-the-ostensible/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

[Explore all 384 William Makepeace Thackeray quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

## More Affair quotes

> [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/)

[Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/)

> [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. However, even if a woman is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yusuf-al-qaradawi/islam-never-differentiates-between-men-and-women-as-regards-political/)

[Yusuf al-Qaradawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yusuf-al-qaradawi/)

> [Our guiding principle was that design is neither an intellectual nor a material affair, but simply an integral part of the stuff of life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-gropius/our-guiding-principle-was-that-design-is-neither-an-intellectual-nor/)

[Walter Gropius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-gropius/)

> [I wonder if it's possible to have a love affair that lasts forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-warhol/i-wonder-if-it-s-possible-to-have-a-love-affair-that-lasts-forever/)

[Andy Warhol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-warhol/)

> [For a young man to start his career with a love affair with an older woman was quite de rigueur ... Of course, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vita-sackville-west/for-a-young-man-to-start-his-career-with-a-love-affair-with-an-older/)

[Vita Sackville-West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vita-sackville-west/)

> [As long as the state permits itself to interfere in the affairs of literature, literature has the right to interfere with the affairs of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/as-long-as-the-state-permits-itself-to-interfere-in-the-affairs-of/)

[Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/)

> [Love is mainly an affair of short spasms. If these spasms disappoint us, love dies. It is very seldom that it weathers the experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/love-is-mainly-an-affair-of-short-spasms-if-these-spasms-disappoint/)

[Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/)

> [The Fundamental Principle that governs - or ought to govern -human affairs if we wish to avoid misunderstandings, conflicts, or pointless utopias, is negotiation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/the-fundamental-principle-that-governs-or-ought-to-govern-human/)

[Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/)

> [My hope does not rest in the affairs of this world. It rests in Christ who is coming again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/my-hope-does-not-rest-in-the-affairs-of-this-world-it-rests-in-christ/)

[Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/)

> [In 1953, the United States played a significant role in orchestrating the overthrow of Iran's popular prime minister, Mohammed Mossadegh. The Eisenhower administration believed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-albright/in-1953-the-united-states-played-a-significant-role-in-orchestrating/)

[Madeleine Albright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-albright/)

> [Not everyone likes the stable, gradual rise of our country. There are some who are using the democratic ideology to interfere in our internal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/not-everyone-likes-the-stable-gradual-rise-of-our-country-there-are/)

[Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/)

> [The archives recall not one single incriminating incident, not one drunken escapade, not one reported affair, not one spat with a team-mate or reporter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-atherton/the-archives-recall-not-one-single-incriminating-incident-not-one/)

[Michael Atherton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-atherton/)

> [“I ripped the sketch from the wall. "Liar." Edward looked more ravaged than usual. "That is a terrible word, coming from you." "Yup." "And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-jensen/i-ripped-the-sketch-from-the-wall-liar-edward-looked-more-ravaged/)

[Melissa Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-jensen/)

> [For some people, a one-night stand doesn't make any difference in a seven-year love affair. I don't believe the degree of betrayal is always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-perel/for-some-people-a-one-night-stand-doesn-t-make-any-difference-in-a/)

[Esther Perel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-perel/)

> [And what is literature, Rabo," he said, "but an insider's newsletter about affairs relating to molecules, of no importance to anything in the universe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/and-what-is-literature-rabo-he-said-but-an-insider-s-newsletter-about/)

[Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/)

[Browse all 2,218 Affair quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affair/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Perhaps all early love affairs ought to be strangled or drowned, like so many blind kittens.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "William Makepeace Thackeray"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to-be-strangled-or-drowned-like/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Affair"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to-be-strangled-or-drowned-like/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_affair_perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to_769031.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_affair_perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to_769031.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_affair_perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to_769031.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Perhaps all early love affairs ought to be strangled or drowned, like so many blind kittens.” — William Makepeace Thackeray",
                "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": "William Makepeace Thackeray",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Perhaps all early love affairs ought...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to-be-strangled-or-drowned-like/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/perhaps-all-early-love-affairs-ought-to-be-strangled-or-drowned-like/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
