"I am bound to add that the excess in too little has ever proved in me more dangerous than the excess in too much; the last may cause indigestion, but the first causes death"
About this Quote
What makes it work is the mock-earnest calibration of risk. Casanova speaks like a man offering practical advice, yet the stakes jump from indigestion to death in a single pivot. That escalation is the joke and the confession. He’s admitting that his baseline is intensity: less pleasure doesn’t just disappoint him, it unravels him. The phrasing “I am bound to add” adds courtroom formality, as if he’s forced by the evidence of his own life to state this dangerous preference. It’s performative honesty, crafted to sound unavoidable.
Context matters: Casanova’s 18th-century Europe runs on patronage, salons, gambling houses, travel, and carefully managed reputation. His celebrity is built from motion and appetite, not stability. In that world, “too little” can mean fewer invitations, fewer lovers, fewer wagers, fewer exits. Saying scarcity kills is also a warning about the social economy he mastered: abundance keeps you alive, visible, and untouchable; restraint makes you just another man at the table.
Quote Details
| Topic | Wisdom |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Casanova, Giacomo. (2026, January 18). I am bound to add that the excess in too little has ever proved in me more dangerous than the excess in too much; the last may cause indigestion, but the first causes death. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-am-bound-to-add-that-the-excess-in-too-little-4545/
Chicago Style
Casanova, Giacomo. "I am bound to add that the excess in too little has ever proved in me more dangerous than the excess in too much; the last may cause indigestion, but the first causes death." FixQuotes. January 18, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-am-bound-to-add-that-the-excess-in-too-little-4545/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"I am bound to add that the excess in too little has ever proved in me more dangerous than the excess in too much; the last may cause indigestion, but the first causes death." FixQuotes, 18 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-am-bound-to-add-that-the-excess-in-too-little-4545/. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.












