"It is by universal misunderstanding that all agree. For if, by ill luck, people understood each other, they would never agree"
- Charles Baudelaire
About this Quote
This quote by Charles Baudelaire suggests that it is only through a lack of understanding that individuals have the ability to agree. He implies that if people were to really comprehend each other, they would not be able to come to an agreement. This could be analyzed as a criticism of the human tendency to accept the status quo without questioning it. Baudelaire is suggesting that if people were to make the effort to understand each other, they would be most likely to disagree and challenge the existing order. He is also implying that it is just through an absence of comprehending that individuals have the ability to pertain to an agreement. This quote can be viewed as a warning versus blindly accepting the viewpoints of others without putting in the time to understand them.