Several philosophers have tried their hand at deconstructing life, as have many television characters. One can look at life as a non-consensual invitation to a loud party or a meaningful pursuit, but everyone needs a good quote to live by.
Truth be told, all quotes need not be motivating. Some great quotes make one nostalgic about the time gone by, others store the answer to an existential inquiry. As characters in television shows meander through the ups and downs of their arcs, they too find their own insights to the accidental nature of life. Here are 10 quotes from television shows that ponder on life, death, the in-betweens and beyond of existence.
10“I wish there was a way to know you were in the good old days before you actually left them”- Andy Bernard from The Office
This Andrew Bernard quote fromThe Officeseries finale rings as a melancholic ode to nostalgia.The Office USis the American adaptation of the British series of the same name, created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. The show stars Steve Carell as Michael Scott, who manages the regional branch of Dunder Mifflin, a paper company in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Amidst the corporate claws of downsizing, merging and red-tapism,Scott thrives in creating a welcomingand inclusive environment for his employees at the expense of seeming stupid.
Andrew Bernard is welcomed toThe Officemid-series and eventually becomes one of the main characters, Bernard evolves as a person from being a brat with anger issues to a vulnerable manager who finally finds home amongst his employees. Bernard’s quote comes at a point where the employees dissolve and move towards their next phase in their life and expresses the sentiment of the fluid nature of friendships and good times that one takes for granted.
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9“Someday soon you’re gonna have families of your own, and if you’re lucky, you’ll remember the little moments like this that were good.” - Tony Soprano from The Sopranos
This heartbreaking quote in retrospect comes at a time when Anthony Soprano enjoys a meal at Vesuvio’s with his family when a heavy downpour forces the family to take shelter at their regular joint.The Sopranoschronicles the rise of Anthony Soprano as a mob boss and the consequences he deals with personally and mentally.The character became one of the first likeable villainswho was positioned as an anti-hero by consequences, who had no choice but be raised as a criminal. Nevertheless, Tony did enjoy spending time with his family, even when he failed as a husband and a father. With having several close encounters with death, Tony knew a thing or two about life and the above quote is close to the audience’s heart as it is believed that he spent his last moments in a similar event, with his family in a restaurant.
8“It’s so exhausting, waiting for death.” - Phoebe Buffayfrom Friends
Phoebe, the divergent thinker of the popular group inFriends,can be dystopian, fatalist, and far darker than most of her friends. Under the veil of being the quirky one, Phoebe normalized being socially awkward and having a sardonic view of life, as her life was never a bed of roses before she met her friends. Phoebe took pride in being the odd one and never censored her idiosyncrasies. Some of these involved obsessing about death, especially when she finds out she might be dead ina week from her psychic in Season 6. When asked how she was doing, Phoebe dramatically says the above line, ironically making a profound statement on the boredom of living and the inevitability of death. The satire-drenched line is an echo to the meaninglessness of living and how one can just make the most out of it as death is certain.
7“People are all we’ve got. So grab the night by its nipples and go flirt with someone” - Belinda from Fleabag
Fleabagembraced womanhood in all its good, bad and the ugly phases. The quote comes from the second season, as Fleabag chances upon Belinda, an inspiring businesswoman, who coaches her on life post menopause as a lesbian. As an aging woman, the downside, according to Belinda, is that a woman gets invisible.She encourages Fleabagto stop wasting any time in her youth and flirt with someone. The character of Fleabag is thirsty for a female role model as she feels empty in her dysfunctional life with her family, and Belinda for a brief moment makes her feel seen and a little less alone. Fleabag does not miss a chance and kisses her, ending the perfect scene between the two.
Mad Mengoes behind the world of Madison Avenue firms and the mind of Don Draper,played by Jon Hamm, who is the creative director of the advertising company Sterling Cooper. Draper is shown to be cynical, intelligent yet mysterious as he balances his professional and personal life. The show is set against the backdrop of the changing social cultures in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s, as Draper tries to maintain his identity as a genius of the ad industry.
In the pilot episode, Draper exposes his unromantic world view with the quote, “What you call love was invented by guys like me to sell nylons. You’re born alone, and you die alone, and the world just throws a bunch of rules on top of you to forget those facts. But I never forget. I live like there’s no tomorrow because there isn’t one.” What make this quote interesting is the unfiltered truth that stems from Draper’s authority over his industry and its impact on everyday life. After all, love sells.
5“We formulate our questions based on the answers we want to hear.” — Dr. Gregory House from House, MD
House, MDisSherlock Holmes in a hospital, complete with a misanthropic worldview. Hugh Laurie plays Gregory House, who teaches and practices at the Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in New Jersey. There is no glamour in his career as he assembles a team of practitioners to investigate and treat his patients in an unconventional way. House is a broken record when it comes to pessimism and downright cynicism. However, one cannot disagree that a slap of reality can sometimes be healthy. The above quote byHouse is a commentary of human being’s vulnerabilityfor confirmation bias. House is the embodiment of critical overthinking, and the quote is only a tiny entry to the paraphernalia of cynical nuggets about life.
4“Life is precious because you can’t watch it again. I mean, you can believe in an afterlife if that makes you feel better. Doesn’t mean it’s true.” - Tony Johnson from After Life
Ricky Gervais’sAfter Lifeis a narrative that copes with bereavement.Gervais plays Tony Johnson, who is devastated, losing his wife to cancer. Johnson sees no point in life after her sad demise and is battling with suicidal thoughts. The mundane life of his small town only makes the matter worse, but his workplace allows him to be a prick, which strangely heals him for allowing him to be himself in a tough phase of his life. Slowly, Tony comes to terms with his life with the help of his colleagues and his bereaving friend, Anne, who is too coping with her husband’s life. Much like Ricky, Tony does not believe in god or an afterlife, and the quote stems from the acceptance of embracing life as it is without conditions applied or fake promises.
It was ironic that a hitman like Mike Ehrmantraut, from theBreaking BadandBetter Call Saulsaga, felt the most mature and safe out of all the characters in the crime-drama. Ehrmantraut, played by Jonathan Banks, was not only a father figure to Jesse Pinkman, but also a moral compass in the drug world.
The series believed that there are several shades of gray amongst the morally corrupt, and Ehrmantraut definitely belonged to the brighter side. In the above quote, the hitman contemplates how morality has nothing to do with one’s occupation. Him being an ex-cop with a checkered past in his service and his relationship with his son contextualizes the genesis of his quote. Similarly, Both Walter White andSaul Goodman were not born criminalsand had legitimate careers as a teacher and a lawyer respectively. However, unlike Mike, they had given up on morality for their personal greed.
2"Hey, Buddha, nice Tom Fords.” - Roman Roy from Succession
The above quote comes from the problematic know-it-all descendant of the Roy family, Roman Roy, fromSuccession. Here again, the audience is confronted with a complicated character with an objectionable state of mind but with an undeniable insight on the double standards of the rich. The quote comes in a scene where hisbrother Kendall Roy shares the teachings ofBuddha, at a time the Roy kids are at loggerheads with their father over owning billions of dollars. In true Roman-reflexes, the latter says the above quote to take a jibe at his brother’s skewed understanding of Buddhism, which is an embracement of the non-material life. In many instances, Roman is the only person who knows how shallow the family is, and this scene is definitely one of them.
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1“All Lives end: all hearts are broken. Caring is not an advantage, Sherlock.” - Mycroft Holmes from Sherlock
Sherlock Holmes has a secret inSherlock. He deeply cares about people, no matter how much he tries to run away from it. That is clearly what makes him different from his equally intelligent nemesis, Jim Moriarty. The BBC cult-show portrays Sherlock,played by Benedict Cumberbatch, as being in denial about his compassionate abilities to care about people. His brother Mycroft is wary of it and reminds him to not fall for his weaknesses while doing his job. However, Sherlock proves to be different from his brother by listening to feelings as well his intuitions, even when the latter only came with practice to the great detective. At the end, Sherlock accepts that it is only human to care and embraces his humane side.
