Context

Sigh. One of the loveliest, most beautiful, most moving quotes about romantic love that has ever been written.

Only…it isn't about romantic love.

Huh? What's it about then? Did this guy just really dig his pet ferret?

Well, our first clue can be gleaned from the title of the poem: In Memoriam. Tennyson wrote this poem to honor and remember a dear friend of his, and it's with these lines…

I hold it true, whate'er befall;
I feel it when I sorrow most;
'Tis better to have loved and lost
Than never to have loved at all.

… that he expresses his feelings about his buddy's passing. He says that whenever the sads are hitting him particularly hard, he just tells himself that he'd rather have known and loved his friend while he was alive than never have had the chance to know him at all.

Wow. The guy must have been one heck of a friend. We care about our friends, too, but we're not sure we want to go writing a requiem for them.

Where you've heard it

While the line wasn't initially constructed to speak to young lovers, it's definitely turned into that—and how.

Most articles, blogs, and misguided Valentine's Day flower ads sort of miss the point. Although the occasional piece actually remembers the true spirit of the original quote.

Pretentious Factor

If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.

It's a line from a poem that begins with the word "'tis" and was written by someone whose name is preceded by the word "Lord." This could not not be a 10.