Source identified
Read & copy the quotation
“There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.”
- Date
- 1890
- Local voice
- Fictional character · Lord Henry Wotton
Meaning of “There is only one thing in the world…”
The joke exposes the appetite for attention by suggesting that even negative notice can seem preferable to complete social invisibility.
Where does it come from?
The Picture of Dorian Gray, 1890 Lippincott magazine text, Chapter 1; Lord Henry gives the reputation paradox while discussing Basil Hallward’s portrait.
Why the local voice matters
Lord Henry voices the paradox in The Picture of Dorian Gray.
