He did not smile, as we have already said, but he used to laugh; sometimes, indeed frequently, a bitter laugh. There is consent in a smile, while a laugh is often a refusal.
[Il ne souriait pas, nous l’avons dit, mais il riait; parfois, fréquemment même; d’un rire amer. Il y a du consentement dans le sourire, tandis que le rire est souvent un refus.]
Victor Hugo (1802–1885) French writer, journalist, human rights activist, politician
The Man Who Laughs [L’Homme qui rit; The Laughing Man; By Order of the King], Part 1, Book 0, ch. 1, sec. 4 (1.0.1.4) (1869) [tr. Unknown, Authorized (1871)]
More about (and translations of) this quote: wist.info/hugo-victor/85160/
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