5 Famous “Inspiring” Quotes That Don’t Mean What You Think

As a species, there’s nothing we love more than slapping cool quotes on Etsy throw pillows. For instance, I don’t even own a spatula, but I DO own no fewer than seven different pillows that say things like “NOT ALL THOSE WHO WANDER ARE LOST,” which is just something that happens when you take a lifelong trash nerd like myself and give her a steady income.

But sometimes, we make a big deal out of quotes that aren’t actually all that inspirational, considering the context in which they were written. Quotes like…