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Who really said it

Immature love says: "I love you because I need you." Mature love says: "I need you because I love you."

Sourced to Fromm’s book Erich Fromm 1900–1980
Attributed In copyright

The Art of Loving (1956)

Last verified 9 Nov 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?

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Unconfirmed quote & credit

“Immature love says: "I love you because I need you." Mature love says: "I need you because I love you."” — Erich Fromm, The Art of Loving (1956), chapter 2; checked against a later transcription, not an original edition scan.

Can you use it?

Still under copyright. A short, credited quote is generally fine for talks, teaching, and internal decks; for commercial, published, or large-scale reuse, get permission.

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In context

Evoking the world of Erich Fromm — 1900–1980. Theme: "Immature love says: "I love you because I need you." Mature love says: "I need you because I love you."". Atmospheric and restrained, cinematic directional light, a muted period-appropriate palette, fine grain and texture. Compose with generous empty space for the quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

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Provenance

The source

Source
The Art of Loving
Evidence
Wikiquote and an inspected complete online transcription agree on this wording; no original 1956 page image was inspected.

Immature love says: Short excerpt

How we verified this

  • Wikiquote places this passage in The Art of Loving, chapter 2.
  • The independently inspected online book transcription reproduces the passage in its surrounding argument. It is a later transcription, not an authenticated first-edition scan.
  • The publisher’s page identifies the book and author; its catalog description is used for publication context, not as proof of the individual sentence.
In copyright

Only a short excerpt is reproduced; identification and commentary do not grant permission to reuse the complete work.

Rights status is our research, not legal advice — and copyright varies by country and edition. For commercial or published use, confirm with the rightsholder. See terms.

Context

Why it mattered

In the chapter on the theory of love, Fromm describes a child’s movement from receiving care toward developing the capacity to give it. The paired formulations distinguish dependence on another person from an active capacity to love; they are part of that developmental argument, rather than advice to deny all human needs.

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Filed under

More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.

Love Growth Wisdom

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Dig deeper

Trusted places to keep pulling the thread — primary archives, fact-checks, and scholarship. We show how we used each one before you leave.

Wikiquote: Frommen.wikiquote.org

Transcribes the wording and identifies the containing essay or book; a secondary quotation reference, not an original scan.
Complete book transcriptionwww.thetedkarchive.com

Contains the exact passage within the theory-of-love chapter; source limitations are stated.
Publisher book pagewww.harpercollins.com

Identifies The Art of Loving by Erich Fromm and describes its account of love as a developed capacity.
Fromm biographyen.wikipedia.org

Biographical reference documents Fromm’s dates, psychoanalytic work and association with the Frankfurt School.

The author

About Erich Fromm

Erich Fromm

1900–1980

Erich Fromm (1900–1980) was a German-American social psychologist and psychoanalyst associated with the Frankfurt School. A refugee from Nazi Germany, he helped found the William Alanson White Institute in New York; his books connect individual character with the pressures of social life.

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Source reference and evidence

The Art of Loving. 1956.

This verification page

Quotle.info. Who really said 'Immature love says: "I love you because I need you." Mature love says: "I need you because I love you."'? Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/immature-love-says-i-love-you-because-i-need-you-mature/

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