This list of The Perks of Being a Wallflower quotes will take you back to your favorite book pages and the most iconic scenes from the movie.
Wallflower is a metaphor used to describe socially awkward people. This is the very definition of Charlie. He watches life happen from the sidelines, and no one pays attention to him.
However, everything changed when he met Sam and her stepbrother, Patrick. The two couldn’t be any more different from Charlie. Sam is a free spirit, and Patrick is spontaneous and goofy.
Their friendship taught Charlie that there’s more to life! They helped him feel positive things that made his every day more colorful.
If you’re a fan of the movie or want to revisit your favorite chapters in Chbosky’s book, read on. We’re positive you’ll enjoy this list of quotes.
And make sure to check out these Little Women quotes and A Few Good Men quotes.
Best The Perks of Being a Wallflower Quotes
1. “My doctor said we can’t choose where we come from, but we can choose where we go from there. I know it’s not all the answers, but it was enough to start putting these pieces together.” – Charlie Kelmeckis
2. “This one moment when you know you’re not a sad story. You are alive, and you stand up and see the lights on the buildings and everything that makes you wonder. And you’re listening to that song and that drive with the people you love most in this world. And in this moment, I swear, we are infinite.” – Charlie Kelmeckis
3. Charlie Kelmeckis: “Mr. Anderson? Can I ask you something?”
Mr. Anderson: “Yeah.”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “Why do nice people choose the wrong people to date?”
Mr. Anderson: “Are we talking about anyone specific? Well, we accept the love we think we deserve.”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “Can we make them know that they deserve more?”
Mr. Anderson: “We can try.”
4. “I am very interested and fascinated how everyone loves each other, but no one really likes each other.” – Charlie Kelmeckis
5. “Why do I and everyone I love pick people who treat us like we’re nothing?” – Sam Button
6. “You can’t just sit there and put everybody’s lives ahead of yours and think that counts as love.” – Sam Button
7. Patrick Stewart: “Hey, everyone! Everybody! Everyone, raise your glasses to Charlie.”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “What did I do?”
Patrick Stewart: “You didn’t do anything. We just want to toast to our new friend. You see things, and you understand. You’re a wallflower.”
8. “I don’t know if I will have the time to write any more letters because I might be too busy trying to participate. So if this does end up being the last letter, I just want you to know that I was in a bad place before I started high school, and you helped me. Even if you didn’t know what I was talking about or know someone who’s gone through it, you made me not feel alone. Because I know there are people who say all these things don’t happen. And there are people who forget what it’s like to be 16 when they turn 17. I know these will all be stories someday. And our pictures will become old photographs. We’ll all become somebody’s mom or dad. But right now, these moments are not stories. This is happening. I am here, and I am looking at her. And she is so beautiful. I can see it.” – Charlie Kelmeckis
9. “If my Aunt Helen were still here, I could talk to her. And I know she would understand how I am both happy and sad, and I’m still trying to figure out how that could be.” – Charlie Kelmeckis
The Perks of Being a Wallflower Quotes That Tackle Depression
10. Patrick Stewart: “My turn! Let’s see. Let’s think, Charlie.”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “Truth.”
Patrick Stewart: “How’s your first relationship going?”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “It’s so bad, that I keep fantasizing that one of us is dying of cancer so that I don’t have to break up with her.”
11. “My life is officially an after-school special.” – Patrick Stewart
12. “Welcome to the island of misfit toys.” – Sam Button
13. Patrick Stewart: “Why can’t you save anybody?”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “I don’t know.”
14. “Let’s go be psychos together.” – Sam Button
15. Charlie Kelmeckis: “Sam, do you think if people knew how crazy you really were, no one would ever talk to you?”
Sam Button: “All the time.”
16. Charlie Kelmeckis: “There is so much pain. And I—I—I don’t know how to not notice it.”
Dr. Burton: “What’s hurting you?”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “No, not—not me. It’s them! It’s—it’s everyone. It never stops. Do you understand?”
17. Chris Kelmeckis: “How are you feeling, Charlie?”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “Good.”
Chris Kelmeckis: “No, you know what I mean. Is it bad tonight?”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “No, no. I’m not picturing things anymore. Or if I do I can just shut it off.”
Chris Kelmeckis: “Well, you know, Mom did say that you have good friends now. And maybe if it does get bad again, you can just talk to them. Yeah?”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “Yeah. Especially Sam. She’s great.”
Profound The Perks of Being a Wallflower Quotes Packed With Meaning
18. “I know who you are, Sam. I know I’m quiet and—and I know I should speak more. But if you knew the things that were in my head most of the time, you’d know what it really meant. How, how much we’re alike, and how we’ve been through the same things, and you’re not small. You’re beautiful.” – Charlie
19. “Touch my friends again, and I’ll blind you.” – Charlie
20. “Look, my name is Patrick. Either you call me Patrick, or you call me nothing.” – Patrick Stewart
21. Charlie Kelmeckis: “My aunt had the same thing done to her too, and she turned her life around.”
Sam Button: “She must have been great.”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “She was my favorite person in the world. Until now.”
22. Charlie Kelmeckis: “Are you having a good time?”
Sam Button: “Not really; how about you?”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “I don’t know. It’s my first date; I don’t have much to compare it to.”
23. Patrick Stewart: “What?”
Charlie Kelmeckis: “I feel infinite.”
24. “Well, I have 1,384 days to go. Just so I say it to someone, high school is even worse than middle school.” – Charlie Kelmeckis
The Perks of Being a Wallflower Quotes From the Book
25. “Things change, friends leave, and life doesn’t stop for anybody.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
26. “Try to be a filter, not a sponge.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
27. “Maybe it’s good to put things in perspective, but sometimes, I think that the only perspective is to really be there.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
28. “She wasn’t bitter. She was sad, though. But it was a hopeful kind of sad. The kind of sad that just takes time.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
29. “Sometimes people use thought to not participate in life.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
30. “I was suddenly very aware of the fact it was me standing up in that tunnel with the wind over my face. Not caring if I saw downtown. Not even thinking about it. Because I was standing in the tunnel. And I was really there. And that was enough to make me feel infinite.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
More The Perks of Being a Wallflower Quotes to Revisit Your Favorite Chapters
31. “Not everyone has a sob story, Charlie, and even if they do, it’s no excuse.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
32. “This moment will just be another story someday.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
33. “I think that if I ever have kids, and they are upset, I won’t tell them that people are starving in China or anything like that because it wouldn’t change the fact that they were upset. And even if somebody else has it much worse, that doesn’t really change the fact that you have what you have.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
34. “It’s strange because sometimes, I read a book, and I think I am the people in the book.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
35. “It’s just that I don’t want to be somebody’s crush. If somebody likes me, I want them to like the real me, not what they think I am. And I don’t want them to carry it around inside. I want them to show me, so I can feel it too.” – Stephen Chbosky, Author
Which Character Were You Able to Relate to the Most?
In life, we’ll encounter tons of people who are very different from us. If you’re like Charlie, this could be overwhelming or intimidating. However, remember that it’s only through meeting and interacting with different types of people that we grow and learn to love life even more.
Charlie is a wallflower, and he doesn’t have friends because of his personality. He lived a dull and mundane life and felt like he had no purpose. But, with the appearance of Sam and Patrick in his life, things slowly started to change for the better.
Sam taught Charlie the beauty of loving someone. On the flip side, Patrick showed him the fun side of life. Through them, Charlie discovered the happiness that first love would bring, the joy that can come from music, and the pros of having true friends.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower allows us to recognize the importance of accepting others for who they are and the critical role that inclusivity plays. Through these things, Charlie blossomed into a completely different person who understands and appreciates the ups and downs of life.
We hope this collection was able to lead you to the first step of your journey toward improvement. Remember, there are different people in this world, but it only means you are unique; you don’t have to alienate yourself from others because of that. Learn from Charlie, Sam, and Patrick, and live life to the fullest!
