Context

This line is spoken by Rust Cohle, played by Matthew McConaughey, in season one of the TV show True Detective (2014).

This quote comes from HBO's gritty, surreal crime show True Detective. The real star of the show is Detective Rust Cohle, who has a tendency to go on dark, philosophical rants about the meaninglessness of everything.

Rust says this particular quote to his partner, Marty, who's trying to figure out if Rust is religious. When Marty asks Rust what being a pessimist means, Rust famously replies "Means I'm bad at parties."

But, not long after, Rust launches into a monologue about how human nature is unnatural and we all ought to just kill ourselves. Yeah, don't watch this show if you're easily bummed out.

Where you've heard it

Since True Detective is relatively new, the only place you've probably heard it is this Tumblr blog that has compiled the best quotes from the show. Yeah, there's enough for an entire blog. Trust us, Rust is full of these little nuggets of wisdom.

Pretentious Factor

If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.

Yeah, declaring yourself a pessimist at a party might not get you invited back. Unless it's a pessimist party, in which case go for it.