Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go.

The quip hinges on a grammatical pivot—“wherever” versus “whenever”—to contrast two kinds of social presence. One person brings warmth, ease, and pleasure into any setting; another brings relief chiefly by departing. In Wildean fashion, the line is both epigram and social diagnosis: it flatters the ideal of charm while skewering the boor, bore, or tyrant whose absence is the real gift. Its economy and wit also reflect Wilde’s broader aesthetic of conversation as performance, where moral judgment is delivered through style—an elegant joke that nonetheless carries a sharp ethical implication about how one affects others.

Some bring happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go.