We may seek a fortune for no greater reason than to secure the respect and attention of people who would otherwise look straight through us.

De Botton is diagnosing a social motive behind wealth-seeking: money can function less as a tool for comfort than as a ticket to visibility. The line suggests that “fortune” is often pursued to remedy a fear of insignificance—of being ignored, dismissed, or treated as socially weightless. In this view, status is a form of emotional security, purchased to guarantee recognition and deference from others. The quote fits de Botton’s recurring theme that modern life ties self-worth to external markers (income, prestige, consumption), and that the craving for respect can quietly steer life choices more powerfully than practical need.