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Reader question: Please explain this sentence, particularly “in and of itself”: Although the pineapple plant is attractive in and of itself, most growers want their plants to flower and fruit. My comments: First, to paraphrase: The pineapple is a beautiful plant to look at. It’s good enough to grow this plant to see its flower alone, but most growers have a double incentive – to see it fruit as well. What’s being implied here is that the pineapple plant is grown mostly for its delicious fruit. “In and of itself” is an idiom that addresses the intrinsic quality or characteristic of something. Literally, “in and of itself” means in itself and of itself, in its own self and of its own self. So, what does this mean idiomatically or figuratively? This means we are speaking about the said quality in isolation, disregarding other factors that may directly or indirectly affect the situation being talked about. Again, using our example, the pineapple flower is attractive enough on its own merit. Some people would be happy to spend the time growing that thing just for its flower. But most people do it for a double purpose – for its fruit also, the sweet, juicy, buttery fruit. To sum up, “in and of itself” means by itself and on its own, when “it” is considered alone and in isolation. And whenever we say something is a certain way in and of itself, we usually imply that it is or will be different when we factor in other conditions and circumstances. | 
