--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Are there many people without illness or…" description: "\"Are there many people without illness or disability who sit at home in the evening with clenched fists, continually changing the channel of a televisio..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4d/alasdair-gray-13383_bridges_are-there-many-people-without-illness-or_220288.jpg" --- # Are there many people without illness or disability who… ![“Are there many people without illness or disability who sit at home in the evening with clenched fists, continually changing the channel of a television set and wishing they had the courage to roll over the parapet of a high bridge? I bet there are millions of us.” quote by Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4d/alasdair-gray-13383_bridges_are-there-many-people-without-illness-or_220288.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4d/alasdair-gray-13383_bridges_are-there-many-people-without-illness-or_220288.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4d/alasdair-gray-13383_bridges_are-there-many-people-without-illness-or_220288.jpg) > “Are there many people without illness or disability who sit at home in the evening with clenched fists, continually changing the channel of a television set and wishing they had the courage to roll over the parapet of a high bridge? I bet there are millions of us.” [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Many people feel trapped by fear and frustration, imagining daring actions they never take. **In simple terms:** People often imagine bold acts they never attempt. Key Takeaway Recognize and address the fear that holds you back. Themes fear frustration imagined courage urban alienation Mood melancholic reflective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - late-night TV watching - personal reflection - mental health struggles - urban loneliness Key Concepts existential dread psychological paralysis social commentary Questions to Reflect On - What fear is keeping you from acting? - How can you turn imagined courage into real action? A Different Perspective The quote dramatizes fear but may overlook practical steps to change circumstances. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bridges/) [Courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage/) [Disability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disability/) [Evening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evening/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Illness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illness/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) ## Related quotes > [“I clenched my fists, but it did no good. He was still slipping through my fingers. \*”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-erickson/i-clenched-my-fists-but-it-did-no-good-he-was-still-slipping-through/) [Megan Erickson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-erickson/) > [We cannot sow seeds with clenched fists. To sow we must open our hands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolfo-perez-esquivel/we-cannot-sow-seeds-with-clenched-fists-to-sow-we-must-open-our-hands/) [Adolfo Perez Esquivel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolfo-perez-esquivel/) > [One thing I have learned is, if people tell you they had a "frank" discussion with someone, it is usually code for a yelling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-king/one-thing-i-have-learned-is-if-people-tell-you-they-had-a-frank/) [Larry King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-king/) > [We are born into this world with clenched fists, we leave it with fingers apart- preaching the lesson that you take nothing with you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethel-percy-andrus/we-are-born-into-this-world-with-clenched-fists-we-leave-it-with/) [Ethel Percy Andrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethel-percy-andrus/) > [Dear God, I am so afraid to open my clenched fists! Who will I be when I have nothing left to hold on to?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dear-god-i-am-so-afraid-to-open-my-clenched-fists-who-will-i-be-when/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I came into this world the way every person on the planet does - with clenched fists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/i-came-into-this-world-the-way-every-person-on-the-planet-does-with/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Many people find themselves with illness as they become successful: higher blood pressure and diabetes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zong-qinghou/many-people-find-themselves-with-illness-as-they-become-successful/) [Zong Qinghou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zong-qinghou/) > [“We are not easy to help. Nor are we easy to be around. Nobody with a serious illness is easy to be around. Although…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/we-are-not-easy-to-help-nor-are-we-easy-to-be-around-nobody-with-a/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [People that go through serious illness - you can either go one way or the other. You can either become despondent about it all.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-layton/people-that-go-through-serious-illness-you-can-either-go-one-way-or/) [Jack Layton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-layton/) > [“Becky," he said. "Get in the car." "Becca," she corrected automatically. Her voice was breathy, her hands still clenched in fists. "For god's sake-"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brigid-kemmerer/becky-he-said-get-in-the-car-becca-she-corrected-automatically-her/) [Brigid Kemmerer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brigid-kemmerer/) > [“Damen was breathing hard, his hands clenched into fists. How dare you talk that way about my father. The words were on his lips.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-pacat/damen-was-breathing-hard-his-hands-clenched-into-fists-how-dare-you/) [C.S. Pacat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-pacat/) > [“Aiden flexed his jaw and clenched his fists at his sides. One, two, three… It was a total cliché, but counting was one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-l-maxwell/aiden-flexed-his-jaw-and-clenched-his-fists-at-his-sides-one-two/) [Gina L. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-l-maxwell/) > [“Who did this to you?” I whisper. His gaze falls to my hands. His lips turn up in amusement. The expression is so strange…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-k-schiller/who-did-this-to-you-i-whisper-his-gaze-falls-to-my-hands-his-lips/) [M.K. Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-k-schiller/) > [ “Instrumental keys \[on organs\], introduced in the twelfth century, are so heavy and stiff that they must be played with clenched fists. ” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-gies/instrumental-keys-on-organs-introduced-in-the-twelfth-century-are-so/) [Joseph Gies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-gies/) > [“He walked out on the beach to the edge of the light and stood with his clenched fists on top of his skull and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/he-walked-out-on-the-beach-to-the-edge-of-the-light-and-stood-with/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) ## More by Alasdair Gray > [“At last she interrupted with a harsh rattle of laughter. "Oh, yes, I like this book! Crazy hopes of a glamorous, rich, colorful life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/at-last-she-interrupted-with-a-harsh-rattle-of-laughter-oh-yes-i-like/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [“Only bad religions depend on mysteries, just as bad governments depend on secret police." A character's response to a discussion about eating from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/only-bad-religions-depend-on-mysteries-just-as-bad-governments-depend/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [But I do enjoy words—some words for their own sake! Words like river, and dawn, and daylight, and time. These words seem much richer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/but-i-do-enjoy-words-some-words-for-their-own-sake-words-like-river/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [“Lanark said irritably, "You seem to understand my questions, but your answers make no sense to me." "That's typical of life, isn't it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/lanark-said-irritably-you-seem-to-understand-my-questions-but-your/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [“The world sometimes seems a chessboard where the pieces move themselves. I'm never sure what square to go to. Yet it can't be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/the-world-sometimes-seems-a-chessboard-where-the-pieces-move/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [A good poem is a tautology. It expands one word by adding a number which clarify it, thus making a new word which has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/a-good-poem-is-a-tautology-it-expands-one-word-by-adding-a-number/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [“But leaders need to be mostly dead. People want solid monuments to cling to, not confused men like themselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/but-leaders-need-to-be-mostly-dead-people-want-solid-monuments-to/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [“One day after the exams, the teachers sat at their desks correcting papers while the pupils read comics, played chess or cards or talked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/one-day-after-the-exams-the-teachers-sat-at-their-desks-correcting/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [Think of Florence, Paris, London, New York. Nobody visiting them for the first time is a stranger because he's already visited them in paintings,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/think-of-florence-paris-london-new-york-nobody-visiting-them-for-the/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [I distrust speech therapy. Words are the language of lies and evasions. Music cannot lie. Music talks to the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/i-distrust-speech-therapy-words-are-the-language-of-lies-and-evasions/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [Movement turns dead dogs into maggots and daisies, and flour butter sugar an egg and a tablespoon of milk into Abernethy biscuits, and spermatozoa…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/movement-turns-dead-dogs-into-maggots-and-daisies-and-flour-butter/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [“He watched them with the passionate regret with which he saw them play football or go to dances: the activity itself did not interest,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/he-watched-them-with-the-passionate-regret-with-which-he-saw-them/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [“It is, but we can only help people by giving less than we take away from them. We enlarge the oasis by increasing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/it-is-but-we-can-only-help-people-by-giving-less-than-we-take-away/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [“She is the swelling sail, trim rigging and bust sunlit deck of our matrimonial yacht. I am the low hull, with the invisible ballast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/she-is-the-swelling-sail-trim-rigging-and-bust-sunlit-deck-of-our/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) > [“Only bad religions depend on mysteries, just as bad governments depend on secret police. Truth, beauty and goodness are not mysterious, they are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/only-bad-religions-depend-on-mysteries-just-as-bad-governments-depend-2/) [Alasdair Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) [Explore all 47 Alasdair Gray quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/) ## More Bridges quotes > [Poetry has, in a way, been my bridge to my acting career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omari-hardwick/poetry-has-in-a-way-been-my-bridge-to-my-acting-career/) [Omari Hardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omari-hardwick/) > [Nothing teaches great writing like the very best books do. Yet, good teachers often help students cross that bridge, and I have to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-glass/nothing-teaches-great-writing-like-the-very-best-books-do-yet-good/) [Julia Glass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-glass/) > [In my rear view mirror the sun is going down sinking behind bridges in the road and I think of all the good things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/in-my-rear-view-mirror-the-sun-is-going-down-sinking-behind-bridges/) [Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/) > [My first big mistake was made when, in a moment of weakness, I consented to learn the game; for a man who can frankly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-benchley/my-first-big-mistake-was-made-when-in-a-moment-of-weakness-i/) [Robert Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-benchley/) > [The WPA was one of the most productive elements of FDR's alphabet soup of agencies because it put people to work building roads, bridges,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/the-wpa-was-one-of-the-most-productive-elements-of-fdr-s-alphabet/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The sense that in this universe we are treated as strangers, the longing to be acknowledged, to meet with some response, to bridge some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-sense-that-in-this-universe-we-are-treated-as-strangers-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you walk, try to think nothing! You can then obtain the silence of a streetlight or a bridge; stop thinking; after that, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/when-you-walk-try-to-think-nothing-you-can-then-obtain-the-silence-of/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [By the time they were pulling into the parking lot of the A&P, the mood was fading, the moment gone. Amy could feel it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/by-the-time-they-were-pulling-into-the-parking-lot-of-the-a-p-the/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) > [Al Pacino and Jeff Bridges do it for me in a big way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/al-pacino-and-jeff-bridges-do-it-for-me-in-a-big-way/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [Instead of building castles against your enemies, build bridges for them to come to you!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/instead-of-building-castles-against-your-enemies-build-bridges-for/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Instead of finding himself in nerd heaven—where every nerd gets fifty-eight virgins to role-play with—he woke up in Robert Wood Johnson with two broken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/instead-of-finding-himself-in-nerd-heaven-where-every-nerd-gets-fifty/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [Each person is an island unto himself, in a very real sense; and he can only build bridges to other islands if he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rogers/each-person-is-an-island-unto-himself-in-a-very-real-sense-and-he-can/) [Carl Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rogers/) > [The real test of a bridge player isn’t in keeping out of trouble, but in escaping once he’s in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-sheinwold/the-real-test-of-a-bridge-player-isn-t-in-keeping-out-of-trouble-but/) [Alfred Sheinwold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-sheinwold/) > [The law ... allows rich as well as poor to sleep under bridges.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/the-law-allows-rich-as-well-as-poor-to-sleep-under-bridges/) [Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/) > [Guys like Todd Bridges never overcame being a child star. You can't have any big failures. I've always felt regular. I played organized ball…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bow-wow/guys-like-todd-bridges-never-overcame-being-a-child-star-you-can-t/) [Bow Wow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bow-wow/) [Browse all 1,521 Bridges quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bridges/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Are there many people without illness or disability who sit at home in the evening with clenched fists, continually changing the channel of a television set and wishing they had the courage to roll over the parapet of a high bridge? I bet there are millions of us.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alasdair Gray" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/are-there-many-people-without-illness-or-disability-who-sit-at-home/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bridges" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/are-there-many-people-without-illness-or-disability-who-sit-at-home/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4d/alasdair-gray-13383_bridges_are-there-many-people-without-illness-or_220288.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4d/alasdair-gray-13383_bridges_are-there-many-people-without-illness-or_220288.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4d/alasdair-gray-13383_bridges_are-there-many-people-without-illness-or_220288.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Are there many people without illness or disability who sit at home in the evening with clenched fists…” — Alasdair Gray", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alasdair Gray", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-gray/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Are there many people without illness...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/are-there-many-people-without-illness-or-disability-who-sit-at-home/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-gray/are-there-many-people-without-illness-or-disability-who-sit-at-home/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```