--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Rather than regret for what I have…" description: "\"Rather than regret for what I have written, I feel regret for what I shall never be able to read.\" — Antonio Tabucchi" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/antonio-tabucchi-13002_able_rather-than-regret-for-what-i-have-writt_1606323.jpg" --- # Rather than regret for what I have written, I feel regret… ![“Rather than regret for what I have written, I feel regret for what I shall never be able to read.” quote by Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/antonio-tabucchi-13002_able_rather-than-regret-for-what-i-have-writt_1606323.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/antonio-tabucchi-13002_able_rather-than-regret-for-what-i-have-writt_1606323.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/antonio-tabucchi-13002_able_rather-than-regret-for-what-i-have-writt_1606323.jpg) > “Rather than regret for what I have written, I feel regret for what I shall never be able to read.” [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Regret stems from unread works more than written ones, highlighting lost potential. **In simple terms:** Regret is about unread books. Key Takeaway Seek out and read diverse voices. Themes regret literature potential learning Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - library visits - book clubs - personal reading goals - academic research Key Concepts Literary criticism existentialism knowledge gaps Questions to Reflect On - Which unread books could change your view? - How do you prioritize reading? A Different Perspective Time constraints limit exposure to many works. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Regret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regret/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I would sincerely regret, and which never shall happen whilst I am in office, a military guard around the President.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-jackson/i-would-sincerely-regret-and-which-never-shall-happen-whilst-i-am-in/) [Andrew Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-jackson/) > [Not that I regret saying what I believed to be the truth, but I regret anything that I might have written or spoken that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-farrakhan/not-that-i-regret-saying-what-i-believed-to-be-the-truth-but-i-regret/) [Louis Farrakhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-farrakhan/) > [I regret that I have not written more, shouted louder, and acted out my beliefs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-sionil-jos/i-regret-that-i-have-not-written-more-shouted-louder-and-acted-out-my/) [F. Sionil Jose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-sionil-jos/) > [That’s why I hate to take credit for the songs I’ve written. I feel that somewhere, someplace, it’s been done and I’m just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jackson/that-s-why-i-hate-to-take-credit-for-the-songs-i-ve-written-i-feel/) [Michael Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jackson/) > [“No one should say whether others should breed or not, that would go against how I feel a woman has the right to choose.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-glass/no-one-should-say-whether-others-should-breed-or-not-that-would-go/) [Alice Glass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-glass/) > [I've always written down how I feel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adele/i-ve-always-written-down-how-i-feel/) [Adele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adele/) > [My texts are written like palimpsests. They are written over and over again, until I feel that a kind of metaphysical meaning can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-g-sebald/my-texts-are-written-like-palimpsests-they-are-written-over-and-over/) [W. G. Sebald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-g-sebald/) > [I definitely think the best songs are written when you feel something strongly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mo/i-definitely-think-the-best-songs-are-written-when-you-feel-something/) MO > [I am very scared at the beginning of each book, because I've never written it before. I feel I have to teach myself how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/i-am-very-scared-at-the-beginning-of-each-book-because-i-ve-never/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [If four or five days go by, and I haven't written anything, I feel incomplete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruskin-bond/if-four-or-five-days-go-by-and-i-haven-t-written-anything-i-feel/) [Ruskin Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruskin-bond/) > [If, at the close of business each evening, I myself can understand what I've written, I feel the day hasn't been totally wasted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-at-the-close-of-business-each-evening-i-myself-can-understand-what/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“April ended and May came along, but May was even worse than April. In the deepening spring of May, I had no choice but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/april-ended-and-may-came-along-but-may-was-even-worse-than-april-in/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [I am always trying to 'preserve' things by getting other people to read what I have written, and feel what I felt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/i-am-always-trying-to-preserve-things-by-getting-other-people-to-read/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“Well, it all comes to this; there's no use trying to live in other people's opinions. The only thing to do is to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/well-it-all-comes-to-this-there-s-no-use-trying-to-live-in-other/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [I do think that just about whenever I am writing, or more accurately, whenever I have written, I feel better and more at peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-do-think-that-just-about-whenever-i-am-writing-or-more-accurately/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) ## More by Antonio Tabucchi > [No, I'm happy to go on living the life I've chosen. I'm a university teacher and I like my job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/no-i-m-happy-to-go-on-living-the-life-i-ve-chosen-i-m-a-university/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [But I don't think I have any particular talent for prediction, because when you have three or four elements in hand, you don't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/but-i-don-t-think-i-have-any-particular-talent-for-prediction-because/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I've always been drawn to tormented people full of contradictions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-ve-always-been-drawn-to-tormented-people-full-of-contradictions/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I live quietly at home among my family and friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-live-quietly-at-home-among-my-family-and-friends/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [My books are about losers, about people who've lost their way and are engaged in a search.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/my-books-are-about-losers-about-people-who-ve-lost-their-way-and-are/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [Xenophobia manifests itself especially against civilizations and cultures that are weak because they lack economic resources, means of subsistence or land. So nomadic people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/xenophobia-manifests-itself-especially-against-civilizations-and/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I vividly remember the stories my grandfather told me about the carnage of the First World War, which people tend to forget was one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-vividly-remember-the-stories-my-grandfather-told-me-about-the/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I prefer insomnia to anaesthesia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-prefer-insomnia-to-anaesthesia/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [The salt of any interesting civilization is mixture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/the-salt-of-any-interesting-civilization-is-mixture/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I don't know whether these people are going to find themselves, but as they live their lives they have no choice but to face…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-don-t-know-whether-these-people-are-going-to-find-themselves-but-as/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [We all want to be someone else but without ceasing to be ourselves. I think it's very important to defend this idea in real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/we-all-want-to-be-someone-else-but-without-ceasing-to-be-ourselves-i/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I don't go for people who lead full and satisfying lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-don-t-go-for-people-who-lead-full-and-satisfying-lives/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [A l'intérieur de ce corps vivait l'âme d'une intellectuelle et poète dont personne n'avait le soupçon. Within this body lived the soul of an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/a-l-int-rieur-de-ce-corps-vivait-l-me-d-une-intellectuelle-et-po-te/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [People with lots of doubts sometimes find life more oppressive and exhausting than others, but they're more energetic - they aren't robots.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/people-with-lots-of-doubts-sometimes-find-life-more-oppressive-and/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [I was born in the Second World War during the Nazi invasion of my country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/i-was-born-in-the-second-world-war-during-the-nazi-invasion-of-my/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) [Explore all 42 Antonio Tabucchi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) ## More Able quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [In the '80s, the way radio was programmed, if you didn't have a hit record you weren't going to be able to make any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huey-lewis/in-the-80s-the-way-radio-was-programmed-if-you-didn-t-have-a-hit/) [Huey Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huey-lewis/) > [I think I've had the longest career of strength, focus, and still being able to sell records. I think I'm that guy. I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/) [Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/) > [I wanted to remember in order to be able to return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-wanted-to-remember-in-order-to-be-able-to-return/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/) Greg Perry > [I don't know if I would qualify as mainstream. I think I have managed to function pretty successfully on the fringes of the music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/i-don-t-know-if-i-would-qualify-as-mainstream-i-think-i-have-managed/) [Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/) > [What we're supposed to do as actors is be able to portray real human beings and emotions. And if you grow up in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-browning/what-we-re-supposed-to-do-as-actors-is-be-able-to-portray-real-human/) [Emily Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-browning/) > [The reason that Apple is able to create products like iPad is because we always try to be at the intersection of technology and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-reason-that-apple-is-able-to-create-products-like-ipad-is-because/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [It was an important period for us, because even though we weren't a "punk band", and what became a model for a punk band,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mallinder/it-was-an-important-period-for-us-because-even-though-we-weren-t-a/) [Stephen Mallinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mallinder/) > [- You look fine. - Right. I look fine. Except I don't, said Zora, tugging sadly at her man's nightshirt. 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