--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Jealousy is a terrible thing. “It doth…" description: "\"“Jealousy is a terrible thing. “It doth mock the meat it feeds upon” is an understatement. Jealousy is completely consuming, totally irrational, and ab..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f80/arthur-c-clarke-640_wonderful-people_jealousy-is-a-terrible-thing-it-doth-moc_1656942.jpg" --- # Jealousy is a terrible thing. “It doth mock the meat it… ![“Jealousy is a terrible thing. “It doth mock the meat it feeds upon” is an understatement. Jealousy is completely consuming, totally irrational, and absolutely debilitating. The most wonderful people in the world are nothing but raging animals when trapped in the throes of jealousy.” quote by Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f80/arthur-c-clarke-640_wonderful-people_jealousy-is-a-terrible-thing-it-doth-moc_1656942.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f80/arthur-c-clarke-640_wonderful-people_jealousy-is-a-terrible-thing-it-doth-moc_1656942.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f80/arthur-c-clarke-640_wonderful-people_jealousy-is-a-terrible-thing-it-doth-moc_1656942.jpg) > ““Jealousy is a terrible thing. “It doth mock the meat it feeds upon” is an understatement. Jealousy is completely consuming, totally irrational, and absolutely debilitating. The most wonderful people in the world are nothing but raging animals when trapped in the throes of jealousy.”” [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Jealousy is an all‑consuming, irrational force that destroys rational thought and reduces people to animalistic behavior. **In simple terms:** Jealousy overwhelms and degrades. Key Takeaway Control jealousy before it controls you. Themes emotions self‑control psychology destruction Mood cautionary analytical Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - relationships - workplace competition - personal reflection Key Concepts irrationality mental health human nature Questions to Reflect On - What triggers your jealousy? - How can you transform it into constructive energy? A Different Perspective Jealousy can sometimes motivate positive change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Jealousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jealousy/) [Jealousy Completely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jealousy-completely-716286/) [Jealousy Terrible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jealousy-terrible-344062/) [Terrible thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrible-thing/) [Throes Jealousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/throes-jealousy-716288/) [Understatement Jealousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understatement-jealousy-716287/) [Wonderful people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonderful-people/) ## Related quotes > [Jealousy is a terrible disease please Get well soon bitch!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie/jealousy-is-a-terrible-disease-please-get-well-soon-bitch/) [Stephanie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie/) > [Jealousy is a terrible thing. I know all the psychological triggers. The fear of losing control, the fear of loss, the fear of abandonment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-robotham/jealousy-is-a-terrible-thing-i-know-all-the-psychological-triggers/) [Michael Robotham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-robotham/) > [Jealousy is a terrible disease¦what can I say…huh!!! just Get well soon!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babloo/jealousy-is-a-terrible-disease-what-can-i-say-huh-just-get-well-soon/) [Babloo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babloo/) > [Jealousy is a terrible disease¦Get well soon!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aisha/jealousy-is-a-terrible-disease-get-well-soon/) [Aisha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aisha/) > [Jealousy is a terrible disease please get well soon :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/jealousy-is-a-terrible-disease-please-get-well-soon/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) > [“JEALOUSY IS A TERRIBLE THING. It keeps you up at night, it demands tremendous energy in order to remain alive, and so you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-benjamin/jealousy-is-a-terrible-thing-it-keeps-you-up-at-night-it-demands/) [Melanie Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-benjamin/) > [Jealousy is a terrible disease. Get well soon, sweetie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/jealousy-is-a-terrible-disease-get-well-soon-sweetie/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The terrible thing about being an actor is that it's not a solo occupation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-coyote/the-terrible-thing-about-being-an-actor-is-that-it-s-not-a-solo/) [Peter Coyote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-coyote/) > [The truth. It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should be treated with caution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jk-rowling/the-truth-it-is-a-beautiful-and-terrible-thing-and-should-be-treated/) [JK Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jk-rowling/) > [The most terrible thing about death is that a life-time's reading is laid to waste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-most-terrible-thing-about-death-is-that-a-life-time-s-reading-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Without publicity a terrible thing happens: nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-t-barnum/without-publicity-a-terrible-thing-happens-nothing/) [P. T. Barnum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-t-barnum/) > [The expectation of an unpleasantness is more terrible than the thing itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-bashkirtseff/the-expectation-of-an-unpleasantness-is-more-terrible-than-the-thing/) [Marie Bashkirtseff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-bashkirtseff/) > [This is the most terrible thing that can happen in a friendly country if Thai people have to escape from the backdoor of an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thaksin-shinawatra/this-is-the-most-terrible-thing-that-can-happen-in-a-friendly-country/) [Thaksin Shinawatra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thaksin-shinawatra/) > [“A gunshot is a terrible thing to wake up to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-christy/a-gunshot-is-a-terrible-thing-to-wake-up-to/) [Ann Christy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-christy/) > [It's a terrible thing that your life turns into a good story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/it-s-a-terrible-thing-that-your-life-turns-into-a-good-story/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) ## More by Arthur C. Clarke > [Science can destroy religion by ignoring it as well as by disproving its tenets. No one ever demonstrated, so far as I am aware,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/science-can-destroy-religion-by-ignoring-it-as-well-as-by-disproving/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [We cannot predict the new forces, powers, and discoveries that will be disclosed to us when we reach the other planets and set up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/we-cannot-predict-the-new-forces-powers-and-discoveries-that-will-be/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [I am unable to distinguish clearly between your religious ceremonies and apparently identical behavior at the sporting and cultural functions you have transmitted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/i-am-unable-to-distinguish-clearly-between-your-religious-ceremonies/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [I don't believe in astrology; I'm a Sagittarius and we're skeptical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/i-don-t-believe-in-astrology-i-m-a-sagittarius-and-we-re-skeptical/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [You can't have it both ways. You can't have both free will and a benevolent higher power who protects you from yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/you-can-t-have-it-both-ways-you-can-t-have-both-free-will-and-a/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Astronomy, as nothing else can do, teaches men humility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/astronomy-as-nothing-else-can-do-teaches-men-humility/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Nowhere in space will we rest our eyes upon the familiar shapes of trees and plants, or any of the animals that share our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/nowhere-in-space-will-we-rest-our-eyes-upon-the-familiar-shapes-of/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [“The universe is full of energy, but much of it is at equilibrium. At equilibrium no energy can flow, and therefore it cannot be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/the-universe-is-full-of-energy-but-much-of-it-is-at-equilibrium-at/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [“Here the trees surrounded them with an invisible, anechoic blanket, so that every word seemed sucked into silence the moment it was uttered.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/here-the-trees-surrounded-them-with-an-invisible-anechoic-blanket-so/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [“I’m a scientific expert; that means I know nothing about absolutely everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/i-m-a-scientific-expert-that-means-i-know-nothing-about-absolutely/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [There were some things that only time could cure. Evil men could be destroyed, but nothing could be done with good men who were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/there-were-some-things-that-only-time-could-cure-evil-men-could-be/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [“Pure coincidence, of course, but a sensible man makes coincidences work for him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/pure-coincidence-of-course-but-a-sensible-man-makes-coincidences-work/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [They will have time enough, in those endless aeons, to attempt all things, and to gather all knowledge no Gods imagined by our minds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/they-will-have-time-enough-in-those-endless-aeons-to-attempt-all/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [“One thing seems certain. Our galaxy is now in the brief springtime of its life—a springtime made glorious by such brilliant blue-white stars as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/one-thing-seems-certain-our-galaxy-is-now-in-the-brief-springtime-of/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Now I understand,” said the last man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/now-i-understand-said-the-last-man/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) [Explore all 415 Arthur C. Clarke quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) ## More Jealousy quotes > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [“That's the catch about betrayal, of course: that it feels good, that there's something immensely pleasurable about moving from a complicated relationship which involves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/that-s-the-catch-about-betrayal-of-course-that-it-feels-good-that/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [“To be mature is, we're told, to move beyond possessiveness. Jealousy is for babies. The mature person knows that no one owns anyone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/to-be-mature-is-we-re-told-to-move-beyond-possessiveness-jealousy-is/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“He often remembered his dad's admonition that envy was mental theft. If you coveted another man's possessions, Dad said, then you should be willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/he-often-remembered-his-dad-s-admonition-that-envy-was-mental-theft/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [Being with a jealous person is better than someone who never cares about what you do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-with-a-jealous-person-is-better-than-someone-who-never-cares/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Dont hate me cause ur man want me dont be jealouse cause hes thinking of when he says he loves u dont hate him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana/dont-hate-me-cause-ur-man-want-me-dont-be-jealouse-cause-hes-thinking/) [Ana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana/) > [~Haters only Hate things they cant have and the people they cant be. its just a little thing called Jealousy~](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/im-nothing/haters-only-hate-things-they-cant-have-and-the-people-they-cant-be/) [Im Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/im-nothing/) > [“Love is like a box, fair on every side, jealousy is like a triangle, sharp at every corner,miss is like a circle,endless”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nabil-marzuq-khairi/love-is-like-a-box-fair-on-every-side-jealousy-is-like-a-triangle/) [Nabil Marzuq Khairi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nabil-marzuq-khairi/) > [I avoid envy at all costs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-winkleman/i-avoid-envy-at-all-costs/) [Claudia Winkleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-winkleman/) > [But love is different for every person. For some it's hate, for some it's joy, for some it's fear, for some it's jealousy, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-frey/but-love-is-different-for-every-person-for-some-it-s-hate-for-some-it/) [James Frey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-frey/) > [A real flame of love is a subtle thing. It burns as a will-o'-the-wisp, dancing onward to fairy lands of delight. It roars as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-dreiser/a-real-flame-of-love-is-a-subtle-thing-it-burns-as-a-will-o-the-wisp/) [Theodore Dreiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-dreiser/) > [Men are jealous of every woman, even when they dont have the slightest interest in her themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-neruda/men-are-jealous-of-every-woman-even-when-they-dont-have-the-slightest/) [Jan Neruda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-neruda/) > [avarice breeds envy, a worm that is always gnawing, letting the avaricious enjoy neither their own nor anyone else's good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-catherine-of-siena/avarice-breeds-envy-a-worm-that-is-always-gnawing-letting-the/) [St. Catherine of Siena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-catherine-of-siena/) > [I used to get so jealous if my wife liked another band more than my own. Come to think of it, I still do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delonge/i-used-to-get-so-jealous-if-my-wife-liked-another-band-more-than-my/) [Tom DeLonge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delonge/) > [Let your love drive you mad, mad about life, mad about the smell of Jasmine. Mad about the painting that reminds you of one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melody-minagar/let-your-love-drive-you-mad-mad-about-life-mad-about-the-smell-of/) [Melody Minagar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melody-minagar/) [Browse all 2,945 Jealousy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jealousy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Jealousy is a terrible thing. “It doth mock the meat it feeds upon” is an understatement. Jealousy is completely consuming, totally irrational, and absolutely debilitating. 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