--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He decides he wants both more and less…" description: "\"“He decides he wants both more and less. He’d like to hang out with Beyonce in a nice way, get to know her by doing small pleasant things like going ou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8f/ben-fountain-3198_desire_he-decides-he-wants-both-more-and-less-h_442092.jpg" --- # He decides he wants both more and less. He’d like to hang… ![“He decides he wants both more and less. He’d like to hang out with Beyonce in a nice way, get to know her by doing small pleasant things like going out for icecream, or how about this, a three-week trial run in some tropical paradise where they can hang together in that nice way and possibly fall…” quote by Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8f/ben-fountain-3198_desire_he-decides-he-wants-both-more-and-less-h_442092.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8f/ben-fountain-3198_desire_he-decides-he-wants-both-more-and-less-h_442092.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8f/ben-fountain-3198_desire_he-decides-he-wants-both-more-and-less-h_442092.jpg) > ““He decides he wants both more and less. He’d like to hang out with Beyonce in a nice way, get to know her by doing small pleasant things like going out for icecream, or how about this, a three-week trial run in some tropical paradise where they can hang together in that nice way and possibly fall in love, and meanwhile fuck each other’s brains out in their spare time. He wants both, he wants the entire body-soul connect because anything less is just demeaning. Has the war done this to him, he wonders, inspired by these deeper sensitivities and yearnings of his? Or is it just because he’s going on his twentieth year of life?”” [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator seeks both deep intimacy and casual encounters, questioning whether war or age drives his yearning. **In simple terms:** He wants love and sex, unsure why. Key Takeaway Reflect on motivations behind relationships. Themes desire conflict war impact age sexuality Mood conflicted introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - dating apps - post‑war societies - personal growth Key Concepts existentialism psychology relationships Questions to Reflect On - What drives your relationship choices? - How does trauma affect intimacy? A Different Perspective The narrative may romanticize unhealthy dynamics. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Fall in love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall-in-love/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Spare time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spare-time/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Yearnings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yearnings/) ## Related quotes > [“He decides he wants both more or less. 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Everyone wants a quick fix.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-lehane/i-ve-built-something-valuable-here-but-valuable-things-also-have-a/) [Dennis Lehane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-lehane/) > [Don't need to waste your time on someone who only wants you around when it fits there needs!.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiny-kp/don-t-need-to-waste-your-time-on-someone-who-only-wants-you-around/) [Tiny Kp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiny-kp/) > [You don't need to waste your time on someone who only wants you around when it fits their needs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-don-t-need-to-waste-your-time-on-someone-who-only-wants-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There comes a time when everyone wants to re-evaluate their life and what they want out of it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mutya-buena/there-comes-a-time-when-everyone-wants-to-re-evaluate-their-life-and/) Mutya Buena > [The world wants to like America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/feisal-abdul-rauf/the-world-wants-to-like-america/) [Feisal Abdul Rauf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/feisal-abdul-rauf/) > [My father wants me to be like my brother, but I can't be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-mapplethorpe/my-father-wants-me-to-be-like-my-brother-but-i-can-t-be/) [Robert Mapplethorpe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-mapplethorpe/) > [in Hollywood, everyone wants what someone else wants. It's like a law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-d-adams/in-hollywood-everyone-wants-what-someone-else-wants-it-s-like-a-law/) Max D. Adams > [Everybody wants to be like everybody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-atkins/everybody-wants-to-be-like-everybody-else/) [Christopher Atkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-atkins/) > [What if my son stares with a face like my own and says he wants to be like me when he's grown shit! But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dirty-money/what-if-my-son-stares-with-a-face-like-my-own-and-says-he-wants-to-be/) [Dirty Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dirty-money/) > [You can feel that he wants to own you - not like an object but like a good dream he wants to keep having.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-bank/you-can-feel-that-he-wants-to-own-you-not-like-an-object-but-like-a/) [Melissa Bank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-bank/) ## More by Ben Fountain > [“The singing triggers a soft detonation at his core, molten parts of him are flying everywhere and his ears ring to the tune of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/the-singing-triggers-a-soft-detonation-at-his-core-molten-parts-of/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [“Even harder was describing his sense that Shroom’s death might have ruined him for anything else, because when he died? when I felt his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/even-harder-was-describing-his-sense-that-shroom-s-death-might-have/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [“Without ever exactly putting his mind to it, he's come to believe that loss is standard trajectory. Something new appears in the world—a baby,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/without-ever-exactly-putting-his-mind-to-it-he-s-come-to-believe-that/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [“But I am scared. Everybody's scared." "You know what I mean, like scared scared. Like coward scared, like if you never went to begin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/but-i-am-scared-everybody-s-scared-you-know-what-i-mean-like-scared/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [“God knows the war sucks, but he sees no great appeal in these tepid peacetime lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/god-knows-the-war-sucks-but-he-sees-no-great-appeal-in-these-tepid/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [“What he'd like to say is that he's lived it, if not the entire breadth and depth of the Christian faith then certainly the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/what-he-d-like-to-say-is-that-he-s-lived-it-if-not-the-entire-breadth/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [By the end of the first decade of writing, I considered myself a confirmed failure in the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/by-the-end-of-the-first-decade-of-writing-i-considered-myself-a/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [I started publishing stories in small magazines early on, but after seven or eight or nine years you feel like you need a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/i-started-publishing-stories-in-small-magazines-early-on-but-after/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [“I think sometimes nothing is better than something. I mean, I’d rather have nothing than let this guy use me like his bitch.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/i-think-sometimes-nothing-is-better-than-something-i-mean-i-d-rather/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [“No it was my choice. It's what I wanted to do. And I knew they'd probably send me to Iraq. It's not like anybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/no-it-was-my-choice-it-s-what-i-wanted-to-do-and-i-knew-they-d/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [It's amazing what happens when you stick yourself in a place and let things take their more or less natural course.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/it-s-amazing-what-happens-when-you-stick-yourself-in-a-place-and-let/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [“As if sorrow is the true reality? Without ever putting his mind to it, he's come to believe that loss is the standard trajectory.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/as-if-sorrow-is-the-true-reality-without-ever-putting-his-mind-to-it/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [If you want to see a bunch of happy Americans, go out to opening day at any baseball stadium in the land.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/if-you-want-to-see-a-bunch-of-happy-americans-go-out-to-opening-day/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [There was no such thing as perfection in this world, only moments of such extreme transparency that you forgot yourself, a holy mercy if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/there-was-no-such-thing-as-perfection-in-this-world-only-moments-of/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [Late bloomer' is another way of saying 'slow learner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/late-bloomer-is-another-way-of-saying-slow-learner/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) [Explore all 127 Ben Fountain quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) ## More Desire quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) Ted Martinez > [Passion is what you need to be good, an unforgiving passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-easton/passion-is-what-you-need-to-be-good-an-unforgiving-passion/) [David Easton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-easton/) > [I want the municipality to be a helping hand to the man with a desire of sympathy, to help the fallen when it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burns/i-want-the-municipality-to-be-a-helping-hand-to-the-man-with-a-desire/) [John Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burns/) > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [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/) > [“THE ESSENCE OF YOUR DESIRE IS A FEELING”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-laporte/the-essence-of-your-desire-is-a-feeling/) [Danielle LaPorte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-laporte/) > [On the brink of being satiated, desire still appears infinite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rostand/on-the-brink-of-being-satiated-desire-still-appears-infinite/) [Jean Rostand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rostand/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [He caught her, she fell, he caught her in his arms, he held her tightly unconscious of what he was doing. He held her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/he-caught-her-she-fell-he-caught-her-in-his-arms-he-held-her-tightly/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“The deepest urge in human nature is the desire to be important.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/the-deepest-urge-in-human-nature-is-the-desire-to-be-important/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [In discovering books, you became free to explore the full range of human motives, desires, secrets, and lies. All my life, people have scolded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/in-discovering-books-you-became-free-to-explore-the-full-range-of/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) > [I have never been in, nor have I had any strong particular desire to be in, what is termed a costume drama, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/i-have-never-been-in-nor-have-i-had-any-strong-particular-desire-to/) [Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/) > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“from THE DEVIL YOU KNOW : She wanted him too. He could see it in the rapid rise of her breasts. He could smell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emery-lee/from-the-devil-you-know-she-wanted-him-too-he-could-see-it-in-the/) [Emery Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emery-lee/) [Browse all 15,155 Desire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He decides he wants both more and less. He’d like to hang out with Beyonce in a nice way, get to know her by doing small pleasant things like going out for icecream, or how about this, a three-week trial run in some tropical paradise where they can hang together in that nice way and possibly fall in love, and meanwhile fuck each other’s brains out in their spare time. He wants both, he wants the entire body-soul connect because anything less is just demeaning. Has the war done this to him, he wonders, inspired by these deeper sensitivities and yearnings of his? 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