--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But sometimes when you are getting…" description: "\"“But sometimes when you are getting nowhere, you have to give the wasps' nest a wallop”\" — Benjamin Black" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b5/benjamin-black-25177_philip-marlowe_but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhe_1832179.jpg" --- # But sometimes when you are getting nowhere, you have to… ![“But sometimes when you are getting nowhere, you have to give the wasps' nest a wallop” quote by Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b5/benjamin-black-25177_philip-marlowe_but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhe_1832179.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b5/benjamin-black-25177_philip-marlowe_but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhe_1832179.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b5/benjamin-black-25177_philip-marlowe_but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhe_1832179.jpg) > ““But sometimes when you are getting nowhere, you have to give the wasps' nest a wallop”” [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When progress stalls, decisive, bold action may be needed to break through stagnation. **In simple terms:** Take bold action when stuck. Key Takeaway Act decisively to overcome deadlock. Themes determination action conflict risk breakthrough Mood tense urgent motivational Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - career deadlock - personal stagnation - creative block - relationship impasse - political stalemate Key Concepts strategic aggression psychological momentum Questions to Reflect On - What is a situation where a bold move could backfire? - How can you assess risks before a decisive action? A Different Perspective Bold moves can cause collateral damage or unintended consequences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [“He felt that he had unwittingly stuck his hand into The Great Wasps' Nest of Life. As an image it stank. As a cameo…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/he-felt-that-he-had-unwittingly-stuck-his-hand-into-the-great-wasps/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Spring rain leaking through the roof dripping from the wasps' nest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matsuo-basho/spring-rain-leaking-through-the-roof-dripping-from-the-wasps-nest/) [Matsuo Basho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matsuo-basho/) > [“After Elner Shimfissle accidentally poked that wasps’ nest up in her fig tree, the last thing she remembered was thinking “Uh-oh.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-flagg/after-elner-shimfissle-accidentally-poked-that-wasps-nest-up-in-her/) [Fannie Flagg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-flagg/) > [“If I had a razor, I'd cut your throat - just to see what ran out of it." "Caterpillar blood," I said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/if-i-had-a-razor-i-d-cut-your-throat-just-to-see-what-ran-out-of-it/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“Marlowe's the name. The guy you've been trying to follow around for a couple of days." "I ain't following anybody, doc." "This jalopy is.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/marlowe-s-the-name-the-guy-you-ve-been-trying-to-follow-around-for-a/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“I can just about promise you Philip Marlowe was never as dainty as I.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/i-can-just-about-promise-you-philip-marlowe-was-never-as-dainty-as-i/) [Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/) > [“I didn't mind what she called me, what anybody called me. But this was the room I had to live in. It was all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/i-didn-t-mind-what-she-called-me-what-anybody-called-me-but-this-was/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“The kid poured him another straight rye and I think he doctored it with water down behind the bar because when he came up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/the-kid-poured-him-another-straight-rye-and-i-think-he-doctored-it/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“I was as empty of life as a scarecrow's pockets.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/i-was-as-empty-of-life-as-a-scarecrow-s-pockets/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“I feel sorry for novelists when they have to mention women's eyes: there's so little choice, and whatever colouring is decided upon inevitably carries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/i-feel-sorry-for-novelists-when-they-have-to-mention-women-s-eyes/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [“I don't greatly care for passes this early in the morning.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/i-don-t-greatly-care-for-passes-this-early-in-the-morning/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“The trouble with cops is not that they're dumb or crooked or tough, but that they think just being a cop gives them a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/the-trouble-with-cops-is-not-that-they-re-dumb-or-crooked-or-tough/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“Big production, no story, as they say around the movie lots. I guess Sylvia is happy enough, though not necessarily with me. In our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler-the-long-goodbye/big-production-no-story-as-they-say-around-the-movie-lots-i-guess/) Raymond Chandler "The Long Goodbye > [“Even on Central Avenue, not the quietest dressed street in the world, he looked about as inconspicuous as a tarantula on a slice of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/even-on-central-avenue-not-the-quietest-dressed-street-in-the-world/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Television's perfect. You turn a few knobs, a few of those mechanical adjustments at which the higher apes are so proficient, and lean back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/television-s-perfect-you-turn-a-few-knobs-a-few-of-those-mechanical/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) ## More by Benjamin Black > [“Love was love, and always demanded more than a lover was capable of giving.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/love-was-love-and-always-demanded-more-than-a-lover-was-capable-of/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“four o’clock the daylight was already curling insidious fingers round the edges of the curtains in his bedroom. He”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/four-o-clock-the-daylight-was-already-curling-insidious-fingers-round/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“occurred to him that he was sick of being Quirke, but knew there was no one else he could be. “I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/occurred-to-him-that-he-was-sick-of-being-quirke-but-knew-there-was/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“Physically, too, he had faded, his features become indistinct, as if a fine sifting of dust had settled uniformly over him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/physically-too-he-had-faded-his-features-become-indistinct-as-if-a/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“We all have a duty to try to make the world a better place, Quirke.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/we-all-have-a-duty-to-try-to-make-the-world-a-better-place-quirke/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“She could see and smell and touch and hear, but somehow she could hardly feel at”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/she-could-see-and-smell-and-touch-and-hear-but-somehow-she-could/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“Humans build square, Quirke thought, nature in the round.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/humans-build-square-quirke-thought-nature-in-the-round/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“All the same, she wondered if they did know what she thought and felt, if they knew without knowing, in that way the Irish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/all-the-same-she-wondered-if-they-did-know-what-she-thought-and-felt/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“the past wastes no time becoming the past, all right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/the-past-wastes-no-time-becoming-the-past-all-right/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“Phoebe lay rigid, staring into the darkness. It was often like this; she would go to sleep and then after an hour or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/phoebe-lay-rigid-staring-into-the-darkness-it-was-often-like-this-she/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“There’s always somebody,” she said simply.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/there-s-always-somebody-she-said-simply/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“He preferred his own judgments and, if the truth were told, his own company, too. That was how he had always been, even as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/he-preferred-his-own-judgments-and-if-the-truth-were-told-his-own/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“Every time Quirke saw Mal nowadays his brother-in-law seemed a little more dry and dusty, as if an essential fluid was leaking out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/every-time-quirke-saw-mal-nowadays-his-brother-in-law-seemed-a-little/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“So he lay there, desperate as a beetle fallen on its back, trying not to think of all the things he did not want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/so-he-lay-there-desperate-as-a-beetle-fallen-on-its-back-trying-not/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) > [“Somehow this was what was most terrifying, the way the dream just vanished, like an animal scuttling down a hole and leaving nothing behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/somehow-this-was-what-was-most-terrifying-the-way-the-dream-just/) [Benjamin Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) [Explore all 18 Benjamin Black quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/) ## More Philip-marlowe quotes > [“I can just about promise you Philip Marlowe was never as dainty as I.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/i-can-just-about-promise-you-philip-marlowe-was-never-as-dainty-as-i/) [Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/) > [“I didn't mind what she called me, what anybody called me. But this was the room I had to live in. It was all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/i-didn-t-mind-what-she-called-me-what-anybody-called-me-but-this-was/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“I was as empty of life as a scarecrow's pockets.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/i-was-as-empty-of-life-as-a-scarecrow-s-pockets/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“The kid poured him another straight rye and I think he doctored it with water down behind the bar because when he came up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/the-kid-poured-him-another-straight-rye-and-i-think-he-doctored-it/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“Marlowe's the name. The guy you've been trying to follow around for a couple of days." "I ain't following anybody, doc." "This jalopy is.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/marlowe-s-the-name-the-guy-you-ve-been-trying-to-follow-around-for-a/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [“If I had a razor, I'd cut your throat - just to see what ran out of it." "Caterpillar blood," I said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/if-i-had-a-razor-i-d-cut-your-throat-just-to-see-what-ran-out-of-it/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) Browse all 7 Philip-marlowe quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“But sometimes when you are getting nowhere, you have to give the wasps' nest a wallop”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Benjamin Black" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhere-you-have-to-give-the-wasps/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Philip-marlowe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhere-you-have-to-give-the-wasps/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b5/benjamin-black-25177_philip-marlowe_but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhe_1832179.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b5/benjamin-black-25177_philip-marlowe_but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhe_1832179.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b5/benjamin-black-25177_philip-marlowe_but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhe_1832179.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“But sometimes when you are getting nowhere, you have to give the wasps' nest a wallop” — Benjamin Black", "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": "Benjamin Black", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-black/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“But sometimes when you are getting...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhere-you-have-to-give-the-wasps/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-black/but-sometimes-when-you-are-getting-nowhere-you-have-to-give-the-wasps/#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 } } ] } ```