---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Call it vanity, call it arrogant…"
description: "\"Call it vanity, call it arrogant presumption, call it what you wish, but I would grope for the nearest open grave if I had no newspaper to work for, no..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bef/bob-considine-85015_arrogant_call-it-vanity-call-it-arrogant-presumpt_1993107.jpg"
---

#  Call it vanity, call it arrogant presumption, call it what…

![“Call it vanity, call it arrogant presumption, call it what you wish, but I would grope for the nearest open grave if I had no newspaper to work for, no need to search for and sometimes find the winged word that just fits, no keen wonder over what each unfolding day may bring.” quote by Bob Considine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bef/bob-considine-85015_arrogant_call-it-vanity-call-it-arrogant-presumpt_1993107.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bef/bob-considine-85015_arrogant_call-it-vanity-call-it-arrogant-presumpt_1993107.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bef/bob-considine-85015_arrogant_call-it-vanity-call-it-arrogant-presumpt_1993107.jpg)

> “Call it vanity, call it arrogant presumption, call it what you wish, but I would grope for the nearest open grave if I had no newspaper to work for, no need to search for and sometimes find the winged word that just fits, no keen wonder over what each unfolding day may bring.”

[Bob Considine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-considine/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He laments lacking work, yet feels compelled to create, searching for the perfect word despite hardship.

**In simple terms:** He feels compelled to write even without work.

Key Takeaway

Persist in creative search.

Themes

creativity struggle language

Mood

melancholic determined

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- freelance writing
- journalism
- poetry
- creative workshops

Key Concepts

existentialism literary pursuit artistic integrity

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you balance artistic drive with livelihood?
- What strategies help find the “winged word”?

A Different Perspective

May romanticize hardship, overlooking practical needs.

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[Arrogant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrogant/) [Arrogant Presumption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrogant-presumption-3466873/) [Bring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bring/) [Call](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/call/) [Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/day/) [Each](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/each/) [Find](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/find/) [Fits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fits/) [Grave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grave/) [Had](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/had/) [Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just/) [Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/keen/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Nearest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nearest/) [Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/need/) [Newspaper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/newspaper/) [Open](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/open/) [Over](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/over/) [Presumption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/presumption/) [Presumption Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/presumption-wish-3466874/) [Pride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pride/) [Search](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/search/) [Sometimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sometimes/) [Unfolding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unfolding/) [Vanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vanity/) [Vanity Arrogant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vanity-arrogant-2057877/) [Winged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winged/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) [Wish Grope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish-grope-3466875/) [Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonder/) [Word](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/word/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Would](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would/) [You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/)

## Related quotes

> [“Self-confidence, as it is generally understood, implies arrogant presumption; humility implies being impeccable in one’s actions and feelings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/th-un-mares/self-confidence-as-it-is-generally-understood-implies-arrogant/)

[Théun Mares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/th-un-mares/)

> [Because arrogance is born in personal vanity, arrogant people are driven without mercy. They can never get enough power to fill the soul's needs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/because-arrogance-is-born-in-personal-vanity-arrogant-people-are/)

[Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/)

> [“O my vanity I am an arrogant man, is this weakness, is it just a dream of power? Must I betray myself for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/o-my-vanity-i-am-an-arrogant-man-is-this-weakness-is-it-just-a-dream/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [The nearest I have ever seen to the great Willie Pep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelo-dundee/the-nearest-i-have-ever-seen-to-the-great-willie-pep/)

[Angelo Dundee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelo-dundee/)

> [The nearest figure to myself would be Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tippett/the-nearest-figure-to-myself-would-be-shakespeare/)

[Michael Tippett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tippett/)

> [It is all very well for 2% of the population to live in a monastic state of meatlessness while everyone else gorges their way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristram-stuart/it-is-all-very-well-for-2-of-the-population-to-live-in-a-monastic/)

[Tristram Stuart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristram-stuart/)

> [I wish that all who were dearest to me, could also be those who were nearest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-wish-that-all-who-were-dearest-to-me-could-also-be-those-who-were/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Asking Siri where the nearest sushi bar is - that's not interesting. What's interesting is asking your phone where one of your friends have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-crowley/asking-siri-where-the-nearest-sushi-bar-is-that-s-not-interesting/)

[Dennis Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-crowley/)

> [Comedians are the nearest to suicide.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-durrell/comedians-are-the-nearest-to-suicide/)

[Lawrence Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-durrell/)

> [On my return to Cornwall I discovered that I was living in a tropical paradise. For now I am content to explore my own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer/on-my-return-to-cornwall-i-discovered-that-i-was-living-in-a-tropical/)

[John Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer/)

> [He whose needs are the least will always be the nearest to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/he-whose-needs-are-the-least-will-always-be-the-nearest-to-god/)

[Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/)

> [I was brought up largely by my grandfather because my father only returned from a prisoner-of-war camp in 1947 and worked in the nearest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-g-sebald/i-was-brought-up-largely-by-my-grandfather-because-my-father-only/)

[W. G. Sebald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-g-sebald/)

> [When I started to write a tune, I just wrote the nearest at hand, which was what was happening in my own life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-harris/when-i-started-to-write-a-tune-i-just-wrote-the-nearest-at-hand-which/)

[Jesse Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-harris/)

> [Mars still remains the astrobiology community's number one choice for 'nearest rock with life,' but there are many researchers who argue that the moons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/mars-still-remains-the-astrobiology-community-s-number-one-choice-for/)

[Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/)

> [I don't want to spoil the magic, but it's a very curious thing that honestly baffles me. It's the nearest we'll ever get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/i-don-t-want-to-spoil-the-magic-but-it-s-a-very-curious-thing-that/)

[Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/)

## More by Bob Considine

> [I believe in opening mail once a month, whether it needs it or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-considine/i-believe-in-opening-mail-once-a-month-whether-it-needs-it-or-not/)

[Bob Considine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-considine/)

> [I have four children, two are adopted, I forget which two.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-considine/i-have-four-children-two-are-adopted-i-forget-which-two/)

[Bob Considine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-considine/)

[Explore all 3 Bob Considine quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-considine/)

## More Arrogant quotes

> [How arrogant - how very far from humility - would be the self-satisfied, smug assurance that God, a tidy-up-after-us God will come and clean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheldon-whitehouse/how-arrogant-how-very-far-from-humility-would-be-the-self-satisfied/)

[Sheldon Whitehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheldon-whitehouse/)

> [ \[T\]he tax code has been piling up, year after year, a symbol of everything gone wrong in America, of arrogant rulers and lost freedom,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-armey/t-he-tax-code-has-been-piling-up-year-after-year-a-symbol-of/)

[Dick Armey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-armey/)

> [What I would say to filmmakers, if I may be so bold or so arrogant, is to draw inspiration from other filmmakers, but go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-bender/what-i-would-say-to-filmmakers-if-i-may-be-so-bold-or-so-arrogant-is/)

[Lawrence Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-bender/)

> [In politics we face the choice between warmongering, nation-state loving, big-business agents on one hand; and risk-blind, top-down, epistemic arrogant big servants of large…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/in-politics-we-face-the-choice-between-warmongering-nation-state/)

[Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/)

> [I absolutely hate arrogant people, irks me to no end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-absolutely-hate-arrogant-people-irks-me-to-no-end/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Splutter, splutter. Yes - we're off - we're rising. But why start off with an engine like that? But it smooths out now, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/splutter-splutter-yes-we-re-off-we-re-rising-but-why-start-off-with/)

[Anne Morrow Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/)

> [Mourinho is a bit arrogant, but you've got to like him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-nicol/mourinho-is-a-bit-arrogant-but-you-ve-got-to-like-him/)

[Steve Nicol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-nicol/)

> [Some say work smarter, not harder, but the wisest are both. Whether you're more of a hard worker or a smart worker, if you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colby-tatem/some-say-work-smarter-not-harder-but-the-wisest-are-both-whether-you/)

[Colby Tatem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colby-tatem/)

> [I was spoiled and I was arrogant. I was very demanding, had an overblown image of who I was and got a reputation for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judge-reinhold/i-was-spoiled-and-i-was-arrogant-i-was-very-demanding-had-an/)

[Judge Reinhold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judge-reinhold/)

> [We are not being arrogant or complacent when we are said that our country, as a united nation, has never in its entire history,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/we-are-not-being-arrogant-or-complacent-when-we-are-said-that-our/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [“So you intend to go through life never loving anyone? Just … things?” “No. I’m looking for something more.” “More than love?” “Yes.” “Is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-ahdieh/so-you-intend-to-go-through-life-never-loving-anyone-just-things-no-i/)

[Renee Ahdieh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-ahdieh/)

> [People are tired of wasteful government programs and welfare chiselers, and they are angry about the constant spiral of taxes and government regulations, arrogant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/people-are-tired-of-wasteful-government-programs-and-welfare/)

[Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/)

> [“He was a man. Handsome as sin, arrogant as fuck, and in need of at least one woman to prove he wasn’t God’s gift…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-blue/he-was-a-man-handsome-as-sin-arrogant-as-fuck-and-in-need-of-at-least/)

[Melissa Blue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-blue/)

> [Being nice to people gets you nowhere. Being arrogant gets you nowhere. Blackmail, now that's a thing that will get you everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-nice-to-people-gets-you-nowhere-being-arrogant-gets-you-nowhere/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [It's amusing how arrogant people can be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-amusing-how-arrogant-people-can-be/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

[Browse all 1,146 Arrogant quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrogant/)

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