--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I had not been so great an invalid, I…" description: "\"If I had not been so great an invalid, I should not have done so much as I have accomplished.\" — Charles Darwin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/charles-darwin-507_accomplished_if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i_2754501.jpg" --- # If I had not been so great an invalid, I should not have… ![“If I had not been so great an invalid, I should not have done so much as I have accomplished.” quote by Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/charles-darwin-507_accomplished_if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i_2754501.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/charles-darwin-507_accomplished_if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i_2754501.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/charles-darwin-507_accomplished_if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i_2754501.jpg) > “If I had not been so great an invalid, I should not have done so much as I have accomplished.” [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He reflects that his physical limitations spurred his achievements, implying adversity can fuel productivity. **In simple terms:** Invalidity drove his work. Key Takeaway Turn challenges into productivity. Themes health productivity adversity Mood reflective inspirational Type historical philosophical When to use this quote - Scientific research - writing - public speaking Key Concepts Evolutionary theory personal resilience Questions to Reflect On - How did his condition shape his work? - Can adversity inspire innovation? A Different Perspective Health issues may limit capacity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accomplished](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accomplished/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great/) [Great Invalid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-invalid-3124148/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Invalid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invalid/) [Invalid Accomplished](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invalid-accomplished-3124147/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) ## Related quotes > [“A woman who has lost her husband is invalid, thus an invalid. In”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/a-woman-who-has-lost-her-husband-is-invalid-thus-an-invalid-in/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Chopin was an invalid, as you know, but his music was volcanic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignacy-jan-paderewski/chopin-was-an-invalid-as-you-know-but-his-music-was-volcanic/) [Ignacy Jan Paderewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignacy-jan-paderewski/) > [“    System.out.println("Invalid Card");     break;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-long/system-out-println-invalid-card-break/) [Fred Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-long/) > [“I'd asked Dad for the millionth time if, now that I had a baby brother, I could stay in New York….and Dad for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-cabot/i-d-asked-dad-for-the-millionth-time-if-now-that-i-had-a-baby-brother/) [Meg Cabot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-cabot/) > [Every invalid is a prisoner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marguerite-yourcenar/every-invalid-is-a-prisoner/) [Marguerite Yourcenar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marguerite-yourcenar/) > [Sharia ... is, of course, invalid because it's God's Law, and God doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-condell/sharia-is-of-course-invalid-because-it-s-god-s-law-and-god-doesn-t/) [Pat Condell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-condell/) > [Any negative comments you receive are invalid and must be ignored at all costs. It's absolutely certain there is something they think is wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senoraroy/any-negative-comments-you-receive-are-invalid-and-must-be-ignored-at/) [Senoraroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/senoraroy/) > [“He looked like a young Crusader on a tomb. That was Phyllis's first impression of Allan Harrington.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-widdemer/he-looked-like-a-young-crusader-on-a-tomb-that-was-phyllis-s-first/) [Margaret Widdemer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-widdemer/) > [“Her heart was an invalid convinced that it would not survive many more sunsets.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alethea-kontis/her-heart-was-an-invalid-convinced-that-it-would-not-survive-many/) [Alethea Kontis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alethea-kontis/) > [I fell and broke my pelvic bone in three places. So, I'm still sort of an invalid now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/i-fell-and-broke-my-pelvic-bone-in-three-places-so-i-m-still-sort-of/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [Your argument is invalid...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambie/your-argument-is-invalid/) [Ambie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambie/) > [“When you paint your lips, eye lids, nails or whatever, to look attractive, don't forget your up stairs(intellect) if you leave it behind, i…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/when-you-paint-your-lips-eye-lids-nails-or-whatever-to-look/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [The insurance was invalid for the invalid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/the-insurance-was-invalid-for-the-invalid/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [“An invalid, one who has been invalidated. No valid passport. No exit.   That”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/an-invalid-one-who-has-been-invalidated-no-valid-passport-no-exit-that/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“He must have been delightful," she said, "when he was alive!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-widdemer/he-must-have-been-delightful-she-said-when-he-was-alive/) [Margaret Widdemer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-widdemer/) ## More by Charles Darwin > [The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-love-for-all-living-creatures-is-the-most-noble-attribute-of-man/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [The main conclusion here arrived at ... is that man is descended from some less highly organized form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-main-conclusion-here-arrived-at-is-that-man-is-descended-from/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [So great is the economy of nature, that most flowers which are fertilised by crepuscular or nocturnal insects emit their odour chiefly or exclusively…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/so-great-is-the-economy-of-nature-that-most-flowers-which-are/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I see no good reasons why the views given in this volume should shock the religious views of anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-see-no-good-reasons-why-the-views-given-in-this-volume-should-shock/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I am quite conscious that my speculations run beyond the bounds of true science…It is a mere rag of an hypothesis with as many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-am-quite-conscious-that-my-speculations-run-beyond-the-bounds-of/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [If worms have the power of acquiring some notion, however rude, of the shape of an object and over their burrows, as seems the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/if-worms-have-the-power-of-acquiring-some-notion-however-rude-of-the/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [We can allow satellites, planets, suns, universe, nay whole systems of universes, to be governed by laws, but the smallest insect, we wish to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/we-can-allow-satellites-planets-suns-universe-nay-whole-systems-of/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Formerly Milton's Paradise Lost had been my chief favourite, and in my excursions during the voyage of the Beagle, when I could take only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/formerly-milton-s-paradise-lost-had-been-my-chief-favourite-and-in-my/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [May we not suspect that the vague but very real fears of children, which are quite independent of experience, are the inherited effects of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/may-we-not-suspect-that-the-vague-but-very-real-fears-of-children/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [It may be said that natural selection is daily and hourly scrutinizing, throughout the world, every variation, even the slightest; rejecting that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/it-may-be-said-that-natural-selection-is-daily-and-hourly/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [“Darwin, landing in Brazil in 1832, had a similar reaction, colored by his reading of his predecessor." Humboldt's glorious descriptions are & will for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/darwin-landing-in-brazil-in-1832-had-a-similar-reaction-colored-by/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [...all nature is perverse & will not do as I wish it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/all-nature-is-perverse-will-not-do-as-i-wish-it/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [“To admit that species generally become rare before they become extinct—to feel no surprise at the comparative rarity of one species with another, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/to-admit-that-species-generally-become-rare-before-they-become/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [To suppose that the eye could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest possible degree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/to-suppose-that-the-eye-could-have-been-formed-by-natural-selection/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [It is interesting to contemplate an entangled bank clothed with many plants of many kinds with birds singing on the bushes, with various insects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/it-is-interesting-to-contemplate-an-entangled-bank-clothed-with-many/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) [Explore all 497 Charles Darwin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) ## More Accomplished quotes > [I never believed in trying to do anything. Whatever I set out to do I found I had already accomplished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/i-never-believed-in-trying-to-do-anything-whatever-i-set-out-to-do-i/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [This is, for an accomplished Latino, an accomplished African American, an accomplished anyone who disproves stereotypes, it's a constant battle in your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-sotomayor/this-is-for-an-accomplished-latino-an-accomplished-african-american/) [Sonia Sotomayor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-sotomayor/) > [When you have accomplished your goal simply walk away. This is the path way to Heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/when-you-have-accomplished-your-goal-simply-walk-away-this-is-the/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [... even the most sublimely accomplished non-stop talker can't consistently please.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger-2/even-the-most-sublimely-accomplished-non-stop-talker-can-t/) [J. D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger-2/) > [ \[U\]nless oppressed groups stick together, and on alliances of self interest rather than do-goodism; nothing can be accomplished in the long run to dismantle… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shulamith-firestone/u-nless-oppressed-groups-stick-together-and-on-alliances-of-self/) [Shulamith Firestone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shulamith-firestone/) > [Alas, you don't need monsters for monstrous deeds to be accomplished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zygmunt-bauman/alas-you-don-t-need-monsters-for-monstrous-deeds-to-be-accomplished/) [Zygmunt Bauman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zygmunt-bauman/) > [Like all writers, he measured the achievements of others by what they had accomplished, asking of them that they measure him by what he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/like-all-writers-he-measured-the-achievements-of-others-by-what-they/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [I'm proud of what I've accomplished and that is empowering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/violet-chachki/i-m-proud-of-what-i-ve-accomplished-and-that-is-empowering/) [Violet Chachki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/violet-chachki/) > [We do not know today whether we are busy or idle. In times when we thought ourselves indolent, we have afterwards discovered that much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/we-do-not-know-today-whether-we-are-busy-or-idle-in-times-when-we/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I don't know Beyoncé, but I have the impression that she's sincere, that she really is a feminist and wanted to put the word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-don-t-know-beyonc-but-i-have-the-impression-that-she-s-sincere-that/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [The gain in self-confidence of having accomplished a tiresome labour is immense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/the-gain-in-self-confidence-of-having-accomplished-a-tiresome-labour/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [With Epcot Center, the Disney corporation has accomplished something I didn't think possible in today's world. They have created a land of make-believe that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/with-epcot-center-the-disney-corporation-has-accomplished-something-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Listing the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act could harm bear conservation efforts by eliminating revenues from the carefully-regulated sport hunting of polar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-ridenour/listing-the-polar-bear-under-the-endangered-species-act-could-harm/) [Amy Ridenour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-ridenour/) > [“Great things can be accomplished, when it doesnt matter who gets the credit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/great-things-can-be-accomplished-when-it-doesnt-matter-who-gets-the/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [If I could inspire you for even a moment to be yourself and love yourself, and not let what anyone has to say hinder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-neal-hartry/if-i-could-inspire-you-for-even-a-moment-to-be-yourself-and-love/) [Joshua Neal Hartry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-neal-hartry/) [Browse all 1,379 Accomplished quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accomplished/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If I had not been so great an invalid, I should not have done so much as I have accomplished.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charles Darwin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i-should-not-have-done-so-much/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Accomplished" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i-should-not-have-done-so-much/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/charles-darwin-507_accomplished_if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i_2754501.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/charles-darwin-507_accomplished_if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i_2754501.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/charles-darwin-507_accomplished_if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i_2754501.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If I had not been so great an invalid, I should not have done so much as I have accomplished.” — Charles Darwin", "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": "Charles Darwin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If I had not been so...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i-should-not-have-done-so-much/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/if-i-had-not-been-so-great-an-invalid-i-should-not-have-done-so-much/#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 } } ] } ```