--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sometimes, when you're so sad you don't…" description: "\"Sometimes, when you're so sad you don't know what to do, it helps to be angry.\" — Cornelia Funke" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dd/cornelia-funke-908_anger_sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-k_1651731.png" --- # Sometimes, when you're so sad you don't know what to do… ![“Sometimes, when you're so sad you don't know what to do, it helps to be angry.” quote by Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dd/cornelia-funke-908_anger_sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-k_1651731.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dd/cornelia-funke-908_anger_sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-k_1651731.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dd/cornelia-funke-908_anger_sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-k_1651731.png) > “Sometimes, when you're so sad you don't know what to do, it helps to be angry.” [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When sadness overwhelms, channeling that energy into anger can be a productive outlet. **In simple terms:** Anger can be a useful response to deep sadness. Key Takeaway Use anger constructively to move past sadness. Themes emotional regulation anger as energy coping strategies Mood introspective urgent Type motivational psychological When to use this quote - conflict resolution - creative writing - personal crisis - mental health Key Concepts psychology emotional intelligence Questions to Reflect On - When does anger help versus hurt? - How can you transform sadness without anger? A Different Perspective Anger may exacerbate distress if not managed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) [Angry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/angry/) [Sad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sad/) ## Related quotes > [Sometimes, when you’re sad you don’t know what to do, it helps to be angry. But then the tears come back again all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/sometimes-when-you-re-sad-you-don-t-know-what-to-do-it-helps-to-be/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Knowing what I don't know helps me every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/courtney-a-kemp/knowing-what-i-don-t-know-helps-me-every-day/) [Courtney A. Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/courtney-a-kemp/) > [You've got to know what helps you be successful during the season.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gore/you-ve-got-to-know-what-helps-you-be-successful-during-the-season/) [Frank Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gore/) > [“Sometimes, pretending you don't know something you know helps to learn something you really don't know.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthonize-rajaratne/sometimes-pretending-you-don-t-know-something-you-know-helps-to-learn/) Anthonize Rajaratne > [One of the things we say... is, 'Do what you know helps you.' And so for me, that might be painting. For other people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-pence/one-of-the-things-we-say-is-do-what-you-know-helps-you-and-so-for-me/) [Karen Pence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-pence/) > [It's important to keep the people who know you well around you. It helps center you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-cheadle/it-s-important-to-keep-the-people-who-know-you-well-around-you-it/) [Don Cheadle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-cheadle/) > [“We're guys. Half the time, we don't know who we are. It helps things become a lot easier if we know who you are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nyrae-dawn/we-re-guys-half-the-time-we-don-t-know-who-we-are-it-helps-things/) [Nyrae Dawn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nyrae-dawn/) > [Our agitation, you know, helps keep yours alive in the rank and file.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-phillips/our-agitation-you-know-helps-keep-yours-alive-in-the-rank-and-file/) [Wendell Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-phillips/) > [people are not good to each other. perhaps if they were our deaths would not be so sad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/people-are-not-good-to-each-other-perhaps-if-they-were-our-deaths/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [I think the most important thing I wanted to say at various times to Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt was that it seemed so sad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-kearns-goodwin/i-think-the-most-important-thing-i-wanted-to-say-at-various-times-to/) [Doris Kearns Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-kearns-goodwin/) > [What do you want out of life?" I asked, and I used to ask that all the time of girls. I don't know," she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/what-do-you-want-out-of-life-i-asked-and-i-used-to-ask-that-all-the/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [Are all ends of life so sad?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-of-romania/are-all-ends-of-life-so-sad/) [Marie of Romania](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-of-romania/) > [Then I feel so happy and at the same time so sad, it's unimaginable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/then-i-feel-so-happy-and-at-the-same-time-so-sad-it-s-unimaginable/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [I want to write songs that are so sad, the kind of sad where you take someone's little finger and break it in three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-want-to-write-songs-that-are-so-sad-the-kind-of-sad-where-you-take/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [So sad! This is the saddest part when you lose someone you love- that person keeps changing. And later you wonder, Is this the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-tan/so-sad-this-is-the-saddest-part-when-you-lose-someone-you-love-that/) [Amy Tan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-tan/) ## More by Cornelia Funke > [ There was another reason \[she\] took her books whenever they went away. They were her home when she was somewhere strange. They were familiar… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/there-was-another-reason-she-took-her-books-whenever-they-went-away/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“A story is a labyrinth, it looks as if there were several ways to go, but only one is right, and there's a nasty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/a-story-is-a-labyrinth-it-looks-as-if-there-were-several-ways-to-go/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [He put his hands on her shoulders and kissed her full on the mouth. His skin was wet with rain. When she didn't pull…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/he-put-his-hands-on-her-shoulders-and-kissed-her-full-on-the-mouth/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“For a moment Dustfinger felt as if he had never been away- as if he had simply had a bad dream, and the memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/for-a-moment-dustfinger-felt-as-if-he-had-never-been-away-as-if-he/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Don't let it worry you, not being able to speak,'Dustfinger had often told her. 'People tend not to listen anyway, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/don-t-let-it-worry-you-not-being-able-to-speak-dustfinger-had-often/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“And he will have a great aunt called Elinor who tells him there's a world not like this one. A world with neither fairies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/and-he-will-have-a-great-aunt-called-elinor-who-tells-him-there-s-a/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“Yes, Mo would come. Meggie could think of nothing else as Fenoglio led her away with him, his arm around her as if he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/yes-mo-would-come-meggie-could-think-of-nothing-else-as-fenoglio-led/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [When it came to hiding, even Gwin had nothing to teach Dustfinger. A strange sense of curiosity had always driven him to explore the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/when-it-came-to-hiding-even-gwin-had-nothing-to-teach-dustfinger-a/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Because fear kills everything," Mo had once told her. "Your mind, your heart, your imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/because-fear-kills-everything-mo-had-once-told-her-your-mind-your/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Perhaps there's another, much larger story behind the printed one, a story that changes just as our own world does. And the letters on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/perhaps-there-s-another-much-larger-story-behind-the-printed-one-a/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Mo could paint pictures in the empty air with his voice alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/mo-could-paint-pictures-in-the-empty-air-with-his-voice-alone/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [I remember the feeling. Whenever my father got so absorbed in a book that we might have been in visible I felt like taking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/i-remember-the-feeling-whenever-my-father-got-so-absorbed-in-a-book/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [I wish you luck,' she said, kissing him on the cheek. He still had the most beautiful eyes of any boy she'd ever seen.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/i-wish-you-luck-she-said-kissing-him-on-the-cheek-he-still-had-the/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Because by now Elinor had understood this, too: A longing for books was nothing compared with what you could feel for human beings. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/because-by-now-elinor-had-understood-this-too-a-longing-for-books-was/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [The night breathed through the apartment like a dark animal. The ticking of a clock. The groan of a floorboard as he slipped out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/the-night-breathed-through-the-apartment-like-a-dark-animal-the/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) [Explore all 286 Cornelia Funke quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) ## More Anger quotes > [“If I let myself think of it the pain and anger were still fresh, adrenalin racing down my limbs to pool, hot and itchy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kylie-ladd/if-i-let-myself-think-of-it-the-pain-and-anger-were-still-fresh/) [Kylie Ladd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kylie-ladd/) > [I receive something we might euphemistically call an 'inappropriately hostile' response - that is to say, more than fair criticism or even fair anger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beard/i-receive-something-we-might-euphemistically-call-an-inappropriately/) [Mary Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beard/) > [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/) > [Anger is a rough water; if you can canalize it into a water mill, you can benefit from it. Anything bad can be transformed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/anger-is-a-rough-water-if-you-can-canalize-it-into-a-water-mill-you/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [“When you feel terribly angry, you're possessed by anger ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/when-you-feel-terribly-angry-you-re-possessed-by-anger-ghost/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [“Medical studies have shown that cursing reduces levels of stress and pain. Repressing your anger is not healthy. It's much better to verbalize it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/medical-studies-have-shown-that-cursing-reduces-levels-of-stress-and/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [My care will be in the heart n not in words My anger will be in Words n not in the Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/my-care-will-be-in-the-heart-n-not-in-words-my-anger-will-be-in-words/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“God, you had enough time to have been through it three times. You've been through my stuff. I bet you over and let one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/god-you-had-enough-time-to-have-been-through-it-three-times-you-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The present contains nothing more than the past, and what is found in the effect was already in the cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-bergson/the-present-contains-nothing-more-than-the-past-and-what-is-found-in/) [Henri Bergson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-bergson/) > [Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/depression-is-merely-anger-without-enthusiasm/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [I always fight better when my opponent's angry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-haye/i-always-fight-better-when-my-opponent-s-angry/) [David Haye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-haye/) > [ “Where there are kashays (anger-pride-deceit-greed), there is worldly life. As long as anger-pride-deceit-greed exist; one is a sansaari \[living a worldly life\] regardless of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/where-there-are-kashays-anger-pride-deceit-greed-there-is-worldly/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) [Browse all 7,469 Anger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Sometimes, when you're so sad you don't know what to do, it helps to be angry.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Cornelia Funke" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-know-what-to-do-it-helps-to-be/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Anger" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-know-what-to-do-it-helps-to-be/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dd/cornelia-funke-908_anger_sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-k_1651731.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dd/cornelia-funke-908_anger_sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-k_1651731.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5dd/cornelia-funke-908_anger_sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-k_1651731.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Sometimes, when you're so sad you don't know what to do, it helps to be angry.” — Cornelia Funke", "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": "Cornelia Funke", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Sometimes, when you're so sad you...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-know-what-to-do-it-helps-to-be/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/sometimes-when-you-re-so-sad-you-don-t-know-what-to-do-it-helps-to-be/#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 } } ] } ```