--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The passions may be terrible, but the…" description: "\"“The passions may be terrible, but the syllables are a relief.”\" — Denis Donoghue" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb8/denis-donoghue-47757_passion_the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syl_1957931.jpg" --- # The passions may be terrible, but the syllables are a… ![“The passions may be terrible, but the syllables are a relief.” quote by Denis Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb8/denis-donoghue-47757_passion_the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syl_1957931.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb8/denis-donoghue-47757_passion_the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syl_1957931.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb8/denis-donoghue-47757_passion_the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syl_1957931.jpg) > ““The passions may be terrible, but the syllables are a relief.”” [Denis Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-donoghue/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intense emotions can be overwhelming, but structured language offers relief and clarity. **In simple terms:** Strong feelings are eased by organized words. Key Takeaway Use structured expression to manage intense emotions. Themes emotion language relief Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - writing - therapy - public speaking Key Concepts poetics psychology of expression catharsis Questions to Reflect On - How does writing help you process strong feelings? - Can structured language always provide relief? A Different Perspective Language may not fully capture deep emotions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Passion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) [Passions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passions/) [Relief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relief/) [Syllables](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/syllables/) [Syllables Relief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/syllables-relief-3215097/) [Terrible Syllables](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrible-syllables-3215098/) ## Related quotes > [Stories heard but not recalled. Letters too. Words filling my head. Fragmenting like artillery shells. Shrapnel, like syllables, flying everywhere. Terrible syllables. Sharp cracked.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-z-danielewski/stories-heard-but-not-recalled-letters-too-words-filling-my-head/) [Mark Z. Danielewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-z-danielewski/) > [“The sword wears out its sheath, as it is sometimes said. That is my story. My passions have made me live, and my passions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/the-sword-wears-out-its-sheath-as-it-is-sometimes-said-that-is-my/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [Man is truly great when he can act from his passions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/man-is-truly-great-when-he-can-act-from-his-passions/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [Who then is free? The wise who can command his passions, who fears not want, nor death, nor chains, firmly resisting his appetites and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/who-then-is-free-the-wise-who-can-command-his-passions-who-fears-not/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [None can be free who is a slave to, and ruled by, his passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pythagoras/none-can-be-free-who-is-a-slave-to-and-ruled-by-his-passions/) [Pythagoras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pythagoras/) > [“…finally I see that it’s never been me, just a blanket that keeps you warm. Easily tossed along when something flashier or someone prettier…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/finally-i-see-that-it-s-never-been-me-just-a-blanket-that-keeps-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My passions are the grapes that I tread out for mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-adle/my-passions-are-the-grapes-that-i-tread-out-for-mankind/) [Alfred Adle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-adle/) > [Working with other artists and sharing your passions is great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leona-lewis/working-with-other-artists-and-sharing-your-passions-is-great/) [Leona Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leona-lewis/) > [Sam loved to listen to music and make his own songs, to wear soft velvets, to play in the castle kitchen beside the cooks,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sam-loved-to-listen-to-music-and-make-his-own-songs-to-wear-soft/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You know, people start things for different reasons. But ultimately it turns into pure passion and one becomes insatiate. There is no end once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhaidev/you-know-people-start-things-for-different-reasons-but-ultimately-it/) [Abhaidev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhaidev/) > [“When we are passionate about God, we can trust our passions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-raphael-mcmanus/when-we-are-passionate-about-god-we-can-trust-our-passions/) [Erwin Raphael McManus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-raphael-mcmanus/) > [In tragic life, God wot, No villain need be! Passions spin the plot: We are betrayed by what is false within.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-meredith/in-tragic-life-god-wot-no-villain-need-be-passions-spin-the-plot-we/) [George Meredith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-meredith/) > [In music the passions enjoy themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/in-music-the-passions-enjoy-themselves/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [The life of a good man was a continual warfare with his passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-richardson/the-life-of-a-good-man-was-a-continual-warfare-with-his-passions/) [Samuel Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-richardson/) > [Christianity was never meant to be defined by its disciplines, but by its passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/christianity-was-never-meant-to-be-defined-by-its-disciplines-but-by/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) ## More by Denis Donoghue > [The camera has an interest in turning history into spectacle, but none in reversing the process. At best, the picture leaves a vague blur…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/the-camera-has-an-interest-in-turning-history-into-spectacle-but-none/) [Denis Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-donoghue/) > [There is no good reason to suppose that whatever can be felt can be expressed in words, or indeed in any articulate form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/there-is-no-good-reason-to-suppose-that-whatever-can-be-felt-can-be/) [Denis Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-donoghue/) > [Through engagement with others, literature lets us imagine what it would be like to be differe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/through-engagement-with-others-literature-lets-us-imagine-what-it-2/) [Denis Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-donoghue/) > [The truth of art consists in its power to break the monopoly that those in power exercise by defining what is real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/the-truth-of-art-consists-in-its-power-to-break-the-monopoly-that/) [Denis Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-donoghue/) > [A critical discourse that had respect for the mystery of art would look to the sense of life which finds expression in paradox, metaphor,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/a-critical-discourse-that-had-respect-for-the-mystery-of-art-would/) [Denis Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-donoghue/) > [If there is a distinctive Irish experience, it is one of division, exacerbated by the fact that division in a country so small seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/if-there-is-a-distinctive-irish-experience-it-is-one-of-division/) [Denis Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-donoghue/) > [Knowing that language has done so much, we want to believe that it can do everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/knowing-that-language-has-done-so-much-we-want-to-believe-that-it-can/) [Denis Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-donoghue/) [Explore all 8 Denis Donoghue quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-donoghue/) ## More Passion quotes > [Christianity was never meant to be defined by its disciplines, but by its passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/christianity-was-never-meant-to-be-defined-by-its-disciplines-but-by/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [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/) > [“What's the best thing about being in college? Good teachers. They inspire you, they entertain you, and you end up learning a ton even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/what-s-the-best-thing-about-being-in-college-good-teachers-they/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [“Being held by him, kissed and mastered, taken under and swept away, enthralled her in a way she—an independent woman if nothing else in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-sumner/being-held-by-him-kissed-and-mastered-taken-under-and-swept-away/) [Tracy Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-sumner/) > [I have learned that you can go anywhere you want to go and do anything you want to do and buy all the things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-joybell-c-2/i-have-learned-that-you-can-go-anywhere-you-want-to-go-and-do/) [C JoyBell C](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-joybell-c-2/) > [Tonight I feel like a prisoner on fire, waiting desperately... denied, sentenced forever more. Only your love can set me free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bolton/tonight-i-feel-like-a-prisoner-on-fire-waiting-desperately-denied/) [Michael Bolton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bolton/) > [I love people who have such passion for complete nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-handler/i-love-people-who-have-such-passion-for-complete-nonsense/) [Chelsea Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-handler/) > [Surely to root politics out of art is a highly necessary undertaking: for the freedom of art, like that of science, depends entirely upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/surely-to-root-politics-out-of-art-is-a-highly-necessary-undertaking/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [“After nine nights must come ten and every desperate meeting only leaves you desperate for another. There is never enough to eat, never enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/after-nine-nights-must-come-ten-and-every-desperate-meeting-only/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [“Without passion and satisfaction, there is nothing to make happiness last.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anikor-daniel/without-passion-and-satisfaction-there-is-nothing-to-make-happiness/) [ANIKOR Daniel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anikor-daniel/) > [Football is my passion, and who knows where I will play in the future - you cannot foresee that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edinson-cavani/football-is-my-passion-and-who-knows-where-i-will-play-in-the-future/) [Edinson Cavani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edinson-cavani/) > [Well, He had known what love was-a sharp pang, a fierce experience, in the midst of whose flames he was struggling! but, through that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/well-he-had-known-what-love-was-a-sharp-pang-a-fierce-experience-in/) [Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/) > [The life of a good man was a continual warfare with his passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-richardson/the-life-of-a-good-man-was-a-continual-warfare-with-his-passions/) [Samuel Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-richardson/) > [“I take my actions because of my passion not because of compulsion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/i-take-my-actions-because-of-my-passion-not-because-of-compulsion/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) [Browse all 12,364 Passion quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The passions may be terrible, but the syllables are a relief.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Denis Donoghue" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syllables-are-a-relief/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Passion" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syllables-are-a-relief/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb8/denis-donoghue-47757_passion_the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syl_1957931.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb8/denis-donoghue-47757_passion_the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syl_1957931.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb8/denis-donoghue-47757_passion_the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syl_1957931.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The passions may be terrible, but the syllables are a relief.” — Denis Donoghue", "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": "Denis Donoghue", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-donoghue/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The passions may be terrible, but...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syllables-are-a-relief/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-donoghue/the-passions-may-be-terrible-but-the-syllables-are-a-relief/#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 } } ] } ```