--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No disease of the imagination is so…" description: "\"No disease of the imagination is so difficult to cure, as that which is complicated with the dread of guilt : fancy and conscience then act interchange..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/e-m-forster-1118_complicated_no-disease-of-the-imagination-is-so-diff_2185139.png" --- # No disease of the imagination is so difficult to cure, as… ![“No disease of the imagination is so difficult to cure, as that which is complicated with the dread of guilt : fancy and conscience then act interchangeably upon us, and so often shift their places, that the illusions of one are not distinguished from the dictates of the other.” quote by E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/e-m-forster-1118_complicated_no-disease-of-the-imagination-is-so-diff_2185139.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/e-m-forster-1118_complicated_no-disease-of-the-imagination-is-so-diff_2185139.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51f/e-m-forster-1118_complicated_no-disease-of-the-imagination-is-so-diff_2185139.png) > “No disease of the imagination is so difficult to cure, as that which is complicated with the dread of guilt : fancy and conscience then act interchangeably upon us, and so often shift their places, that the illusions of one are not distinguished from the dictates of the other.” [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The mind can create suffering when guilt and imagination intertwine, making it hard to tell real from imagined distress. **In simple terms:** Guilt and imagination can cause mental illness. Key Takeaway Recognize and separate guilt from imagination. Themes psychology guilt imagination mental health Mood reflective introspective Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - therapy sessions - personal reflection - creative writing Key Concepts self‑deception cognitive distortion Questions to Reflect On - How does guilt manifest in your thoughts? - Can imagination be harnessed positively? A Different Perspective The quote may overstate the power of imagination over physical disease. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Complicated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complicated/) [Conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) [Cures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cures/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Disease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disease/) [Disease Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disease-imagination-4674055/) [Distinguished](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distinguished/) [Dread](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dread/) [Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) [Fancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fancy/) [Fancy Conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fancy-conscience-4736952/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Guilt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilt/) [Guilt Fancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilt-fancy-4736953/) [Illusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illusion/) [Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination/) [Imagination Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination-difficult-3263401/) [Regret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regret/) ## Related quotes > [avarice is especially, I suppose, a disease of the imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-coleridge/avarice-is-especially-i-suppose-a-disease-of-the-imagination/) [Sara Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-coleridge/) > [“I have a really vivid imagination and I find it difficult to read scenes of complete graphic violence. 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There is no reliable formula for originality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-scott/writing-that-flirts-with-incoherence-can-just-as-readily-flounder-as/) [Joanna Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-scott/) > [The actions of the University in my case make it abundantly clear that the Administration's rhetoric about Harvard's desire to attract and retain the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-geller/the-actions-of-the-university-in-my-case-make-it-abundantly-clear/) [Margaret Geller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-geller/) > [Building great public schools and universities, a strong health care system, including keeping the Affordable Care Act, and then an economy that works well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-castro/building-great-public-schools-and-universities-a-strong-health-care/) [Joaquin Castro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-castro/) > [The ensouled is distinguished from the unsouled by its being alive. Now since being alive is spoken of in many ways, even if only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-ensouled-is-distinguished-from-the-unsouled-by-its-being-alive/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) ## More by E. M. Forster > [Do not be proud of your inconsistency. It is a pity, it is a pity that we should be equipped like this. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/do-not-be-proud-of-your-inconsistency-it-is-a-pity-it-is-a-pity-that/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Reverence is fatal to literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/reverence-is-fatal-to-literature/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [This element of surprise or mystery - the detective element as it is sometimes rather emptily called - is of great importance in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/this-element-of-surprise-or-mystery-the-detective-element-as-it-is/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [It is so difficult - at least, I find it difficult - to understand people who speak the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/it-is-so-difficult-at-least-i-find-it-difficult-to-understand-people/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Railway termini are our gates to the glorious and the unknown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/railway-termini-are-our-gates-to-the-glorious-and-the-unknown/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Ah, but you see, I didn't want to be fair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/ah-but-you-see-i-didn-t-want-to-be-fair/) [E. M. 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Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [All men are equal — all men, that is to say, who possess umbrellas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/all-men-are-equal-all-men-that-is-to-say-who-possess-umbrellas/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Before the civil war, Pottibakia was a normal member of the Comity of Nations. She erected tariff walls, broke treaties, persecuted minorities, obstructed at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/before-the-civil-war-pottibakia-was-a-normal-member-of-the-comity-of/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Chess is a forcing house where the fruits of character can ripen more fully than in life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/chess-is-a-forcing-house-where-the-fruits-of-character-can-ripen-more/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [I distrust Great Men... I believe in aristocracy, though... 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It's a complicated emotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlin/of-course-i-like-you-it-s-because-i-like-you-i-don-t-wanna-be-with/) [Marlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlin/) > [“Why the hell did he have to be so complicated? One minute he was charming, the next he withdrew behind his internal walls.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lia-davis/why-the-hell-did-he-have-to-be-so-complicated-one-minute-he-was/) [Lia Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lia-davis/) > [Life is more complicated than we think, yet far simpler than anyone dares to imagine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-durrell/life-is-more-complicated-than-we-think-yet-far-simpler-than-anyone/) [Lawrence Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-durrell/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Programmers are always surrounded by complexity; we cannot avoid it… If our basic tool, the language in which we design and code our programs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/programmers-are-always-surrounded-by-complexity-we-cannot-avoid-it-if/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [“Just because it's complicated, just because you think you can't ever know everything about another person, it doesn't mean you can't try.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/just-because-it-s-complicated-just-because-you-think-you-can-t-ever/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [The one thing I absolutely hate about social media are the people who abuse it. Whenever I see a person who constantly posts negative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jazmin-garcia/the-one-thing-i-absolutely-hate-about-social-media-are-the-people-who/) [Jazmin Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jazmin-garcia/) > [I think the ethics and morals of genetic engineering are very complicated. It intrigues me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-spottiswoode/i-think-the-ethics-and-morals-of-genetic-engineering-are-very/) [Roger Spottiswoode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-spottiswoode/) > [Your Starbucks order is directly proportional to how complicated your personality is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin/your-starbucks-order-is-directly-proportional-to-how-complicated-your/) [Kevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin/) > [Geometry, which should only obey Physics, when united with it sometimes commands it. 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They're not complicated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-maxwell/two-people-could-build-an-outhouse-in-four-hours-they-re-not/) [Robert Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-maxwell/) [Browse all 3,190 Complicated quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complicated/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "No disease of the imagination is so difficult to cure, as that which is complicated with the dread of guilt : fancy and conscience then act interchangeably upon us, and so often shift their places, that the illusions of one are not distinguished from the dictates of the other.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "E. M. 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