--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Without another word, we began to eat. I…" description: "\"“Without another word, we began to eat. I was hungry, but no appetite would excuse the way we set upon those dishes. We shoveled food into our mouths i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/860/eli-brown-27141_cooking_without-another-word-we-began-to-eat-i-w_1008358.jpg" --- # Without another word, we began to eat. I was hungry, but… ![“Without another word, we began to eat. I was hungry, but no appetite would excuse the way we set upon those dishes. We shoveled food into our mouths in a manner ill befitting our fine attire. Bears would have blushed to see us bent over our plates. The pheasant, still steaming from the oven, its…” quote by Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/860/eli-brown-27141_cooking_without-another-word-we-began-to-eat-i-w_1008358.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/860/eli-brown-27141_cooking_without-another-word-we-began-to-eat-i-w_1008358.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/860/eli-brown-27141_cooking_without-another-word-we-began-to-eat-i-w_1008358.jpg) > ““Without another word, we began to eat. I was hungry, but no appetite would excuse the way we set upon those dishes. We shoveled food into our mouths in a manner ill befitting our fine attire. Bears would have blushed to see us bent over our plates. The pheasant, still steaming from the oven, its dark flesh redolent with the mushroom musk of the forest floor, was gnawed quickly to the bone. It was a touch gamy - no milk-fed goose, this - but it was tender, and the piquant hominy balanced that wild taste as I had hoped it would. The eggs, laced pink at the edges and floating delicately in a carnal sauce, were gulped down in two bites. The yolks were cooked to that rare liminal degree, no longer liquid but not yet solid, like the formative moment of a sun-colored gem.”” [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator describes a lavish, almost grotesque feast, highlighting the tension between refined appearance and primal hunger. **In simple terms:** A sumptuous meal reveals raw desire beneath polite manners. Key Takeaway Observe how indulgence can expose true cravings. Themes food desire social façade indulgence sensory detail Mood intense sensual Type literary descriptive When to use this quote - Fine dining events - celebrations - cultural rituals - personal reflection on excess Key Concepts Gastronomy psychology of appetite social performance Questions to Reflect On - What does the feast reveal about the characters’ inner lives? - How do social settings shape our eating habits? A Different Perspective The vivid description may glorify excess, ignoring health or ethical concerns. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Appetite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appetite/) [Cooking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cooking/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) ## Related quotes > [“If a leg goes bad, you cut it off.” She made a firm gesture with the flat of her hand, then picked up her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/if-a-leg-goes-bad-you-cut-it-off-she-made-a-firm-gesture-with-the/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“It was cold in the street and I crossed to the lighted blaze of shops in Rue Fuad. In a grocer’s window I saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-durrell/it-was-cold-in-the-street-and-i-crossed-to-the-lighted-blaze-of-shops/) [Lawrence Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-durrell/) > [“DINNER went off without a hitch up until the part where people actually sat down at the table and began to eat. After that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-osborne/dinner-went-off-without-a-hitch-up-until-the-part-where-people/) [Stephen Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-osborne/) > [“You did not have last meal yesterday and there is much we need to do this day. You will need it.” Shaking her head,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-k-eidem/you-did-not-have-last-meal-yesterday-and-there-is-much-we-need-to-do/) [M.K. Eidem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-k-eidem/) > [“I understood that if ever one wanted to live with someone you cooked for them and they came running. But then it is my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-slater/i-understood-that-if-ever-one-wanted-to-live-with-someone-you-cooked/) [Nigel Slater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-slater/) > [The heart is cooking a pot of food for you. Be patient until it is cooked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-heart-is-cooking-a-pot-of-food-for-you-be-patient-until-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A potato is a poor thing, poorly treated. More often than not it is cooked in so unthinking and ignorant a manner as to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-k-fisher/a-potato-is-a-poor-thing-poorly-treated-more-often-than-not-it-is/) [M. F. K. Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-k-fisher/) > [As far as stimulus from the visual arts specifically, there is today in most of us a visual appetite that is hungry, that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-walford/as-far-as-stimulus-from-the-visual-arts-specifically-there-is-today/) [John Walford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-walford/) > [At the bottom of philosophy something very true and very desperate whispers: Everyone is hungry all the time. Everyone is starving. Everyone wants so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/at-the-bottom-of-philosophy-something-very-true-and-very-desperate/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [I hate with a bitter hatred the names of lentils haricots - those pretentious cheats of the appetite, those tabulated humbugs, those certified aridites…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gissing/i-hate-with-a-bitter-hatred-the-names-of-lentils-haricots-those/) [George Gissing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gissing/) > [PIG, n. An animal ("Porcus omnivorus") closely allied to the human race by the splendor and vivacity of its appetite, which, however, is inferior…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/pig-n-an-animal-porcus-omnivorus-closely-allied-to-the-human-race-by/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Keen appetite And quick digestion wait on you and yours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/keen-appetite-and-quick-digestion-wait-on-you-and-yours/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [Govern well thy appetite, lest Sin surprise thee, and her black attendant Death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/govern-well-thy-appetite-lest-sin-surprise-thee-and-her-black/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [I eat at this German-Chinese restaurant and the food is delicious. The only problem is that an hour later you're hungry for power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-cavett/i-eat-at-this-german-chinese-restaurant-and-the-food-is-delicious-the/) [Dick Cavett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-cavett/) ## More by Eli Brown > [“I now have some intimacy with death, and like the hops in a beer, it has both embittered and fortified me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/i-now-have-some-intimacy-with-death-and-like-the-hops-in-a-beer-it/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“As it ferments, kraut whispers alchemical secrets. In two days, it will smell as agreeable as an old pillow still warm from night’s use.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/as-it-ferments-kraut-whispers-alchemical-secrets-in-two-days-it-will/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“The proper way is lost to me; my compass spins. I therefore give my entire attention to those works that seem to me most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/the-proper-way-is-lost-to-me-my-compass-spins-i-therefore-give-my/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“Some foods are so comforting, so nourishing of body and soul, that to eat them is to be home again after a long journey.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/some-foods-are-so-comforting-so-nourishing-of-body-and-soul-that-to/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“Such is the indomitable spirit of saffron that even after years stale on my chest, it brought the rice to life with flavor and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/such-is-the-indomitable-spirit-of-saffron-that-even-after-years-stale/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“We are surrounded by monsters," she said. "We can cower before them or we can pick one and sink our teeth in with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/we-are-surrounded-by-monsters-she-said-we-can-cower-before-them-or-we/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“Never have I seen such a motley assemblage of characters. Except that we are at sea, I would believe that I had been abducted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/never-have-i-seen-such-a-motley-assemblage-of-characters-except-that/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“He who writes our every story needs no annotation from me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/he-who-writes-our-every-story-needs-no-annotation-from-me/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“Men who long for the past are already dead. Look to the future, Owen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/men-who-long-for-the-past-are-already-dead-look-to-the-future-owen/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“It is no great secret that cooking is, in essence, seduction.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/it-is-no-great-secret-that-cooking-is-in-essence-seduction/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“I write here all I can, yet cannot express the fatigue I collapse under each night, worn to the bone with worry. I feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/i-write-here-all-i-can-yet-cannot-express-the-fatigue-i-collapse/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“I made an attempt to reach him in his grief. I said, "I've had this pain. To tell you it will go away would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/i-made-an-attempt-to-reach-him-in-his-grief-i-said-i-ve-had-this-pain/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“The Roman pomp and raiment have fallen away, and I swear last the glory of washed feet and shared bread.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/the-roman-pomp-and-raiment-have-fallen-away-and-i-swear-last-the/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“A knight can fight. As you well know, I fight about as well as a pillow." "That's an insult to pillows. At least they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/a-knight-can-fight-as-you-well-know-i-fight-about-as-well-as-a-pillow/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) > [“He smoked a pipe, and Laroche, who indulged in neither tobacco nor spirits, simply sat upright in his chair and looked toward the quince…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-brown/he-smoked-a-pipe-and-laroche-who-indulged-in-neither-tobacco-nor/) [Eli Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) [Explore all 21 Eli Brown quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-brown/) ## More Appetite quotes > [I could not limit my values and pursuits to what makes others comfortable. Being possessed by a promise I live without options. I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/i-could-not-limit-my-values-and-pursuits-to-what-makes-others/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [the appetite for thinking must be regulated, as all sensible people know, for it may stifle one's life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/the-appetite-for-thinking-must-be-regulated-as-all-sensible-people/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [“if you cannot control your hunger and appetite, good luck managing your blood chemistry, metabolism, waistline, and, in the bigger picture, the prospect of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-perlmutter/if-you-cannot-control-your-hunger-and-appetite-good-luck-managing/) [David Perlmutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-perlmutter/) > [I don't think I've ever bench-pressed anything in my life. Until about two years ago I swam a mile almost every day. Then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-antosca/i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-bench-pressed-anything-in-my-life-until-about/) [Nick Antosca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-antosca/) > [If I had been an Italian I am sure that I should have been whole-heartedly with you from the start to finish in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/if-i-had-been-an-italian-i-am-sure-that-i-should-have-been-whole/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [It could be my British need for discipline that makes me admire the American appetite for freedom and passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-winwood/it-could-be-my-british-need-for-discipline-that-makes-me-admire-the/) [Steve Winwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-winwood/) > [My curiosity and my appetite for evolving as an actor is one of the main components of me still working today in the business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-cattrall/my-curiosity-and-my-appetite-for-evolving-as-an-actor-is-one-of-the/) [Kim Cattrall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-cattrall/) > [I have a strong appetite and its not for food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-have-a-strong-appetite-and-its-not-for-food/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The plain fact is that education is itself a form of propaganda - a deliberate scheme to outfit the pupil, not with the capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-plain-fact-is-that-education-is-itself-a-form-of-propaganda-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You should also eat eggs. Not “one egg per week” or some such non-physiologic restriction. Eat what your body tells you to eat, since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-davis/you-should-also-eat-eggs-not-one-egg-per-week-or-some-such-non/) [William Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-davis/) > [If your desires are not great, a little will seem much to you; for small appetite makes poverty equivalent to wealth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/democritus/if-your-desires-are-not-great-a-little-will-seem-much-to-you-for/) [Democritus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/democritus/) > [When passions and appetites are stronger than the intellect, men are savages; when the intellect governs the passions, when the passions are servants, men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/when-passions-and-appetites-are-stronger-than-the-intellect-men-are/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [A pivotal spiritual attribute is that of self-mastery-th e strength to place reason over appetite. Self-mastery builds a strong conscience. And your conscience determines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-m-nelson/a-pivotal-spiritual-attribute-is-that-of-self-mastery-th-e-strength/) [Russell M. Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-m-nelson/) > [The commonest and cheapest sounds, as the barking of a dog, produce the same effect on fresh and healthy ears that the rarest music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-commonest-and-cheapest-sounds-as-the-barking-of-a-dog-produce-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Browse all 994 Appetite quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appetite/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Without another word, we began to eat. I was hungry, but no appetite would excuse the way we set upon those dishes. We shoveled food into our mouths in a manner ill befitting our fine attire. 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