--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am better able to imagine hell than…" description: "\"I am better able to imagine hell than heaven; it is my inheritance, I suppose.\" — Elinor Wylie" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/elinor-wylie-28924_able_i-am-better-able-to-imagine-hell-than-he_2325206.jpg" --- # I am better able to imagine hell than heaven; it is my… ![“I am better able to imagine hell than heaven; it is my inheritance, I suppose.” quote by Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/elinor-wylie-28924_able_i-am-better-able-to-imagine-hell-than-he_2325206.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/elinor-wylie-28924_able_i-am-better-able-to-imagine-hell-than-he_2325206.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/elinor-wylie-28924_able_i-am-better-able-to-imagine-hell-than-he_2325206.jpg) > “I am better able to imagine hell than heaven; it is my inheritance, I suppose.” [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker sees hell as more imaginable than heaven, suggesting a personal, perhaps dark, worldview inherited from experience. **In simple terms:** Hell feels more real than heaven to the speaker. Key Takeaway Acknowledge personal darkness without letting it dominate. Themes existentialism inheritance perception Mood melancholic contemplative Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal reflection - creative writing - therapy sessions Key Concepts subjective reality psychology literary imagination Questions to Reflect On - How does your past shape your view of afterlife? - Can imagined hell be transformed? A Different Perspective The view may overlook hope or redemption. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell/) [Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination/) [Inheritance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inheritance/) ## Related quotes > [I imagine hell like this: Italian punctuality, German humour and English wine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-ustinov/i-imagine-hell-like-this-italian-punctuality-german-humour-and/) [Peter Ustinov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-ustinov/) > [I am convinced that boredom is one of the greatest tortures. If I were to imagine Hell, it would be the place where you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/i-am-convinced-that-boredom-is-one-of-the-greatest-tortures-if-i-were/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [“You get to help people in ways that I can't even imagine. Hell, \*you get to help people.\*”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-r-a-decandido/you-get-to-help-people-in-ways-that-i-can-t-even-imagine-hell-you-get/) [Keith R.A. DeCandido](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-r-a-decandido/) > [We are better able to study our neighbours than ourselves, and their actions than our own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/we-are-better-able-to-study-our-neighbours-than-ourselves-and-their/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [“If you grow up with less, you are much better able to deal with having less. That is itself a kind of freedom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-deresiewicz/if-you-grow-up-with-less-you-are-much-better-able-to-deal-with-having/) [William Deresiewicz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-deresiewicz/) > [We are much better able to evaluate someone else's behavior than we are our own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-much-better-able-to-evaluate-someone-else-s-behavior-than-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am better able to retract what I did not say than what I did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-ibn-gabirol/i-am-better-able-to-retract-what-i-did-not-say-than-what-i-did/) [Solomon Ibn Gabirol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-ibn-gabirol/) > [We are better able to study our neighbors than ourselves, and their actions than our own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/we-are-better-able-to-study-our-neighbors-than-ourselves-and-their/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [Only by constantly exposing myself to someone better than I have I been able to improve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-hyams/only-by-constantly-exposing-myself-to-someone-better-than-i-have-i/) [Joe Hyams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-hyams/) > [Consider the misfortunes of others, and you will be the better able to bear your own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/consider-the-misfortunes-of-others-and-you-will-be-the-better-able-to/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [The more information you have, the better you're able to have success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-field/the-more-information-you-have-the-better-you-re-able-to-have-success/) [Patricia Field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-field/) > [As you become more clear about who you really are, you'll be better able to decide what is best for you - the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/as-you-become-more-clear-about-who-you-really-are-you-ll-be-better/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [Organizations may be better able to tame optimism than individuals are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-kahneman/organizations-may-be-better-able-to-tame-optimism-than-individuals-are/) [Daniel Kahneman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-kahneman/) > [In this thing one man is superior to another, that he is better able to bear adversity and prosperity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philemon/in-this-thing-one-man-is-superior-to-another-that-he-is-better-able/) [Philemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philemon/) > [The more knowledge you've got, the more understanding you have, the better you are able to implement and pass it on to others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-orlando/the-more-knowledge-you-ve-got-the-more-understanding-you-have-the/) [Tony Orlando](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-orlando/) ## More by Elinor Wylie > [“I was, being human, born alone; I am, being woman, hard beset; I live by squeezing from a stone The little nourishment I get.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/i-was-being-human-born-alone-i-am-being-woman-hard-beset-i-live-by/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [“The winter will be short, the summer long, The autumn amber-hued, sunny and hot, Tasting of cider and of scuppernong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/the-winter-will-be-short-the-summer-long-the-autumn-amber-hued-sunny/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [“Pretty Words" Poets make pets of pretty, docile words: I love smooth words, like gold-enamelled fish Which circle slowly with a silken swish, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/pretty-words-poets-make-pets-of-pretty-docile-words-i-love-smooth/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [“I love bright words, words up and singing early; Words that are luminous in the dark, and sing; Warm lazy words, white cattle under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/i-love-bright-words-words-up-and-singing-early-words-that-are/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [The bird Imagination, That flies so far, that dies so soon; Her wings are colored like the sun, Her breast is colored like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/the-bird-imagination-that-flies-so-far-that-dies-so-soon-her-wings/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [The winter will be short, the summer long, The autumn amber-hued, sunny and hot, Tasting of cider and of scuppernong; All seasons sweet, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/the-winter-will-be-short-the-summer-long-the-autumn-amber-hued-sunny-2/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [I bear a little more than I can bear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/i-bear-a-little-more-than-i-can-bear/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [When strawberries go begging, and the sleek Blue plums lie open to the blackbird's beak, We shall live well--we shall live very well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/when-strawberries-go-begging-and-the-sleek-blue-plums-lie-open-to-the/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [I shall lie folded like a saint, Lapped in a scented linen sheet, On a bedstead striped with bright-blue paint, Narrow and cold and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/i-shall-lie-folded-like-a-saint-lapped-in-a-scented-linen-sheet-on-a/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [Down to the Puritan marrow of my bones There's something in this richness that I hate. I love the look, austere, immaculate, Of landscapes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/down-to-the-puritan-marrow-of-my-bones-there-s-something-in-this/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [If you would keep your soul From spotted sight or sound, Live like the velvet mole; Go burrow underground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/if-you-would-keep-your-soul-from-spotted-sight-or-sound-live-like-the/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [“The morning after / my death” The morning after my death we will sit in cafés but I will not be there I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/the-morning-after-my-death-the-morning-after-my-death-we-will-sit-in/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [An old earthen pipe like myself is dry and thirsty and so a most voracious drinker of life at its source; I'm no more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/an-old-earthen-pipe-like-myself-is-dry-and-thirsty-and-so-a-most/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [If any have a stone to throw It is not I, ever or now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/if-any-have-a-stone-to-throw-it-is-not-i-ever-or-now/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) > [Peaches grow wild, and pigs can live in clover; A barrel of salted herrings lasts a year; The spring begins before the winter's over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-wylie/peaches-grow-wild-and-pigs-can-live-in-clover-a-barrel-of-salted/) [Elinor Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) [Explore all 19 Elinor Wylie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-wylie/) ## More Able quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. 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I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/) [Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/) > [I wanted to remember in order to be able to return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-wanted-to-remember-in-order-to-be-able-to-return/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/) Greg Perry > [I don't know if I would qualify as mainstream. 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And if you grow up in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-browning/what-we-re-supposed-to-do-as-actors-is-be-able-to-portray-real-human/) [Emily Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-browning/) > [The reason that Apple is able to create products like iPad is because we always try to be at the intersection of technology and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-reason-that-apple-is-able-to-create-products-like-ipad-is-because/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [It was an important period for us, because even though we weren't a "punk band", and what became a model for a punk band,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mallinder/it-was-an-important-period-for-us-because-even-though-we-weren-t-a/) [Stephen Mallinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mallinder/) > [- You look fine. - Right. I look fine. Except I don't, said Zora, tugging sadly at her man's nightshirt. 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