--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He is a great fish and I must convince…" description: "\"“He is a great fish and I must convince him, he thought. I must never let him learn his strength nor what he could do if he made his run.”\" — Ernest He..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b38/ernest-hemingway-83_convince_he-is-a-great-fish-and-i-must-convince-h_710044.jpg" --- # He is a great fish and I must convince him, he thought. I… ![“He is a great fish and I must convince him, he thought. I must never let him learn his strength nor what he could do if he made his run.” quote by Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b38/ernest-hemingway-83_convince_he-is-a-great-fish-and-i-must-convince-h_710044.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b38/ernest-hemingway-83_convince_he-is-a-great-fish-and-i-must-convince-h_710044.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b38/ernest-hemingway-83_convince_he-is-a-great-fish-and-i-must-convince-h_710044.jpg) > ““He is a great fish and I must convince him, he thought. I must never let him learn his strength nor what he could do if he made his run.”” [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He thinks he must hide his potential to control the outcome, fearing it may be misused. **In simple terms:** Concealing strength limits growth. Key Takeaway Balance humility and confidence. Themes self‑control power confidence fear Mood reflective cautious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - leadership coaching - personal development - creative writing Key Concepts Psychology of self‑censorship identity potential management Questions to Reflect On - When is it wise to reveal strength? - How does fear shape self‑presentation? A Different Perspective Suppressing ability can backfire. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fish/) ## Related quotes > [“He is a great fish and I must convince him, he thought. I must never let him learn his strength nor what he could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/he-is-a-great-fish-and-i-must-convince-him-he-thought-i-must-never/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“Then he was sorry for the great fish... How many people will he feed?.. But are they worthy to eat him? No, of course,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/then-he-was-sorry-for-the-great-fish-how-many-people-will-he-feed-but/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“The old man's head was clear and good now and he was full of resolution but he had little hope. It was too good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/the-old-man-s-head-was-clear-and-good-now-and-he-was-full-of/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“Convince is for thought; persuade is for action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-wood/convince-is-for-thought-persuade-is-for-action/) [Monica Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-wood/) > [“Then he began to pity the great fish that he had hooked. He is wonderful and strange and who knows how old he is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/then-he-began-to-pity-the-great-fish-that-he-had-hooked-he-is-2/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“Then he began to pity the great fish that he had hooked. He is wonderful and strange and who knows how old he is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/then-he-began-to-pity-the-great-fish-that-he-had-hooked-he-is/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [The great fish moved silently through the night water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-benchley/the-great-fish-moved-silently-through-the-night-water/) [Peter Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-benchley/) > [So, I sit at the hotel at night and I think of something that's funny. Or, If the pen is too far away, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/so-i-sit-at-the-hotel-at-night-and-i-think-of-something-that-s-funny/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [The great fish eat the small.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-barclay/the-great-fish-eat-the-small/) Alexander Barclay > [“...as a mark of gratitude for his previous patronage, and a slight super-added morsel after breakfast, put likewise into his hand a whale! The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/as-a-mark-of-gratitude-for-his-previous-patronage-and-a-slight-super/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [A great lie is like a great fish on dry land; it may fret and fling and make a frightful bother, but it cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-crabbe/a-great-lie-is-like-a-great-fish-on-dry-land-it-may-fret-and-fling/) [George Crabbe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-crabbe/) > [I cook a great fish, a great salmon. I grill it, get the skin nice and crispy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-rancic/i-cook-a-great-fish-a-great-salmon-i-grill-it-get-the-skin-nice-and/) [Bill Rancic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-rancic/) > [There's plenty of fish in the sea? That's great for the fish but what about me!?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-blue-wolf/there-s-plenty-of-fish-in-the-sea-that-s-great-for-the-fish-but-what/) Chris Blue Wolf > [“Great fish do not drown in small rivers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/great-fish-do-not-drown-in-small-rivers/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [In a great River great fish are found, but take heede, lest you bee drowned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-herbert/in-a-great-river-great-fish-are-found-but-take-heede-lest-you-bee/) [George Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-herbert/) ## More by Ernest Hemingway > [Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/wine-is-one-of-the-most-civilized-things-in-the-world-and-one-of-the/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“There was no wind, and, outside now of the warm air of the cave, heavy with smoke of both tobacco and charcoal, with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/there-was-no-wind-and-outside-now-of-the-warm-air-of-the-cave-heavy/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“It was not brilliant bull-fighting. It was only perfect bull-fighting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/it-was-not-brilliant-bull-fighting-it-was-only-perfect-bull-fighting/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [One cat just leads to another. The place is so damned big it doesn't really seem as though there were many cats until you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/one-cat-just-leads-to-another-the-place-is-so-damned-big-it-doesn-t/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [Creation's probably overrated. After all, God made the world in only six days and rested on the seventh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/creation-s-probably-overrated-after-all-god-made-the-world-in-only/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“Viva my husband who was Mayor of this town”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/viva-my-husband-who-was-mayor-of-this-town/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“The earth gets tired of being exploited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/the-earth-gets-tired-of-being-exploited/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [What is moral is what you feel good after, and what is immoral is what you feel bad after.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/what-is-moral-is-what-you-feel-good-after-and-what-is-immoral-is-what/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“We drove out along the coast road. There was the green of the headlands, the white, red-roofed villas, patches of forest, and the ocean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/we-drove-out-along-the-coast-road-there-was-the-green-of-the/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [As a Nobel Prize winner I cannot but regret that the award was never given to Mark Twain, nor to Henry James, speaking only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/as-a-nobel-prize-winner-i-cannot-but-regret-that-the-award-was-never/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [Oh, darling, I've been so miserable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/oh-darling-i-ve-been-so-miserable/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [I read my own books sometimes to cheer me when it is hard to write, and then I remember that it was always difficult,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/i-read-my-own-books-sometimes-to-cheer-me-when-it-is-hard-to-write/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“You find everything on earth at Harry's." "Yes, my Colonel. Except, possibly, happiness." "I'll damn well find happiness, too," the Colonel assured him. "Happiness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/you-find-everything-on-earth-at-harry-s-yes-my-colonel-except/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“No. It's bad for me. Cole Porter wrote the words and the music. This knowledge that you're going mad for me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/no-it-s-bad-for-me-cole-porter-wrote-the-words-and-the-music-this/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“everything kills everything else in some way. Fishing kills me exactly as it keeps me alive. The boy keeps me alive, he thought. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/everything-kills-everything-else-in-some-way-fishing-kills-me-exactly/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) [Explore all 1,464 Ernest Hemingway quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) ## More Convince quotes > [“Sometimes we want something to be true so badly that we convince ourselves that it is true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-lamb/sometimes-we-want-something-to-be-true-so-badly-that-we-convince/) [Wally Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-lamb/) > [The privilege of prayer to me is one of the most cherished possessions, because faith and experience alike convince me that God himself sees…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfred-grenfell/the-privilege-of-prayer-to-me-is-one-of-the-most-cherished/) [Wilfred Grenfell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfred-grenfell/) > [Jesus never met a disease he could not cure, a birth defect he could not reverse, a demon he could not exorcise. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-never-met-a-disease-he-could-not-cure-a-birth-defect-he-could/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [The first duty of a wise advocate is to convince his opponents that he understands their arguments, and sympathies with their just feelings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/the-first-duty-of-a-wise-advocate-is-to-convince-his-opponents-that/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [Once you convince people that they're victims, you really own them because you've just told them that whatever problems they have in life, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/once-you-convince-people-that-they-re-victims-you-really-own-them/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The people on the QVC shopping channel convince me that life is worth living. They see the good in everything. People who go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-vegas/the-people-on-the-qvc-shopping-channel-convince-me-that-life-is-worth/) [Johnny Vegas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-vegas/) > [“What can I say to convince you the Houses of Parliament dissolve night after night to become the fluid dream of the Thames? I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisel-mueller/what-can-i-say-to-convince-you-the-houses-of-parliament-dissolve/) [Lisel Mueller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisel-mueller/) > [Human beings have the incredible capacity for denial. I think they do. And although it's really hard to believe, I have my doubts. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/human-beings-have-the-incredible-capacity-for-denial-i-think-they-do/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) > [“If you can convince yourself, you can convince the other fellow,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-sanders/if-you-can-convince-yourself-you-can-convince-the-other-fellow/) [Tim Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-sanders/) > [Don't lie to yourself about what you can't or can achieve. Convince yourself on a realistic level that you can do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-lie-to-yourself-about-what-you-can-t-or-can-achieve-convince/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Don't ever let anyone convince you that your imagination is wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuseppe-bianco/don-t-ever-let-anyone-convince-you-that-your-imagination-is-wrong/) [Giuseppe Bianco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuseppe-bianco/) > [It's hard to convince your agents and managers to do theater, because it's not as financially rewarding and it takes up a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-helberg/it-s-hard-to-convince-your-agents-and-managers-to-do-theater-because/) [Simon Helberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-helberg/) > [I guess that is the strange part of the human brain that people have studied for eons - is hatred and self-hatred. You can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-noah/i-guess-that-is-the-strange-part-of-the-human-brain-that-people-have/) [Trevor Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-noah/) > [I knew I shouldn't like him cause I know it's not working, and everybody tells me that, and I convince myself I don't... and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernajoy-vaal/i-knew-i-shouldn-t-like-him-cause-i-know-it-s-not-working-and/) [Bernajoy Vaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernajoy-vaal/) > [The statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting the blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-statesmen-will-invent-cheap-lies-putting-the-blame-upon-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) Browse all 1,431 Convince quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He is a great fish and I must convince him, he thought. 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