--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Just before it was dark, as they passed a…" description: "\"“Just before it was dark, as they passed a great island of Sargasso weed that heaved and swung in the light sea as though the ocean were making love wi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/ernest-hemingway-83_love_just-before-it-was-dark-as-they-passed-a_856551.jpg" --- # Just before it was dark, as they passed a great island of… ![“Just before it was dark, as they passed a great island of Sargasso weed that heaved and swung in the light sea as though the ocean were making love with something under a yellow blanket, his small line was taken by a dolphin. He saw it first when it jumped in the air, true gold in the last of the…” quote by Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/ernest-hemingway-83_love_just-before-it-was-dark-as-they-passed-a_856551.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/ernest-hemingway-83_love_just-before-it-was-dark-as-they-passed-a_856551.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2e/ernest-hemingway-83_love_just-before-it-was-dark-as-they-passed-a_856551.jpg) > ““Just before it was dark, as they passed a great island of Sargasso weed that heaved and swung in the light sea as though the ocean were making love with something under a yellow blanket, his small line was taken by a dolphin. He saw it first when it jumped in the air, true gold in the last of the sun and bending and flapping wildly in the air.”” [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. A vivid scene where a dolphin’s leap symbolizes a fleeting, golden moment of beauty amid hardship. **In simple terms:** A dolphin’s leap shows brief beauty. Key Takeaway Notice fleeting beauty. Themes nature beauty transience Mood poetic contemplative Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - fishing trips - stormy seas - personal reflection - artistic inspiration Key Concepts symbolism visual imagery hope Questions to Reflect On - What fleeting moments have you witnessed? - How does nature inspire your resilience? A Different Perspective Interpretation may vary widely. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dolphin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dolphin/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Ocean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ocean/) ## Related quotes > [“Where is miracle? None they can’t see. Where is hope? I only see light on the sea.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-aditya/where-is-miracle-none-they-can-t-see-where-is-hope-i-only-see-light/) [Salman Aditya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-aditya/) > [“Had she stayed, I would have told her of quite another sea. It does not dance for tourists; it does not dress for youths.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramon-c-sunico/had-she-stayed-i-would-have-told-her-of-quite-another-sea-it-does-not/) Ramon C. Sunico > [The light that never was, on sea or land; The consecration, and the Poet's dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/the-light-that-never-was-on-sea-or-land-the-consecration-and-the-poet/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [Having books published is very destructive to writing. It is even worse than making love too much. Because when you make love too much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/having-books-published-is-very-destructive-to-writing-it-is-even/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [Context is to data what water is to a dolphin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-simmons/context-is-to-data-what-water-is-to-a-dolphin/) [Dan Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-simmons/) > [My first payback to society in life, was The Dolphin Project.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-danko/my-first-payback-to-society-in-life-was-the-dolphin-project/) [Rick Danko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-danko/) > [You can't get a dolphin. What are you gonna do, like, put it in your pool?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miley-cyrus/you-can-t-get-a-dolphin-what-are-you-gonna-do-like-put-it-in-your-pool/) [Miley Cyrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miley-cyrus/) > [The last ever dolphin message was misinterpreted as a surprisingly sophisticated attempt to do a double-backwards-somersault through a hoop whilst whistling the 'Star Spangled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-last-ever-dolphin-message-was-misinterpreted-as-a-surprisingly/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“Don't be stupid and awkward," the dolphin says. "You want to walk together or not?" "You are a stupid piece of shit. Go away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/don-t-be-stupid-and-awkward-the-dolphin-says-you-want-to-walk/) [tao lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/) > [I'd love to sponsor a dolphin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-ora/i-d-love-to-sponsor-a-dolphin/) [Rita Ora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-ora/) > [I've never had any intimate relationships with a dolphin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-freeman/i-ve-never-had-any-intimate-relationships-with-a-dolphin/) [Morgan Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-freeman/) > [Ere the dolphin dies Its hues are brightest. Like an infant's breath Are tropic winds before the voice of death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fitz-greene-halleck/ere-the-dolphin-dies-its-hues-are-brightest-like-an-infant-s-breath/) [Fitz-Greene Halleck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fitz-greene-halleck/) > [DID YOU SEE THE DOLPHIN ? :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhat/did-you-see-the-dolphin/) [Zhat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhat/) > [I've been a Dolphin for 17 years, and I'll be a Dolphin for the rest of my life. That will never change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-marino/i-ve-been-a-dolphin-for-17-years-and-i-ll-be-a-dolphin-for-the-rest/) [Dan Marino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-marino/) > [“In due course I would learn how to cover up for this event, but on that awful day I knew of nothing to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-pryor/in-due-course-i-would-learn-how-to-cover-up-for-this-event-but-on/) [Karen Pryor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-pryor/) ## 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 Dolphin quotes > [“In due course I would learn how to cover up for this event, but on that awful day I knew of nothing to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-pryor/in-due-course-i-would-learn-how-to-cover-up-for-this-event-but-on/) [Karen Pryor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-pryor/) > [Context is to data what water is to a dolphin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-simmons/context-is-to-data-what-water-is-to-a-dolphin/) [Dan Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-simmons/) > [I've never had any intimate relationships with a dolphin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-freeman/i-ve-never-had-any-intimate-relationships-with-a-dolphin/) [Morgan Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-freeman/) > [“Don't be stupid and awkward," the dolphin says. "You want to walk together or not?" "You are a stupid piece of shit. Go away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/don-t-be-stupid-and-awkward-the-dolphin-says-you-want-to-walk/) [tao lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/) > [I've been a Dolphin for 17 years, and I'll be a Dolphin for the rest of my life. That will never change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-marino/i-ve-been-a-dolphin-for-17-years-and-i-ll-be-a-dolphin-for-the-rest/) [Dan Marino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-marino/) > [DID YOU SEE THE DOLPHIN ? :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhat/did-you-see-the-dolphin/) [Zhat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhat/) > [Ere the dolphin dies Its hues are brightest. Like an infant's breath Are tropic winds before the voice of death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fitz-greene-halleck/ere-the-dolphin-dies-its-hues-are-brightest-like-an-infant-s-breath/) [Fitz-Greene Halleck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fitz-greene-halleck/) > [I'd love to sponsor a dolphin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-ora/i-d-love-to-sponsor-a-dolphin/) [Rita Ora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-ora/) > [The last ever dolphin message was misinterpreted as a surprisingly sophisticated attempt to do a double-backwards-somersault through a hoop whilst whistling the 'Star Spangled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-last-ever-dolphin-message-was-misinterpreted-as-a-surprisingly/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [You can't get a dolphin. What are you gonna do, like, put it in your pool?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miley-cyrus/you-can-t-get-a-dolphin-what-are-you-gonna-do-like-put-it-in-your-pool/) [Miley Cyrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miley-cyrus/) > [My first payback to society in life, was The Dolphin Project.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-danko/my-first-payback-to-society-in-life-was-the-dolphin-project/) [Rick Danko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-danko/) > [I pitched the idea that SpongeBob and Patrick learn a swearword. Everyone said no. I couldn't even use a bleep. So I used a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hillenburg/i-pitched-the-idea-that-spongebob-and-patrick-learn-a-swearword/) [Stephen Hillenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hillenburg/) > [“The dolphin is a mammal, but it can’t walk. However, it can hitchhike.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/the-dolphin-is-a-mammal-but-it-can-t-walk-however-it-can-hitchhike/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“I'm sure there‟s a dolphin somewhere in the middle of the pacific doing something beautiful and captivating while a little girl in a cruise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valentinemabuza/i-m-sure-there-s-a-dolphin-somewhere-in-the-middle-of-the-pacific/) ValentineMabuza > [I just tell people I'm a dolphin trainer. It's better for everyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-walker/i-just-tell-people-i-m-a-dolphin-trainer-it-s-better-for-everyone/) [Matthew Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-walker/) [Browse all 41 Dolphin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dolphin/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Just before it was dark, as they passed a great island of Sargasso weed that heaved and swung in the light sea as though the ocean were making love with something under a yellow blanket, his small line was taken by a dolphin. 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