--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am cruel and I am selfish, but this…" description: "\"I am cruel and I am selfish, but this need I have inside me, this need for you and no other, is stronger than anything else I've ever encountered. I do..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/gena-showalter-541_cruel_i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-nee_233324.png" --- # I am cruel and I am selfish, but this need I have inside… ![“I am cruel and I am selfish, but this need I have inside me, this need for you and no other, is stronger than anything else I've ever encountered. I doubt two years of lockup would dull it in the slightest.” quote by Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/gena-showalter-541_cruel_i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-nee_233324.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/gena-showalter-541_cruel_i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-nee_233324.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/gena-showalter-541_cruel_i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-nee_233324.png) > “I am cruel and I am selfish, but this need I have inside me, this need for you and no other, is stronger than anything else I've ever encountered. I doubt two years of lockup would dull it in the slightest.” [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intense personal desire for a specific person can dominate all other needs, persisting despite obstacles. **In simple terms:** Love can be overwhelming. Key Takeaway Acknowledge and manage powerful longing. Themes love desire obsession Mood passionate intense Type warning reflection When to use this quote - relationships - conflict - personal growth Key Concepts psychology attachment intensity Questions to Reflect On - Is this love healthy? - How to balance desire with self‑care? A Different Perspective Such obsession may become unhealthy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) [I am selfish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-am-selfish/) ## Related quotes > [I am selfish. I am cruel. My mate cannot be less than I.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/i-am-selfish-i-am-cruel-my-mate-cannot-be-less-than-i/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“We can become so cruel and so selfish when we are afraid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-perry/we-can-become-so-cruel-and-so-selfish-when-we-are-afraid/) [Anne Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-perry/) > [“Bree knew this habit of hers rankled Lara more than any other--her ability to make a decision and announce that there would be no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-courtney-sullivan/bree-knew-this-habit-of-hers-rankled-lara-more-than-any-other-her/) [J. Courtney Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-courtney-sullivan/) > [You will think me cruel, very selfish, but love is always selfish; the more ardent the more selfish. How jealous I am you cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-think-me-cruel-very-selfish-but-love-is-always-selfish-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Living a happy life is my main priority. You guys may think I am selfish for "wasting my talent" by staying away from events…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-irons/living-a-happy-life-is-my-main-priority-you-guys-may-think-i-am/) [Andy Irons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-irons/) > [Shouldn't you have a license for being that ugly?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-lynes/shouldn-t-you-have-a-license-for-being-that-ugly/) [Russell Lynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-lynes/) > [Oh, I will be cruel to you, Marya Morevna. It will stop your breath, how cruel I can be. But you understand, don’t you?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/oh-i-will-be-cruel-to-you-marya-morevna-it-will-stop-your-breath-how/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [Sure love is cruel and selfish and totally obtuse-- at least, blinded by the light, young love is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-carlos-williams/sure-love-is-cruel-and-selfish-and-totally-obtuse-at-least-blinded-by/) [William Carlos Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-carlos-williams/) > [I am selfish. I am brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-am-selfish-i-am-brave/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [I am selfish, but that's an attribute that all artists possess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-mapplethorpe/i-am-selfish-but-that-s-an-attribute-that-all-artists-possess/) [Robert Mapplethorpe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-mapplethorpe/) > [Going out at night and having a fabulous social life takes a lot out of you, and I don't know if I have that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kajol/going-out-at-night-and-having-a-fabulous-social-life-takes-a-lot-out/) [Kajol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kajol/) > [“The sea was cruel and selfish as human beings, and in its monstrous simplicity had no notion of complexities like pity, wounding, or remorse...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arturo-p-rez-reverte/the-sea-was-cruel-and-selfish-as-human-beings-and-in-its-monstrous/) [Arturo Pérez-Reverte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arturo-p-rez-reverte/) > [I am selfish, private and easily bored. Will this be a problem?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-am-selfish-private-and-easily-bored-will-this-be-a-problem/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“It's stupid, isn't it? He's cruel and selfish, unscrupulous and wicked. I don't care. I don't respect him, I don't trust him, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/it-s-stupid-isn-t-it-he-s-cruel-and-selfish-unscrupulous-and-wicked-i/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [I am selfish. I reach for the world I want to live in. And I believe in leaving our best we can do to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-near/i-am-selfish-i-reach-for-the-world-i-want-to-live-in-and-i-believe-in/) [Holly Near](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-near/) ## More by Gena Showalter > [“Justin took off in a run. Frosty and Bronx, too. It wasn’t long before Frosty was carrying Kat, Bronx was carrying Reeve and Justin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/justin-took-off-in-a-run-frosty-and-bronx-too-it-wasn-t-long-before/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [You are such a chick.” I widened my eyes in mock surprise. “No way. Are you sure?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/you-are-such-a-chick-i-widened-my-eyes-in-mock-surprise-no-way-are/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [Girl, he wants to dip you in Frosted Flakes and have you for breakfast. That's his favorite cereal, by the way." I...had no words…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/girl-he-wants-to-dip-you-in-frosted-flakes-and-have-you-for-breakfast/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [I'm not sure why we want each other," she grumbled. "Nor am I, but the fact remains that we do want each other." "Maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/i-m-not-sure-why-we-want-each-other-she-grumbled-nor-am-i-but-the/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [“Are you gonna kill me?" the kid asked. Kid definitely didn't know who he was. There would be fawning. Wait. He looked that scary?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/are-you-gonna-kill-me-the-kid-asked-kid-definitely-didn-t-know-who-he/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [She stood, squared her shoulders. “We’ll do it. Together.” And then she did something that shocked them both. She rose on her tiptoes and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/she-stood-squared-her-shoulders-we-ll-do-it-together-and-then-she-did/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [To you I belong.My heart beats only for you.No other will tempt me,from this day and beyond.To you I belong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/to-you-i-belong-my-heart-beats-only-for-you-no-other-will-tempt-me/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [I’m not trying to—What do teenagers say nowadays?” he asked my grandmother.“Get all up in her biznez,” Nana said.Without cracking a smile.“That’s right,” he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/i-m-not-trying-to-what-do-teenagers-say-nowadays-he-asked-my/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [“For a moment, Strider almost forgot how pissed he was with Amun and Haidee as he savored the fact that he'd just cock-blocked the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/for-a-moment-strider-almost-forgot-how-pissed-he-was-with-amun-and/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [If all we've got to look forward to is disloyalty and treachery, why do we even make friends?" "Again, human nature. Hoping for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/if-all-we-ve-got-to-look-forward-to-is-disloyalty-and-treachery-why/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [“He grunted, then he howled. I guess vinaigrette burns. Ha! I controlled the urge to grin. I leaped atop the dark, glossy table surface—and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/he-grunted-then-he-howled-i-guess-vinaigrette-burns-ha-i-controlled/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [That means life itself is a fairy tale. Like the characters, we all live and love and search for a happily-ever-after.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/that-means-life-itself-is-a-fairy-tale-like-the-characters-we-all/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [“That’s my cousin, dickwad,” Agent Jaxon Tremain said from Hector’s left. Had Whacky Jacky been next to Dallas, he would have drilled his knuckles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/that-s-my-cousin-dickwad-agent-jaxon-tremain-said-from-hector-s-left/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [“You are treating that thing as if it is a great treasure," he said. Well, yeah. Because it was. "You have something against cookies?"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/you-are-treating-that-thing-as-if-it-is-a-great-treasure-he-said-well/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [“Me: I think we should have sex again. Royce: Bad idea. Me: Why? Royce: I want more from you than sex. Me: Goodbye, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/me-i-think-we-should-have-sex-again-royce-bad-idea-me-why-royce-i/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) [Explore all 476 Gena Showalter quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) ## More Cruel quotes > [“History has a cruel way of disappointing optimists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-thompson/history-has-a-cruel-way-of-disappointing-optimists/) Keith Thompson > [“I think the reason we're cruel sometimes is that we're afraid we're going to like something.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/i-think-the-reason-we-re-cruel-sometimes-is-that-we-re-afraid-we-re/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [“Don't be so cruel to me. Don't promise me anything. I've got everything that i need. I need love in a good way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tegan-quin/don-t-be-so-cruel-to-me-don-t-promise-me-anything-i-ve-got-everything/) [Tegan Quin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tegan-quin/) > [Pity is cruel. Pity destroys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/pity-is-cruel-pity-destroys/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [“Even the cruel feel pain. And even the cruel can change. I hope this changes him. He could do so much, if only he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierce-brown/even-the-cruel-feel-pain-and-even-the-cruel-can-change-i-hope-this/) [Pierce Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierce-brown/) > [You must learn that to endure cruelty is to become cruel yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bleach/you-must-learn-that-to-endure-cruelty-is-to-become-cruel-yourself/) [Bleach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bleach/) > [“my power is as cruel a joke as it can get? That’s”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-d-anderson/my-power-is-as-cruel-a-joke-as-it-can-get-that-s/) Katie D. Anderson > [I must be cruel only to be kind; Thus bad begins, and worse remains behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-must-be-cruel-only-to-be-kind-thus-bad-begins-and-worse-remains/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Huamns, uregulated, are cruel and capricious; violet and selfish; miserable and quarrelsome. It is only after their instincts and basic emotions have been controlled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/huamns-uregulated-are-cruel-and-capricious-violet-and-selfish/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“You would think those who have endured unkindness would be kinder as a result, intent on sparing others the awful suffering they abhorred firsthand.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/you-would-think-those-who-have-endured-unkindness-would-be-kinder-as/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [how cruel, your veins are full of ice-water and mine are boiling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-bronte/how-cruel-your-veins-are-full-of-ice-water-and-mine-are-boiling/) [Emily Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-bronte/) > [There is no kindness more cruel than the kindness which consigns another person to their sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/there-is-no-kindness-more-cruel-than-the-kindness-which-consigns/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [Vanity can create a very cruel space for you if you don't know how to manage it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/vanity-can-create-a-very-cruel-space-for-you-if-you-don-t-know-how-to/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) > [Life is cruel and we do terrible things to each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-pym/life-is-cruel-and-we-do-terrible-things-to-each-other/) [Barbara Pym](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-pym/) > [What people loathe the most is to be orphaned, desolate, unworthy. But this is what princes and kings call themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/what-people-loathe-the-most-is-to-be-orphaned-desolate-unworthy-but/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) Browse all 1,069 Cruel quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I am cruel and I am selfish, but this need I have inside me, this need for you and no other, is stronger than anything else I've ever encountered. I doubt two years of lockup would dull it in the slightest.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gena Showalter" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-need-i-have-inside-me-this-need/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cruel" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-need-i-have-inside-me-this-need/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/gena-showalter-541_cruel_i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-nee_233324.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/gena-showalter-541_cruel_i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-nee_233324.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/gena-showalter-541_cruel_i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-nee_233324.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I am cruel and I am selfish, but this need I have inside me, this need for you and no other, is stronger…” — Gena Showalter", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Gena Showalter", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I am cruel and I am...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-need-i-have-inside-me-this-need/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/i-am-cruel-and-i-am-selfish-but-this-need-i-have-inside-me-this-need/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```