--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That was the way with Casaubon's hard…" description: "\"“That was the way with Casaubon's hard intellectual labours. Their most characteristic result was not the 'Key to all Mythologies', but a morbid consci..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e0/george-eliot-84_intellect_that-was-the-way-with-casaubon-s-hard-in_1684406.png" --- # That was the way with Casaubon's hard intellectual… ![“That was the way with Casaubon's hard intellectual labours. Their most characteristic result was not the 'Key to all Mythologies', but a morbid consciousness that others did not give him the place which he had not demonstrably merited - a perpetual suspicious conjecture that the views entertained…” quote by George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e0/george-eliot-84_intellect_that-was-the-way-with-casaubon-s-hard-in_1684406.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e0/george-eliot-84_intellect_that-was-the-way-with-casaubon-s-hard-in_1684406.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9e0/george-eliot-84_intellect_that-was-the-way-with-casaubon-s-hard-in_1684406.png) > ““That was the way with Casaubon's hard intellectual labours. Their most characteristic result was not the 'Key to all Mythologies', but a morbid consciousness that others did not give him the place which he had not demonstrably merited - a perpetual suspicious conjecture that the views entertained of him were not to his advantage - a melancholy absence of passion in his efforts at achievement, and a passionate resistance to the confession that he had achieved nothing. Thus his intellectual ambition which seemed to others to have absorbed and dried him, was really no security against wounds”” [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intellectual striving can become self‑sabotaging when driven by insecurity, leading to doubt and lack of fulfillment despite apparent ambition. **In simple terms:** Ambition can mask deep insecurity. Key Takeaway Recognize and address self‑doubt. Themes ambition insecurity intellectualism melancholy self‑sabotage Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - academic pursuits - creative projects - career development - personal growth Key Concepts self‑worth perfectionism psychological conflict Questions to Reflect On - What fuels your hidden doubts? - How can you balance confidence with humility? A Different Perspective The described mindset may hinder genuine achievement. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Achieved Intellectual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/achieved-intellectual-989483/) [Casaubon Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/casaubon-hard-989485/) [Hard Intellectual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-intellectual-989482/) [Intellect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellect/) [Intellectual Ambition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellectual-ambition-989484/) [Mythologies Morbid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mythologies-morbid-989481/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Validation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/validation/) ## Related quotes > [Wisdom is corrupted by ambition, even when the quality of the ambition is intellectual. For ambition, even of this quality, is but a form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-taylor/wisdom-is-corrupted-by-ambition-even-when-the-quality-of-the-ambition/) [Henry Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-taylor/) > [“The Nice Guy is not a nice guy, he's not kind, respectful or honest. He's a chameleon. He's a wolf in sheep's clothing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/traver-boehm/the-nice-guy-is-not-a-nice-guy-he-s-not-kind-respectful-or-honest-he/) [Traver Boehm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/traver-boehm/) > [The Talker needs attention. The Talker needs validation. The Talker would rather talk about an idea than confront the complexities, its obstacles. The Talker…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-heffron/the-talker-needs-attention-the-talker-needs-validation-the-talker/) [Jack Heffron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-heffron/) > [For me, awards are a validation of my work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neha-bhasin/for-me-awards-are-a-validation-of-my-work/) [Neha Bhasin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neha-bhasin/) > [Those who have not found their true wealth, which is the radiant joy of Being and the deep, unshakable peace that comes with it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/those-who-have-not-found-their-true-wealth-which-is-the-radiant-joy/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [I entered a songwriting competition, I didn't win, and one of the judges on the panel was an A&R man at a record label…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lana-del-rey/i-entered-a-songwriting-competition-i-didn-t-win-and-one-of-the/) [Lana Del Rey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lana-del-rey/) > [I don't need validation from people at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herm-edwards/i-don-t-need-validation-from-people-at-all/) [Herm Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herm-edwards/) > [When I was 13, I told Henry Winkler I wanted to act. 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Yes, it's important…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-robinson/what-i-need-to-do-is-have-a-great-positive-attitude-and-a-great-work/) [David Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-robinson/) > [“You'll have less heartaches and disappointments if you stop seeking from others the things ONLY God and you can give yourself!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yvonne-pierre/you-ll-have-less-heartaches-and-disappointments-if-you-stop-seeking/) [Yvonne Pierre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yvonne-pierre/) > [Copying is a form of self-validation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cox/copying-is-a-form-of-self-validation/) [Patrick Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cox/) > [“Validation is for parking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/validation-is-for-parking/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Seeking external validation brings disappointment. Validate yourself from within to find true happiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-leigh-mercree/seeking-external-validation-brings-disappointment-validate-yourself/) [Amy Leigh Mercree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-leigh-mercree/) ## More by George Eliot > [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [But the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/but-the-effect-of-her-being-on-those-around-her-was-incalculably/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [Scepticismcan never be thoroughly applied, else life would come to a standstill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/scepticismcan-never-be-thoroughly-applied-else-life-would-come-to-a/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [Under every guilty secret there is hidden a brood of guilty wishes, whose unwholesome infecting life is cherished by the darkness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/under-every-guilty-secret-there-is-hidden-a-brood-of-guilty-wishes/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [The most powerful movement of feeling with a liturgy is the prayer which seeks for nothing special, but is a yearning to escape from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/the-most-powerful-movement-of-feeling-with-a-liturgy-is-the-prayer/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [ “\[W\]e must learn to accommodate ourselves to the discovery that some of those cunningly-fashioned instruments called human souls have only a very limited range… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/w-e-must-learn-to-accommodate-ourselves-to-the-discovery-that-some-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“Mr. Casaubon had never had a strong bodily frame, and his soul was sensitive without being enthusiastic: it was too languid to thrill out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/mr-casaubon-had-never-had-a-strong-bodily-frame-and-his-soul-was/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“... she took her husband's jokes and joviality as patiently as everything else, considering that "men would be so", and viewing the stronger sex…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/she-took-her-husband-s-jokes-and-joviality-as-patiently-as-everything/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [What is opportunity to the man who can't use it? An unfecundated egg, which the waves of time wash away into nonentity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/what-is-opportunity-to-the-man-who-can-t-use-it-an-unfecundated-egg/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [And, of course men know best about everything, except what women know better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/and-of-course-men-know-best-about-everything-except-what-women-know/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“But let the wise be warned against too great readiness at explanation: it multiplies the sources of mistake, lengthening the sum for reckoners sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/but-let-the-wise-be-warned-against-too-great-readiness-at-explanation/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“But any one watching keenly the stealthy convergence of human lots, sees a slow preparation of effects from one life on another, which tells…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/but-any-one-watching-keenly-the-stealthy-convergence-of-human-lots/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [Perspective, as its inventor remarked, is a beautiful thing. 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