--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Yet, for my part, I was never unusually…" description: "\"Yet, for my part, I was never unusually squeamish; I could sometimes eat a fried rat with a good relish, if it were necessary.\" — Henry David Thoreau" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/henry-david-thoreau-20_appetite_yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-sq_1856190.jpg" --- # Yet, for my part, I was never unusually squeamish; I could… ![“Yet, for my part, I was never unusually squeamish; I could sometimes eat a fried rat with a good relish, if it were necessary.” quote by Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/henry-david-thoreau-20_appetite_yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-sq_1856190.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/henry-david-thoreau-20_appetite_yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-sq_1856190.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/henry-david-thoreau-20_appetite_yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-sq_1856190.jpg) > “Yet, for my part, I was never unusually squeamish; I could sometimes eat a fried rat with a good relish, if it were necessary.” [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He expresses willingness to endure extreme acts for necessity. **In simple terms:** He’d do anything if needed. Key Takeaway Be prepared for any challenge. Themes resilience adaptability determination Mood reflective serious Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - outdoor survival - ethical dilemmas - personal limits Key Concepts survival philosophy Questions to Reflect On - When is it justified to break norms? - What limits should you set? A Different Perspective Extreme actions may conflict with moral values. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Appetite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appetite/) [Eating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eating/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) ## Related quotes > [Everything has a purpose and everything is good. So relish every moment because they are all GOOD.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everything-has-a-purpose-and-everything-is-good-so-relish-every/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“A rat is neither good nor evil. It just does what a rat is suppose to do. From Phantom”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-nesbo/a-rat-is-neither-good-nor-evil-it-just-does-what-a-rat-is-suppose-to/) [Jo Nesbo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-nesbo/) > [A rat is neither good nor evil. It does what a rat has to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-rat-is-neither-good-nor-evil-it-does-what-a-rat-has-to-do/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Why is not a rat as good as a rabbit? Why should men eat shrimps and neglect cockroaches?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/why-is-not-a-rat-as-good-as-a-rabbit-why-should-men-eat-shrimps-and/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [If a rat is a good model for your emotional life, you're in big trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-sapolsky/if-a-rat-is-a-good-model-for-your-emotional-life-you-re-in-big-trouble/) [Robert M. Sapolsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-sapolsky/) > [What a healthy out-of-door appetite it takes to relish the apple of life, the apple of the world, then!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/what-a-healthy-out-of-door-appetite-it-takes-to-relish-the-apple-of/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I hate the present modes of living and getting a living. Farming and shopkeeping and working at a trade or profession are all odious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-hate-the-present-modes-of-living-and-getting-a-living-farming-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Boom Bang a Bang was a huge part of me, maybe a part that I didnt relish, and there might be psychological reasons for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lulu/boom-bang-a-bang-was-a-huge-part-of-me-maybe-a-part-that-i-didnt/) [Lulu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lulu/) > [I love working fast. I don't relish the director who wants to do 25 to 30 takes, or the actors who insist on doing 25 or 30 takes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-molina/i-love-working-fast-i-don-t-relish-the-director-who-wants-to-do-25-to/) [Alfred Molina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-molina/) > [You gotta school these young macks comin' up today... I mean to be 'frank', they just hot dogs, The girls are relish, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-daddy-kane/you-gotta-school-these-young-macks-comin-up-today-i-mean-to-be-frank/) [Big Daddy Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-daddy-kane/) > [We can carry the burden of hurt throughout our lives. We can make the hurt that we have experienced the defining aspect of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/we-can-carry-the-burden-of-hurt-throughout-our-lives-we-can-make-the/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [We may outgrow the things of children, without acquiring sense and relish for those which become a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lancaster-spalding/we-may-outgrow-the-things-of-children-without-acquiring-sense-and/) [John Lancaster Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lancaster-spalding/) > [Just to be told 'you're in a leadership role' - I'd relish whatever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-ramsdale/just-to-be-told-you-re-in-a-leadership-role-i-d-relish-whatever/) [Aaron Ramsdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-ramsdale/) > [I write what I like to read, and I enjoy love triangles in YA and adult fiction - not to mention in other media…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kresley-cole/i-write-what-i-like-to-read-and-i-enjoy-love-triangles-in-ya-and/) [Kresley Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kresley-cole/) > [I relish the time I have when there are no interruptions. Most often the best time for writing is late at night.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franny-armstrong/i-relish-the-time-i-have-when-there-are-no-interruptions-most-often/) [Franny Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franny-armstrong/) ## More by Henry David Thoreau > [If ever I did a man any goodof course it was something exceptional and insignificant compared with the good or evil which I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/if-ever-i-did-a-man-any-goodof-course-it-was-something-exceptional/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“Men say they know many things; But lo! they have taken wings, — The arts and sciences, And a thousand appliances; The wind that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/men-say-they-know-many-things-but-lo-they-have-taken-wings-the-arts/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I am not afraid of praise, for I have practiced it on myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-am-not-afraid-of-praise-for-i-have-practiced-it-on-myself/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“All voting is a sort of gaming, like checkers or back gammon, with a slight moral tinge to it, a playing with right and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/all-voting-is-a-sort-of-gaming-like-checkers-or-back-gammon-with-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“This spending of the best part of one's life earning money in order to enjoy a questionable liberty during the least valuable part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/this-spending-of-the-best-part-of-one-s-life-earning-money-in-order/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [As for doing good; that is one of the professions which is full. Moreover I have tried it fairly and, strange as it may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-for-doing-good-that-is-one-of-the-professions-which-is-full/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [A traveler who looks at things with an impartial eye may see what the oldest inhabitant has not observed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-traveler-who-looks-at-things-with-an-impartial-eye-may-see-what-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [In proportion as our inward life fails, we go more constantly and desperately to the post office. You may depend on it, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/in-proportion-as-our-inward-life-fails-we-go-more-constantly-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I had three chairs in my house; one for solitude, two for friendship, three for society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-had-three-chairs-in-my-house-one-for-solitude-two-for-friendship/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The still youthful energies of the globe have only to be directed in their proper channel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-still-youthful-energies-of-the-globe-have-only-to-be-directed-in/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Concord's little arch does not span all our fate, nor is what transpires under it law for the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/concord-s-little-arch-does-not-span-all-our-fate-nor-is-what/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The lumberers rarely trouble themselves to put out their fires, such is the dampness of the primitive forest; and this is one cause, no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-lumberers-rarely-trouble-themselves-to-put-out-their-fires-such/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“When he has obtained those things which are necessary to life, there is another alternative than to obtain the superfluities; and that is, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/when-he-has-obtained-those-things-which-are-necessary-to-life-there/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Wealth is measured by the level of experience in all aspects of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/wealth-is-measured-by-the-level-of-experience-in-all-aspects-of-life/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Explore all 3,376 Henry David Thoreau quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## More Appetite quotes > [I could not limit my values and pursuits to what makes others comfortable. Being possessed by a promise I live without options. I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/i-could-not-limit-my-values-and-pursuits-to-what-makes-others/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [the appetite for thinking must be regulated, as all sensible people know, for it may stifle one's life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/the-appetite-for-thinking-must-be-regulated-as-all-sensible-people/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [“if you cannot control your hunger and appetite, good luck managing your blood chemistry, metabolism, waistline, and, in the bigger picture, the prospect of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-perlmutter/if-you-cannot-control-your-hunger-and-appetite-good-luck-managing/) [David Perlmutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-perlmutter/) > [I don't think I've ever bench-pressed anything in my life. Until about two years ago I swam a mile almost every day. Then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-antosca/i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-bench-pressed-anything-in-my-life-until-about/) [Nick Antosca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-antosca/) > [If I had been an Italian I am sure that I should have been whole-heartedly with you from the start to finish in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/if-i-had-been-an-italian-i-am-sure-that-i-should-have-been-whole/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [It could be my British need for discipline that makes me admire the American appetite for freedom and passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-winwood/it-could-be-my-british-need-for-discipline-that-makes-me-admire-the/) [Steve Winwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-winwood/) > [My curiosity and my appetite for evolving as an actor is one of the main components of me still working today in the business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-cattrall/my-curiosity-and-my-appetite-for-evolving-as-an-actor-is-one-of-the/) [Kim Cattrall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-cattrall/) > [I have a strong appetite and its not for food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-have-a-strong-appetite-and-its-not-for-food/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The plain fact is that education is itself a form of propaganda - a deliberate scheme to outfit the pupil, not with the capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-plain-fact-is-that-education-is-itself-a-form-of-propaganda-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You should also eat eggs. Not “one egg per week” or some such non-physiologic restriction. Eat what your body tells you to eat, since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-davis/you-should-also-eat-eggs-not-one-egg-per-week-or-some-such-non/) [William Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-davis/) > [If your desires are not great, a little will seem much to you; for small appetite makes poverty equivalent to wealth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/democritus/if-your-desires-are-not-great-a-little-will-seem-much-to-you-for/) [Democritus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/democritus/) > [When passions and appetites are stronger than the intellect, men are savages; when the intellect governs the passions, when the passions are servants, men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/when-passions-and-appetites-are-stronger-than-the-intellect-men-are/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [A pivotal spiritual attribute is that of self-mastery-th e strength to place reason over appetite. Self-mastery builds a strong conscience. And your conscience determines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-m-nelson/a-pivotal-spiritual-attribute-is-that-of-self-mastery-th-e-strength/) [Russell M. Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-m-nelson/) > [The commonest and cheapest sounds, as the barking of a dog, produce the same effect on fresh and healthy ears that the rarest music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-commonest-and-cheapest-sounds-as-the-barking-of-a-dog-produce-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Browse all 994 Appetite quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appetite/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Yet, for my part, I was never unusually squeamish; I could sometimes eat a fried rat with a good relish, if it were necessary.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henry David Thoreau" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-squeamish-i-could-sometimes-eat/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Appetite" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-squeamish-i-could-sometimes-eat/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/henry-david-thoreau-20_appetite_yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-sq_1856190.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/henry-david-thoreau-20_appetite_yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-sq_1856190.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/henry-david-thoreau-20_appetite_yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-sq_1856190.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Yet, for my part, I was never unusually squeamish; I could sometimes eat a fried rat with a good relish, if…” — Henry David Thoreau", "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": "Henry David Thoreau", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Yet, for my part, I was...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-squeamish-i-could-sometimes-eat/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/yet-for-my-part-i-was-never-unusually-squeamish-i-could-sometimes-eat/#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 } } ] } ```