--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He knew from long experience that a…" description: "\"“He knew from long experience that a letter sent in fury merely put a weapon into the hands of your enemy. Poison, in preserved form, to be used agains..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/947/ian-mcewan-494_anger_he-knew-from-long-experience-that-a-lett_752785.png" --- # He knew from long experience that a letter sent in fury… ![“He knew from long experience that a letter sent in fury merely put a weapon into the hands of your enemy. Poison, in preserved form, to be used against you long into the future.” quote by Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/947/ian-mcewan-494_anger_he-knew-from-long-experience-that-a-lett_752785.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/947/ian-mcewan-494_anger_he-knew-from-long-experience-that-a-lett_752785.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/947/ian-mcewan-494_anger_he-knew-from-long-experience-that-a-lett_752785.png) > ““He knew from long experience that a letter sent in fury merely put a weapon into the hands of your enemy. Poison, in preserved form, to be used against you long into the future.”” [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Sending angry letters gives enemies a tool; preserved anger can harm you later. **In simple terms:** Anger fuels future conflict. Key Takeaway Think before you write. Themes communication anger conflict Mood cautious thoughtful Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - personal disputes - professional emails Key Concepts psychology literature Questions to Reflect On - How can we express anger constructively? - What alternatives to angry letters exist? A Different Perspective It may overstate letter impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) [Poison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poison/) ## Related quotes > [“He knew from long experience that a letter sent in fury merely put a weapon into the hands of your enemy”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/he-knew-from-long-experience-that-a-letter-sent-in-fury-merely-put-a-2/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Merry hearts are vulnerable to death, don't be over-joyed to the state of oblivion, lest the enemy poison your meal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/merry-hearts-are-vulnerable-to-death-don-t-be-over-joyed-to-the-state/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [Revolutionary war is an antitoxin which not only eliminates the enemy's poison but also purges us of our own filth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/revolutionary-war-is-an-antitoxin-which-not-only-eliminates-the-enemy/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [One of the things that gave me most pleasure was a letter sent to me by Sebastian Vettel, written in his own hand, full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niki-lauda/one-of-the-things-that-gave-me-most-pleasure-was-a-letter-sent-to-me/) [Niki Lauda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niki-lauda/) > [“We ought not to READ the scriptures, but listen to them, for our Beloved is present and speaks to us through them. (vs. it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/basil-pennington/we-ought-not-to-read-the-scriptures-but-listen-to-them-for-our/) [Basil Pennington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/basil-pennington/) > [It took us most of the morning to put together the letter she sent to the Frontier Management Department, and I learned a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-c-wrede/it-took-us-most-of-the-morning-to-put-together-the-letter-she-sent-to/) [Patricia C. Wrede](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-c-wrede/) > [“I think you overestimate the maturity of adults, he wrote me in his final letter, a letter he sent only after I’d broken down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/i-think-you-overestimate-the-maturity-of-adults-he-wrote-me-in-his/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“Dear Sixpence, I saved them all, you know. Every letter you ever sent, even those to which I never replied. I’m sorry for so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-maclean/dear-sixpence-i-saved-them-all-you-know-every-letter-you-ever-sent/) [Sarah MacLean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-maclean/) > [“What do you call a letter sent up the chimney on Christmas Eve? A: Black mail!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uncle-amon/what-do-you-call-a-letter-sent-up-the-chimney-on-christmas-eve-a/) [Uncle Amon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uncle-amon/) > [ I reached out to \[Brett Favre\] early on; sent him some of my books and a letter. Then I had two or three arranged… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-pearlman/i-reached-out-to-brett-favre-early-on-sent-him-some-of-my-books-and-a/) [Jeff Pearlman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-pearlman/) > [In time, the hurt began to fade and it was easier to just let it go. At least I thought it was. But in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/in-time-the-hurt-began-to-fade-and-it-was-easier-to-just-let-it-go-at/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [It is the letter not sent that is often the most valuable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prince-khetran/it-is-the-letter-not-sent-that-is-often-the-most-valuable/) [Prince Khetran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prince-khetran/) > [Never allow sick attitudes to poison your thinking, nor let ill will make you ill. Avoid making your mind sore by that painful rehurting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/never-allow-sick-attitudes-to-poison-your-thinking-nor-let-ill-will/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [“the voice seems honey to ears but ; the felling turn to poison heart...!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-a-samuel/the-voice-seems-honey-to-ears-but-the-felling-turn-to-poison-heart/) [felix a samuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-a-samuel/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) ## More by Ian McEwan > [“As you will see, we do not believe that artists have an obligation to strike up attitudes to the war. Indeed, they are wise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/as-you-will-see-we-do-not-believe-that-artists-have-an-obligation-to/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [You could say that all novels are spy novels and all novelists are spy masters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/you-could-say-that-all-novels-are-spy-novels-and-all-novelists-are/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I've never had a moment's doubt. I love you. I believe in you completely. You are my dearest one. My reason for life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-ve-never-had-a-moment-s-doubt-i-love-you-i-believe-in-you/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“It is shaming sometimes, how the body will not, or cannot, lie about emotions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/it-is-shaming-sometimes-how-the-body-will-not-or-cannot-lie-about/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“While my friends struggled and calculated, I reached a solution by a set of floating steps that were partly visual, partly just a feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/while-my-friends-struggled-and-calculated-i-reached-a-solution-by-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Once, on a walk by a river- Eskdale in low reddish sunlight, with a dusting of snow- his daughter quoted to him an opening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/once-on-a-walk-by-a-river-eskdale-in-low-reddish-sunlight-with-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Perhaps it's one of those cases of a microcosm giving you the whole world. Like a spode dinner plate. Or a single cell. Or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/perhaps-it-s-one-of-those-cases-of-a-microcosm-giving-you-the-whole/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [Who you get, and how it works out- there's so much luck involved, as well as the million branching consequences of your conscious choice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/who-you-get-and-how-it-works-out-there-s-so-much-luck-involved-as/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“On Chesil Beach he could have called out to Florence, he could have gone after her. He did not know, or would not have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/on-chesil-beach-he-could-have-called-out-to-florence-he-could-have/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [It was always the view of my parents...that hot weather encouraged loose morals among young people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/it-was-always-the-view-of-my-parents-that-hot-weather-encouraged/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I apologize for being obvious, but every time I watch the curtain come down on even a halfway decent production of a Shakespeare play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-apologize-for-being-obvious-but-every-time-i-watch-the-curtain-come/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I would rather be physically disabled obviously than mentally. I would rather be paraplegic than nuts. And it is a terrifying prospect and actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-would-rather-be-physically-disabled-obviously-than-mentally-i-would/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Words, as I'm beginning to appreciate, can make things true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/words-as-i-m-beginning-to-appreciate-can-make-things-true/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I couldn't think about novels at all. It seemed the only writing that was appropriate to that horrendous event was journalism, reportage. And, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-couldn-t-think-about-novels-at-all-it-seemed-the-only-writing-that/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I did not kill my father, but I sometimes felt I had helped him on his way. And but for the fact that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-did-not-kill-my-father-but-i-sometimes-felt-i-had-helped-him-on-his/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) [Explore all 496 Ian McEwan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## More Anger quotes > [“If I let myself think of it the pain and anger were still fresh, adrenalin racing down my limbs to pool, hot and itchy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kylie-ladd/if-i-let-myself-think-of-it-the-pain-and-anger-were-still-fresh/) [Kylie Ladd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kylie-ladd/) > [I receive something we might euphemistically call an 'inappropriately hostile' response - that is to say, more than fair criticism or even fair anger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beard/i-receive-something-we-might-euphemistically-call-an-inappropriately/) [Mary Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beard/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Anger is a rough water; if you can canalize it into a water mill, you can benefit from it. Anything bad can be transformed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/anger-is-a-rough-water-if-you-can-canalize-it-into-a-water-mill-you/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [“When you feel terribly angry, you're possessed by anger ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/when-you-feel-terribly-angry-you-re-possessed-by-anger-ghost/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [“Medical studies have shown that cursing reduces levels of stress and pain. Repressing your anger is not healthy. It's much better to verbalize it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/medical-studies-have-shown-that-cursing-reduces-levels-of-stress-and/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [My care will be in the heart n not in words My anger will be in Words n not in the Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/my-care-will-be-in-the-heart-n-not-in-words-my-anger-will-be-in-words/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“God, you had enough time to have been through it three times. You've been through my stuff. I bet you over and let one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/god-you-had-enough-time-to-have-been-through-it-three-times-you-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The present contains nothing more than the past, and what is found in the effect was already in the cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-bergson/the-present-contains-nothing-more-than-the-past-and-what-is-found-in/) [Henri Bergson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-bergson/) > [Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/depression-is-merely-anger-without-enthusiasm/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [I always fight better when my opponent's angry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-haye/i-always-fight-better-when-my-opponent-s-angry/) [David Haye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-haye/) > [ “Where there are kashays (anger-pride-deceit-greed), there is worldly life. As long as anger-pride-deceit-greed exist; one is a sansaari \[living a worldly life\] regardless of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/where-there-are-kashays-anger-pride-deceit-greed-there-is-worldly/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) [Browse all 7,469 Anger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He knew from long experience that a letter sent in fury merely put a weapon into the hands of your enemy. 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