--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The anticipation and dread he felt at…" description: "\"The anticipation and dread he felt at seeing her was also a kind of sensual pleasure, and surrounding it, like an embrace, was a general elation--it mi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d4/ian-mcewan-494_anticipation_the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-se_1299595.png" --- # The anticipation and dread he felt at seeing her was also… ![“The anticipation and dread he felt at seeing her was also a kind of sensual pleasure, and surrounding it, like an embrace, was a general elation--it might hurt, it was horribly inconvenient, no good might come of it, but he had found out for himself what it was to be in love, and it thrilled him.” quote by Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d4/ian-mcewan-494_anticipation_the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-se_1299595.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d4/ian-mcewan-494_anticipation_the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-se_1299595.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d4/ian-mcewan-494_anticipation_the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-se_1299595.png) > “The anticipation and dread he felt at seeing her was also a kind of sensual pleasure, and surrounding it, like an embrace, was a general elation--it might hurt, it was horribly inconvenient, no good might come of it, but he had found out for himself what it was to be in love, and it thrilled him.” [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. He describes love as a mix of excitement and anxiety, a painful yet exhilarating experience that reveals deep personal insight. **In simple terms:** Love is thrilling but also painful. Key Takeaway Embrace love’s complexities to grow personally. Themes love desire emotion Mood intense reflective Type literary emotional When to use this quote - romantic relationships - self‑reflection - creative writing Key Concepts sensual pleasure inner conflict personal discovery Questions to Reflect On - How does anxiety shape our experience of love? - Can love’s pain be a catalyst for personal growth? A Different Perspective Love can also cause lasting hurt and disappointment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Elation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elation/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Pleasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pleasure/) [Sensual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sensual/) [Sensual pleasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sensual-pleasure/) ## Related quotes > [“Najia can feel yts subdermal activators against her forearm. Not man not woman not both not neither. Nute. Another way of being human, speaking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcdonald/najia-can-feel-yts-subdermal-activators-against-her-forearm-not-man/) [Ian McDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcdonald/) > [“He had some sense that his plans had been overturned, that Laurent knew exactly what he was doing. The touch resembled the first brush…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-pacat/he-had-some-sense-that-his-plans-had-been-overturned-that-laurent/) [C.S. Pacat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-pacat/) > [Real love is the love that sometimes arises after sensual pleasure: if it does, it is immortal; the other kind inevitably goes stale, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giacomo-casanova/real-love-is-the-love-that-sometimes-arises-after-sensual-pleasure-if/) [Giacomo Casanova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giacomo-casanova/) > [We are determined not to take as the aim of our life fame, profit, wealth, or sensual pleasure, nor to accumulate wealth while millions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/we-are-determined-not-to-take-as-the-aim-of-our-life-fame-profit/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [The moral virtues, without religion are but cold, lifeless, and insipid; it is only religion which opens the mind to great conceptions, fills it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-moral-virtues-without-religion-are-but-cold-lifeless-and-insipid/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [When the cup of any sensual pleasure is drained to the bottom, there is always poison in the dregs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-porter/when-the-cup-of-any-sensual-pleasure-is-drained-to-the-bottom-there/) [Jane Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-porter/) > [What is called a high standard of living consists, in considerable measure, in arrangements for avoiding muscular energy, for increasing sensual pleasure and enhancing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/what-is-called-a-high-standard-of-living-consists-in-considerable/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [Men who could willingly resign the luxuries and sensual pleasures of a large fortune cannot consent to live without the grandeur and the homage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/men-who-could-willingly-resign-the-luxuries-and-sensual-pleasures-of/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Melancholy is a sensual pleasure that is deliberately provoked. How many people shut themselves away to make themselves sadder, or to weep beside a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/melancholy-is-a-sensual-pleasure-that-is-deliberately-provoked-how/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [In politics continental Europe was infantile - horrifying. What America lacked, for all its political stability, was the capacity to enjoy intellectual pleasures as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/in-politics-continental-europe-was-infantile-horrifying-what-america/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“—that exquisite sensual pleasure of collectors, who are a tactile species—”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-rodenbach/that-exquisite-sensual-pleasure-of-collectors-who-are-a-tactile/) [Georges Rodenbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-rodenbach/) > [At the movies, we are gradually being conditioned to accept violence as a sensual pleasure. The directors used to say they were showing us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pauline-kael/at-the-movies-we-are-gradually-being-conditioned-to-accept-violence/) [Pauline Kael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pauline-kael/) > [All history attests that man has subjected woman to his will, used her as a means to promote his selfish gratification, to minister to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-moore-grimke/all-history-attests-that-man-has-subjected-woman-to-his-will-used-her/) [Sarah Moore Grimke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-moore-grimke/) > [Did I feel a physical desire for him? I did. Was I moved by a passion of my body? I was. Have I experienced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/did-i-feel-a-physical-desire-for-him-i-did-was-i-moved-by-a-passion/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [I remember when my mother taught me about my menstrual cycle and pregnancy. She, like millions of other mothers before and since, did not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiane-northrup/i-remember-when-my-mother-taught-me-about-my-menstrual-cycle-and/) [Christiane Northrup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiane-northrup/) ## 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 Anticipation quotes > [There is something to be said though when you have 4 or 5 guys playing with no net, there is a sense of urgency,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-mendoza/there-is-something-to-be-said-though-when-you-have-4-or-5-guys/) [Marco Mendoza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-mendoza/) > [Long intros are cool because there's a little bit of anticipation, you know?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-lambert/long-intros-are-cool-because-there-s-a-little-bit-of-anticipation-you/) [Miranda Lambert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-lambert/) > [Playing shortstop is 75 to 80 percent anticipation, knowing the hitter and the pitch being thrown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-boudreau/playing-shortstop-is-75-to-80-percent-anticipation-knowing-the-hitter/) [Lou Boudreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-boudreau/) > [Marriages are always moving from one season to another. Sometimes we find ourselves in winter--discouraged, detached, and dissatisfied; other times we experience springtime, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-chapman/marriages-are-always-moving-from-one-season-to-another-sometimes-we/) [Gary Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-chapman/) > [“O I'm so afraid that it's true about to travel hopefully being better than to arrive. It might be all in the quest, all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brigid-brophy/o-i-m-so-afraid-that-it-s-true-about-to-travel-hopefully-being-better/) [Brigid Brophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brigid-brophy/) > [“If you come at four in the afternoon, I'll begin to be happy by three.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/if-you-come-at-four-in-the-afternoon-i-ll-begin-to-be-happy-by-three/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [Science is not a system of certain, or -established, statements; nor is it a system which steadily advances towards a state of finality... And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/science-is-not-a-system-of-certain-or-established-statements-nor-is/) [Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/) > [\[It is hard to know what is good luck and what isn't and therefore whether we should be happy or sad about it. Only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zelig-pliskin/it-is-hard-to-know-what-is-good-luck-and-what-isn-t-and-therefore/) [Zelig Pliskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zelig-pliskin/) > [The so called unconscious inferences can be traced back to the all-preserving memory, which presents us with parallel experiences and hence already knows the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-so-called-unconscious-inferences-can-be-traced-back-to-the-all/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [ The only thing is that ordinarily when I do dance with \[women\] they think I am suddenly going to throw them over a table… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-kelly/the-only-thing-is-that-ordinarily-when-i-do-dance-with-women-they/) [Gene Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-kelly/) > [Many live in dread of what is coming. Why should we? The unknown puts adventure into life. ... The unexpected around the corner gives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/many-live-in-dread-of-what-is-coming-why-should-we-the-unknown-puts/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [The pilot who is always dreading a rock or a tempest must not complain if he remain a poor fisherman. We must at times…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pietro-metastasio/the-pilot-who-is-always-dreading-a-rock-or-a-tempest-must-not/) [Pietro Metastasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pietro-metastasio/) > [I am honoured to be asked to take on this role, especially as it comes at such an integral time for our relationship with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-boateng/i-am-honoured-to-be-asked-to-take-on-this-role-especially-as-it-comes/) Paul Boateng > [“I can handle Evil, but I cannot handle Anticipation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabbo-de-la-parra/i-can-handle-evil-but-i-cannot-handle-anticipation/) [Gabbo De La Parra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabbo-de-la-parra/) > [Hope is itself a species of happiness...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/hope-is-itself-a-species-of-happiness/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) Browse all 758 Anticipation quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The anticipation and dread he felt at seeing her was also a kind of sensual pleasure, and surrounding it, like an embrace, was a general elation--it might hurt, it was horribly inconvenient, no good might come of it, but he had found out for himself what it was to be in love, and it thrilled him.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ian Mcewan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-seeing-her-was-also-a-kind-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Anticipation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-seeing-her-was-also-a-kind-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d4/ian-mcewan-494_anticipation_the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-se_1299595.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d4/ian-mcewan-494_anticipation_the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-se_1299595.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d4/ian-mcewan-494_anticipation_the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-se_1299595.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The anticipation and dread he felt at seeing her was also a kind of sensual pleasure, and surrounding it…” — Ian Mcewan", "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": "Ian Mcewan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The anticipation and dread he felt...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-seeing-her-was-also-a-kind-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/the-anticipation-and-dread-he-felt-at-seeing-her-was-also-a-kind-of/#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 } } ] } ```