--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm sorry I was awful. I'm so full of…" description: "\"“I'm sorry I was awful. I'm so full of terrors.”\" — Iris Murdoch" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/595/iris-murdoch-993_apology_i-m-sorry-i-was-awful-i-m-so-full-of-ter_156973.png" --- # I'm sorry I was awful. I'm so full of terrors. ![“I'm sorry I was awful. I'm so full of terrors.” quote by Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/595/iris-murdoch-993_apology_i-m-sorry-i-was-awful-i-m-so-full-of-ter_156973.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/595/iris-murdoch-993_apology_i-m-sorry-i-was-awful-i-m-so-full-of-ter_156973.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/595/iris-murdoch-993_apology_i-m-sorry-i-was-awful-i-m-so-full-of-ter_156973.png) > ““I'm sorry I was awful. I'm so full of terrors.”” [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A confession of personal failure and overwhelming fear, acknowledging deep inner turmoil. **In simple terms:** Admitting personal failure and fear. Key Takeaway Recognize and confront your flaws. Themes self-awareness vulnerability growth Mood reflective somber Type confessional introspective When to use this quote - personal reflection - therapy - conflict resolution Key Concepts psychology emotional honesty Questions to Reflect On - What fears are you avoiding? - How can honesty with yourself lead to change? A Different Perspective Self‑recognition may not instantly change behavior. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apology/) [Awful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awful/) [Awful Terrors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awful-terrors-1731727/) [Iris-murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iris-murdoch/) [Sorry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sorry/) [Sorry Awful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sorry-awful-1731728/) [Terrors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrors/) [Torment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/torment/) ## Related quotes > [“I’m sorry, I’m awful, I’ve just felt so terribly destructive all week. It’s awful. I’m horrible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-m-sorry-i-m-awful-i-ve-just-felt-so-terribly-destructive-all-week/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“I am looking out of my window in an anxious and resentful state of mind, oblivious to my surroundings, brooding perhaps on some damage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-am-looking-out-of-my-window-in-an-anxious-and-resentful-state-of/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“Only stories and magic really endure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/only-stories-and-magic-really-endure/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“Only sometimes at night when I think that you live now and are somewhere, I shed tears.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/only-sometimes-at-night-when-i-think-that-you-live-now-and-are/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“How could it be that I had actually kissed her cheek without enveloping her, without becoming her? How could I at that moment have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/how-could-it-be-that-i-had-actually-kissed-her-cheek-without/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“As I lay there, listening to the soft slap of the sea, and thinking these sad and strange thoughts, more and more and more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/as-i-lay-there-listening-to-the-soft-slap-of-the-sea-and-thinking/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“He said, 'Forgive me for being a liar and a fool and an utterly worthless man.' Louise replied, 'I love you.' He took her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/he-said-forgive-me-for-being-a-liar-and-a-fool-and-an-utterly/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“There were good times or goodish times, only the bad times were so—crucial.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/there-were-good-times-or-goodish-times-only-the-bad-times-were-so/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“God, how the young and beautiful vanish and are no more seen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/god-how-the-young-and-beautiful-vanish-and-are-no-more-seen/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“I know people can be awful dooms for each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-know-people-can-be-awful-dooms-for-each-other/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“It had occurred, it had happened , and could never in his life be unhappened, never removed, a huge deadly black scar lasting forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/it-had-occurred-it-had-happened-and-could-never-in-his-life-be/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“What was to change many lives happened, and happened very fast in the next moments.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/what-was-to-change-many-lives-happened-and-happened-very-fast-in-the/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“If at that moment Clement had caught sight of the dog and had managed to capture him, the fates of a number of people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/if-at-that-moment-clement-had-caught-sight-of-the-dog-and-had-managed/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“She had inhibited her sympathy, one genuine sympathetic impulse would have ruined her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/she-had-inhibited-her-sympathy-one-genuine-sympathetic-impulse-would/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“Oh if only I could take my mother away and never know of these things again. But it was impossible, the machine would go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/oh-if-only-i-could-take-my-mother-away-and-never-know-of-these-things/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) ## More by Iris Murdoch > [Falling out of love is chiefly a matter of forgetting how charming someone is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/falling-out-of-love-is-chiefly-a-matter-of-forgetting-how-charming/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [One doesn't have to get anywhere in a marriage. It's not a public conveyance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/one-doesn-t-have-to-get-anywhere-in-a-marriage-it-s-not-a-public/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“I think being a woman is like being Irish... Everyone says you're important and nice, but you take second place all the time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-think-being-a-woman-is-like-being-irish-everyone-says-you-re/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Art is the final cunning of the human soul which would rather do anything than face the gods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/art-is-the-final-cunning-of-the-human-soul-which-would-rather-do/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [The sending of a letter constitutes a magical grasp upon the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-sending-of-a-letter-constitutes-a-magical-grasp-upon-the-future/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [emotions really exist at the bottom of the personality or at the top. in the middle they are acted. this is why all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/emotions-really-exist-at-the-bottom-of-the-personality-or-at-the-top/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [I have used the word "attention," which I borrow from Simone Weil, to express the idea of a just and loving gaze directed upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-have-used-the-word-attention-which-i-borrow-from-simone-weil-to/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Starting a novel is opening a door on a misty landscape; you can still see very little but you can smell the earth and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/starting-a-novel-is-opening-a-door-on-a-misty-landscape-you-can-still/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Art and morality are, with certain provisos…one. Their essence is the same. The essence of both of them is love. Love is the perception…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/art-and-morality-are-with-certain-provisos-one-their-essence-is-the/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [being homosexual doesn't determine a man's whole character any more than being heterosexual does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/being-homosexual-doesn-t-determine-a-man-s-whole-character-any-more/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [All artists dream of a silence which they must enter, as some creatures return to the sea to spawn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/all-artists-dream-of-a-silence-which-they-must-enter-as-some/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“Oh if only I could take my mother away and never know of these things again. But it was impossible, the machine would go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/oh-if-only-i-could-take-my-mother-away-and-never-know-of-these-things/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [We defend ourselves by descriptions and tame the world by generalizing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/we-defend-ourselves-by-descriptions-and-tame-the-world-by-generalizing/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [I live, I live, with an absolutely continuous sense of failure. I am always defeated, always. Every book is the wreck of a perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-live-i-live-with-an-absolutely-continuous-sense-of-failure-i-am/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Love is the perception of individuals. Love is the extremely difficult realisation that something other than oneself is real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/love-is-the-perception-of-individuals-love-is-the-extremely-difficult/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) [Explore all 306 Iris Murdoch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) ## More Apology quotes > [The greatest act of courage is to be and to ownall of who you are—without apology, without excuses, without masks to cover the truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-ford/the-greatest-act-of-courage-is-to-be-and-to-ownall-of-who-you-are/) [Debbie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-ford/) > [Apologies are not pass/fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-pausch/apologies-are-not-pass-fail/) [Randy Pausch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-pausch/) > [“Why do we apologize for advocating for ourselves? Why do we apologize for taking up space that we are entitled to? Why do we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-tambascio/why-do-we-apologize-for-advocating-for-ourselves-why-do-we-apologize/) [Elizabeth Tambascio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-tambascio/) > [It's hard to say sorry when It's really your fault.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rakii-retondo/it-s-hard-to-say-sorry-when-it-s-really-your-fault/) [Rakii Retondo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rakii-retondo/) > [“A lady need never apologize. ~ Joseph de Bonaparte (Brother of Napoleon)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-pataki/a-lady-need-never-apologize-joseph-de-bonaparte-brother-of-napoleon/) [Allison Pataki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-pataki/) > [And apologies, once postponed, become harder and harder to make, and finally impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mitchell/and-apologies-once-postponed-become-harder-and-harder-to-make-and/) [Margaret Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mitchell/) > [In the formation of such a government, it is not only the right, but the indispensable duty of every citizen to examine the principles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-webster/in-the-formation-of-such-a-government-it-is-not-only-the-right-but/) [Noah Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-webster/) > [Apologizing does not always mean you are wrong, it just means that value your relationships more than your ego.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinier-bennett/apologizing-does-not-always-mean-you-are-wrong-it-just-means-that/) [Chinier Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinier-bennett/) > [If I can get enough signatures, to present an apology to slavery, I will present it to the President. The House of Representatives has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-douglas/if-i-can-get-enough-signatures-to-present-an-apology-to-slavery-i/) [Kirk Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-douglas/) > [“I don’t care if you’ve changed. I don’t care who you are now. I don’t need or want your explanations because what you did,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-young/i-don-t-care-if-you-ve-changed-i-don-t-care-who-you-are-now-i-don-t/) [Samantha Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-young/) > [I never said Kristen ruined my wedding. At the time, when a million other things had fallen apart that day, I felt like she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scheana-shay/i-never-said-kristen-ruined-my-wedding-at-the-time-when-a-million/) [Scheana Shay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scheana-shay/) > [The greatest form of maturity is at harvest time. This is when we must learn how to reap without complaint if the amounts are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/the-greatest-form-of-maturity-is-at-harvest-time-this-is-when-we-must/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [“It's clear he still feels something, but what? Is the whole reason he made such a big deal about wanting to talk to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carey-heywood/it-s-clear-he-still-feels-something-but-what-is-the-whole-reason-he/) [Carey Heywood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carey-heywood/) > [I wasn't saying whatever they're saying I was saying. I'm sorry I said it really. 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