--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Jealousy is perhaps the most involuntary…" description: "\"“Jealousy is perhaps the most involuntary of all strong emotions. It steals consciousness, it lies deeper than thought. It is always there, like a blac..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/766/iris-murdoch-993_control_jealousy-is-perhaps-the-most-involuntary_2184327.png" --- # Jealousy is perhaps the most involuntary of all strong… ![“Jealousy is perhaps the most involuntary of all strong emotions. It steals consciousness, it lies deeper than thought. It is always there, like a blackness in the eye, it discolours the world.” quote by Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/766/iris-murdoch-993_control_jealousy-is-perhaps-the-most-involuntary_2184327.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/766/iris-murdoch-993_control_jealousy-is-perhaps-the-most-involuntary_2184327.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/766/iris-murdoch-993_control_jealousy-is-perhaps-the-most-involuntary_2184327.png) > ““Jealousy is perhaps the most involuntary of all strong emotions. It steals consciousness, it lies deeper than thought. It is always there, like a blackness in the eye, it discolours the world.”” [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. Jealousy overwhelms rational thought, clouding perception and draining awareness. **In simple terms:** Jealousy blinds and drains. Key Takeaway Recognize and address jealousy early. Themes emotion self-awareness perception Mood melancholic introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - relationships - personal growth - mental health - conflict resolution Key Concepts psychology human nature emotional intelligence Questions to Reflect On - How does jealousy affect your daily decisions? - What practices help you regain clarity? A Different Perspective Jealousy can be triggered by insecurity, not just external events. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/control/) [Emotions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotions/) [Envy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy/) [Jealousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jealousy/) [Rage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rage/) [Strong emotions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strong-emotions/) ## Related quotes > [A wild longing for strong emotions and sensations seethes in me, a rage against this toneless, flat, normal and sterile life. I have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/a-wild-longing-for-strong-emotions-and-sensations-seethes-in-me-a/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [I grew up in a family that despised displays of strong emotion, rage in particular. We stewed. We sulked. 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It’s more frightening than confronting your deepest fear and opens you to being hurt beyond the physical plane.” He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurann-dohner/it-s-called-being-in-love-it-s-more-frightening-than-confronting-your/) [Laurann Dohner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurann-dohner/) ## 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. 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