--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Of course reading and thinking are…" description: "\"Of course reading and thinking are important but, my God, food is important too. How fortunate we are to be food-consuming animals. Each meal should be..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/iris-murdoch-993_animal_of-course-reading-and-thinking-are-impor_1980056.jpg" --- # Of course reading and thinking are important but, my God… ![“Of course reading and thinking are important but, my God, food is important too. How fortunate we are to be food-consuming animals. Each meal should be a treat and one ought to bless every day which brings with it a good digestion and the precious gift of hunger.” quote by Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/iris-murdoch-993_animal_of-course-reading-and-thinking-are-impor_1980056.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/iris-murdoch-993_animal_of-course-reading-and-thinking-are-impor_1980056.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2a/iris-murdoch-993_animal_of-course-reading-and-thinking-are-impor_1980056.jpg) > “Of course reading and thinking are important but, my God, food is important too. How fortunate we are to be food-consuming animals. Each meal should be a treat and one ought to bless every day which brings with it a good digestion and the precious gift of hunger.” [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. Murdoch emphasizes that food is essential and should be appreciated as a daily blessing. **In simple terms:** Food is vital and should be enjoyed and thanked. Key Takeaway Cultivate gratitude for meals. Themes gratitude mindfulness daily life Mood reflective appreciative Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - family dinner - personal reflection - health routines Key Concepts nutrition spirituality well‑being Questions to Reflect On - How does gratitude affect our relationship with food? - Can we balance enjoyment with sustainability? A Different Perspective May overlook deeper societal food issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Bless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bless/) [Consuming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consuming/) [Courses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courses/) [Digestion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/digestion/) [Digestion Precious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/digestion-precious-3375120/) [Every day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/every-day/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) [Food Consuming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food-consuming-3375119/) [Food Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food-important-1040061/) [Fortunate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fortunate/) [Good digestion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-digestion/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Hunger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hunger/) [Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important/) [Meals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meals/) [Ought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ought/) [Precious gift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/precious-gift/) [Precious gifts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/precious-gifts/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Thinking Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking-important-731357/) [Treats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/treats/) ## Related quotes > [“I ate and drank slowly as one should (cook fast, eat slowly) and without distractions such as (thank heavens) conversation or reading. Indeed eating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-ate-and-drank-slowly-as-one-should-cook-fast-eat-slowly-and-without/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Of course reading and thinking are important but, my God, food is important too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/of-course-reading-and-thinking-are-important-but-my-god-food-is/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Many times, I know before I speak to the player what they are thinking. It's very important to know when to push, when to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-conte/many-times-i-know-before-i-speak-to-the-player-what-they-are-thinking/) [Antonio Conte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-conte/) > [There's a conventional wisdom that says that strategic thinking is much more important than relationship building, which doesn't seem to be nearly as highly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-rath/there-s-a-conventional-wisdom-that-says-that-strategic-thinking-is/) [Tom Rath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-rath/) > [Critical thinking is the most important factor with chess. As it is in life, you need to think before you make decisions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hikaru-nakamura/critical-thinking-is-the-most-important-factor-with-chess-as-it-is-in/) [Hikaru Nakamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hikaru-nakamura/) > [We are all product of our thinking, which is why it's so important to be aware of our thoughts, and to guard them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kc-mathobela/we-are-all-product-of-our-thinking-which-is-why-it-s-so-important-to/) [KC Mathobela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kc-mathobela/) > [I had fooled myself into thinking that I was something important to the rest of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-vizzini/i-had-fooled-myself-into-thinking-that-i-was-something-important-to/) [Ned Vizzini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-vizzini/) > [Now, I'm thinking about more important things: my family, kids, my career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aroldis-chapman/now-i-m-thinking-about-more-important-things-my-family-kids-my-career/) [Aroldis Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aroldis-chapman/) > [I think we get a little carried away with ourselves with sports thinking we're more important than everything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-van-gundy/i-think-we-get-a-little-carried-away-with-ourselves-with-sports/) [Stan Van Gundy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-van-gundy/) > [I am thinking about something much more important than bombs. I am thinking about computers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-von-neumann/i-am-thinking-about-something-much-more-important-than-bombs-i-am/) [John von Neumann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-von-neumann/) > [Beauty isn't worth thinking about; what's important is your mind. You don't want a fifty-dollar haircut on a fifty-cent head. ~Garrison Keillor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-keillor/beauty-isn-t-worth-thinking-about-what-s-important-is-your-mind-you/) [Garrison Keillor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-keillor/) > [We are the product of our thinking, so it is important that we choose carefully where to focus our mental energy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-stanley/we-are-the-product-of-our-thinking-so-it-is-important-that-we-choose/) [Charles Stanley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-stanley/) > [“And what makes humans so sure that thinking is the most important activity in the universe?...I on the contrary have never forgotten that first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabina-berman/and-what-makes-humans-so-sure-that-thinking-is-the-most-important/) [Sabina Berman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabina-berman/) > [Play, Incorporating Animistic and Magical Thinking Is Important Because It: Fosters the healthy, creative and emotional growth of a child; Forms the best foundation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-carson/play-incorporating-animistic-and-magical-thinking-is-important/) [Rachel Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-carson/) > [Beauty isn't worth thinking about; what's important is your mind. You don't want a fifty-dollar haircut on a fifty-cent head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/beauty-isn-t-worth-thinking-about-what-s-important-is-your-mind-you-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## 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'm sorry I was awful. I'm so full of terrors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-m-sorry-i-was-awful-i-m-so-full-of-terrors/) [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/) [Explore all 306 Iris Murdoch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/) [Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/) > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [That dog, I say that dog is lower than a snake full of buckshot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foghorn-leghorn/that-dog-i-say-that-dog-is-lower-than-a-snake-full-of-buckshot/) [Foghorn Leghorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foghorn-leghorn/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Animal rights without veganism is like human rights with slavery. It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Of course reading and thinking are important but, my God, food is important too. How fortunate we are to be food-consuming animals. 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