--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When the sun was set I might perhaps go…" description: "\"“When the sun was set I might perhaps go to sleep. I never let myself sleep during the day. Daytime sleep is a cursed slumber from which one wakes in d..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/iris-murdoch-993_sleep_when-the-sun-was-set-i-might-perhaps-go_2710008.jpg" --- # When the sun was set I might perhaps go to sleep. I never… ![“When the sun was set I might perhaps go to sleep. I never let myself sleep during the day. Daytime sleep is a cursed slumber from which one wakes in despair. The sun will not tolerate it. If he can he will pry under your eyelids and prise them apart; and if you hang black curtains at your windows…” quote by Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/iris-murdoch-993_sleep_when-the-sun-was-set-i-might-perhaps-go_2710008.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/iris-murdoch-993_sleep_when-the-sun-was-set-i-might-perhaps-go_2710008.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/iris-murdoch-993_sleep_when-the-sun-was-set-i-might-perhaps-go_2710008.jpg) > ““When the sun was set I might perhaps go to sleep. I never let myself sleep during the day. Daytime sleep is a cursed slumber from which one wakes in despair. The sun will not tolerate it. If he can he will pry under your eyelids and prise them apart; and if you hang black curtains at your windows he will lay siege to your room until it is so stifling that at last you stagger with staring eyes to the window and tear back the curtains to see that most terrible of sights, the broad daylight outside a room where you have been sleeping.”” [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. The passage warns that sleeping during daylight is unnatural and harmful, suggesting that the sun’s presence forces us to stay awake and confront reality. **In simple terms:** Daytime sleep feels wrong and leads to despair; the sun forces wakefulness. Key Takeaway Avoid sleeping in daylight to stay healthy. Themes health routine nature Mood reflective cautionary Type advice literary When to use this quote - work schedules - school - night shift workers - travel across time zones Key Concepts circadian rhythm sunlight sleep hygiene Questions to Reflect On - Do you feel more alert after a short nap? - How does sunlight affect your mood? A Different Perspective Some cultures value siestas, showing daylight sleep can be beneficial in certain contexts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sleep/) ## Related quotes > [Daytime sleep is a cursed slumber from which one wakes in despair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/daytime-sleep-is-a-cursed-slumber-from-which-one-wakes-in-despair/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [I do not sleep to let others sleep in the shade of my waking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cardinal-richelieu/i-do-not-sleep-to-let-others-sleep-in-the-shade-of-my-waking/) [Cardinal Richelieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cardinal-richelieu/) > [You can't sleep? Me either. Let's can't sleep together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-can-t-sleep-me-either-let-s-can-t-sleep-together/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Daytime sleep is like the sin of the flesh; the more you have the more you want, and yet you feel unhappy, sated and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/daytime-sleep-is-like-the-sin-of-the-flesh-the-more-you-have-the-more/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [“And when I sleep, let me dream all the time so that not one little piece of living is ever lost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/and-when-i-sleep-let-me-dream-all-the-time-so-that-not-one-little/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [What I'm like with lack of sleep is that I let the devil in, so if I'm tired the slightest thing will put me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romesh-ranganathan/what-i-m-like-with-lack-of-sleep-is-that-i-let-the-devil-in-so-if-i-m/) [Romesh Ranganathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romesh-ranganathan/) > [“At the end of the day, people go to sleep. Let’s also put the cliché “At the end of the day” to bed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/at-the-end-of-the-day-people-go-to-sleep-let-s-also-put-the-clich-at/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [Let me be something every minute of every hour of my life...And when I sleep, let me dream all the time so that not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/let-me-be-something-every-minute-of-every-hour-of-my-life-and-when-i/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [“Physics says: go to sleep. Of course you’re tired. Every atom in you has been dancing the shimmy in silver shoes nonstop from mitosis…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-goldbarth/physics-says-go-to-sleep-of-course-you-re-tired-every-atom-in-you-has-2/) [Albert Goldbarth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-goldbarth/) > [Put your thoughts to sleep, do not let them cast a shadow over the moon of your heart. Let go of thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/put-your-thoughts-to-sleep-do-not-let-them-cast-a-shadow-over-the/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Nights are the best time to lie down and let your mind weave what you subconsciously aspire but consciously neglect. Sleep and let your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/nights-are-the-best-time-to-lie-down-and-let-your-mind-weave-what-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [So let us sleep outside tonight, Lay down in our mother's arms, for here we can rest safely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-matthews/so-let-us-sleep-outside-tonight-lay-down-in-our-mother-s-arms-for/) [Dave Matthews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-matthews/) > [“Creativity is like a snoring husband, it won't let you sleep.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-alfaro/creativity-is-like-a-snoring-husband-it-won-t-let-you-sleep/) Barbara Alfaro > [Enjoy the honey-heavy dew of slumber.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/enjoy-the-honey-heavy-dew-of-slumber/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I went to a slumber party in a hotel. The whole hotel was rented out. The hotel was the party. It really was like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannyn-sossamon/i-went-to-a-slumber-party-in-a-hotel-the-whole-hotel-was-rented-out/) [Shannyn Sossamon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannyn-sossamon/) ## 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 Sleep quotes > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [I went to a slumber party in a hotel. The whole hotel was rented out. The hotel was the party. It really was like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannyn-sossamon/i-went-to-a-slumber-party-in-a-hotel-the-whole-hotel-was-rented-out/) [Shannyn Sossamon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannyn-sossamon/) > [Alone in a world, With millions of souls Walking in circles Trapped in their dreams unhealthy, unclean walking in circles, now do not disturb…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chester-bennington/alone-in-a-world-with-millions-of-souls-walking-in-circles-trapped-in/) [Chester Bennington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chester-bennington/) > [When we are apart you are all I think about I think about u when I am awake and when I go to sleep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/superman/when-we-are-apart-you-are-all-i-think-about-i-think-about-u-when-i-am/) Superman > [Don’t you just hate nights like that, when you think over every mistake you’ve made, every hurt you’ve received, every bit of meanness you’ve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/don-t-you-just-hate-nights-like-that-when-you-think-over-every/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [It all depends on you. You can go on sleeping forever, you can wake up right this moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/it-all-depends-on-you-you-can-go-on-sleeping-forever-you-can-wake-up/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [“SILENT LIKE SLEEP You appear by my side, silent like sleep. Soft hair, a little wild. No fear, gentle like a calm river. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-goddard/silent-like-sleep-you-appear-by-my-side-silent-like-sleep-soft-hair-a/) [Donna Goddard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-goddard/) > [Fatigue is the safest sleeping draught.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/fatigue-is-the-safest-sleeping-draught/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [The more I read about feeding times, sleep times and waking-up times, the more inadequate and miserable I felt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-porter/the-more-i-read-about-feeding-times-sleep-times-and-waking-up-times/) [Gail Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-porter/) > [Some people seem to survive on very little sleep but I am definitely not one of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mcdonald/some-people-seem-to-survive-on-very-little-sleep-but-i-am-definitely/) [Jane McDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mcdonald/) > [So mightiest powers buy deepest calms are fed, And sleep, how oft, in things that gentlest be!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-procter/so-mightiest-powers-buy-deepest-calms-are-fed-and-sleep-how-oft-in/) [Bryan Procter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-procter/) > [“If you go to bed too early and get up too late you probably won't sleep especially well. This could show up as either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penelope-a-lewis/if-you-go-to-bed-too-early-and-get-up-too-late-you-probably-won-t/) [Penelope A. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penelope-a-lewis/) > [“I wash with the can of water I set aside the night before, and eat whatever I put next to it. The washing is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-marshall-smith/i-wash-with-the-can-of-water-i-set-aside-the-night-before-and-eat/) [Michael Marshall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-marshall-smith/) [Browse all 12,525 Sleep quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sleep/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When the sun was set I might perhaps go to sleep. I never let myself sleep during the day. Daytime sleep is a cursed slumber from which one wakes in despair. The sun will not tolerate it. 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