---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is no bore we dread being left…"
description: "\"There is no bore we dread being left alone with so much as our own minds.\" — James Russell Lowell"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/james-russell-lowell-561_bores_there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alo_425115.png"
---

#  There is no bore we dread being left alone with so much as…

![“There is no bore we dread being left alone with so much as our own minds.” quote by James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/james-russell-lowell-561_bores_there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alo_425115.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/james-russell-lowell-561_bores_there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alo_425115.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/james-russell-lowell-561_bores_there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alo_425115.png)

> “There is no bore we dread being left alone with so much as our own minds.”

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Our minds can be more unsettling than any external threat, making solitude uncomfortable.

**In simple terms:** Our thoughts can be scarier than anything else.

Key Takeaway

Learn to calm and observe your mind.

Themes

self‑awareness solitude mental health philosophy

Mood

reflective introspective

Type

philosophical motivational

When to use this quote

- meditation
- journaling
- therapy
- creative work

Key Concepts

psychology mindfulness existentialism

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you turn solitary moments into opportunities for inner growth?
- What practices help quiet a restless mind?

A Different Perspective

Even when alone, external distractions can still dominate thoughts.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Bore Dread](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bore-dread-3760406/) [Bores](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bores/) [Dread](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dread/) [Dread Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dread-left-3760407/) [Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left/) [Left alone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left-alone/) [Left Minds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left-minds-3760408/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Minds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minds/)

## Related quotes

> [The time is ripe, and rotten-ripe, for change; Then let it come: I have no dread of what Is called for by the instinct…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/the-time-is-ripe-and-rotten-ripe-for-change-then-let-it-come-i-have/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [The cross of Christ is the sweetest burden that I ever bore; it is such a burden as wings are to a bird, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-rutherford/the-cross-of-christ-is-the-sweetest-burden-that-i-ever-bore-it-is/)

[Samuel Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-rutherford/)

> [Men will pay large sums to whores for telling them they are not bores.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/men-will-pay-large-sums-to-whores-for-telling-them-they-are-not-bores/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [There still remains one effort of magnanimity, one sacrifice of prejudice and passion, to be made by the individuals throughout the nation who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-quincy-adams/there-still-remains-one-effort-of-magnanimity-one-sacrifice-of/)

[John Quincy Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-quincy-adams/)

> [It is an occupational hazard of devout folk to become stuffy bores. This should not be. Of all people, we should be the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-j-foster/it-is-an-occupational-hazard-of-devout-folk-to-become-stuffy-bores/)

[Richard J. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-j-foster/)

> [Mark how fleeting and paltry is the estate of man-yesterday in embryo, tomorrow a mummy or ashes. So for the hairsbreadth of time assigned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/mark-how-fleeting-and-paltry-is-the-estate-of-man-yesterday-in-embryo/)

[Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/)

> [Mr. Presley has no discernible singing ability. His specialty is rhythm songs which he renders in an undistinguished whine; his phrasing, if it can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-gould/mr-presley-has-no-discernible-singing-ability-his-specialty-is-rhythm/)

[Jack Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-gould/)

> [And I am quite serious when I say that I do not believe there are, on the whole earth besides, so many intensified bores…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/and-i-am-quite-serious-when-i-say-that-i-do-not-believe-there-are-on/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [All politicians are bores and liars and fakes. I talk to people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-gellhorn/all-politicians-are-bores-and-liars-and-fakes-i-talk-to-people/)

[Martha Gellhorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-gellhorn/)

> [Life in this society being, at best, an utter bore and no aspect of society being at all relevant to women, there remains to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-solanas/life-in-this-society-being-at-best-an-utter-bore-and-no-aspect-of/)

[Valerie Solanas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-solanas/)

> [Attractive Etonians who go straight onto the Stock Exchange missing University on their fathers advice: the raw material of the great bores.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-madan/attractive-etonians-who-go-straight-onto-the-stock-exchange-missing/)

[Geoffrey Madan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-madan/)

> [The poet's first rule must be never to bore his readers; and his best way of keeping this rule is never to bore himself-which,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-graves/the-poet-s-first-rule-must-be-never-to-bore-his-readers-and-his-best/)

[Robert Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-graves/)

> [We are almost always wearied in the company of persons with whom we are not permitted to be weary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/we-are-almost-always-wearied-in-the-company-of-persons-with-whom-we/)

[Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/)

> [Redtail was a brave warrior. His loyalty to ThunderClan could never be doubted. I always relied on his judgment, for it bore witness to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-hunter/redtail-was-a-brave-warrior-his-loyalty-to-thunderclan-could-never-be/)

[Erin Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-hunter/)

> [It's a bore - B-O-R-E - when you find you've begun to rot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/it-s-a-bore-b-o-r-e-when-you-find-you-ve-begun-to-rot/)

[Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/)

## More by James Russell Lowell

> [We kind o' thought Christ went agin war an' pillage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/we-kind-o-thought-christ-went-agin-war-an-pillage/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [He gives only the worthless gold who gives from a sense of duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/he-gives-only-the-worthless-gold-who-gives-from-a-sense-of-duty/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [As life runs on, the road grows strange with faces new - and near the end. The milestones into headstones change, Neath every one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/as-life-runs-on-the-road-grows-strange-with-faces-new-and-near-the/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [Where one person shapes their life by precept and example, there are a thousand who have shaped it by impulse and circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/where-one-person-shapes-their-life-by-precept-and-example-there-are-a/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [Granting our wish is one of Fate's saddest jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/granting-our-wish-is-one-of-fate-s-saddest-jokes/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [Most religion-mongers have bated their paradises with a bit of toasted cheese. They have tempted the body with large promises of possessions in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/most-religion-mongers-have-bated-their-paradises-with-a-bit-of/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [The thing we long for, that we are For one transcendent moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/the-thing-we-long-for-that-we-are-for-one-transcendent-moment/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [O reputation! dearer far than life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/o-reputation-dearer-far-than-life/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [Keats longed for fame, but longed above all to deserve it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/keats-longed-for-fame-but-longed-above-all-to-deserve-it/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [It is beginning to be doubtful whether Parliament and Congress sit in Westminster and Washington, or in the editorial rooms of the leading journals,--so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-is-beginning-to-be-doubtful-whether-parliament-and-congress-sit-in/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [ \[B\]ut in literature, it should be remembered, a thing always becomes his at last who says it best, and thus makes it his own. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/b-ut-in-literature-it-should-be-remembered-a-thing-always-becomes-his/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [It may be glorious to write Thoughts that shall glad the two or three High souls, like those far stars that come in sight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-may-be-glorious-to-write-thoughts-that-shall-glad-the-two-or-three/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [It is the vain endeavor to make ourselves what we are not that has strewn history with so many broken purposes and lives left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-is-the-vain-endeavor-to-make-ourselves-what-we-are-not-that-has/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [Take winter as you find him, and he turns out to be a thoroughly honest fellow; with no nonsense in him, which is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/take-winter-as-you-find-him-and-he-turns-out-to-be-a-thoroughly/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

> [The intellect has only one failing, which, to be sure, is a very considerable one. It has no conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/the-intellect-has-only-one-failing-which-to-be-sure-is-a-very/)

[James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

[Explore all 471 James Russell Lowell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/)

## More Bores quotes

> [It's a bore - B-O-R-E - when you find you've begun to rot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/it-s-a-bore-b-o-r-e-when-you-find-you-ve-begun-to-rot/)

[Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/)

> [Redtail was a brave warrior. His loyalty to ThunderClan could never be doubted. I always relied on his judgment, for it bore witness to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-hunter/redtail-was-a-brave-warrior-his-loyalty-to-thunderclan-could-never-be/)

[Erin Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-hunter/)

> [We are almost always wearied in the company of persons with whom we are not permitted to be weary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/we-are-almost-always-wearied-in-the-company-of-persons-with-whom-we/)

[Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/)

> [The poet's first rule must be never to bore his readers; and his best way of keeping this rule is never to bore himself-which,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-graves/the-poet-s-first-rule-must-be-never-to-bore-his-readers-and-his-best/)

[Robert Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-graves/)

> [Attractive Etonians who go straight onto the Stock Exchange missing University on their fathers advice: the raw material of the great bores.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-madan/attractive-etonians-who-go-straight-onto-the-stock-exchange-missing/)

[Geoffrey Madan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-madan/)

> [Life in this society being, at best, an utter bore and no aspect of society being at all relevant to women, there remains to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-solanas/life-in-this-society-being-at-best-an-utter-bore-and-no-aspect-of/)

[Valerie Solanas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-solanas/)

> [All politicians are bores and liars and fakes. I talk to people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-gellhorn/all-politicians-are-bores-and-liars-and-fakes-i-talk-to-people/)

[Martha Gellhorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-gellhorn/)

> [And I am quite serious when I say that I do not believe there are, on the whole earth besides, so many intensified bores…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/and-i-am-quite-serious-when-i-say-that-i-do-not-believe-there-are-on/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [Mr. Presley has no discernible singing ability. His specialty is rhythm songs which he renders in an undistinguished whine; his phrasing, if it can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-gould/mr-presley-has-no-discernible-singing-ability-his-specialty-is-rhythm/)

[Jack Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-gould/)

> [Mark how fleeting and paltry is the estate of man-yesterday in embryo, tomorrow a mummy or ashes. So for the hairsbreadth of time assigned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/mark-how-fleeting-and-paltry-is-the-estate-of-man-yesterday-in-embryo/)

[Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/)

> [It is an occupational hazard of devout folk to become stuffy bores. This should not be. Of all people, we should be the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-j-foster/it-is-an-occupational-hazard-of-devout-folk-to-become-stuffy-bores/)

[Richard J. Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-j-foster/)

> [There still remains one effort of magnanimity, one sacrifice of prejudice and passion, to be made by the individuals throughout the nation who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-quincy-adams/there-still-remains-one-effort-of-magnanimity-one-sacrifice-of/)

[John Quincy Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-quincy-adams/)

> [Men will pay large sums to whores for telling them they are not bores.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/men-will-pay-large-sums-to-whores-for-telling-them-they-are-not-bores/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [The cross of Christ is the sweetest burden that I ever bore; it is such a burden as wings are to a bird, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-rutherford/the-cross-of-christ-is-the-sweetest-burden-that-i-ever-bore-it-is/)

[Samuel Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-rutherford/)

> [It is a sin to bore a child with the Word of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-g-hendricks/it-is-a-sin-to-bore-a-child-with-the-word-of-god/)

[Howard G. Hendricks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-g-hendricks/)

[Browse all 653 Bores quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bores/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "There is no bore we dread being left alone with so much as our own minds.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "James Russell Lowell"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alone-with-so-much-as-our-own/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bores"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alone-with-so-much-as-our-own/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/james-russell-lowell-561_bores_there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alo_425115.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/james-russell-lowell-561_bores_there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alo_425115.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/james-russell-lowell-561_bores_there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alo_425115.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“There is no bore we dread being left alone with so much as our own minds.” — James Russell Lowell",
                "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": "James Russell Lowell",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "There is no bore we dread...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alone-with-so-much-as-our-own/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/there-is-no-bore-we-dread-being-left-alone-with-so-much-as-our-own/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
