---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: restless and walked down to the harbour…"
description: "\"“restless and walked down to the harbour. It was about eleven at night”\" — John Fowles"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da8/john-fowles-816_harbour_restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour_1507410.png"
---

#  restless and walked down to the harbour. It was about…

![“restless and walked down to the harbour. It was about eleven at night” quote by John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da8/john-fowles-816_harbour_restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour_1507410.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da8/john-fowles-816_harbour_restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour_1507410.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da8/john-fowles-816_harbour_restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour_1507410.png)

> ““restless and walked down to the harbour. It was about eleven at night””

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

## About This Quote

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

A restless wanderer seeks meaning in a nocturnal harbor, hinting at solitude and searching.

**In simple terms:** A wanderer walks at night.

Key Takeaway

A the night for quiet reflection.

Themes

solitude search nighttime

Mood

melancholic contemplative

Type

literary reflective

When to use this quote

- late night walks
- lonely thoughts
- creative brainstorming
- emotional processing

Key Concepts

existentialism literary mood

Questions to Reflect On

- What draws you to the harbor at night?
- How does restlessness affect your decisions?

A Different Perspective

The quote may romanticize aimlessness without purpose.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Harbour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harbour/) [Harbour Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harbour-night-5541854/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [Restless Walked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/restless-walked-238434/) [Walked Harbour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/walked-harbour-5541853/)

## Related quotes

> [“Spring came early that year and the sweet warm nights made her restless. She walked up and down the streets and through the park.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/spring-came-early-that-year-and-the-sweet-warm-nights-made-her/)

[Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/)

> [It is that dream we carry that something miraculous will happen that it must happen - that time will open that the heart will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olav-h-hauge/it-is-that-dream-we-carry-that-something-miraculous-will-happen-that/)

[Olav H. Hauge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olav-h-hauge/)

> [The feeling of being an underdog, not belonging, is very much me. You harbour a little feeling of resentment towards the 'upper dog'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sa-larsson/the-feeling-of-being-an-underdog-not-belonging-is-very-much-me-you/)

[Asa Larsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sa-larsson/)

> [When this war is over, the Japanese language will be spoken only in hell!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-halsey/when-this-war-is-over-the-japanese-language-will-be-spoken-only-in/)

[William Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-halsey/)

> [Instead of decaying in a safe harbour, sail to the unsafe oceans!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/instead-of-decaying-in-a-safe-harbour-sail-to-the-unsafe-oceans/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [Of course I know that the twins are only words on a page, and I'm certainly not the sort of writer who talks to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-faber/of-course-i-know-that-the-twins-are-only-words-on-a-page-and-i-m/)

[Michel Faber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-faber/)

> [My boat is nearing the calm harbour from which it is never more to be driven out. Glory, glory unto Mother! (Referring to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/my-boat-is-nearing-the-calm-harbour-from-which-it-is-never-more-to-be/)

[Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/)

> [If 30 Australians drowned in Sydney Harbour, it would be a national tragedy. But when 30 or more refugees drown off the Australian coast,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/if-30-australians-drowned-in-sydney-harbour-it-would-be-a-national/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [Khadi has been conceived as the foundation and the image of ahimsa. A real khadi-wearer will not utter an untruth. A real khadi-wearer will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/khadi-has-been-conceived-as-the-foundation-and-the-image-of-ahimsa-a/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [A ship in harbour is safe, but it's not fulfilling its potential](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jeffers/a-ship-in-harbour-is-safe-but-it-s-not-fulfilling-its-potential/)

[Susan Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jeffers/)

> [In political activity, then, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea; there is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place nor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-joseph-oakeshott/in-political-activity-then-men-sail-a-boundless-and-bottomless-sea/)

[Michael Joseph Oakeshott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-joseph-oakeshott/)

> [We will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbour them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/we-will-make-no-distinction-between-the-terrorists-who-committed/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [The most amazing thing to me about the sea is the tide. A harbour like St. Ives is totally transformed in a very short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer/the-most-amazing-thing-to-me-about-the-sea-is-the-tide-a-harbour-like/)

[John Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer/)

> [Rock pools, so-named because they have been hammered out of rocks at the ocean's edge, are one of Sydney's defining characteristics, along with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-bonner/rock-pools-so-named-because-they-have-been-hammered-out-of-rocks-at/)

[Raymond Bonner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-bonner/)

> [All men leave the harbour of youth, but only few reach the very far island of wisdom!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/all-men-leave-the-harbour-of-youth-but-only-few-reach-the-very-far/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

## More by John Fowles

> [I am infinitely strange to myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-am-infinitely-strange-to-myself/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [I do not plan my fiction any more than I normally plan woodland walks; I follow the path that seems most promising at any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-do-not-plan-my-fiction-any-more-than-i-normally-plan-woodland-walks/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“The sky is absolutely empty. Beautifully pure and empty. As if the architects and builders would live in all the houses they built! Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-sky-is-absolutely-empty-beautifully-pure-and-empty-as-if-the/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“The evolution of human mentality has put us all in vitro now, behind the glass wall of our own ingenuity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-evolution-of-human-mentality-has-put-us-all-in-vitro-now-behind/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [Most marriages recognize this paradox: Passion destroys passion; we want what puts an end to wanting what we want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/most-marriages-recognize-this-paradox-passion-destroys-passion-we/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [That is the great distinction between the sexes. Men see objects, women see the relationships between objects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/that-is-the-great-distinction-between-the-sexes-men-see-objects-women/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [The craving to risk death is our last great perversion. We come from night, we go into night. Why live in night?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-craving-to-risk-death-is-our-last-great-perversion-we-come-from/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [There is only one good definition of God: the freedom that allows other freedoms to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/there-is-only-one-good-definition-of-god-the-freedom-that-allows/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [They looked down on her; and she looked up through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/they-looked-down-on-her-and-she-looked-up-through-them/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“Long afterwards I realized why some men, racing drivers and their like, become addicted to speed. There are those of us who never see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/long-afterwards-i-realized-why-some-men-racing-drivers-and-their-like/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [The best wines take the longest to mature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-best-wines-take-the-longest-to-mature/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [But however good you get at translating personality into line or paint it's no go if your personality isn't worth translating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/but-however-good-you-get-at-translating-personality-into-line-or/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“Liking other people is an illusion we have to cherish in ourselves if we are to live in society. It”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/liking-other-people-is-an-illusion-we-have-to-cherish-in-ourselves-if/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [Do you know that every great thing in the history of art and every beautiful thing in life is actually what you call nasty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/do-you-know-that-every-great-thing-in-the-history-of-art-and-every/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“Yet this distance, all those abysses unbridged and then unbridgeable by radio, television, cheap travel and the rest, was not wholly bad. People knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/yet-this-distance-all-those-abysses-unbridged-and-then-unbridgeable/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

[Explore all 341 John Fowles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

## More Harbour quotes

> [All men leave the harbour of youth, but only few reach the very far island of wisdom!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/all-men-leave-the-harbour-of-youth-but-only-few-reach-the-very-far/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [Rock pools, so-named because they have been hammered out of rocks at the ocean's edge, are one of Sydney's defining characteristics, along with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-bonner/rock-pools-so-named-because-they-have-been-hammered-out-of-rocks-at/)

[Raymond Bonner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-bonner/)

> [The most amazing thing to me about the sea is the tide. A harbour like St. Ives is totally transformed in a very short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer/the-most-amazing-thing-to-me-about-the-sea-is-the-tide-a-harbour-like/)

[John Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer/)

> [We will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbour them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/we-will-make-no-distinction-between-the-terrorists-who-committed/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [In political activity, then, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea; there is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place nor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-joseph-oakeshott/in-political-activity-then-men-sail-a-boundless-and-bottomless-sea/)

[Michael Joseph Oakeshott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-joseph-oakeshott/)

> [A ship in harbour is safe, but it's not fulfilling its potential](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jeffers/a-ship-in-harbour-is-safe-but-it-s-not-fulfilling-its-potential/)

[Susan Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jeffers/)

> [Khadi has been conceived as the foundation and the image of ahimsa. A real khadi-wearer will not utter an untruth. A real khadi-wearer will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/khadi-has-been-conceived-as-the-foundation-and-the-image-of-ahimsa-a/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [If 30 Australians drowned in Sydney Harbour, it would be a national tragedy. But when 30 or more refugees drown off the Australian coast,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/if-30-australians-drowned-in-sydney-harbour-it-would-be-a-national/)

[Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/)

> [My boat is nearing the calm harbour from which it is never more to be driven out. Glory, glory unto Mother! (Referring to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/my-boat-is-nearing-the-calm-harbour-from-which-it-is-never-more-to-be/)

[Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/)

> [Of course I know that the twins are only words on a page, and I'm certainly not the sort of writer who talks to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-faber/of-course-i-know-that-the-twins-are-only-words-on-a-page-and-i-m/)

[Michel Faber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-faber/)

> [Instead of decaying in a safe harbour, sail to the unsafe oceans!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/instead-of-decaying-in-a-safe-harbour-sail-to-the-unsafe-oceans/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [When this war is over, the Japanese language will be spoken only in hell!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-halsey/when-this-war-is-over-the-japanese-language-will-be-spoken-only-in/)

[William Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-halsey/)

> [The feeling of being an underdog, not belonging, is very much me. You harbour a little feeling of resentment towards the 'upper dog'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sa-larsson/the-feeling-of-being-an-underdog-not-belonging-is-very-much-me-you/)

[Asa Larsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sa-larsson/)

> [It is that dream we carry that something miraculous will happen that it must happen - that time will open that the heart will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olav-h-hauge/it-is-that-dream-we-carry-that-something-miraculous-will-happen-that/)

[Olav H. Hauge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olav-h-hauge/)

> [The solitude lends much appeal, because a sea without a harbour surrounds it. Even a modest boat can find few anchorage, and nobody can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tacitus/the-solitude-lends-much-appeal-because-a-sea-without-a-harbour/)

[Tacitus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tacitus/)

[Browse all 99 Harbour quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harbour/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“restless and walked down to the harbour. It was about eleven at night”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "John Fowles"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour-it-was-about-eleven-at-night/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Harbour"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour-it-was-about-eleven-at-night/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da8/john-fowles-816_harbour_restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour_1507410.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da8/john-fowles-816_harbour_restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour_1507410.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da8/john-fowles-816_harbour_restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour_1507410.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“restless and walked down to the harbour. It was about eleven at night” — John Fowles",
                "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": "John Fowles",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“restless and walked down to the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour-it-was-about-eleven-at-night/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/restless-and-walked-down-to-the-harbour-it-was-about-eleven-at-night/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
