---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In his middle life, at about the time…"
description: "\"“In his middle life, at about the time such things were known about, it was discovered that, he had pernicious anemia. It is possible that his virtue l..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d69/john-steinbeck-71_life_in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-suc_1220267.jpg"
---

#  In his middle life, at about the time such things were…

![“In his middle life, at about the time such things were known about, it was discovered that, he had pernicious anemia. It is possible that his virtue lived on a lack of energy.” quote by John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d69/john-steinbeck-71_life_in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-suc_1220267.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d69/john-steinbeck-71_life_in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-suc_1220267.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d69/john-steinbeck-71_life_in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-suc_1220267.jpg)

> ““In his middle life, at about the time such things were known about, it was discovered that, he had pernicious anemia. It is possible that his virtue lived on a lack of energy.””

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

## About This Quote

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

A man’s health decline reveals how his moral vigor may be tied to his physical energy.

**In simple terms:** Illness can affect one’s sense of virtue.

Key Takeaway

Maintain health to support moral strength.

Themes

health virtue energy decline

Mood

somber thoughtful introspective

Type

narrative philosophical

When to use this quote

- aging
- chronic illness
- self-reflection
- medical diagnosis

Key Concepts

biology ethics personal resilience

Questions to Reflect On

- Can virtue exist without physical vigor?
- How does illness change self-perception?

A Different Perspective

Physical health isn’t the sole source of moral character.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Anemia Possible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anemia-possible-3734510/) [Discovered Pernicious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovered-pernicious-3734511/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Middle Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-life-736130/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Pernicious Anemia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pernicious-anemia-1943059/) [Possible Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possible-virtue-2289088/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [“It is possible that his virtue lived on a lack of energy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/it-is-possible-that-his-virtue-lived-on-a-lack-of-energy/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [“none of Dr. Copeland’s tips would cure someone suffering from pernicious anemia.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-scott-williams/none-of-dr-copeland-s-tips-would-cure-someone-suffering-from/)

[R. Scott Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-scott-williams/)

> [Throughout the play everything possible was done to show the virtue, innocence and helplessness of the poor, and the abandoned cruelty, the heartless self-indulgence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-cary/throughout-the-play-everything-possible-was-done-to-show-the-virtue/)

[Joyce Cary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-cary/)

> [In youth, we get plenty of exercise through games and running around, but as middle life approaches, we settle down, literally and figuratively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-tunney/in-youth-we-get-plenty-of-exercise-through-games-and-running-around/)

[Gene Tunney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-tunney/)

> [“Fifteen years old is the middle of my life, regardless of when I die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douard-lev/fifteen-years-old-is-the-middle-of-my-life-regardless-of-when-i-die/)

[Édouard Levé](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douard-lev/)

> [In the middle of life, death comes to take your measurements. The visit is forgotten and life goes on. But the suit is being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tomas-transtromer/in-the-middle-of-life-death-comes-to-take-your-measurements-the-visit/)

[Tomas Transtromer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tomas-transtromer/)

> [It's the safety valve of middle life, and the solace of age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-roberts-rinehart/it-s-the-safety-valve-of-middle-life-and-the-solace-of-age/)

[Mary Roberts Rinehart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-roberts-rinehart/)

> [As if it were our very birthright, which we could not come to grasp the meaning of until this time of middle life when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/as-if-it-were-our-very-birthright-which-we-could-not-come-to-grasp/)

[Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/)

> [You die in the middle of your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/you-die-in-the-middle-of-your-life/)

[John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/)

> [The middle path makes me wary. . . . But in the middle of my life, I am coming to see the middle path…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/the-middle-path-makes-me-wary-but-in-the-middle-of-my-life-i-am/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [But none of us wants to be average. That we are so is a melancholy fact borne in upon us in middle life, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-benson/but-none-of-us-wants-to-be-average-that-we-are-so-is-a-melancholy/)

[Margaret Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-benson/)

> [I began writing 'The Cold Song' in the months following my father's death, when I felt this sense of loss, disappearance, of being right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linn-ullmann/i-began-writing-the-cold-song-in-the-months-following-my-father-s/)

[Linn Ullmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linn-ullmann/)

> [I think you start in middle life to recognize your vulnerabilities, if you're lucky. You admit them and people find that interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-hawthorne/i-think-you-start-in-middle-life-to-recognize-your-vulnerabilities-if/)

[Nigel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-hawthorne/)

> [Youth is a silly, vapid state, Old age with fears and ills is rife, This simple boon I beg of Fate - A thousand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-wells/youth-is-a-silly-vapid-state-old-age-with-fears-and-ills-is-rife-this/)

[Carolyn Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-wells/)

> [That’s part of what I like about the book in some ways. It portrays death truthfully. You die in the middle of your life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/that-s-part-of-what-i-like-about-the-book-in-some-ways-it-portrays/)

[John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/)

## More by John Steinbeck

> [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [Prayer never brought in no side-meat. Takes a shoat to bring in pork.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/prayer-never-brought-in-no-side-meat-takes-a-shoat-to-bring-in-pork/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [“And now submarines are armed with mass murder, our silly, only way of deterring mass murder.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/and-now-submarines-are-armed-with-mass-murder-our-silly-only-way-of/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [“I’d think there are degrees of greatness,” Adam said. “I don’t think so,” said Samuel. “That would be like saying there is a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-d-think-there-are-degrees-of-greatness-adam-said-i-don-t-think-so/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [“He was forever inventing a new way of doing an old thing and doing it better and quicker, but he never in his whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/he-was-forever-inventing-a-new-way-of-doing-an-old-thing-and-doing-it/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [“You come back a changed man. Samuel, you don’t change him. He changes you. I can see the look of him in your face.”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/you-come-back-a-changed-man-samuel-you-don-t-change-him-he-changes/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [I find out of long experience that I admire all nations and hate all governments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-find-out-of-long-experience-that-i-admire-all-nations-and-hate-all/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [At about 10 o'clock in the morning the sun threw a bright dust-laden bar through one of the side windows and in and out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/at-about-10-o-clock-in-the-morning-the-sun-threw-a-bright-dust-laden/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [I have noticed that there is no dissatisfaction like that of the rich. Feed a man, clothe him, put him in a good house,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-have-noticed-that-there-is-no-dissatisfaction-like-that-of-the-rich/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [“Who in his mind has not probe the dark water?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/who-in-his-mind-has-not-probe-the-dark-water/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [Sometimes, a lie is told in kindness. I don't believe it ever works kindly. The quick pain of truth can pass away, but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/sometimes-a-lie-is-told-in-kindness-i-don-t-believe-it-ever-works/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [People like you to be something, preferably what they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/people-like-you-to-be-something-preferably-what-they-are/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [“Suddenly he knew joy and sorrow felted into one fabric. Courage and fear were one thing too. He found that he had started to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/suddenly-he-knew-joy-and-sorrow-felted-into-one-fabric-courage-and/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [I am writing this from what we Americans call Yurrp. In Yurrp writers are taken as seriously as Lana Turner's legs are in America…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-am-writing-this-from-what-we-americans-call-yurrp-in-yurrp-writers/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [I write because I like to write. I find joy in the texture and tone and rhythm of words. It is a satisfaction like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-write-because-i-like-to-write-i-find-joy-in-the-texture-and-tone/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

[Explore all 1,589 John Steinbeck quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

## More Life quotes

> [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/)

[Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/)

> [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/)

[Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/)

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/)

[Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/)

> [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/)

[Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/)

> [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/)

[Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/)

> [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/)

[Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/)

> [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/)

[Deanna L. Lawlis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deanna-l-lawlis/)

> [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/)

[Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/)

> [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/)

[Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/)

> [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/)

[Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/)

> [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/)

[Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/)

> [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/)

[Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/)

> [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/)

[Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/)

[Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“In his middle life, at about the time such things were known about, it was discovered that, he had pernicious anemia. It is possible that his virtue lived on a lack of energy.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "John Steinbeck"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-such-things-were-known-about-it/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Life"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-such-things-were-known-about-it/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d69/john-steinbeck-71_life_in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-suc_1220267.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d69/john-steinbeck-71_life_in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-suc_1220267.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d69/john-steinbeck-71_life_in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-suc_1220267.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“In his middle life, at about the time such things were known about, it was discovered that, he had…” — John Steinbeck",
                "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 Steinbeck",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“In his middle life, at about...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-such-things-were-known-about-it/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/in-his-middle-life-at-about-the-time-such-things-were-known-about-it/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
