--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Oh! think what anxious moments pass…" description: "\"Oh! think what anxious moments pass between The birth of plots, and their last fatal periods, Oh! 'tis a dreadful interval of time, Filled up with horr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b3/joseph-addison-377_anxious_oh-think-what-anxious-moments-pass-betwe_148944.jpg" --- # Oh! think what anxious moments pass between The birth of… ![“Oh! think what anxious moments pass between The birth of plots, and their last fatal periods, Oh! 'tis a dreadful interval of time, Filled up with horror all, and big with death!” quote by Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b3/joseph-addison-377_anxious_oh-think-what-anxious-moments-pass-betwe_148944.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b3/joseph-addison-377_anxious_oh-think-what-anxious-moments-pass-betwe_148944.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b3/joseph-addison-377_anxious_oh-think-what-anxious-moments-pass-betwe_148944.jpg) > “Oh! think what anxious moments pass between The birth of plots, and their last fatal periods, Oh! 'tis a dreadful interval of time, Filled up with horror all, and big with death!” [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A vivid depiction of the anxiety between a plot’s inception and its tragic conclusion, highlighting suspense and dread. **In simple terms:** The waiting period between story start and end is terrifying. Key Takeaway Recognize and manage narrative tension. Themes literature anxiety anticipation dramatic structure death Mood dramatic reflective melancholic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing - film - theatre - storytelling Key Concepts narrative theory psychology philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How does tension shape audience engagement? - When does suspense become overwhelming? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on dread can paralyze creators. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anxious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anxious/) [Birth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) [Conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Filled up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/filled-up/) [Horror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror/) [Intervals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intervals/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“Oh! think what anxious moments pass between The birth of plots, and their last fatal periods.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/oh-think-what-anxious-moments-pass-between-the-birth-of-plots-and-2/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [“He was filled with horror at the thought of what a child becomes, and what the dead must feel watching the change from innocence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/he-was-filled-with-horror-at-the-thought-of-what-a-child-becomes-and/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [The day of the wedding went like these things generally do, full of anxious moments interspersed with black comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-street-porter/the-day-of-the-wedding-went-like-these-things-generally-do-full-of/) [Janet Street-Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-street-porter/) > [Walsall have given City more than one anxious moment amongst many anxious moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-law/walsall-have-given-city-more-than-one-anxious-moment-amongst-many/) [Denis Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-law/) > [Everything I ever worried about turned out exactly as it was going to, despite my anxious moments to the contrary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/everything-i-ever-worried-about-turned-out-exactly-as-it-was-going-to/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [As an actor, I felt nervous only during the release of my film. When I became a director, the anxious moments started once the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prabhu-deva/as-an-actor-i-felt-nervous-only-during-the-release-of-my-film-when-i/) [Prabhu Deva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prabhu-deva/) > [I get a headache when films are too filled up with people. And I don't understand what's going on if there are too many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eran-kolirin/i-get-a-headache-when-films-are-too-filled-up-with-people-and-i-don-t/) [Eran Kolirin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eran-kolirin/) > [If you empty, you can be filled up with anything. 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I had to get filled up in order to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-cash/creative-people-have-to-be-fed-from-the-divine-source-i-have-to-get/) [Johnny Cash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-cash/) > [Courses that you've had success on, all of a sudden your game turns around because you feel comfortable on your tee shots, you feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiger-woods/courses-that-you-ve-had-success-on-all-of-a-sudden-your-game-turns/) [Tiger Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiger-woods/) > [A week filled up with selfishness, and the Sabbath stuffed full of religious exercises, will make a good Pharisee, but a poor Christian. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/a-week-filled-up-with-selfishness-and-the-sabbath-stuffed-full-of/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [A secret is powerful when it is empty. People often mention the "Masonic secret." What on earth is the Masonic secret? No one can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/a-secret-is-powerful-when-it-is-empty-people-often-mention-the/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [Now I have notebooks that are filled up, mostly with Doom Patrol, but also angry letters to myself mixed in with the comic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-way/now-i-have-notebooks-that-are-filled-up-mostly-with-doom-patrol-but/) [Gerard Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-way/) > [I drove to Oxford with my van full of petrol and tin cans, as I didn't know there were service stations on the motorway.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-drove-to-oxford-with-my-van-full-of-petrol-and-tin-cans-as-i-didn-t/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) ## More by Joseph Addison > [Half the misery of human life might be extinguished if men would alleviate the general curse they lie under by mutual offices of compassion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/half-the-misery-of-human-life-might-be-extinguished-if-men-would/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [There is nothing touches our imagination so much as a beautiful woman in a plain dress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/there-is-nothing-touches-our-imagination-so-much-as-a-beautiful-woman/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [We are always doing something for posterity, but I would fain see posterity do something for us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/we-are-always-doing-something-for-posterity-but-i-would-fain-see/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Female Virtues are of a Domestick turn. The Family is the proper Province for Private Women to Shine in. If they must be showing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/female-virtues-are-of-a-domestick-turn-the-family-is-the-proper/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [As addictions go, reading is among the cleanest, easiest to feed, happiest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/as-addictions-go-reading-is-among-the-cleanest-easiest-to-feed/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [There is no society or conversation to be kept up in the world without good-nature, or something which must bear its appearance and supply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/there-is-no-society-or-conversation-to-be-kept-up-in-the-world/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [When love once pleads admission to our hearts, In spite of all the virtue we can boast, The woman that deliberates is lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/when-love-once-pleads-admission-to-our-hearts-in-spite-of-all-the/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Many actions calculated to procure fame are not conducive to ultimate happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/many-actions-calculated-to-procure-fame-are-not-conducive-to-ultimate/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [T is liberty crowns Britannia's Isle, And makes her barren rocks and her bleak mountains smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/t-is-liberty-crowns-britannia-s-isle-and-makes-her-barren-rocks-and/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Reading is a basic tool in the living of a good life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/reading-is-a-basic-tool-in-the-living-of-a-good-life/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [The moral perfections of the Deity, the more attentively, we consider, the more perfectly still shall we know them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-moral-perfections-of-the-deity-the-more-attentively-we-consider/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [The utmost we can hope for in this world is contentment; if we aim at anything higher, we shall meet with nothing but grief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-utmost-we-can-hope-for-in-this-world-is-contentment-if-we-aim-at/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Courage that grows from constitution often forsakes a man when he has occasion for it; courage which arises from a sense of duty acts;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/courage-that-grows-from-constitution-often-forsakes-a-man-when-he-has/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [The most skillful flattery is to let a person talk on, and be a listener.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/the-most-skillful-flattery-is-to-let-a-person-talk-on-and-be-a/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) [Explore all 620 Joseph Addison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) ## More Anxious quotes > [Most people do surprisingly poorly when dealing with a relative who is hurting, depressed, or anxious - we get defensive and try to solve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-d-burns/most-people-do-surprisingly-poorly-when-dealing-with-a-relative-who/) [David D. Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-d-burns/) > [“Do Not Be Anxious 25 e “Therefore I tell you,  f do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-not-be-anxious-25-e-therefore-i-tell-you-f-do-not-be-anxious-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [According to Shakyamuni Buddha, it's normal for human beings to be anxious, because it's normal for human beings not to understand themselves. When you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reb-anderson/according-to-shakyamuni-buddha-it-s-normal-for-human-beings-to-be/) [Reb Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reb-anderson/) > [Be lamps unto yourselves. Be refuges unto yourselves. Take yourself no external refuge. Hold fast to the truth as a lamp. Hold fast to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/be-lamps-unto-yourselves-be-refuges-unto-yourselves-take-yourself-no/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [Even speed, when we are anxious, seems like delay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/even-speed-when-we-are-anxious-seems-like-delay/) [Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/) > [I'd like to be able to do complex math in my head. Any kind of adversity and I become very anxious, but if you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-woods/i-d-like-to-be-able-to-do-complex-math-in-my-head-any-kind-of/) [Zach Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-woods/) > [There were times when depression, anxiety, whatever, would keep me from writing. I still get depressed and anxious, but I just don't let it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-st-john/there-were-times-when-depression-anxiety-whatever-would-keep-me-from/) [David St. John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-st-john/) > [The millennials were raised in a cocoon, their anxious parents afraid to let them go out in the park to play. So should we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-gibbs/the-millennials-were-raised-in-a-cocoon-their-anxious-parents-afraid/) [Nancy Gibbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-gibbs/) > [He who believes in God is not careful for the morrow, but labors joyfully and with a great heart. "For He giveth His beloved,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/he-who-believes-in-god-is-not-careful-for-the-morrow-but-labors/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [I'm a very anxious, nervy kind of loser in many ways, and I get very stressed and a little tense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-weeks/i-m-a-very-anxious-nervy-kind-of-loser-in-many-ways-and-i-get-very/) [Ed Weeks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-weeks/) > [Dogs seek attention from you. But by paying them that attention when they want it, you're reinforcing the bad or hyperactive or anxious behavior…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-millan/dogs-seek-attention-from-you-but-by-paying-them-that-attention-when/) [Cesar Millan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-millan/) > [I am not anxious to be the loudest voice or the most popular. 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But I will say that there was reason to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-carney/i-it-s-simply-not-for-me-to-evaluate-an-independent-rating-agency-s/) [Jay Carney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-carney/) > [I don't understand why gay people are so anxious to get married.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miriam-margolyes/i-don-t-understand-why-gay-people-are-so-anxious-to-get-married/) [Miriam Margolyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miriam-margolyes/) [Browse all 1,159 Anxious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anxious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Oh! think what anxious moments pass between The birth of plots, and their last fatal periods, Oh! 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