--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I will participate in the game. It is a…" description: "\"“I will participate in the game. It is a wonderful, wonderful opera – except that it hurts.”\" — Joseph Campbell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/joseph-campbell-300_hurts_i-will-participate-in-the-game-it-is-a-w_1412181.png" --- # I will participate in the game. It is a wonderful… ![“I will participate in the game. It is a wonderful, wonderful opera – except that it hurts.” quote by Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/joseph-campbell-300_hurts_i-will-participate-in-the-game-it-is-a-w_1412181.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/joseph-campbell-300_hurts_i-will-participate-in-the-game-it-is-a-w_1412181.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/joseph-campbell-300_hurts_i-will-participate-in-the-game-it-is-a-w_1412181.png) > ““I will participate in the game. It is a wonderful, wonderful opera – except that it hurts.”” [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Participating in life’s drama can be beautiful yet painful, reflecting the dual nature of experience. **In simple terms:** Life’s game is both wonderful and hurtful. Key Takeaway Embrace the joy and the pain of participation. Themes growth experience duality Mood thoughtful poetic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career challenges - creative projects - relationships Key Concepts mythology human condition participation Questions to Reflect On - What “opera” in your life brings both joy and suffering? - How do you balance enthusiasm with awareness of pain? A Different Perspective Pain can outweigh the wonder for some participants. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hurts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hurts/) [Opera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opera/) [Opera Hurts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opera-hurts-4979177/) [Participate Game](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/participate-game-4979178/) [Wonderful Opera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonderful-opera-3015123/) ## Related quotes > [I want to reach as many people as possible with the message of music, of wonderful opera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciano-pavarotti/i-want-to-reach-as-many-people-as-possible-with-the-message-of-music/) [Luciano Pavarotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciano-pavarotti/) > [How wonderful opera would be if there were no singers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gioachino-rossini/how-wonderful-opera-would-be-if-there-were-no-singers/) [Gioachino Rossini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gioachino-rossini/) > [Instead of Otello being an Italian opera written in the style of Shakespeare, Othello is a play written by Shakespeare in the style of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/instead-of-otello-being-an-italian-opera-written-in-the-style-of/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [I have never heard enough classical music to be able to enjoy it; & the simple truth is, I detest it. Not mildly, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-have-never-heard-enough-classical-music-to-be-able-to-enjoy-it-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Life beats down and crushes our souls and theatre reminds us that we have one. At least the type of theatre that I'm interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanford-meisner/life-beats-down-and-crushes-our-souls-and-theatre-reminds-us-that-we/) [Sanford Meisner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanford-meisner/) > [The only way to stave off boredom, in a complex domesticated primate like humankind, is to increase one's intelligence. This is not appealing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/the-only-way-to-stave-off-boredom-in-a-complex-domesticated-primate/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [Robert Duvall taught me years ago. He said, "You know theatre is not real. I don't like plays." You know, he doesn't like plays.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-bob-thornton/robert-duvall-taught-me-years-ago-he-said-you-know-theatre-is-not/) [Billy Bob Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-bob-thornton/) > [I conclude that the Wagnerian operas which are already in the repertoire, and other masterworks as well, stand in no further need of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-liszt/i-conclude-that-the-wagnerian-operas-which-are-already-in-the/) [Franz Liszt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-liszt/) > [My worry is that opera will become an historic art form as opposed to a living, breathing thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-fleming/my-worry-is-that-opera-will-become-an-historic-art-form-as-opposed-to/) [Renee Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-fleming/) > [I never wanted to be an opera singer. I wanted to be an actress, maybe a rock singer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristine-opolais/i-never-wanted-to-be-an-opera-singer-i-wanted-to-be-an-actress-maybe/) [Kristine Opolais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristine-opolais/) > [If you put together all the ingredients that naturally attract children - sex, violence, revenge, spectacle and vigorous noise - what you have is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/if-you-put-together-all-the-ingredients-that-naturally-attract/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [My horizon on humanity is enlarged by reading the writers of poems, seeing a painting, listening to some music, some opera, which has nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/my-horizon-on-humanity-is-enlarged-by-reading-the-writers-of-poems/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [All My Children taught me a great work ethic; you work so hard on a soap opera! It is a good way to start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-larue/all-my-children-taught-me-a-great-work-ethic-you-work-so-hard-on-a/) [Eva LaRue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-larue/) > [It takes a little more time to get into the role, but not very much more. In making a record you don't have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-callas/it-takes-a-little-more-time-to-get-into-the-role-but-not-very-much/) [Maria Callas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-callas/) > [I studied classical opera, so I was always singing in Italian and German and French.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wang-leehom/i-studied-classical-opera-so-i-was-always-singing-in-italian-and/) [Wang Leehom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wang-leehom/) ## More by Joseph Campbell > [If a person does not listen to the demands of their own spiritual and heart life and insists on a certain program, you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/if-a-person-does-not-listen-to-the-demands-of-their-own-spiritual-and/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The last act in the biography of the hero is that of the death or departure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-last-act-in-the-biography-of-the-hero-is-that-of-the-death-or/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-privilege-of-a-lifetime-is-being-who-you-are/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The eternal principle, which never was born, never will die: it is in all things: it is in you now. You are the wave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-eternal-principle-which-never-was-born-never-will-die-it-is-in/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [How do you find the divine power in yourself? The word enthusiasm means 'filled with a god,' so what makes you enthusiastic? Follow it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/how-do-you-find-the-divine-power-in-yourself-the-word-enthusiasm/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [What we're learning in our schools is not the wisdom of life. We're learning technologies, we're getting information. There's a curious reluctance on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/what-we-re-learning-in-our-schools-is-not-the-wisdom-of-life-we-re/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [ The fall \[of your soul\] from perfection into duality...was naturally followed by the discovery of the duality of good and evil...This is the Biblical… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-fall-of-your-soul-from-perfection-into-duality-was-naturally/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [So that's what destiny is: simply the fulfillment of the potentialites of the energies in your own system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/so-that-s-what-destiny-is-simply-the-fulfillment-of-the-potentialites/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Your ego is your embodiment and your self is your potentiality and that's what you listen to when you listen for the voice of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/your-ego-is-your-embodiment-and-your-self-is-your-potentiality-and/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [When you follow your bliss a kind of track opens up, that's always been there, waiting for you. And the life that you should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/when-you-follow-your-bliss-a-kind-of-track-opens-up-that-s-always/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The best we can do is lean towards the light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-best-we-can-do-is-lean-towards-the-light/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [I think of mythology as the homeland of the muses, the inspirers of art, the inspirers of poetry. To see life as a poem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/i-think-of-mythology-as-the-homeland-of-the-muses-the-inspirers-of/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [When you are falling --- Dive!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/when-you-are-falling-dive/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [We're all seeking...the rapture of being alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/we-re-all-seeking-the-rapture-of-being-alive/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Both the artist and the lover know that perfection is not loveable. It is the clumsiness of a fault that makes a person lovable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/both-the-artist-and-the-lover-know-that-perfection-is-not-loveable-it/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) [Explore all 711 Joseph Campbell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) ## More Hurts quotes > [It hurts wanting the best for someone you love, even if they feel the best isn't you. That's real love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-hurts-wanting-the-best-for-someone-you-love-even-if-they-feel-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I love you with all my heart, but I didn't know true love hurts so hard, I love and I miss you, every single…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-love-you-with-all-my-heart-but-i-didn-t-know-true-love-hurts-so/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [And yet it disturbs me to learn I have hurt someone unintentionally. I want all my hurts to be intentional.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/and-yet-it-disturbs-me-to-learn-i-have-hurt-someone-unintentionally-i/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Mistaking obsession for love is one of the greatest mistakes you'll every make”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karina-halle/mistaking-obsession-for-love-is-one-of-the-greatest-mistakes-you-ll/) [Karina Halle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karina-halle/) > [If you dance, you dance because you have to. Every dancer hurts, you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-dunham/if-you-dance-you-dance-because-you-have-to-every-dancer-hurts-you-know/) [Katherine Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-dunham/) > [“Loving someone who does not love you back hurts, alot, i know. It is liking seeing these pair of shoes at the retail store…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nomthandazo-tsembeni/loving-someone-who-does-not-love-you-back-hurts-alot-i-know-it-is/) [Nomthandazo Tsembeni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nomthandazo-tsembeni/) > [You get those hunger pains. 'I am so hungry. We don't have any food. What are we going to eat?' Your stomach hurts. Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-mclemore/you-get-those-hunger-pains-i-am-so-hungry-we-don-t-have-any-food-what/) [Ben McLemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-mclemore/) > [It hurts to fall in love with a friend. You keep on hiding your feelings, avoiding it as much as you can until you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-hurts-to-fall-in-love-with-a-friend-you-keep-on-hiding-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Why is racism still a conversation in 2020? We are all one. It hurts me. It upsets me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-van-aanholt/why-is-racism-still-a-conversation-in-2020-we-are-all-one-it-hurts-me/) [Patrick van Aanholt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-van-aanholt/) > [“I can’t be around you right now. It hurts too much, because I am so completely and desperately in love you, Tweet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-g-bailey/i-can-t-be-around-you-right-now-it-hurts-too-much-because-i-am-so/) [Alison G. Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-g-bailey/) > [“People have come, surpassed my soul and left. I have become hollow and the hollow space inside, hurts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aniket-more/people-have-come-surpassed-my-soul-and-left-i-have-become-hollow-and/) [Aniket More](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aniket-more/) > [“I hugged my mom. “Is it supposed to hurt this much, mommy?” I asked. “My sweet Sloane,” she said. “True love hurts the worst.”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/micalea-smeltzer/i-hugged-my-mom-is-it-supposed-to-hurt-this-much-mommy-i-asked-my/) [Micalea Smeltzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/micalea-smeltzer/) > [Feeling moved on but still hurts? How awkward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meicee/feeling-moved-on-but-still-hurts-how-awkward/) [Meicee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meicee/) > [I know it's a film and all of that, and it's a Hollywood film, but it kind of feels like this sometimes, when you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-marber/i-know-it-s-a-film-and-all-of-that-and-it-s-a-hollywood-film-but-it/) [Patrick Marber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-marber/) > [Perfect little dream, The kind that hurts the most.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trent-reznor/perfect-little-dream-the-kind-that-hurts-the-most/) [Trent Reznor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trent-reznor/) [Browse all 2,915 Hurts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hurts/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I will participate in the game. 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