--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Revenge is living well, without you…" description: "\"“Revenge is living well, without you. -Joyce Carol Oates”\" — Larry Smith" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/larry-smith-32874_living-well_revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce_1586256.jpg" --- # Revenge is living well, without you. -Joyce Carol Oates ![“Revenge is living well, without you. -Joyce Carol Oates” quote by Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/larry-smith-32874_living-well_revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce_1586256.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/larry-smith-32874_living-well_revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce_1586256.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/larry-smith-32874_living-well_revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce_1586256.jpg) > ““Revenge is living well, without you. -Joyce Carol Oates”” [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Living well after a loss is a form of revenge against the past, emphasizing personal flourishing. **In simple terms:** Live well after loss. Key Takeaway Focus on personal growth post‑trauma. Themes revenge living well loss resilience Mood reflective empowering Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - grief counseling - career advancement - creative projects - relationship healing Key Concepts psychology self‑actualization Questions to Reflect On - How do you define revenge in healing? - What does “living well” look like for you? A Different Perspective May trivialize grief. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carol-oates-4576294/) [Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joyce/) [Joyce Carol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joyce-carol-4576295/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joyce-carol-oates/) [Living Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/living-joyce-6002320/) [Living well](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/living-well/) [Revenge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revenge/) [Revenge Living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revenge-living-827045/) ## Related quotes > [I love Joyce Carol Oates. I love Margaret Atwood, T.C. Boyle. Arthur Phillips is always consistent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/i-love-joyce-carol-oates-i-love-margaret-atwood-t-c-boyle-arthur/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [When I was in college, I had the good fortune to have Joyce Carol Oates as my writing teacher. She told me that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-ames/when-i-was-in-college-i-had-the-good-fortune-to-have-joyce-carol/) [Jonathan Ames](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-ames/) > [I took a couple of creative writing classes with Joyce Carol Oates at Princeton University, and in my senior year there, I took a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/i-took-a-couple-of-creative-writing-classes-with-joyce-carol-oates-at/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [I don't teach literature from my perspective as 'Joyce Carol Oates.' I try to teach fiction from the perspective of each writer. If I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/i-don-t-teach-literature-from-my-perspective-as-joyce-carol-oates-i/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Paper is like Joyce Carol Oates: white.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caryl-churchill/paper-is-like-joyce-carol-oates-white/) [Caryl Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caryl-churchill/) > [Unless you're Stephen King or Joyce Carol Oates, no one's going to recognize you on the street, and you're promoting your book, not yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debra-dean/unless-you-re-stephen-king-or-joyce-carol-oates-no-one-s-going-to/) [Debra Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debra-dean/) > [I don’t ask writers about their work habits. I really don’t care. Joyce Carol Oates says somewhere that when writers ask each other what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/i-don-t-ask-writers-about-their-work-habits-i-really-don-t-care-joyce/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [“I recommend readers to be adventurous and to try things they’ve never heard of or considered reading before. Get out of the comfort zone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/i-recommend-readers-to-be-adventurous-and-to-try-things-they-ve-never/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafón](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [In college, I discovered the Joyce Carol Oates short story 'Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?' which is definitely one of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/in-college-i-discovered-the-joyce-carol-oates-short-story-where-are/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [I know I'm gonna die so my revenge is living well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robbie-williams/i-know-i-m-gonna-die-so-my-revenge-is-living-well/) [Robbie Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robbie-williams/) > [revenge is living well with out you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/revenge-is-living-well-with-out-you/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [“They say the best revenge is living well. I say it's acid in the face -- who will love them now?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mindy-kaling/they-say-the-best-revenge-is-living-well-i-say-it-s-acid-in-the-face/) [Mindy Kaling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mindy-kaling/) > [The best revenge is living a successful life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-best-revenge-is-living-a-successful-life/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“However, you should know I disagree with a lot of traditional advice. For instance, they say the best revenge is living well. I say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mindy-kaling/however-you-should-know-i-disagree-with-a-lot-of-traditional-advice/) [Mindy Kaling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mindy-kaling/) > [There is no need for revenge. Living happily ever after is a sign that you have not let the past beat you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-no-need-for-revenge-living-happily-ever-after-is-a-sign-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Larry Smith > [“Well, I thought it was funny. -Stephen Colbert”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/well-i-thought-it-was-funny-stephen-colbert/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [Find and use your passion, and you'll have a great career. Don't do it, you won't. It's as simple as that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/find-and-use-your-passion-and-you-ll-have-a-great-career-don-t-do-it/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [“Followed rules, not dreams. Never again. -Margaret Hellerstein”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/followed-rules-not-dreams-never-again-margaret-hellerstein/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [“Tattoos made my skin more 'me.' -Melissa Maxwell”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/tattoos-made-my-skin-more-me-melissa-maxwell/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [“Her blue eyes capture the distance. -Sonya Cheuse”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/her-blue-eyes-capture-the-distance-sonya-cheuse/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [“I'm the fine print; read closely. -Kristina Grish”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/i-m-the-fine-print-read-closely-kristina-grish/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [“My cat is an ungrateful brat. -Nellie McKay”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/my-cat-is-an-ungrateful-brat-nellie-mckay/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [“I live the perfect imperfect life. -Paul Lore”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/i-live-the-perfect-imperfect-life-paul-lore/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [“At least I never voted Republican. -Tony Kushner”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/at-least-i-never-voted-republican-tony-kushner/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [We live in a world where people think that finding a passion is so rare that if you find one you're the luckiest person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/we-live-in-a-world-where-people-think-that-finding-a-passion-is-so/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [Just because you're passionately interested in something doesn't mean it has to be your career. You might have to look for more than one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/just-because-you-re-passionately-interested-in-something-doesn-t-mean/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [“My first addiction was to books. -B. Chelsea Adams”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/my-first-addiction-was-to-books-b-chelsea-adams/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [“Taking a lifetime to grow up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/taking-a-lifetime-to-grow-up/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) > [If you've never tasted what it's like to get up in the morning and be pleased to go to work, you don't know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/if-you-ve-never-tasted-what-it-s-like-to-get-up-in-the-morning-and-be/) [Larry Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) [Explore all 15 Larry Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/) ## More Joyce quotes > [I'm not one of those James Joyce intellectuals who can stand back and look at the whole edifice... It was a slow process for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-m-not-one-of-those-james-joyce-intellectuals-who-can-stand-back-and/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I think I succeeded as a writer because I did not come out of an English department. I used to write in the chemistry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-think-i-succeeded-as-a-writer-because-i-did-not-come-out-of-an/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [James Joyce actually is rewarding you in all of these incredible ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-andrews/james-joyce-actually-is-rewarding-you-in-all-of-these-incredible-ways/) [Jesse Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-andrews/) > [Great books are readable anyway. Dickens is readable. Jane Austen is readable. John Updike's readable. Hawthorne's readable. It's a meaningless term. You have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/great-books-are-readable-anyway-dickens-is-readable-jane-austen-is/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [If you ever want to understand multitasking in prose, James Joyce is your man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-delaney/if-you-ever-want-to-understand-multitasking-in-prose-james-joyce-is/) [Frank Delaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-delaney/) > [“(Unlike many others around this time, Joyce felt no shame about using the term 'middle class'. In the Chalfen lexicon the middle classes were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/unlike-many-others-around-this-time-joyce-felt-no-shame-about-using/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [“James Joyce married a woman named Nora Barnacle. She once said to him, ‘Why don’t you write books people can read?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lloyd/james-joyce-married-a-woman-named-nora-barnacle-she-once-said-to-him/) [John Lloyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lloyd/) > [ James Joyce is a cul-de-sac. \[Ulysses is\] ... an example how literature branched out and went into, lost itself in nowhere, no man's land. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/james-joyce-is-a-cul-de-sac-ulysses-is-an-example-how-literature/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [James Joyce is right about history being a nightmare-- but it may be that nightmare from which no one can awaken. People are trapped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-baldwin/james-joyce-is-right-about-history-being-a-nightmare-but-it-may-be/) [James A. Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-baldwin/) > [I took a couple of creative writing classes with Joyce Carol Oates at Princeton University, and in my senior year there, I took a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/i-took-a-couple-of-creative-writing-classes-with-joyce-carol-oates-at/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [Jesse Joyce is a great writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-attell/jesse-joyce-is-a-great-writer/) [Dave Attell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-attell/) > [Lord, what if I miss You? What if I miss You? What if I miss You? Oh, I'm so scared! God, what if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/lord-what-if-i-miss-you-what-if-i-miss-you-what-if-i-miss-you-oh-i-m/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [In translation studies we talk about domestication - translation styles that make something familiar - or estrangement - translation styles that make something radically…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-colla/in-translation-studies-we-talk-about-domestication-translation-styles/) [Elliott Colla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-colla/) > [If you word-spot James Joyce, you'll miss the entire experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maryanne-wolf/if-you-word-spot-james-joyce-you-ll-miss-the-entire-experience/) [Maryanne Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maryanne-wolf/) > [What did Nabokov and Joyce have in common, apart from the poor teeth and the great prose? Exile, and decades of near pauperism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/what-did-nabokov-and-joyce-have-in-common-apart-from-the-poor-teeth/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) [Browse all 151 Joyce quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joyce/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Revenge is living well, without you. -Joyce Carol Oates”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Larry Smith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce-carol-oates/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Joyce" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce-carol-oates/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/larry-smith-32874_living-well_revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce_1586256.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/larry-smith-32874_living-well_revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce_1586256.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3e/larry-smith-32874_living-well_revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce_1586256.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Revenge is living well, without you. -Joyce Carol Oates” — Larry Smith", "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": "Larry Smith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-smith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Revenge is living well, without you....", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce-carol-oates/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-smith/revenge-is-living-well-without-you-joyce-carol-oates/#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 } } ] } ```