--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The worst thing in the world is to be…" description: "\"“The worst thing in the world is to be inside yourself, you don't even want to be rescued.”\" — M. John Harrison" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39e/m-john-harrison-15805_rescued_the-worst-thing-in-the-world-is-to-be-in_2884758.jpg" --- # The worst thing in the world is to be inside yourself, you… ![“The worst thing in the world is to be inside yourself, you don't even want to be rescued.” quote by M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39e/m-john-harrison-15805_rescued_the-worst-thing-in-the-world-is-to-be-in_2884758.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39e/m-john-harrison-15805_rescued_the-worst-thing-in-the-world-is-to-be-in_2884758.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39e/m-john-harrison-15805_rescued_the-worst-thing-in-the-world-is-to-be-in_2884758.jpg) > ““The worst thing in the world is to be inside yourself, you don't even want to be rescued.”” [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Feeling trapped inside oneself prevents growth and connection; rescue requires openness to external help. **In simple terms:** Being stuck inside yourself blocks growth. Key Takeaway Seek help and open up. Themes self‑isolation growth connection Mood lonely reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal crisis - therapy - creative block - relationship issues Key Concepts psychology existentialism Questions to Reflect On - What are you avoiding inside yourself? - How could others help you? A Different Perspective Opening up can be risky and may expose vulnerability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Rescued](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rescued/) [Want Rescued](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-rescued-2311934/) [World Inside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-inside/) [Worst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worst/) [Worst thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worst-thing/) ## Related quotes > [Sometimes the things we want to be rescued from can save us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-harmon/sometimes-the-things-we-want-to-be-rescued-from-can-save-us/) [Amy Harmon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-harmon/) > [“He is on a mission to rescue a people who are so utterly deceived most of them don’t even want to be rescued.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eldredge/he-is-on-a-mission-to-rescue-a-people-who-are-so-utterly-deceived/) [John Eldredge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eldredge/) > [Oh, the things we invent when we are scared and want to be rescued.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-siken/oh-the-things-we-invent-when-we-are-scared-and-want-to-be-rescued/) [Richard Siken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-siken/) > [“Art cannot save the world, but it does help you understand the world inside of you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krist-pauwels/art-cannot-save-the-world-but-it-does-help-you-understand-the-world/) [Krist Pauwels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krist-pauwels/) > [“No Man Is an Island; Every Book Is a World Inside,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/no-man-is-an-island-every-book-is-a-world-inside/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [It is absurd to go away from the world while searching the Truth because it is in the world and inside the man here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samael-aun-weor/it-is-absurd-to-go-away-from-the-world-while-searching-the-truth/) [Samael Aun Weor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samael-aun-weor/) > [Humans had built a world inside the world, which reflected it in pretty much the same way as a drop of water reflected the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/humans-had-built-a-world-inside-the-world-which-reflected-it-in/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Everyone lives in two worlds,” Maggie said, speaking in an absentminded sort of way while she studied her letters. “There’s the real world, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-hill/everyone-lives-in-two-worlds-maggie-said-speaking-in-an-absentminded/) [Joe Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-hill/) > [There are two worlds we live in: a material world, bound by the laws of physics, and the world inside our mind, which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/there-are-two-worlds-we-live-in-a-material-world-bound-by-the-laws-of/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [“If this is a dream the whole world is inside it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-benioff/if-this-is-a-dream-the-whole-world-is-inside-it/) [David Benioff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-benioff/) > [This tremendous world I have inside of me. How to free myself, and this world, without tearing myself to pieces. And rather tear myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tremendous-world-i-have-inside-of-me-how-to-free-myself-and-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I can't control the world outside, but I can control the world inside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-can-t-control-the-world-outside-but-i-can-control-the-world-inside/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let the end of the world be inside you, then you don't need to fear the end of the world out there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/let-the-end-of-the-world-be-inside-you-then-you-don-t-need-to-fear/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“It felt like there was a whole world inside her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/it-felt-like-there-was-a-whole-world-inside-her/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [ “The tremendous world I have inside my head. But how \[to\] free myself and free it without being torn to pieces. And a thousand… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-tremendous-world-i-have-inside-my-head-but-how-to-free-myself-and/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) ## More by M. John Harrison > [Identity is not negotiable. An identity you have achieved by agreement is always a prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/identity-is-not-negotiable-an-identity-you-have-achieved-by-agreement/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [Perception of a state is not the state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/perception-of-a-state-is-not-the-state/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [I think it's undignified to read for the purposes of escape. After you grow up, you should start reading for other purposes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/i-think-it-s-undignified-to-read-for-the-purposes-of-escape-after-you/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [Everyone loves a mysterious country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/everyone-loves-a-mysterious-country/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“As they moved from exhibit to exhibit like reluctant tourists in some artist's studio, Buffin sat on a stool with his limbs tense. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/as-they-moved-from-exhibit-to-exhibit-like-reluctant-tourists-in-some/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“He ran toward the light. When he passed the corpse of his dead friend, he began to weep again. He picked up his sword.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/he-ran-toward-the-light-when-he-passed-the-corpse-of-his-dead-friend/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“Some internal process held him rapt. He had begun, perhaps, to map the paths inside himself which led to the Past. This gave him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/some-internal-process-held-him-rapt-he-had-begun-perhaps-to-map-the/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [Budapest is a prime site for dreams: the East’s exuberant vision of the West, the West’s uneasy hallucination of the East. It is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/budapest-is-a-prime-site-for-dreams-the-east-s-exuberant-vision-of/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [Writing's like gambling. Unpredictable and sporadic successes make you more addicted, not less.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/writing-s-like-gambling-unpredictable-and-sporadic-successes-make-you/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“You can't cure people of their character,' she read. After this he had crossed something out then gone on, 'You can't even change yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/you-can-t-cure-people-of-their-character-she-read-after-this-he-had/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“When the landed gentry cut up a seed cake for tea it makes no difference to the cake which of them holds the knife;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/when-the-landed-gentry-cut-up-a-seed-cake-for-tea-it-makes-no/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [Egnaro is a secret known to everyone but yourself. It is a country or a city to which you have never been; it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/egnaro-is-a-secret-known-to-everyone-but-yourself-it-is-a-country-or/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [A good ground rule for writing in any genre is, start with a form, then undermine its confidence in itself. Ask what it's afraid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/a-good-ground-rule-for-writing-in-any-genre-is-start-with-a-form-then/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“Write something about me then,' he said when I came back. He grinned. 'Go on! Now! I bet you can!' 'I don't do portraits,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/write-something-about-me-then-he-said-when-i-came-back-he-grinned-go/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“I think it’s undignified to read for the purposes of escape…. If you read for escape you will never try to change your life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/i-think-it-s-undignified-to-read-for-the-purposes-of-escape-if-you/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) [Explore all 41 M. John Harrison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) ## More Rescued quotes > [“Plenty of animals had pets, but few were more devoted than the mouse, who owned a baby corn snake—“A rescue snake, she’d be quick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/plenty-of-animals-had-pets-but-few-were-more-devoted-than-the-mouse/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [“I’m not saying Jesus won’t come back; I’ve just decided I can’t keep hoping to be rescued from my life. Maybe it’s up to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-hartzler/i-m-not-saying-jesus-won-t-come-back-i-ve-just-decided-i-can-t-keep/) [Aaron Hartzler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-hartzler/) > [“Then you know Prometheus was rescued in the end. His chains were broken, and he was finally set free." The old man squinted one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-selznick/then-you-know-prometheus-was-rescued-in-the-end-his-chains-were/) [Brian Selznick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-selznick/) > [“It’s okay if you need to be saved. Sometimes even the strongest, most independent people need to be rescued.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-dominguez/it-s-okay-if-you-need-to-be-saved-sometimes-even-the-strongest-most/) [Ella Dominguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-dominguez/) > [“We must wait," she said. "They are involved in important buisness." Her tone was serious, almost reverntial. The two of them stopped, some five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/we-must-wait-she-said-they-are-involved-in-important-buisness-her/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [“She smiled thoughtfully. “I think Jackson was like a lost puppy. He needed purpose, someone to believe in him and love him despite his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-wade/she-smiled-thoughtfully-i-think-jackson-was-like-a-lost-puppy-he/) [Rachael Wade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-wade/) > [“When you let go of control and commit yourself to happiness, it is so easy to offer compassion and forgiveness. This propels you from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/when-you-let-go-of-control-and-commit-yourself-to-happiness-it-is-so/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) > [“I'm finally numb, so pleas don't get me rescued.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-s-mannequin/i-m-finally-numb-so-pleas-don-t-get-me-rescued/) [Jack's Mannequin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-s-mannequin/) > [I went to Thailand and built a village for 27 rescued children and this is where my passion to help prevent modern day slavery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-batstone/i-went-to-thailand-and-built-a-village-for-27-rescued-children-and/) [David Batstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-batstone/) > [She no longer believed in talk. It never rescued anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/she-no-longer-believed-in-talk-it-never-rescued-anything/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [When you look into the eyes of an animal youve rescued, you cant help but fall in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-shaffer/when-you-look-into-the-eyes-of-an-animal-youve-rescued-you-cant-help/) [Paul Shaffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-shaffer/) > [I feel that I had been rescued from the gutter by America. One day I was under the gutter, chased by police, thinking dogs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-foreman/i-feel-that-i-had-been-rescued-from-the-gutter-by-america-one-day-i/) [George Foreman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-foreman/) > [Those who've been rescued from sin are best able to help in the rescue of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-williams/those-who-ve-been-rescued-from-sin-are-best-able-to-help-in-the/) [Marvin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-williams/) > [“He is on a mission to rescue a people who are so utterly deceived most of them don’t even want to be rescued.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eldredge/he-is-on-a-mission-to-rescue-a-people-who-are-so-utterly-deceived/) [John Eldredge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eldredge/) > [“Those the Lord has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scotty-smith/those-the-lord-has-rescued-will-return-they-will-enter-zion-with/) [Scotty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scotty-smith/) [Browse all 127 Rescued quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rescued/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The worst thing in the world is to be inside yourself, you don't even want to be rescued.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "M. 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