---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In the evenings there's been thunder, a…"
description: "\"In the evenings there's been thunder, a distant bumping and stumbling, like God on a sullen binge.\" — Margaret Atwood"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/margaret-atwood-40_binge_in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-d_2250398.jpg"
---

#  In the evenings there's been thunder, a distant bumping…

![“In the evenings there's been thunder, a distant bumping and stumbling, like God on a sullen binge.” quote by Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/margaret-atwood-40_binge_in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-d_2250398.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/margaret-atwood-40_binge_in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-d_2250398.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/margaret-atwood-40_binge_in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-d_2250398.jpg)

> “In the evenings there's been thunder, a distant bumping and stumbling, like God on a sullen binge.”

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

## About This Quote

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

The line evokes a chaotic, divine-like turmoil that mirrors inner turmoil and external conflict.

**In simple terms:** God’s anger feels like noisy, restless storms.

Key Takeaway

Acknowledge and channel inner chaos constructively.

Themes

conflict divine inner turmoil chaos emotion

Mood

dark intense reflective

Type

literary poetic

When to use this quote

- personal crisis
- creative writing
- spiritual reflection

Key Concepts

mythology psychology existentialism

Questions to Reflect On

- How does divine imagery shape your perception of conflict?
- What personal storms are you confronting?

A Different Perspective

The metaphor may over‑dramatize ordinary stress.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Binge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/binge/) [Evening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evening/) [Evenings Thunder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evenings-thunder-5138331/) [Stumbling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stumbling/) [Stumbling Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stumbling-like-4708091/) [Sullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sullen/) [Sullen Binge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sullen-binge-5138332/) [Thunder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thunder/) [Thunder Distant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thunder-distant-5138333/) [Weather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weather/)

## Related quotes

> [We were lining up and counting off nice and easy till you came stumbling through like a doped-up bull,' Minho responded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dashner/we-were-lining-up-and-counting-off-nice-and-easy-till-you-came/)

[James Dashner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dashner/)

> [The spleen is seldom felt where Flora reigns; The low'ring eye, the petulance, the frown, And sullen sadness, that o'ershade, distort, And mar the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/the-spleen-is-seldom-felt-where-flora-reigns-the-low-ring-eye-the/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [She is a loner, too bright for the slutty girls and too savage for the bright girls, haunting the edges and corners of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-catton/she-is-a-loner-too-bright-for-the-slutty-girls-and-too-savage-for-the/)

[Eleanor Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-catton/)

> [Things are sullen, and will be as they are, whatever we think them or wish them to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-cudworth/things-are-sullen-and-will-be-as-they-are-whatever-we-think-them-or/)

[Ralph Cudworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-cudworth/)

> [Now small fowls flew screaming over the yet yawning gulf; a sullen white surf beat against its steep sides; then all collapsed; and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/now-small-fowls-flew-screaming-over-the-yet-yawning-gulf-a-sullen/)

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

> [God, deliver me from sullen saints.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-of-vila/god-deliver-me-from-sullen-saints/)

[Teresa of Avila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-of-vila/)

> [“There was a lot of Sullen Malarkey on John's part.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-echols/there-was-a-lot-of-sullen-malarkey-on-john-s-part/)

[Jennifer Echols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-echols/)

> [There is a time of life somewhere between the sullen fugues of adolescence and the retrenchments of middle age when human nature becomes so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hoagland/there-is-a-time-of-life-somewhere-between-the-sullen-fugues-of/)

[Edward Hoagland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hoagland/)

> [When I am feeling depressed and anxious sullen all you have to do is take off your clothes and all is wiped away revealing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-o-hara/when-i-am-feeling-depressed-and-anxious-sullen-all-you-have-to-do-is/)

[Frank O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-o-hara/)

> [I desire Virtue, though I love her not- I have no faith in her when she is got: I fear that she will bind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-wickham/i-desire-virtue-though-i-love-her-not-i-have-no-faith-in-her-when-she/)

[Anna Wickham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-wickham/)

> [ What would it mean in practice to eliminate all the 'negative people' from one's life \[as demanded by motivational speaker J.P. Maroney\]? It might… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/what-would-it-mean-in-practice-to-eliminate-all-the-negative-people/)

[Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/)

> [And by his smile, I knew that sullen hall, By his dead smile I knew we stood in Hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfred-owen/and-by-his-smile-i-knew-that-sullen-hall-by-his-dead-smile-i-knew-we/)

[Wilfred Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfred-owen/)

> [No person who has not spent a period of his life in those 'stark and sullen solitudes that sentinel the Pole' will understand fully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-shackleton/no-person-who-has-not-spent-a-period-of-his-life-in-those-stark-and/)

[Ernest Shackleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-shackleton/)

> [Britannia's shame! There took her gloomy flight, On wing impetuous, a black sullen soul . Less base the fear of death than fear of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-young/britannia-s-shame-there-took-her-gloomy-flight-on-wing-impetuous-a/)

[Edward Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-young/)

> [“I doubt taking in a sullen, bitter, teenage girl with more issues than National Geographic is at the center of the vision board for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katja-millay/i-doubt-taking-in-a-sullen-bitter-teenage-girl-with-more-issues-than/)

[Katja Millay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katja-millay/)

## More by Margaret Atwood

> [“I'm fine," said Pilar, "for the moment. And the moment is the only time we can be fine in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-m-fine-said-pilar-for-the-moment-and-the-moment-is-the-only-time-we/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [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/)

> [“Mary: Some call this "Eve's curse," but I think that is stupid because the real curse of Eve was having to put up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/mary-some-call-this-eve-s-curse-but-i-think-that-is-stupid-because/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“The birds were singing around me, but I reflected that the very birds were strangers to me, for I did not even know their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-birds-were-singing-around-me-but-i-reflected-that-the-very-birds/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“Strange how we decorate pain. These ribbons, for instance, and the small hard teardrops of blood. Who are they for? Do we think the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/strange-how-we-decorate-pain-these-ribbons-for-instance-and-the-small/)

[margaret atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [I wanted to forget the past, but it refused to forget me; it waited for sleep, then cornered me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-wanted-to-forget-the-past-but-it-refused-to-forget-me-it-waited-for/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“Back at home they drew the curtains and read, with disapproval, with relish, with avidity and glee - even the ones who'd never thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/back-at-home-they-drew-the-curtains-and-read-with-disapproval-with/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“It's my fault. I am forgetting too much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-my-fault-i-am-forgetting-too-much/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [All fiction is about people, unless it's about rabbits pretending to be people. It's all essentially characters in action, which means characters moving through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/all-fiction-is-about-people-unless-it-s-about-rabbits-pretending-to/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“Simon walks back to the house alone. The night is clear and warm, with a moon, almost full, enclosed in a nimbus of mist;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/simon-walks-back-to-the-house-alone-the-night-is-clear-and-warm-with/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“There is indeed something delightful about being able to combine obedience and disobedience in the same act.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-is-indeed-something-delightful-about-being-able-to-combine/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“Every time the women appear, Snowman is astonished all over again. They're every known colour from the deepest black to whitest white, they're various…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/every-time-the-women-appear-snowman-is-astonished-all-over-again-they/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [Once you publish a book, it is out of your control. You cannot dictate how people read it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/once-you-publish-a-book-it-is-out-of-your-control-you-cannot-dictate/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“The more difficult it was to love the particular man beside us, the more we believed in Love, abstract and total. We were waiting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-more-difficult-it-was-to-love-the-particular-man-beside-us-the/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“She knows she's deceiving herself about that, but she prefers to deceive herself. She desperately needs to believe such pure joy is still possible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/she-knows-she-s-deceiving-herself-about-that-but-she-prefers-to/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

[Explore all 2,072 Margaret Atwood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

## More Binge quotes

> [We are on a sexual binge in this country. ... One consequence of this binge is that while people now get into bed more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shana-alexander/we-are-on-a-sexual-binge-in-this-country-one-consequence-of-this/)

[Shana Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shana-alexander/)

> [Audiences are hungry for something different. With binge-watching, they're hungry for interesting content they haven't seen before, and they want to be entertained. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-millar/audiences-are-hungry-for-something-different-with-binge-watching-they/)

[Miles Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-millar/)

> [But, how many times can you get exactly what you want, when you want it? Not very often. So, why not have it with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenji-kohan/but-how-many-times-can-you-get-exactly-what-you-want-when-you-want-it/)

[Jenji Kohan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenji-kohan/)

> [The audience has spoken, they want stories. They're dying for them. They're rooting for us to give them the right thing and they will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/the-audience-has-spoken-they-want-stories-they-re-dying-for-them-they/)

[Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/)

> [It's fun, with 'Bloodline,' because people who come up and recognize me for that really want to know what's happening. The people who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-cardellini/it-s-fun-with-bloodline-because-people-who-come-up-and-recognize-me/)

[Linda Cardellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-cardellini/)

> [I binge write. I think it's because I started seriously writing by participating in National Novel Writing Month, an online-based challenge to write 50,000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-morgenstern/i-binge-write-i-think-it-s-because-i-started-seriously-writing-by/)

[Erin Morgenstern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-morgenstern/)

> [There is a big problem. The problem is the country borrowed too much. We went on a borrowing binge, there was a housing boom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-osborne/there-is-a-big-problem-the-problem-is-the-country-borrowed-too-much/)

[George Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-osborne/)

> [Energy-fire experiences take us into ourselves only that we might reach outside of ourselves. Metanoia is a de-centering experience of connected-ness and community. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-sweet/energy-fire-experiences-take-us-into-ourselves-only-that-we-might/)

[Leonard Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-sweet/)

> [I watch very little television, actually. There's so many shows I want to watch and then I know I'll get hooked and I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geena-davis/i-watch-very-little-television-actually-there-s-so-many-shows-i-want/)

[Geena Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geena-davis/)

> [Barack Obama is facing a financial emergency on a grander scale. Yet his approach has been to engage in one of the biggest peacetime…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitt-romney/barack-obama-is-facing-a-financial-emergency-on-a-grander-scale-yet/)

[Mitt Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitt-romney/)

> [There is nothing in the world more helpless and irresponsible and depraved than a man in the depths of an ether binge. It makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-is-nothing-in-the-world-more-helpless-and-irresponsible-and/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [We must do all we can to empower parents and communities to protect our youth and to encourage healthy behavior free from binge drinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-corzine/we-must-do-all-we-can-to-empower-parents-and-communities-to-protect/)

[Jon Corzine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-corzine/)

> [Life itself is the proper binge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-child/life-itself-is-the-proper-binge/)

[Julia Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-child/)

> [A new study suggests that middle-aged adults who go on periodic drinking binges may face a heightened risk of dementia later on in life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-fey/a-new-study-suggests-that-middle-aged-adults-who-go-on-periodic/)

[Tina Fey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-fey/)

> [I try to keep in shape and I always have to check myself. Whenever I binge eat, sweets are the one temptation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-chestnut/i-try-to-keep-in-shape-and-i-always-have-to-check-myself-whenever-i/)

[Morris Chestnut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-chestnut/)

[Browse all 151 Binge quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/binge/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "In the evenings there's been thunder, a distant bumping and stumbling, like God on a sullen binge.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Margaret Atwood"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-distant-bumping-and-stumbling/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Binge"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-distant-bumping-and-stumbling/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/margaret-atwood-40_binge_in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-d_2250398.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/margaret-atwood-40_binge_in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-d_2250398.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/margaret-atwood-40_binge_in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-d_2250398.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“In the evenings there's been thunder, a distant bumping and stumbling, like God on a sullen binge.” — Margaret Atwood",
                "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": "Margaret Atwood",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "In the evenings there's been thunder,...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-distant-bumping-and-stumbling/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/in-the-evenings-there-s-been-thunder-a-distant-bumping-and-stumbling/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
