--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Was it happiness I'd found in my long…" description: "\"“Was it happiness I'd found in my long marriage? Or capitulation? Or is that all happiness is, capitulation?”\" — Maria Semple" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/maria-semple-2954_capitulation_was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-ma_1482750.png" --- # Was it happiness I'd found in my long marriage? Or… ![“Was it happiness I'd found in my long marriage? Or capitulation? Or is that all happiness is, capitulation?” quote by Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/maria-semple-2954_capitulation_was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-ma_1482750.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/maria-semple-2954_capitulation_was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-ma_1482750.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/maria-semple-2954_capitulation_was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-ma_1482750.png) > ““Was it happiness I'd found in my long marriage? Or capitulation? Or is that all happiness is, capitulation?”” [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote questions whether happiness is genuine fulfillment or simply surrender to circumstances, suggesting that contentment may be a form of giving up. **In simple terms:** Happiness might be just settling. Key Takeaway Examine if your contentment is true joy or passive acceptance. Themes happiness marriage self‑reflection Mood contemplative melancholic Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - relationship evaluation - career decisions - personal growth - life transitions - mental health Key Concepts psychology existentialism contentment Questions to Reflect On - Are you choosing comfort over growth? - What does capitulation mean to you? A Different Perspective It may overlook the active pursuit of deeper meaning beyond comfort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Capitulation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitulation/) [Capitulation Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitulation-happiness-5407544/) [Compromise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compromise/) [Defeat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defeat/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Happiness Capitulation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness-capitulation-5407543/) [Happiness Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness-long-309190/) [Long marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-marriage/) [Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage/) [Marriage Capitulation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage-capitulation-5407545/) ## Related quotes > [Happiness is a long walk with a putter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-norman/happiness-is-a-long-walk-with-a-putter/) [Greg Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-norman/) > [“They say the road to happiness is a long one, but I was afraid I'd run out of gas before I arrived.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-decoux/they-say-the-road-to-happiness-is-a-long-one-but-i-was-afraid-i-d-run/) [Tina deCoux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-decoux/) > [“There are no other opportunities to keep growing and improving, and yet it’s growth that generates happiness, not a long list of arbitrary achievements.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-manson/there-are-no-other-opportunities-to-keep-growing-and-improving-and/) [Mark Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-manson/) > [“two critical areas of life, everyday happiness and long-term impact,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-olson/two-critical-areas-of-life-everyday-happiness-and-long-term-impact/) [Jeff Olson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-olson/) > [I gave up love and happiness a long time ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-ramirez/i-gave-up-love-and-happiness-a-long-time-ago/) [Richard Ramirez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-ramirez/) > [Two things that are never promised, life and happiness, but as long as you're alive, find and do what makes you happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-rowe/two-things-that-are-never-promised-life-and-happiness-but-as-long-as/) [Rashida Rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-rowe/) > [“Happiness implied a choice, and within that choice a concerted will, a lucid desire. Only it takes time to be happy. A lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/happiness-implied-a-choice-and-within-that-choice-a-concerted-will-a/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“External happiness cannot last long without its counterpart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama-xiv/external-happiness-cannot-last-long-without-its-counterpart/) [Dalai Lama XIV](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama-xiv/) > [Riches can all be lost, but that happiness in your own heart can only be veiled, and it will bring you happiness again, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-frank/riches-can-all-be-lost-but-that-happiness-in-your-own-heart-can-only/) [Anne Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-frank/) > [Don't underestimate the importance of happiness. As long as you're happy, who cares what you do?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/don-t-underestimate-the-importance-of-happiness-as-long-as-you-re/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) > [All the average human being asks is something he can call a home; a family that is fed and warm; and now and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-jones/all-the-average-human-being-asks-is-something-he-can-call-a-home-a/) [Mother Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-jones/) > [“...all his smiles were just a little sad around the edges, as if he knew happiness never could last very long”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-benjamin/all-his-smiles-were-just-a-little-sad-around-the-edges-as-if-he-knew/) [Melanie Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-benjamin/) > [We may writhe in agony from pain Or laugh out loud when we find happiness As long as we're alive tomorrow will come we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miho-obana/we-may-writhe-in-agony-from-pain-or-laugh-out-loud-when-we-find/) [Miho Obana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miho-obana/) > [I have kids and I want to have a long life and there are certain things that are conducive to that and certain things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-suplee/i-have-kids-and-i-want-to-have-a-long-life-and-there-are-certain/) [Ethan Suplee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-suplee/) > [Most of the time the only difference between long-term happiness and long-term despair is not quitting on yourself. As long as you are breathing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suman-rai/most-of-the-time-the-only-difference-between-long-term-happiness-and/) [Suman Rai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suman-rai/) ## More by Maria Semple > [“The drivers here are horrible. And by horrible, I mean they don't realize I have someplace to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/the-drivers-here-are-horrible-and-by-horrible-i-mean-they-don-t/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [“Just because it's complicated, just because you think you can't ever know everything about another person, it doesn't mean you can't try.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/just-because-it-s-complicated-just-because-you-think-you-can-t-ever/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [You come out into the world after a season of TV and you're just swearing and saying mean things to people and they're looking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/you-come-out-into-the-world-after-a-season-of-tv-and-you-re-just/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [“Here’s something about Mom: she’s bad with annoyances, but great in a crisis. If a waiter doesn’t refill her water after she’s asked three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/here-s-something-about-mom-she-s-bad-with-annoyances-but-great-in-a/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [“Parking in Seattle is an eight-step process. Step one, find a place to park (gooood luuuuck!). Step two, back into the angled parking space…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/parking-in-seattle-is-an-eight-step-process-step-one-find-a-place-to/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [“Eleanor's heart giggled with mad abundance: so much to share, so much goodwill, so many notes to compare, so many ways to help and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/eleanor-s-heart-giggled-with-mad-abundance-so-much-to-share-so-much/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [After decades spent in rewrite rooms surrounded by other shouting writers, I discovered that I work best alone. I like being in charge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/after-decades-spent-in-rewrite-rooms-surrounded-by-other-shouting/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [“Ten years ago I saw a documentary on the siege of that Moscow theater. After just forty-eight hours of the terrorists confining the hostages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/ten-years-ago-i-saw-a-documentary-on-the-siege-of-that-moscow-theater/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [When I'm sitting at my computer writing, I really have this fiendish smile on my face. I am not thinking about the past or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/when-i-m-sitting-at-my-computer-writing-i-really-have-this-fiendish/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [“Every single iceberg filled me with feelings of sadness and wonder. Not thoughts of sadness and wonder, mind you, because thoughts require a thinker,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/every-single-iceberg-filled-me-with-feelings-of-sadness-and-wonder/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [“The sight of Elgie flat on the slimy dock, groaning "My wife, my wife", with a gun pointed at him, and me jumping up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/the-sight-of-elgie-flat-on-the-slimy-dock-groaning-my-wife-my-wife/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [Maggie Shipstead's prose is so graceful and muscular, so dazzling, so sure-handed and fearless, that at times I had to remind myself to breathe.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/maggie-shipstead-s-prose-is-so-graceful-and-muscular-so-dazzling-so/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [When your eyes are softly focused on the horizon for sustained periods, your brain releases endorphins. It's the same as a runner's high. These…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/when-your-eyes-are-softly-focused-on-the-horizon-for-sustained/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [My strength as a TV writer was my total lack of interest in television.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/my-strength-as-a-tv-writer-was-my-total-lack-of-interest-in-television/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [Breezy, sophisticated, hilarious, rude and aching with sweetness: LOVE, NINA might be the most charming book I've ever read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/breezy-sophisticated-hilarious-rude-and-aching-with-sweetness-love/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) [Explore all 144 Maria Semple quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) ## More Capitulation quotes > [There is a thin line between peace of the brave and peace of the hostage... between compromise - even calculated risk - and irresponsibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ehud-barak/there-is-a-thin-line-between-peace-of-the-brave-and-peace-of-the/) [Ehud Barak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ehud-barak/) > [Submission does not mean being weak or passive. It leads to neither fatalism nor capitulation. Just the opposite. True power resides in submission. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-safak/submission-does-not-mean-being-weak-or-passive-it-leads-to-neither/) [Elif Safak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-safak/) > [“I let go of control and fear and something else swept in to take their place. Surrender. Capitulation. Peace.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annabel-joseph/i-let-go-of-control-and-fear-and-something-else-swept-in-to-take/) [Annabel Joseph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annabel-joseph/) > [“The Marquis believed himself to be hardened against flattery. He thought that he had experienced every variety, but he discovered that he was mistaken:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgette-heyer/the-marquis-believed-himself-to-be-hardened-against-flattery-he/) [Georgette Heyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgette-heyer/) > [ I'm disappointed, depressed, and demoralized. \[...\] It is very hard to avoid the conclusion that President Bush flinched from a fight on constitutional philosophy.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kristol/i-m-disappointed-depressed-and-demoralized-it-is-very-hard-to-avoid/) [William Kristol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kristol/) > [I myself and my wife - in order to escape the disgrace of deposition or capitulation - choose death. It is our wish to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/i-myself-and-my-wife-in-order-to-escape-the-disgrace-of-deposition-or/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [“Nonetheless even in capitulation there is still hope, and this hope of human beings never ends, will never end.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ingeborg-bachmann/nonetheless-even-in-capitulation-there-is-still-hope-and-this-hope-of/) [Ingeborg Bachmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ingeborg-bachmann/) > [Today we ought to be able to see first that Booker T. Washington faced a situation in which he was seeking desperately for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-l-r-james/today-we-ought-to-be-able-to-see-first-that-booker-t-washington-faced/) [C. L. R. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-l-r-james/) > [The real problem is the total capitulation of German social democracy to capitalism, reflected and symbolized by actual extreme center coalition governments in Germany,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ali/the-real-problem-is-the-total-capitulation-of-german-social-democracy/) [Tariq Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ali/) > [To be honest...here is a task for all that a man has of fortitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/to-be-honest-here-is-a-task-for-all-that-a-man-has-of-fortitude/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [Getting drunk . . . you're in complete control up to a point. It's your choice, every time you take a sip. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/getting-drunk-you-re-in-complete-control-up-to-a-point-it-s-your/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) > [My sudden, unforeseen capitulation had knocked me backward, and I had nothing to hold on to. My internal weather was eerily calm, as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-christensen/my-sudden-unforeseen-capitulation-had-knocked-me-backward-and-i-had/) [Kate Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-christensen/) > [“The more virtuous the lady, the more headlong her capitulation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliana-gray/the-more-virtuous-the-lady-the-more-headlong-her-capitulation/) [Juliana Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliana-gray/) > [To be honest, to be kind-to earn a little and to spend a little less, to make upon the whole a family happier for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/to-be-honest-to-be-kind-to-earn-a-little-and-to-spend-a-little-less-2/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [Negotiations are a euphemism for capitulation if the shadow of power is not cast across the bargaining table.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/negotiations-are-a-euphemism-for-capitulation-if-the-shadow-of-power/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 39 Capitulation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitulation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Was it happiness I'd found in my long marriage? Or capitulation? Or is that all happiness is, capitulation?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Maria Semple" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-marriage-or-capitulation-or-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Capitulation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-marriage-or-capitulation-or-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/maria-semple-2954_capitulation_was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-ma_1482750.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/maria-semple-2954_capitulation_was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-ma_1482750.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/maria-semple-2954_capitulation_was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-ma_1482750.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Was it happiness I'd found in my long marriage? Or capitulation? Or is that all happiness is, capitulation?” — Maria Semple", "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": "Maria Semple", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Was it happiness I'd found in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-marriage-or-capitulation-or-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/was-it-happiness-i-d-found-in-my-long-marriage-or-capitulation-or-is/#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 } } ] } ```