---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Fitzgerald said a very interesting thing…"
description: "\"Fitzgerald said a very interesting thing in his diary; that human life proceeds from the good to the less good - that is, it's always worse as you go o..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/michelangelo-antonioni-4776_diaries_fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing_766322.png"
---

#  Fitzgerald said a very interesting thing in his diary…

![“Fitzgerald said a very interesting thing in his diary; that human life proceeds from the good to the less good - that is, it's always worse as you go on. That's true.” quote by Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/michelangelo-antonioni-4776_diaries_fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing_766322.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/michelangelo-antonioni-4776_diaries_fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing_766322.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/michelangelo-antonioni-4776_diaries_fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing_766322.png)

> “Fitzgerald said a very interesting thing in his diary; that human life proceeds from the good to the less good - that is, it's always worse as you go on. That's true.”

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

## About This Quote

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

Human existence tends to decline in quality over time, suggesting a pessimistic view of progress.

**In simple terms:** Life often gets worse as it continues.

Key Takeaway

Accept decline, seek meaning.

Themes

pessimism human nature philosophy

Mood

melancholy reflective

Type

philosophical literary

When to use this quote

- Aging
- career setbacks
- relationship decay

Key Concepts

Existential decline nostalgia

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you find hope in decline?
- Can you identify moments of improvement?

A Different Perspective

Optimism can counteract this view.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Diaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diaries/) [Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fitzgerald/) [Fitzgerald Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fitzgerald-said-1991012/) [Goes on](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goes-on/) [Good Worse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-worse-447128/) [Human life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-life/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Interesting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interesting/) [Interesting things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interesting-things/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Very interesting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very-interesting/) [Worse True](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worse-true-1841683/)

## Related quotes

> [Every generation thinks the cultural rot during their time is worse than it's ever been. That's not true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/every-generation-thinks-the-cultural-rot-during-their-time-is-worse/)

[Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/)

> [Worse than a true evil is it to bear the burden of faults that are not truly yours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euripides/worse-than-a-true-evil-is-it-to-bear-the-burden-of-faults-that-are/)

[Euripides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euripides/)

> [All evils are to be considered with the good that is in them, and with what worse attends them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-defoe/all-evils-are-to-be-considered-with-the-good-that-is-in-them-and-with/)

[Daniel Defoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-defoe/)

> [When I do things that aren't very good, I'm worse as an actor. I don't know what I pick up - but it's something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-okonedo/when-i-do-things-that-aren-t-very-good-i-m-worse-as-an-actor-i-don-t/)

[Sophie Okonedo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-okonedo/)

> [Im starting to fall for you and I dont know if its for the good or the worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/izzy-j/im-starting-to-fall-for-you-and-i-dont-know-if-its-for-the-good-or/)

[Izzy J](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/izzy-j/)

> [“The world isn't black or white. Sometimes you need to do bad to do good and worse to do even better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-j-mcavoy/the-world-isn-t-black-or-white-sometimes-you-need-to-do-bad-to-do/)

[J.J. McAvoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-j-mcavoy/)

> [“I didn’t expect to see you, Mr. Fitzgerald,” she said, meekly. A grin slunk across his face. “No, I imagine you were expecting to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-ashley/i-didn-t-expect-to-see-you-mr-fitzgerald-she-said-meekly-a-grin-slunk/)

[Katie Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-ashley/)

> [Scott Fitzgerald said famously that 'he who invented consciousness would have a lot to be blamed for.' But he also forgot that without consciousness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-damasio/scott-fitzgerald-said-famously-that-he-who-invented-consciousness/)

[Antonio Damasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-damasio/)

> [“F. Scott Fitzgerald said, “The test of first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposite ideas in the mind at the same time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-goswami/f-scott-fitzgerald-said-the-test-of-first-rate-intelligence-is-the/)

[Amit Goswami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-goswami/)

> [“The novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald said that the real dark night of the soul was always three o’clock in the morning, and those sixty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/the-novelist-f-scott-fitzgerald-said-that-the-real-dark-night-of-the/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“F. Scott Fitzgerald said, “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-lucas/f-scott-fitzgerald-said-the-test-of-a-first-rate-intelligence-is-the/)

[Peter Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-lucas/)

> [The interesting thing about Hain is that he's not a very interesting character. He's not fabulously clever. He's not a great policeman. He's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robbie-coltraine/the-interesting-thing-about-hain-is-that-he-s-not-a-very-interesting/)

[Robbie Coltraine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robbie-coltraine/)

> [I found very interesting - trying to separate the different facets of Superman in that way. When you're aware of how people perceive you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-cavill/i-found-very-interesting-trying-to-separate-the-different-facets-of/)

[Henry Cavill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-cavill/)

> [I find it incredibly boring when people are mean about some individuals, especially if the individual has no power. I can understand how someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-moran/i-find-it-incredibly-boring-when-people-are-mean-about-some/)

[Dylan Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-moran/)

> [Songs are really just very interesting things to be doing with the air.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/songs-are-really-just-very-interesting-things-to-be-doing-with-the-air/)

[Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/)

## More by Michelangelo Antonioni

> [When you work on a character, you form in your mind an image of what he ought to look like. Then you go and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/when-you-work-on-a-character-you-form-in-your-mind-an-image-of-what/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [I can't imagine love without a sexual charge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/i-can-t-imagine-love-without-a-sexual-charge/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [I am neither a sociologist nor a politician. All I can do is imagine for myself what the future will be like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/i-am-neither-a-sociologist-nor-a-politician-all-i-can-do-is-imagine/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [We know that behind every image revealed there is another image more faithful to reality, and in the back of that image there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/we-know-that-behind-every-image-revealed-there-is-another-image-more/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [My films always leave me unsatisfied, since I've always worked under fairly disastrous conditions economically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/my-films-always-leave-me-unsatisfied-since-i-ve-always-worked-under/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [All I know is that we are loaded down with old and stale stuff - habits, customs, old attitudes already dead and gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/all-i-know-is-that-we-are-loaded-down-with-old-and-stale-stuff-habits/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [I'm not rich and maybe I'll never be rich. Money is useful - yes - but I don't worship it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/i-m-not-rich-and-maybe-i-ll-never-be-rich-money-is-useful-yes-but-i/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [I believe in the autobiographical concept only to the degree that I am able to put onto film all that's passing through my head…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/i-believe-in-the-autobiographical-concept-only-to-the-degree-that-i/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [Life should be taken ironically; otherwise, it becomes a tragedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/life-should-be-taken-ironically-otherwise-it-becomes-a-tragedy/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [Normally, however, I try to avoid repetitions of any shot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/normally-however-i-try-to-avoid-repetitions-of-any-shot/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [You can't go to an LSD or pot party unless you take it yourself. If I want to go, I must take drugs myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/you-can-t-go-to-an-lsd-or-pot-party-unless-you-take-it-yourself-if-i/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [I want an actor to try to give me what I ask in the best and most exact way possible. He mustn't try to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/i-want-an-actor-to-try-to-give-me-what-i-ask-in-the-best-and-most/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [We live in a society that compels us to go on using these concepts, and we no longer know what they mean.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/we-live-in-a-society-that-compels-us-to-go-on-using-these-concepts/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [When I see a good film, it's like a whiplash. I run away, in order not to be influenced. Thus, the films I liked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/when-i-see-a-good-film-it-s-like-a-whiplash-i-run-away-in-order-not/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

> [My work is like digging, it's archaeological research among the arid materials of our times. That's how I understand my first films, and that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/my-work-is-like-digging-it-s-archaeological-research-among-the-arid/)

[Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

[Explore all 106 Michelangelo Antonioni quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/)

## More Diaries quotes

> [My life always came first. When I got nominated for Diary of a Mad Housewife, I didn't think, 'Aah, now I'll get more money.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-snodgress/my-life-always-came-first-when-i-got-nominated-for-diary-of-a-mad/)

[Carrie Snodgress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-snodgress/)

> ['Dirt Road Diaries,' in my mind, is a perfect country guy song. It speaks to the hard-working guy, and I'm excited for the fans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-bryan/dirt-road-diaries-in-my-mind-is-a-perfect-country-guy-song-it-speaks/)

[Luke Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-bryan/)

> [I don't want to be singing my diary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norah-jones/i-don-t-want-to-be-singing-my-diary/)

[Norah Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norah-jones/)

> [Experience is the only real teacher and if you keep a diary you get three bites at educating yourself - when it happens, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-benn/experience-is-the-only-real-teacher-and-if-you-keep-a-diary-you-get/)

[Tony Benn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-benn/)

> [ I went to NYU graduate film school and met Pam \[Romanowsky\], and after doing a few things with her I thought she had the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-franco/i-went-to-nyu-graduate-film-school-and-met-pam-romanowsky-and-after/)

[James Franco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-franco/)

> [After Princess Diaries, I was labeled a good girl, and for the first eight years of my career I had to fight to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-hathaway/after-princess-diaries-i-was-labeled-a-good-girl-and-for-the-first/)

[Anne Hathaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-hathaway/)

> [I've found myself moved by letters and diaries in archives as well as trashy, summer blockbusters. It's possible to make a connection with any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/i-ve-found-myself-moved-by-letters-and-diaries-in-archives-as-well-as/)

[Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/)

> [A man's diary is a record in youth of his sentiments, in middle age of his actions, in old age of his reflections.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-quincy-adams/a-man-s-diary-is-a-record-in-youth-of-his-sentiments-in-middle-age-of/)

[John Quincy Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-quincy-adams/)

> [There are two types of encryption: one that will prevent your sister from reading your diary and one that will prevent your government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-schneier/there-are-two-types-of-encryption-one-that-will-prevent-your-sister/)

[Bruce Schneier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-schneier/)

> [I keep a diary - one for each film and foreign land I travel to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-mcconaughey/i-keep-a-diary-one-for-each-film-and-foreign-land-i-travel-to/)

[Matthew McConaughey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-mcconaughey/)

> [Don't read my diary when I'm gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-cobain/don-t-read-my-diary-when-i-m-gone/)

[Kurt Cobain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-cobain/)

> [Memory is the diary that chronicles things that never happened or couldn't possibly have happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/memory-is-the-diary-that-chronicles-things-that-never-happened-or/)

[Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/)

> [I need a moment of time for myself every day, like a child playing with his things. When I travel, I routinely find a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/i-need-a-moment-of-time-for-myself-every-day-like-a-child-playing/)

[Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/)

> [I don't keep diaries anymore; They're quite incriminating. I just keep all the dirt road diaries in my head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-bryan/i-don-t-keep-diaries-anymore-they-re-quite-incriminating-i-just-keep/)

[Luke Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-bryan/)

> [Though with Bridget Jones's Baby: the Diaries, I'd like to make it clear that I did not ever get pregnant by two men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-fielding/though-with-bridget-jones-s-baby-the-diaries-i-d-like-to-make-it/)

[Helen Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-fielding/)

[Browse all 502 Diaries quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diaries/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Fitzgerald said a very interesting thing in his diary; that human life proceeds from the good to the less good - that is, it's always worse as you go on. That's true.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Michelangelo Antonioni"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing-in-his-diary-that-human-life/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Diaries"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing-in-his-diary-that-human-life/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/michelangelo-antonioni-4776_diaries_fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing_766322.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/michelangelo-antonioni-4776_diaries_fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing_766322.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b35/michelangelo-antonioni-4776_diaries_fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing_766322.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Fitzgerald said a very interesting thing in his diary; that human life proceeds from the good to the less…” — Michelangelo Antonioni",
                "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": "Michelangelo Antonioni",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Fitzgerald said a very interesting thing...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing-in-his-diary-that-human-life/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/fitzgerald-said-a-very-interesting-thing-in-his-diary-that-human-life/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```