--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Thus I am not able to exist either with…" description: "\"Thus I am not able to exist either with you or without you; and I seem not to know my own wishes.\" — Ovid" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/070/ovid-276_able_thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with_1851101.png" --- # Thus I am not able to exist either with you or without… ![“Thus I am not able to exist either with you or without you; and I seem not to know my own wishes.” quote by Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/070/ovid-276_able_thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with_1851101.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/070/ovid-276_able_thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with_1851101.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/070/ovid-276_able_thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with_1851101.png) > “Thus I am not able to exist either with you or without you; and I seem not to know my own wishes.” [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker expresses an inability to exist with or without the beloved, feeling uncertain about personal desires, reflecting inner conflict and emotional ambivalence. **In simple terms:** The speaker feels torn between needing and not needing the beloved. Key Takeaway Embrace self‑reflection to understand true wishes. Themes love indecision self‑knowledge conflict desire Mood melancholic introspective poetic Type literary emotional When to use this quote - relationships - personal growth - decision making - emotional health Key Concepts classical poetry emotional turmoil identity crisis Questions to Reflect On - What does it mean to truly know one’s wishes? - How can one resolve the tension between dependence and independence? A Different Perspective The statement may romanticize indecision, overlooking the need for decisive action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) [Wishes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wishes/) ## Related quotes > [“For you are you, and I am I, and once we were we… but as long as I exist and so do you –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranata-suzuki/for-you-are-you-and-i-am-i-and-once-we-were-we-but-as-long-as-i-exist/) [Ranata Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranata-suzuki/) > [I don't think I would have been able to exist in any kind of joyful, peaceful way if I hadn't been able to express…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-amstell/i-don-t-think-i-would-have-been-able-to-exist-in-any-kind-of-joyful/) [Simon Amstell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-amstell/) > [Art will never be able to exist without nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-bonnard/art-will-never-be-able-to-exist-without-nature/) [Pierre Bonnard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-bonnard/) > [It's so hard to know what to do when one wishes earnestly to do right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/it-s-so-hard-to-know-what-to-do-when-one-wishes-earnestly-to-do-right/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You have no ambition, I well know. Your wishes are all moderate.' 'As moderate as those of the rest of the world, I believe.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/you-have-no-ambition-i-well-know-your-wishes-are-all-moderate-as/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“How do we know that we exist? No one knows. Not so, you say. I think, therefore I exist. But how do you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-budziszewski-2/how-do-we-know-that-we-exist-no-one-knows-not-so-you-say-i-think/) [J Budziszewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-budziszewski-2/) > [We both exist and know that we exist, and rejoice in this knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/we-both-exist-and-know-that-we-exist-and-rejoice-in-this-knowledge/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [“Sometimes...around some people, I feel like I have to, like...try, you know?...But with you-- when I'm with you, I can just...exist. You know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-mills/sometimes-around-some-people-i-feel-like-i-have-to-like-try-you-know/) [Emma Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-mills/) > [“By knowing what exist, you can know that which does not exist. That is the void. People in this world look at things mistakenly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miyamoto-musashi/by-knowing-what-exist-you-can-know-that-which-does-not-exist-that-is/) [Miyamoto Musashi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miyamoto-musashi/) > [“First, the fact that something cannot be seen does not presuppose that it doesn’t exist. We know that black holes, electrons, the laws of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-hanegraaff/first-the-fact-that-something-cannot-be-seen-does-not-presuppose-that/) [Hank Hanegraaff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-hanegraaff/) > [“You know who Mr. Darcy is?" "I exist, therefore I know who Mr. Darcy is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cath-crowley/you-know-who-mr-darcy-is-i-exist-therefore-i-know-who-mr-darcy-is/) [Cath Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cath-crowley/) > [By knowing things that exist, you can know that which does not exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miyamoto-musashi/by-knowing-things-that-exist-you-can-know-that-which-does-not-exist/) [Miyamoto Musashi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miyamoto-musashi/) > [For all we know God may exist. For all we know we may not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/for-all-we-know-god-may-exist-for-all-we-know-we-may-not/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We are born to Exist, not to know, to be, not to assert ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-m-cioran/we-are-born-to-exist-not-to-know-to-be-not-to-assert-ourselves/) [Emile M. Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-m-cioran/) > [I almost do not exist now and I know it; God knows what lives in me in place of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/i-almost-do-not-exist-now-and-i-know-it-god-knows-what-lives-in-me-in/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) ## More by Ovid > [Every woman thinks herself attractive; even the plainest is satisfied with the charms she deems that she possesses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/every-woman-thinks-herself-attractive-even-the-plainest-is-satisfied/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Suppressed grief suffocates, it rages within the breast, and is forced to multiply its strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/suppressed-grief-suffocates-it-rages-within-the-breast-and-is-forced/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Honesty, by evil fortune tried, Finds in adversity the seed of praise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/honesty-by-evil-fortune-tried-finds-in-adversity-the-seed-of-praise/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [It is some alleviation to ills we cannot cure to speak of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/it-is-some-alleviation-to-ills-we-cannot-cure-to-speak-of-them/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [ A mind conscious of right laughs at the falsehoods of rumour. \[Lat., Conscia mens recti famae mendacia risit.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/a-mind-conscious-of-right-laughs-at-the-falsehoods-of-rumour-lat/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Time is generally the best doctor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/time-is-generally-the-best-doctor/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [It is convenient that there be gods, and, as it is convenient, let us believe there are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/it-is-convenient-that-there-be-gods-and-as-it-is-convenient-let-us/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [I hate a woman who offers herself because she ought to do so, and cold and dry thinks of her sewing when making love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/i-hate-a-woman-who-offers-herself-because-she-ought-to-do-so-and-cold/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [The sea's vast depths lie open to the fish; Wherever the breezes blow the bird may fly; So to the brave man every land's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/the-sea-s-vast-depths-lie-open-to-the-fish-wherever-the-breezes-blow/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Rare is the virtue that's not ruled by Fortune, That stands unshaken even when Fortune flees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/rare-is-the-virtue-that-s-not-ruled-by-fortune-that-stands-unshaken/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Thus all things altered. Nothing dies. And here and there the unbodied spirit flies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/thus-all-things-altered-nothing-dies-and-here-and-there-the-unbodied/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [How little is the promise of the child fulfilled in the man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/how-little-is-the-promise-of-the-child-fulfilled-in-the-man/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Judgement of beauty can err, what with the wine and the dark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/judgement-of-beauty-can-err-what-with-the-wine-and-the-dark/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Leave war to others; 'tis Protesilaus' part of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/leave-war-to-others-tis-protesilaus-part-of-love/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [Remove but the temptations of leisure, and the bow of Cupid will lose its effect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/remove-but-the-temptations-of-leisure-and-the-bow-of-cupid-will-lose/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) [Explore all 771 Ovid quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) ## More Able quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [In the '80s, the way radio was programmed, if you didn't have a hit record you weren't going to be able to make any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huey-lewis/in-the-80s-the-way-radio-was-programmed-if-you-didn-t-have-a-hit/) [Huey Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huey-lewis/) > [I think I've had the longest career of strength, focus, and still being able to sell records. I think I'm that guy. I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/) [Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/) > [I wanted to remember in order to be able to return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-wanted-to-remember-in-order-to-be-able-to-return/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/) Greg Perry > [I don't know if I would qualify as mainstream. I think I have managed to function pretty successfully on the fringes of the music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/i-don-t-know-if-i-would-qualify-as-mainstream-i-think-i-have-managed/) [Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/) > [What we're supposed to do as actors is be able to portray real human beings and emotions. And if you grow up in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-browning/what-we-re-supposed-to-do-as-actors-is-be-able-to-portray-real-human/) [Emily Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-browning/) > [The reason that Apple is able to create products like iPad is because we always try to be at the intersection of technology and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-reason-that-apple-is-able-to-create-products-like-ipad-is-because/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [It was an important period for us, because even though we weren't a "punk band", and what became a model for a punk band,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mallinder/it-was-an-important-period-for-us-because-even-though-we-weren-t-a/) [Stephen Mallinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mallinder/) > [- You look fine. - Right. I look fine. Except I don't, said Zora, tugging sadly at her man's nightshirt. This was why Kiki…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-look-fine-right-i-look-fine-except-i-don-t-said-zora-tugging/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [There is a way to be a woman, ask for what we deserve and be able to negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/there-is-a-way-to-be-a-woman-ask-for-what-we-deserve-and-be-able-to/) [Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/) Browse all 17,257 Able quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Thus I am not able to exist either with you or without you; and I seem not to know my own wishes.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ovid" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with-you-or-without-you-and-i-seem/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Able" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with-you-or-without-you-and-i-seem/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/070/ovid-276_able_thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with_1851101.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/070/ovid-276_able_thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with_1851101.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/070/ovid-276_able_thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with_1851101.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Thus I am not able to exist either with you or without you; and I seem not to know my own wishes.” — Ovid", "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": "Ovid", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Thus I am not able to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with-you-or-without-you-and-i-seem/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/thus-i-am-not-able-to-exist-either-with-you-or-without-you-and-i-seem/#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 } } ] } ```