--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And I live on, but in grief and…" description: "\"And I live on, but in grief and self-contempt, Left here without the light I loved so much, In a great tempest and with shrouds unkempt.\" — Petrarch" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/petrarch-6716_contempt_and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-cont_3013332.png" --- # And I live on, but in grief and self-contempt, Left here… ![“And I live on, but in grief and self-contempt, Left here without the light I loved so much, In a great tempest and with shrouds unkempt.” quote by Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/petrarch-6716_contempt_and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-cont_3013332.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/petrarch-6716_contempt_and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-cont_3013332.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/petrarch-6716_contempt_and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-cont_3013332.png) > “And I live on, but in grief and self-contempt, Left here without the light I loved so much, In a great tempest and with shrouds unkempt.” [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Grief and self-contempt in darkness, longing for lost light amidst turmoil. **In simple terms:** Suffering and longing in darkness. Key Takeaway Seek inner light amidst grief. Themes grief self-contempt light Mood melancholic reflective Type poetic emotional When to use this quote - personal loss - mental health - spiritual seeking Key Concepts poetry medieval literature Questions to Reflect On - What light can you find now? - How does grief shape you? A Different Perspective May romanticize suffering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Contempt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contempt/) [Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Tempest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tempest/) ## Related quotes > [I have equal contempt for both left and right radicals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-have-equal-contempt-for-both-left-and-right-radicals/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We live in grief for having left the womb, for having left the teat, then school, then home. In my case, it was leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shatner/we-live-in-grief-for-having-left-the-womb-for-having-left-the-teat/) [William Shatner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shatner/) > [“The trick was learning to live without the grief and without the guilt. The trick was to create a life worth living, a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-zandri/the-trick-was-learning-to-live-without-the-grief-and-without-the/) [Vincent Zandri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-zandri/) > [Bursts as a wave that from the clouds impends, And swell'd with tempests on the ship descends; White are the decks with foam; the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/bursts-as-a-wave-that-from-the-clouds-impends-and-swell-d-with/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [Self-contempt never inspires lasting change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/self-contempt-never-inspires-lasting-change/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Of all afflictions, the worst is self contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/berthold-auerbach/of-all-afflictions-the-worst-is-self-contempt/) [Berthold Auerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/berthold-auerbach/) > [“If you treat someone under your control like a dolt, he will react like a dolt; treat him like an animal, and he will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-j-harris/if-you-treat-someone-under-your-control-like-a-dolt-he-will-react/) [Sydney J. Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-j-harris/) > [When the Soviet Union came to be run by a valetudinarian mafioso like Brezhnev, the thing itself had fallen into self-contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonid-brezhnev/when-the-soviet-union-came-to-be-run-by-a-valetudinarian-mafioso-like/) [Leonid Brezhnev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonid-brezhnev/) > [This sentiment of self-contempt is a frequent one in young people of both sexes. Their valuation of themselves varies as much as the barometer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/humphry-davy/this-sentiment-of-self-contempt-is-a-frequent-one-in-young-people-of/) [Humphry Davy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/humphry-davy/) > [It is not the repeated mistakes, the long succession of petty betrayals--though, God knows, they would give cause enough for anxiety and self-contempt--but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dag-hammarskj-ld/it-is-not-the-repeated-mistakes-the-long-succession-of-petty/) [Dag Hammarskjold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dag-hammarskj-ld/) > [“Self-contempt is a serpent that ever gnaws at one's breath, sucking the life-blood from one's own heart and mixing it with the poison of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/self-contempt-is-a-serpent-that-ever-gnaws-at-one-s-breath-sucking/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [I'm awash in self-contempt!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/i-m-awash-in-self-contempt/) [Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/) > [Self-contempt, however vague, sharpens our eyes for the imperfections of others. We usually strive to reveal in others the blemishes we hide in ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/self-contempt-however-vague-sharpens-our-eyes-for-the-imperfections/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Self-righteousness is a manifestation of self-contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/self-righteousness-is-a-manifestation-of-self-contempt/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Man is more sensitive to the contempt of others than to self-contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/man-is-more-sensitive-to-the-contempt-of-others-than-to-self-contempt/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) ## More by Petrarch > [Five enemies of peace inhabit with us - avarice, ambition, envy, anger, and pride; if these were to be banished, we should infallibly enjoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/five-enemies-of-peace-inhabit-with-us-avarice-ambition-envy-anger-and/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [I would have preferred to have been born in any other time than our own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/i-would-have-preferred-to-have-been-born-in-any-other-time-than-our/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [The time will come when every change shall cease, This quick revolving wheel shall rest in peace: No summer then shall glow, not winter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/the-time-will-come-when-every-change-shall-cease-this-quick-revolving/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [Wanting is not enough, long and you attain it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/wanting-is-not-enough-long-and-you-attain-it/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [The aged love what is practical while impetuous youth longs only for what is dazzling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/the-aged-love-what-is-practical-while-impetuous-youth-longs-only-for/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [Oh, may she deign to stand atmy bedside When I come to die; and may she call to me And draw me to her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/oh-may-she-deign-to-stand-atmy-bedside-when-i-come-to-die-and-may-she/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [How difficult it is to save the bark of reputation from the rocks of ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/how-difficult-it-is-to-save-the-bark-of-reputation-from-the-rocks-of/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [Do you suppose there is any living man so unreasonable that if he found himself stricken with a dangerous ailment he would not anxiously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/do-you-suppose-there-is-any-living-man-so-unreasonable-that-if-he/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [Sameness is the mother of disgust, variety the cure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/sameness-is-the-mother-of-disgust-variety-the-cure/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [He loves but lightly who his love can tell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/he-loves-but-lightly-who-his-love-can-tell/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [Rarely do great beauty and great virtue dwell together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/rarely-do-great-beauty-and-great-virtue-dwell-together/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [It is better to will the good than to know the truth,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/it-is-better-to-will-the-good-than-to-know-the-truth/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [For death betimes is comfort, not dismay, and who can rightly die needs no delay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/for-death-betimes-is-comfort-not-dismay-and-who-can-rightly-die-needs/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [“I feed my heart with sighs, that's all it asks, I live on tears, I think I'm born to weep; I don't complain of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/i-feed-my-heart-with-sighs-that-s-all-it-asks-i-live-on-tears-i-think/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [Often have I wondered with much curiosity as to our coming into this world and what will follow our departure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/often-have-i-wondered-with-much-curiosity-as-to-our-coming-into-this/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) [Explore all 98 Petrarch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) ## More Contempt quotes > [Too much familiarity breeds contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/too-much-familiarity-breeds-contempt/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [The contempt for law and the contempt for the human consequences of lawbreaking go from the bottom to the top of American society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-contempt-for-law-and-the-contempt-for-the-human-consequences-of/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [Our security depends on having good relationships with our allies. Donald Trump mainly shows contempt for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-wolfowitz/our-security-depends-on-having-good-relationships-with-our-allies/) [Paul Wolfowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-wolfowitz/) > [Show your contempt for the problem and your concern for the person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/show-your-contempt-for-the-problem-and-your-concern-for-the-person/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [There is no real elevation of mind in a contempt of little things; it is, on the contrary, from too narrow views that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-fenelon/there-is-no-real-elevation-of-mind-in-a-contempt-of-little-things-it/) [Francois Fenelon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-fenelon/) > [Boasting and bravado may exist in the breast even of the coward, if he is successful through a mere lucky hit; but a just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thucydides/boasting-and-bravado-may-exist-in-the-breast-even-of-the-coward-if-he/) [Thucydides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thucydides/) > [Somebody once told me that if you laugh at a George Bush joke, or you send an email cartoon to your friends that makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-ramis/somebody-once-told-me-that-if-you-laugh-at-a-george-bush-joke-or-you/) [Harold Ramis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-ramis/) > [Unless a man gives himself entirely to the Cross, in a spirit of humility and self-abasement; unless he casts himself down to be trampled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-the-evangelist/unless-a-man-gives-himself-entirely-to-the-cross-in-a-spirit-of/) [Mark the Evangelist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-the-evangelist/) > [Much of the same sort of degraded and filthy talk can still be heard among the orc-minded; dreary and repetitive with hatred and contempt,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien-2/much-of-the-same-sort-of-degraded-and-filthy-talk-can-still-be-heard/) [J. R. R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien-2/) > [Contempt for an assailant is best shown by bravery in action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thucydides/contempt-for-an-assailant-is-best-shown-by-bravery-in-action/) [Thucydides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thucydides/) > [Statuettes of drunken sailors, velvet pictures of island maidens, plastic seashell lamps made in Taiwan. What contempt the people who think up souvenirs have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-johnson/statuettes-of-drunken-sailors-velvet-pictures-of-island-maidens/) [Diane Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-johnson/) > [Every person of any rank in the left, from voter on up to cabinet member to elected official in the Democrat Party, has contempt.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/every-person-of-any-rank-in-the-left-from-voter-on-up-to-cabinet/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [Those with a gift for action, for their part, often express contempt for those whose gifts are more reflective. Men of action like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/those-with-a-gift-for-action-for-their-part-often-express-contempt/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [“opprobrious term, employed to impose contempt upon”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jabari-asim/opprobrious-term-employed-to-impose-contempt-upon/) [Jabari Asim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jabari-asim/) > [Heterosexual intercourse is the pure, formalized expression of contempt for women's bodies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-dworkin/heterosexual-intercourse-is-the-pure-formalized-expression-of/) [Andrea Dworkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-dworkin/) [Browse all 1,034 Contempt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contempt/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "And I live on, but in grief and self-contempt, Left here without the light I loved so much, In a great tempest and with shrouds unkempt.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Petrarch" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-contempt-left-here-without-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Contempt" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-contempt-left-here-without-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/petrarch-6716_contempt_and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-cont_3013332.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/petrarch-6716_contempt_and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-cont_3013332.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/petrarch-6716_contempt_and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-cont_3013332.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“And I live on, but in grief and self-contempt, Left here without the light I loved so much, In a great…” — Petrarch", "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": "Petrarch", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "And I live on, but in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-contempt-left-here-without-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/and-i-live-on-but-in-grief-and-self-contempt-left-here-without-the/#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 } } ] } ```