--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We hang on by so little, he thought, and…" description: "\"“We hang on by so little, he thought, and felt the full despair of knowing that.”\" — Rachel Joyce" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/260/rachel-joyce-2226_despair_we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-f_2745575.png" --- # We hang on by so little, he thought, and felt the full… ![“We hang on by so little, he thought, and felt the full despair of knowing that.” quote by Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/260/rachel-joyce-2226_despair_we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-f_2745575.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/260/rachel-joyce-2226_despair_we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-f_2745575.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/260/rachel-joyce-2226_despair_we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-f_2745575.png) > ““We hang on by so little, he thought, and felt the full despair of knowing that.”” [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Clinging to hope feels fragile, yet it brings profound despair when lost. **In simple terms:** Hope is fragile and can cause despair. Key Takeaway Cherish hope while preparing for uncertainty. Themes hope despair fragility Mood melancholic thoughtful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - mental health counseling - support groups - creative writing Key Concepts existentialism human resilience Questions to Reflect On - How does hope shape your actions? - What sustains you when hope fades? 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"Why does it feel so cold, so hard?"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-jobin/edmund-felt-despair-eating-away-at-his-victory-why-is-the-world-like/) Matthew Jobin ## More by Rachel Joyce > [“IT HAD NEVER been such a beautiful May. Every day the sky shone a peerless blue, untouched by cloud. Already, the gardens were crammed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/it-had-never-been-such-a-beautiful-may-every-day-the-sky-shone-a/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [After the two drinks, she felt warm inside, and slightly indistinct at the edges.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/after-the-two-drinks-she-felt-warm-inside-and-slightly-indistinct-at/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [“He walked so surely it was as if all his life he had been waiting to get up from his chair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/he-walked-so-surely-it-was-as-if-all-his-life-he-had-been-waiting-to/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [He must have driven this way countless times, and yet he had no memory of the scenery. He must have been so caught up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/he-must-have-driven-this-way-countless-times-and-yet-he-had-no-memory/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [“He saw the reflection of her face in a compact mirror as she painted on her re lips. She did it with such care,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/he-saw-the-reflection-of-her-face-in-a-compact-mirror-as-she-painted/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [“I can't explain why I think I can get there, when all the odds are against me. But I do. Even when a big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/i-can-t-explain-why-i-think-i-can-get-there-when-all-the-odds-are/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [“It wasn’t just 1) the artwork and sleeve notes on the album sleeve. It wasn’t 2) the possibility of a hidden track, or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/it-wasn-t-just-1-the-artwork-and-sleeve-notes-on-the-album-sleeve-it/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [In writing about Harold and Maureen with their terrible unspoken secret, and all those people that Harold meets as he walks to save a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/in-writing-about-harold-and-maureen-with-their-terrible-unspoken/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [“He wished the man would honor the true meaning of words, instead of using them as ammunition.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/he-wished-the-man-would-honor-the-true-meaning-of-words-instead-of/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [“We are at the centre of our own stories. And sometimes it is hard to believe that we are not at the centre of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/we-are-at-the-centre-of-our-own-stories-and-sometimes-it-is-hard-to/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [I find that very appealing: the blurring of the lines between what's funny and what's tragic. And what's ordinary and what's not - the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/i-find-that-very-appealing-the-blurring-of-the-lines-between-what-s/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [Beginnings could happen more than once or in different ways. You could think you were starting something afresh, when actually what you were doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/beginnings-could-happen-more-than-once-or-in-different-ways-you-could/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [“As time passed and he found his rhythm, he began to feel more certain. England opened up beneath his feet, and the feeling of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/as-time-passed-and-he-found-his-rhythm-he-began-to-feel-more-certain/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [“It surprised him that he was remembering all this. Maybe it was the walking. Maybe you saw even more than the land when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/it-surprised-him-that-he-was-remembering-all-this-maybe-it-was-the/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) > [“There was something about her, something pure and fluid that could not be contained.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/there-was-something-about-her-something-pure-and-fluid-that-could-not/) [Rachel Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) [Explore all 162 Rachel Joyce quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/) ## More Despair quotes > [“As ofttimes as it rains on my little spot of earth, you'd think I'd grow accustomed to the gloom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/as-ofttimes-as-it-rains-on-my-little-spot-of-earth-you-d-think-i-d/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [“She searched her mind for a single day when it had felt good to be alive. There must have been one, surely?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-abbott/she-searched-her-mind-for-a-single-day-when-it-had-felt-good-to-be/) [Rachel Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-abbott/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) > [I think what was special about 'Music by Prudence' was the classic story of the title subject's life path - from being an outcast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-think-what-was-special-about-music-by-prudence-was-the-classic/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [Your spirit is the part of you that seeks meaning and purpose. It's the part drawn to hope, that will not give in to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-myss/your-spirit-is-the-part-of-you-that-seeks-meaning-and-purpose-it-s/) [Caroline Myss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-myss/) > [My God, whose son, as on this night, took on Him the form of man, and for man vouchsafed to suffer and bleed, controls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/my-god-whose-son-as-on-this-night-took-on-him-the-form-of-man-and-for/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [The modernist writers found despair inspirational.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-modernist-writers-found-despair-inspirational/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [The skin and shell of things Though fair are not Thy wish nor prayer but got My meer despair of wings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-vaughan/the-skin-and-shell-of-things-though-fair-are-not-thy-wish-nor-prayer/) [Henry Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-vaughan/) > [“A fine setting for a fit of despair,” it occurred to him, “if I were only standing here by accident instead of design.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/a-fine-setting-for-a-fit-of-despair-it-occurred-to-him-if-i-were-only/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [Enough for this bow & arrow. It caused me nothing but sorrow. No need for another tomorrow. In your heart, I will never be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louaiq8/enough-for-this-bow-arrow-it-caused-me-nothing-but-sorrow-no-need-for/) Louaiq8 > [True repentance never leads to despair. Its leads home. It leads to grace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg/true-repentance-never-leads-to-despair-its-leads-home-it-leads-to/) [John Ortberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg/) > [Do not consider despair as a thick and high wall standing on your way; it is just a darkness and you can still walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/do-not-consider-despair-as-a-thick-and-high-wall-standing-on-your-way/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Despair is the price one pays for setting oneself an impossible aim. It is, one is told, the unforgivable sin, but it is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/despair-is-the-price-one-pays-for-setting-oneself-an-impossible-aim/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [A speculative despair is unpardonable where it our duty to act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/a-speculative-despair-is-unpardonable-where-it-our-duty-to-act/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [I have noticed that there is no dissatisfaction like that of the rich. Feed a man, clothe him, put him in a good house,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-have-noticed-that-there-is-no-dissatisfaction-like-that-of-the-rich/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) [Browse all 3,181 Despair quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despair/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We hang on by so little, he thought, and felt the full despair of knowing that.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rachel Joyce" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-felt-the-full-despair-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Despair" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-felt-the-full-despair-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/260/rachel-joyce-2226_despair_we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-f_2745575.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/260/rachel-joyce-2226_despair_we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-f_2745575.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/260/rachel-joyce-2226_despair_we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-f_2745575.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We hang on by so little, he thought, and felt the full despair of knowing that.” — Rachel Joyce", "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": "Rachel Joyce", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-joyce/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“We hang on by so little,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-felt-the-full-despair-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-joyce/we-hang-on-by-so-little-he-thought-and-felt-the-full-despair-of/#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 } } ] } ```