--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have done my fiddling so long under…" description: "\"I have done my fiddling so long under Vesuvius that I have almost forgotten to play, and can only wait for the eruption and think it long of coming. Li..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/robert-louis-stevenson-289_done_i-have-done-my-fiddling-so-long-under-ve_1898607.jpg" --- # I have done my fiddling so long under Vesuvius that I have… ![“I have done my fiddling so long under Vesuvius that I have almost forgotten to play, and can only wait for the eruption and think it long of coming. Literally no man has more wholly outlived life than I. And still it's good fun.” quote by Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/robert-louis-stevenson-289_done_i-have-done-my-fiddling-so-long-under-ve_1898607.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/robert-louis-stevenson-289_done_i-have-done-my-fiddling-so-long-under-ve_1898607.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/robert-louis-stevenson-289_done_i-have-done-my-fiddling-so-long-under-ve_1898607.jpg) > “I have done my fiddling so long under Vesuvius that I have almost forgotten to play, and can only wait for the eruption and think it long of coming. Literally no man has more wholly outlived life than I. And still it's good fun.” [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator feels stagnant after long periods of idle work, awaiting a dramatic event to give purpose, yet recognizes that life has been fully experienced and remains enjoyable. **In simple terms:** Idle work leads to waiting for a dramatic change, but life is still enjoyable. Key Takeaway Find purpose in daily actions, not just big events. Themes stagnation anticipation joy Mood contemplative hopeful Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - career stagnation - artistic block - personal growth - waiting for change Key Concepts existentialism creative stagnation Questions to Reflect On - What small actions can replace waiting for a crisis? - How can you create meaning without dramatic events? A Different Perspective May romanticize crisis, ignoring incremental progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Eruption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eruption/) [Fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fun/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Pliny the Elder perished in 79 A.D. when he refused to flee from the great eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, insisting that everything would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-cuppy/pliny-the-elder-perished-in-79-a-d-when-he-refused-to-flee-from-the/) [Will Cuppy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-cuppy/) > [The true smoker abstains from imitating Vesuvius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/auguste-marseille-barthelemy/the-true-smoker-abstains-from-imitating-vesuvius/) Auguste-Marseille Barthelemy > [Live dangerously. Build your cities on the slopes of Vesuvius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/live-dangerously-build-your-cities-on-the-slopes-of-vesuvius/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“curiosity. In August of 79 A.D., while commanding a fleet in the Bay of Naples, the Roman statesman and author witnessed a volcano erupting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/curiosity-in-august-of-79-a-d-while-commanding-a-fleet-in-the-bay-of/) [Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/) > [“If there was a volcano under their feet, a Vesuvius that could erupt and bury this modern-day Pompeii at any moment, the best thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-davis/if-there-was-a-volcano-under-their-feet-a-vesuvius-that-could-erupt/) Deborah Davis > [“ Rumbling Mountains Four active volcanoes shake the southern Apennines. One of these, Mount Vesuvius, lies on the shore of the Bay of Naples.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-f-blashfield/rumbling-mountains-four-active-volcanoes-shake-the-southern-apennines/) [Jean F. Blashfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-f-blashfield/) > [“The Vesuvius of today is a very poor affair compared to the mighty volcano of Kilauea, in the Sandwich Islands, but I am glad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-vesuvius-of-today-is-a-very-poor-affair-compared-to-the-mighty/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Live in danger. Build your cities on the slopes of Vesuvius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/live-in-danger-build-your-cities-on-the-slopes-of-vesuvius/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“See Naples, and then die!' That was a proud saying, Count, which we used to hear as we cruised under lateen sails about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kirby/see-naples-and-then-die-that-was-a-proud-saying-count-which-we-used/) [William Kirby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kirby/) > [However, there are a couple of volcanoes very close nearby, like Vesuvius in Italy right next to Naples.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/however-there-are-a-couple-of-volcanoes-very-close-nearby-like/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [I went to the top of Vesuvius and looked in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-smith/i-went-to-the-top-of-vesuvius-and-looked-in/) [Ali Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-smith/) > [“A fair questioin. You've been to Naples. Imagine it five hundred years ago. Would it have made a difference?" "I've never been to Naples,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-jensen/a-fair-questioin-you-ve-been-to-naples-imagine-it-five-hundred-years/) [Melissa Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-jensen/) > [“I thought I had found a living volcano, a female Vesuvius. I never thought of a human ship going down in an ocean of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/i-thought-i-had-found-a-living-volcano-a-female-vesuvius-i-never/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [Compared to the unleashed forces of warfare and of faith, Mount Vesuvius was kinder to the legacy of antiquity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-greenblatt/compared-to-the-unleashed-forces-of-warfare-and-of-faith-mount/) [Stephen Greenblatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-greenblatt/) > [We live too much in books and not enough in nature, and we are very much like the simpleton of a Pliny the Younger,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/we-live-too-much-in-books-and-not-enough-in-nature-and-we-are-very/) [Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/) ## More by Robert Louis Stevenson > [You must suffer me to go my own dark way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/you-must-suffer-me-to-go-my-own-dark-way/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [Nobody speaks of a beautifful view for 5 minutes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/nobody-speaks-of-a-beautifful-view-for-5-minutes/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [“We are all travelers in the wilderness of this world, and the best that we find is an honest friend. He is a fortunate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/we-are-all-travelers-in-the-wilderness-of-this-world-and-the-best/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [The little rift between the sexes is astonishingly widened by simply teaching one set of catchwords to the girls and another to the boys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/the-little-rift-between-the-sexes-is-astonishingly-widened-by-simply/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [The problem of education is twofold: first to know, and then to utter. 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Measure success by the seeds you plant today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/do-not-measure-success-by-today-s-harvest-measure-success-by-the/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [To be idle requires a strong sense of personal identity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/to-be-idle-requires-a-strong-sense-of-personal-identity/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [Saints are sinners who kept on going.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/saints-are-sinners-who-kept-on-going/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [Loving God, help us remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness of the shepherds,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/loving-god-help-us-remember-the-birth-of-jesus-that-we-may-share-in/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [The friendly cow, all red and white, I love with all my heart; She gives me cream with all her might, To eat with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/the-friendly-cow-all-red-and-white-i-love-with-all-my-heart-she-gives/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) [Explore all 701 Robert Louis Stevenson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) ## More Done quotes > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. 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