--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The disappointed man turns his thoughts…" description: "\"The disappointed man turns his thoughts toward a state of existence where his wiser desires may be fixed with the certainty of faith; the successful ma..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8d/robert-southey-4115_alive_the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts_1183310.png" --- # The disappointed man turns his thoughts toward a state of… ![“The disappointed man turns his thoughts toward a state of existence where his wiser desires may be fixed with the certainty of faith; the successful man feels that the objects which he has ardently pursued fail to satisfy the cravings of an immortal spirit; the wicked man turneth away from his…” quote by Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8d/robert-southey-4115_alive_the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts_1183310.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8d/robert-southey-4115_alive_the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts_1183310.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8d/robert-southey-4115_alive_the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts_1183310.png) > “The disappointed man turns his thoughts toward a state of existence where his wiser desires may be fixed with the certainty of faith; the successful man feels that the objects which he has ardently pursued fail to satisfy the cravings of an immortal spirit; the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness, that he may save his soul alive.” [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Different life paths reflect varied motivations: wisdom seeks faith, success seeks fulfillment, wickedness seeks redemption. **In simple terms:** People pursue different goals based on inner drives. Key Takeaway Align actions with deeper purpose. Themes faith wisdom success redemption spirituality Mood contemplative inspirational Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - career choices - spiritual practice - ethical decision making - personal reflection Key Concepts philosophy ethics human nature Questions to Reflect On - Which path resonates with you? - What does “immortal spirit” mean to you? A Different Perspective Idealizing any single path can ignore the complexity of human desire. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Certainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty/) [Certainty Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty-faith-1328774/) [Craving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/craving/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Desires](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desires/) [Desires Fixed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desires-fixed-3370419/) [Disappointed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disappointed/) [Eternity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eternity/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Failing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failing/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Fixed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fixed/) [Immortal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immortal/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Objects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/objects/) [Pursued](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pursued/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [States](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/states/) [Successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/successful/) [Successful man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/successful-man/) [Turns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turns/) [Wicked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wicked/) [Wicked man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wicked-man/) [Wickedness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wickedness/) [Wiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wiser/) [Wiser Desires](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wiser-desires-3478884/) ## Related quotes > [Sorrow is properly that state of the mind in which our desires are fixed upon the past without looking forward to the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/sorrow-is-properly-that-state-of-the-mind-in-which-our-desires-are/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Faith is not a certainty. Faith is the courage to live with uncertainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/faith-is-not-a-certainty-faith-is-the-courage-to-live-with-uncertainty/) [Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/) > [There have been times when the church seemed afraid, but she is no longer. Analyze, dissect, use your microscope or your spectrum till the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/there-have-been-times-when-the-church-seemed-afraid-but-she-is-no/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [When prayer removes distrust and doubt and enters the field of mental certainty, it becomes faith; and the universe is built on faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-holmes/when-prayer-removes-distrust-and-doubt-and-enters-the-field-of-mental/) [Ernest Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-holmes/) > [“Certainty in faith and doubt in reason removed the means by which to reach understandings or agreements on the basis of what is reasonable,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reilly/certainty-in-faith-and-doubt-in-reason-removed-the-means-by-which-to/) [Robert Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reilly/) > [When you accomplish these feelings of Certainty and Faith even for a few seconds, you have the proof of who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-accomplish-these-feelings-of-certainty-and-faith-even-for-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I do believe that there is a conflict between science and religion ... the spirit or attitude toward the facts is different in religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/i-do-believe-that-there-is-a-conflict-between-science-and-religion/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [Out of the element of participation follows the certainty of faith; out of the element of separation follows the doubt in faith. And each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tillich/out-of-the-element-of-participation-follows-the-certainty-of-faith/) [Paul Tillich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tillich/) > [Did you ever see a wicked man walking on the road and a dog behind a fence barking at him and he dock his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-rambharack/did-you-ever-see-a-wicked-man-walking-on-the-road-and-a-dog-behind-a/) [Glen Rambharack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-rambharack/) > [If the Lord should bring a wicked man to heaven, heaven would be hell to him; for he who loves not grace upon earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-love/if-the-lord-should-bring-a-wicked-man-to-heaven-heaven-would-be-hell/) [Christopher Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-love/) > [Vengeance comes not slowly either upon you or any other wicked man, but steals silently and imperceptibly, placing its foot on the bad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euripides/vengeance-comes-not-slowly-either-upon-you-or-any-other-wicked-man/) [Euripides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euripides/) > [I have read of a glass kept in an idol temple in Smyrna that would make beautiful things appear deformed, and deformed things appear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-venning/i-have-read-of-a-glass-kept-in-an-idol-temple-in-smyrna-that-would/) [Ralph Venning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-venning/) > [When a man has calamity upon calamity the world generally concludes that he must be a very wicked man to deserve them. Perhaps the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelia-barr/when-a-man-has-calamity-upon-calamity-the-world-generally-concludes/) [Amelia Barr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelia-barr/) > [“Ay,’ he continued, as if unaware of my presence, ‘blessed indeed are they who die in the Lord; but the wicked man and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-william-polidori/ay-he-continued-as-if-unaware-of-my-presence-blessed-indeed-are-they/) [John William Polidori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-william-polidori/) > [A wicked man in prayer may lift up his hands, but he cannot lift up his face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-watson/a-wicked-man-in-prayer-may-lift-up-his-hands-but-he-cannot-lift-up/) [Thomas Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-watson/) ## More by Robert Southey > [Some voluntary castaways there will always be, whom no fostering kindness and no parental care can preserve from self-destruction; but if any are lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/some-voluntary-castaways-there-will-always-be-whom-no-fostering/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [It has been more wittily than charitably said that hell is paved with good intentions; they have their place in heaven also.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/it-has-been-more-wittily-than-charitably-said-that-hell-is-paved-with/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [Order is the sanity of the mind, the health of the body, the peace of the city, the security of the state. As the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/order-is-the-sanity-of-the-mind-the-health-of-the-body-the-peace-of/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [Whatever strengthens our local attachments is favorable both to individual and national character, our home, our birthplace, our native land. Think for a while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/whatever-strengthens-our-local-attachments-is-favorable-both-to/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [I have told you of the Spaniard who always put on his spectacles when about to eat cherries, that they might look bigger and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/i-have-told-you-of-the-spaniard-who-always-put-on-his-spectacles-when/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [My days among the dead are passed; Around me I behold, Where'er these casual eyes are cast, The mighty minds of old; My never-failing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/my-days-among-the-dead-are-passed-around-me-i-behold-where-er-these/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [Love is indestructible. It's holy flame forever burneth; from Heaven it came, to Heaven returneth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/love-is-indestructible-it-s-holy-flame-forever-burneth-from-heaven-it/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [Live as long as you may, the first twenty years are the longest half of your life. They appear so while they are passing;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/live-as-long-as-you-may-the-first-twenty-years-are-the-longest-half/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [Take away love, and not physical nature only, but the heart of the moral world, would be palsied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/take-away-love-and-not-physical-nature-only-but-the-heart-of-the/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [Where Washington hath left His awful memory A light for after times!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/where-washington-hath-left-his-awful-memory-a-light-for-after-times/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [The loss of a friend is like that of a limb; time may heal the anguish of the wound, but the loss cannot be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/the-loss-of-a-friend-is-like-that-of-a-limb-time-may-heal-the-anguish/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [Three things a wise man will not trust, The wind, the sunshine of an April day, And woman's plighted faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/three-things-a-wise-man-will-not-trust-the-wind-the-sunshine-of-an/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [She comes majestic with her swelling sails, The gallant Ship: along her watery way, Homeward she drives before the favouring gales; Now flirting at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/she-comes-majestic-with-her-swelling-sails-the-gallant-ship-along-her/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [A wise judge, by the craft of the law, was never seduced from its purpose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/a-wise-judge-by-the-craft-of-the-law-was-never-seduced-from-its/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [Let us depart! the universal sun Confines not to one land his blessed beams; Nor is man rooted, like a tree, whose seed, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/let-us-depart-the-universal-sun-confines-not-to-one-land-his-blessed/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) [Explore all 116 Robert Southey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) ## More Alive quotes > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) [Adam Ant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ant/) > [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If Jovan Belcher didn't possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/if-jovan-belcher-didn-t-possess-a-gun-he-and-kasandra-perkins-would/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [The pain of love is the pain of being alive. It is a perpetual wound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/the-pain-of-love-is-the-pain-of-being-alive-it-is-a-perpetual-wound/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If Melanchthon were alive today, he might not weep because of controversies that surround the Lord's Supper, but he might well sorrow because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/if-melanchthon-were-alive-today-he-might-not-weep-because-of/) [Erwin W. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [Here Greek and Roman find themselves alive along these crowded shelves; and Shakespeare treads again his stage, and Chaucer paints anew his age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/here-greek-and-roman-find-themselves-alive-along-these-crowded/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [You're alive!" Fezzik cried. The man in black sat immobile, like a ventriloquist's dummy, just his mouth moving. "That is perhaps the most childishly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/you-re-alive-fezzik-cried-the-man-in-black-sat-immobile-like-a/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) [Browse all 7,282 Alive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The disappointed man turns his thoughts toward a state of existence where his wiser desires may be fixed with the certainty of faith; the successful man feels that the objects which he has ardently pursued fail to satisfy the cravings of an immortal spirit; the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness, that he may save his soul alive.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert Southey" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts-toward-a-state-of-existence/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alive" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts-toward-a-state-of-existence/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8d/robert-southey-4115_alive_the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts_1183310.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8d/robert-southey-4115_alive_the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts_1183310.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8d/robert-southey-4115_alive_the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts_1183310.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The disappointed man turns his thoughts toward a state of existence where his wiser desires may be fixed…” — Robert Southey", "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": "Robert Southey", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The disappointed man turns his thoughts...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts-toward-a-state-of-existence/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/the-disappointed-man-turns-his-thoughts-toward-a-state-of-existence/#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 } } ] } ```