--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Unfortunately I am afraid, as always, of…" description: "\"“Unfortunately I am afraid, as always, of going on. For to go on means going from here, means finding me, losing me, vanishing and beginning again, a s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f7/samuel-beckett-365_afraid_unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-g_737790.png" --- # Unfortunately I am afraid, as always, of going on. For to… ![“Unfortunately I am afraid, as always, of going on. For to go on means going from here, means finding me, losing me, vanishing and beginning again, a stranger first, then little by little the same as always, in another place, where I shall say I have always been, of which I shall know nothing…” quote by Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f7/samuel-beckett-365_afraid_unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-g_737790.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f7/samuel-beckett-365_afraid_unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-g_737790.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f7/samuel-beckett-365_afraid_unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-g_737790.png) > ““Unfortunately I am afraid, as always, of going on. For to go on means going from here, means finding me, losing me, vanishing and beginning again, a stranger first, then little by little the same as always, in another place, where I shall say I have always been, of which I shall know nothing, being incapable of seeing, moving, thinking, speaking, but of which little by little, in spite of these handicaps, I shall begin to know something, just enough for it to turn out to be the same place as always, the same which seems made for me and does not want me, which I seem to want and do not want, take your choice, which spews me out or swallows me up, I’ll never know, which is perhaps merely the inside of my distant skull where once I wandered, now am fixed, lost for tininess, or straining against the walls, with my head, my hands, my feet, my back, and ever murmuring my old stories, my old story, as if it were the first time.”” [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) ## 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 reflects on existential uncertainty, identity loss, and the perpetual search for meaning despite inevitable change. **In simple terms:** Life is a confusing, endless search for self amid constant change. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty and keep searching. Themes existentialism identity change loneliness Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - personal crisis - creative process - mental health challenges Key Concepts Absurdism self-discovery Questions to Reflect On - What parts of your identity feel most fluid? - How do you find meaning in change? A Different Perspective The monologue may be too abstract for practical guidance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) ## Related quotes > [Maybe I’m old, but to me, ‘going out’ means going out to dinner. It’s about the conversation: someone recognizing your intellect, the charm of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keri-russell/maybe-i-m-old-but-to-me-going-out-means-going-out-to-dinner-it-s/) [Keri Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keri-russell/) > [“We have nothing to fear but fear itself, unfortunately I'm very, very afraid!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fletcher-best/we-have-nothing-to-fear-but-fear-itself-unfortunately-i-m-very-very/) Fletcher Best > [I promised to keep on going but maybe keep on going means coming back first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/i-promised-to-keep-on-going-but-maybe-keep-on-going-means-coming-back/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“Mr Spacey has decreed that we will be going last. ooow! oh F\*\*k. What's so bad about going last? Means you can't enjoy the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/24-hour-musical-gala-cast/mr-spacey-has-decreed-that-we-will-be-going-last-ooow-oh-f-k-what-s/) 24 Hour Musical Gala Cast > [I choose to identify with the underprivileged, I choose to give my life for the hungry, I choose to give my life for those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/i-choose-to-identify-with-the-underprivileged-i-choose-to-give-my/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I'm always afraid someone's going to tap me on the shoulder one day and say, 'Back to North London'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-parker/i-m-always-afraid-someone-s-going-to-tap-me-on-the-shoulder-one-day/) [Alan Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-parker/) > [I wanted to make it a really strong point to not watch 'Battlestar Galactica' before starting 'Caprica' because I was afraid it was going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magda-apanowicz/i-wanted-to-make-it-a-really-strong-point-to-not-watch-battlestar/) [Magda Apanowicz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magda-apanowicz/) > [I've lived the torment of the names. I've lived the torment of boyfriends breaking up with me because they were afraid I was going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-graham/i-ve-lived-the-torment-of-the-names-i-ve-lived-the-torment-of/) [Ashley Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-graham/) > [“I think the reason we're cruel sometimes is that we're afraid we're going to like something.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/i-think-the-reason-we-re-cruel-sometimes-is-that-we-re-afraid-we-re/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [Part of me is afraid to get close to people because I'm afraid that they're going to leave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-manson/part-of-me-is-afraid-to-get-close-to-people-because-i-m-afraid-that/) [Marilyn Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-manson/) > [There were so many times I was afraid I was going to lose everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kendra-scott/there-were-so-many-times-i-was-afraid-i-was-going-to-lose-everything/) [Kendra Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kendra-scott/) > [Offers to drop you, even if it means going out of his way SignOfInterest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mazher/offers-to-drop-you-even-if-it-means-going-out-of-his-way/) [Mazher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mazher/) > [Our life is not given to us like an opera libretto, in which all is written down; but it means going, walking, doing, searching,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/our-life-is-not-given-to-us-like-an-opera-libretto-in-which-all-is/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [You say you are going to Fez. Now, if you say you are going to Fez, then that means you are not going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moroccan/you-say-you-are-going-to-fez-now-if-you-say-you-are-going-to-fez-then/) Moroccan > [“Maslow emphasized the “heights”, but to get to the heights you must have the Dark Night of the soul, and make your trip to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-armstrong/maslow-emphasized-the-heights-but-to-get-to-the-heights-you-must-have/) Rob Armstrong ## More by Samuel Beckett > [“It was December, I had never felt so cold, the eel soup lay heavy on my stomach, I was afraid I'd die, I turned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/it-was-december-i-had-never-felt-so-cold-the-eel-soup-lay-heavy-on-my/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“To be always what I am - and so changed from what I was.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/to-be-always-what-i-am-and-so-changed-from-what-i-was/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [To what will love not stoop!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/to-what-will-love-not-stoop/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [With all this darkness round me I feel less alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/with-all-this-darkness-round-me-i-feel-less-alone/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“You may say it is all in my head, and indeed sometimes it seems to me I am in a head and that these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/you-may-say-it-is-all-in-my-head-and-indeed-sometimes-it-seems-to-me/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“Here he stood. Here he sat. Here he knelt. Here he lay. Here he moved, to and fro, from the door to the window,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/here-he-stood-here-he-sat-here-he-knelt-here-he-lay-here-he-moved-to/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [What are we doing here, that is the question. And we are blessed in this, that we happen to know the answer. Yes, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/what-are-we-doing-here-that-is-the-question-and-we-are-blessed-in/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [I shall state silences more competently than ever a better man spangled the butterflies of vertigo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/i-shall-state-silences-more-competently-than-ever-a-better-man/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [It is useless not to seek, not to want, for when you cease to seek you start to find, and when you cease to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/it-is-useless-not-to-seek-not-to-want-for-when-you-cease-to-seek-you/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [We are not saints, but we have kept our appointment. How many people can boast as much?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/we-are-not-saints-but-we-have-kept-our-appointment-how-many-people/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [The new light above my table is a great improvement. With all this darkness around me I feel less alone. (Pause.) In a way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/the-new-light-above-my-table-is-a-great-improvement-with-all-this/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [I lay down across her with my face in her breasts and my hand on her. We lay there without moving. But under us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/i-lay-down-across-her-with-my-face-in-her-breasts-and-my-hand-on-her/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [Women are all the bloody sameyou can't love for five minutes without wanting it abolished in brats and house bloody wifery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/women-are-all-the-bloody-sameyou-can-t-love-for-five-minutes-without/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“ESTRAGON: Do you think God sees me? VLADIMIR: You must close your eyes. Estragon closes his eyes, staggers worse. ESTRAGON: (stopping, brandishing his fists,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/estragon-do-you-think-god-sees-me-vladimir-you-must-close-your-eyes/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [Deplorable mania, when something happens, to inquire what.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/deplorable-mania-when-something-happens-to-inquire-what/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) [Explore all 609 Samuel Beckett quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) ## More Afraid quotes > [It took me 20 years to buy an electric typewriter, because I was afraid it would be too sensitive. I like to bang the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/it-took-me-20-years-to-buy-an-electric-typewriter-because-i-was/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [“Carrie Fisher. “Stay afraid, but do it anyway.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-union/carrie-fisher-stay-afraid-but-do-it-anyway/) [Gabrielle Union](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-union/) > [I used to be afraid of my temper, but it turns out I don't really have one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-bell/i-used-to-be-afraid-of-my-temper-but-it-turns-out-i-don-t-really-have/) [Zoe Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-bell/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I am not afraid of praise, for I have practiced it on myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-am-not-afraid-of-praise-for-i-have-practiced-it-on-myself/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I'm a pretty fearless person. I'm afraid of, like, creepy men in white vans and sidewalks with no streetlights. But I'm not afraid to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josie-totah/i-m-a-pretty-fearless-person-i-m-afraid-of-like-creepy-men-in-white/) [Josie Totah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josie-totah/) > [I will support my party when they are right on an issue, but am not afraid to stand up to party bosses who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darlene-senger/i-will-support-my-party-when-they-are-right-on-an-issue-but-am-not/) Darlene Senger > [Why am I so afraid to loose you,when you're not even mine?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/why-am-i-so-afraid-to-loose-you-when-you-re-not-even-mine/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I want to tell you, but I cant, becuase I'm afraid if I do you'll never treat me same the again](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cristina-orante/i-want-to-tell-you-but-i-cant-becuase-i-m-afraid-if-i-do-you-ll-never/) [Cristina Orante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cristina-orante/) > [Mistakes I've made in the past make me afraid to try new things in the future. I want to be perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-altucher/mistakes-i-ve-made-in-the-past-make-me-afraid-to-try-new-things-in/) [James Altucher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-altucher/) > [“Humans are naturally scared and confused beings. They not only fear the unknown, as they live fearing themselves... ☥”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-marques/humans-are-naturally-scared-and-confused-beings-they-not-only-fear/) [Luis Marques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-marques/) > [If you are too afraid of failure, you cant possibly do what needs to be done to succeed in living a fulfilling life. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/if-you-are-too-afraid-of-failure-you-cant-possibly-do-what-needs-to/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [We cannot be afraid of the dark that they live in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burnie-burns/we-cannot-be-afraid-of-the-dark-that-they-live-in/) [Burnie Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/burnie-burns/) > [“I think the reason we're cruel sometimes is that we're afraid we're going to like something.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/i-think-the-reason-we-re-cruel-sometimes-is-that-we-re-afraid-we-re/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [I'm still with that feeling that I am afraid of doing the wrong thing, because somebody is going to punish me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eartha-kitt/i-m-still-with-that-feeling-that-i-am-afraid-of-doing-the-wrong-thing/) [Eartha Kitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eartha-kitt/) Browse all 5,519 Afraid quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Unfortunately I am afraid, as always, of going on. For to go on means going from here, means finding me, losing me, vanishing and beginning again, a stranger first, then little by little the same as always, in another place, where I shall say I have always been, of which I shall know nothing, being incapable of seeing, moving, thinking, speaking, but of which little by little, in spite of these handicaps, I shall begin to know something, just enough for it to turn out to be the same place as always, the same which seems made for me and does not want me, which I seem to want and do not want, take your choice, which spews me out or swallows me up, I’ll never know, which is perhaps merely the inside of my distant skull where once I wandered, now am fixed, lost for tininess, or straining against the walls, with my head, my hands, my feet, my back, and ever murmuring my old stories, my old story, as if it were the first time.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Samuel Beckett" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-going-on-for-to-go-on-means/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Afraid" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-going-on-for-to-go-on-means/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f7/samuel-beckett-365_afraid_unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-g_737790.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f7/samuel-beckett-365_afraid_unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-g_737790.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f7/samuel-beckett-365_afraid_unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-g_737790.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Unfortunately I am afraid, as always, of going on. For to go on means going from here, means finding me…” — Samuel Beckett", "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": "Samuel Beckett", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Unfortunately I am afraid, as always,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-going-on-for-to-go-on-means/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/unfortunately-i-am-afraid-as-always-of-going-on-for-to-go-on-means/#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 } } ] } ```