--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sometimes stories get on my…" description: "\"“Sometimes stories get on my nerves--especially the ones where unfair things keep happening to the hero over and over, for no reason at all, and he val..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/susan-vaught-41202_failing_sometimes-stories-get-on-my-nerves-espec_1863613.jpg" --- # Sometimes stories get on my nerves--especially the ones… ![“Sometimes stories get on my nerves--especially the ones where unfair things keep happening to the hero over and over, for no reason at all, and he valiantly overcomes it all. Life isn't like that. Not every hero can stay valiant. Sometimes, they can't even stay a hero, so what does that make them?…” quote by Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/susan-vaught-41202_failing_sometimes-stories-get-on-my-nerves-espec_1863613.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/susan-vaught-41202_failing_sometimes-stories-get-on-my-nerves-espec_1863613.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b2/susan-vaught-41202_failing_sometimes-stories-get-on-my-nerves-espec_1863613.jpg) > ““Sometimes stories get on my nerves--especially the ones where unfair things keep happening to the hero over and over, for no reason at all, and he valiantly overcomes it all. Life isn't like that. Not every hero can stay valiant. Sometimes, they can't even stay a hero, so what does that make them? A failure? A pussy? A total failure jerkwad with no hope on the horizon save finding a cemetery and digging rectangles in the ground for the town drunk?”” [Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Repeated unfair hardships in stories can mislead expectations about real life, where outcomes are less predictable. **In simple terms:** Stories often exaggerate hero resilience, unlike real life. Key Takeaway Accept that life isn’t always heroic or fair. Themes narrative expectations fairness resilience heroism Mood critical reflective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - reading fiction - teaching media literacy - managing disappointment Key Concepts storytelling psychology realism Questions to Reflect On - Do we need more realistic heroes in media? - How can we balance drama with authenticity? A Different Perspective Not all narratives reflect realistic coping; some may foster false hope. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Failing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failing/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Failure Pussy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure-pussy-2525132/) [Hero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hero/) [Hero Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hero-reason-1322773/) [Heroism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heroism/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Like Hero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-hero-311777/) [Stay Hero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stay-hero-2525131/) [Stay Valiant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stay-valiant-2525130/) [Weakness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weakness/) ## Related quotes > [“Love is being willing to become the villain so that the one you love can stay a hero.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-angelini/love-is-being-willing-to-become-the-villain-so-that-the-one-you-love/) [Josephine Angelini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-angelini/) > [Where there is no pain, suffering, or tragedy, there is no perseverance and no Hero's. There's a reason for everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/where-there-is-no-pain-suffering-or-tragedy-there-is-no-perseverance/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“He was determined to save her, to be her hero, to give her a reason why the gods had seen fit to place him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-thorne-grey/he-was-determined-to-save-her-to-be-her-hero-to-give-her-a-reason-why/) [Madison Thorne Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-thorne-grey/) > [Be like a hero and save your people like legend the SCARLET PIMPERNEL…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vino/be-like-a-hero-and-save-your-people-like-legend-the-scarlet-pimpernel/) [Vino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vino/) > [“If life is but a movie, be the hero you'd like to see, be the hero you'd like to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-halimi/if-life-is-but-a-movie-be-the-hero-you-d-like-to-see-be-the-hero-you/) [Eve Halimi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-halimi/) > [“You know you're like, my hero, right?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stuart-stutzman/you-know-you-re-like-my-hero-right/) [Stuart Stutzman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stuart-stutzman/) > [“The way she curls in my arms makes me feel like I’m the hero. I like being her hero. I like the way her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-mcgarry/the-way-she-curls-in-my-arms-makes-me-feel-like-i-m-the-hero-i-like/) [Katie McGarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-mcgarry/) > [I don't feel like I'm a hero.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-stallworth/i-don-t-feel-like-i-m-a-hero/) [Ron Stallworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-stallworth/) > [I like heroes, and would like to be a hero myself. I suppose we all want that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rhys-davies/i-like-heroes-and-would-like-to-be-a-hero-myself-i-suppose-we-all/) [John Rhys-Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rhys-davies/) > [“He’s like a hero come back from the war, a poor maimed bastard living out the reality of his dreams. Wherever he sits himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/he-s-like-a-hero-come-back-from-the-war-a-poor-maimed-bastard-living/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“...So that someone might want to put you in a book...So that you may be worth putting in a book...Live like a hero...Be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/so-that-someone-might-want-to-put-you-in-a-book-so-that-you-may-be/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [Arthur, their young king, like a hero out of legend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-zimmer-bradley/arthur-their-young-king-like-a-hero-out-of-legend/) [Marion Zimmer Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-zimmer-bradley/) > [Live your life like you're the hero in your movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-rogan/live-your-life-like-you-re-the-hero-in-your-movie/) [Joe Rogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-rogan/) > [One must think like a hero to behave like a merely decent human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/one-must-think-like-a-hero-to-behave-like-a-merely-decent-human-being/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Live your life like you're the hero in your movie and right now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-rogan/live-your-life-like-you-re-the-hero-in-your-movie-and-right-now/) [Joe Rogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-rogan/) ## More by Susan Vaught > [I'm lost in space and I want to find a way home. Nobody else can get me back to the planet, so I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-vaught/i-m-lost-in-space-and-i-want-to-find-a-way-home-nobody-else-can-get/) [Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) > [“Her lips taste like mint from toothpaste or gum, or sometimes like cherries or grapes from her lip gloss. She's soft when I hold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-vaught/her-lips-taste-like-mint-from-toothpaste-or-gum-or-sometimes-like/) [Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) > [“Soft, pretty things don't belong in a dead zone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-vaught/soft-pretty-things-don-t-belong-in-a-dead-zone/) [Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) > [ “Some people are so strong, they don't need to change \[...\] They change everyone around them.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-vaught/some-people-are-so-strong-they-don-t-need-to-change-they-change/) [Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) > [“Is it how it feels to do the right things? Because it sucks!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-vaught/is-it-how-it-feels-to-do-the-right-things-because-it-sucks/) [Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) > [Some things can be fixed. Some things are just too broken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-vaught/some-things-can-be-fixed-some-things-are-just-too-broken/) [Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) > [Even when you know something bad will happen, you still might not see it coming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-vaught/even-when-you-know-something-bad-will-happen-you-still-might-not-see/) [Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) > [Avoiding life, avoiding making any concrete plans for your life-that's just one way you're pretending you can keep bad things from happening to you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-vaught/avoiding-life-avoiding-making-any-concrete-plans-for-your-life-that-s/) [Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) > [“Five seconds, and my body's humming. I go half-man, half-machine, and my thoughts go straight to touching her more, to how far I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-vaught/five-seconds-and-my-body-s-humming-i-go-half-man-half-machine-and-my/) [Susan Vaught](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) [Explore all 10 Susan Vaught quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vaught/) ## More Failing quotes > [Many individuals spend a considerable portion of their lifetimes in terror of one imagined catastrophe or another. The classic is that your immortal soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/many-individuals-spend-a-considerable-portion-of-their-lifetimes-in/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [Apologies are not pass/fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-pausch/apologies-are-not-pass-fail/) [Randy Pausch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-pausch/) > [Trial by jury. Live wherever you can make a living. How could a government based on such principles fail?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-ambrose/trial-by-jury-live-wherever-you-can-make-a-living-how-could-a/) [Stephen Ambrose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-ambrose/) > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [My willingness to fail gives me the ability to succeed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vinod-khosla/my-willingness-to-fail-gives-me-the-ability-to-succeed/) [Vinod Khosla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vinod-khosla/) > [I would warn against holsters with devices for quick-draw. Devices always fail when you need them most.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-powell/i-would-warn-against-holsters-with-devices-for-quick-draw-devices/) [William Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-powell/) > [You can’t bake a cake without getting the kitchen messy. Halfway through surgery it looks like there’s been a murder in the operating room.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/price-pritchett/you-can-t-bake-a-cake-without-getting-the-kitchen-messy-halfway/) [Price Pritchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/price-pritchett/) > [We can't afford any president to fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-beck/we-can-t-afford-any-president-to-fail/) [Glenn Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-beck/) > [When I paint, I never think of selling. People simply fail to understand that we paint in order to experiment and to develop ourselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edvard-munch/when-i-paint-i-never-think-of-selling-people-simply-fail-to/) [Edvard Munch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edvard-munch/) > [Either dragons should exist completely or fail to exist at all, he felt. A dragon only half-existing was worse than the extremes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/either-dragons-should-exist-completely-or-fail-to-exist-at-all-he/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [I wake up every morning fearing I am going to fail. But I love a challenge, big or small. There's so much I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-mone/i-wake-up-every-morning-fearing-i-am-going-to-fail-but-i-love-a/) [Michelle Mone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-mone/) > [What I want is to be willing to fail rather than stagnate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dickey/what-i-want-is-to-be-willing-to-fail-rather-than-stagnate/) [James Dickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dickey/) > [In proportion as our inward life fails, we go more constantly and desperately to the post office. You may depend on it, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/in-proportion-as-our-inward-life-fails-we-go-more-constantly-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The very first company I started failed with a great bang. The second one failed a little bit less, but still failed. The third…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-levchin/the-very-first-company-i-started-failed-with-a-great-bang-the-second/) [Max Levchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-levchin/) [Browse all 5,634 Failing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Sometimes stories get on my nerves--especially the ones where unfair things keep happening to the hero over and over, for no reason at all, and he valiantly overcomes it all. Life isn't like that. Not every hero can stay valiant. 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