--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I had imagined a kind, ugly, intuitive…" description: "\"“I had imagined a kind, ugly, intuitive man looking up and saying \"Ah!\" in an encouraging way, as if he could see something I couldn't and then I would..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/579/sylvia-plath-149_scared_i-had-imagined-a-kind-ugly-intuitive-man_2727703.jpg" --- # I had imagined a kind, ugly, intuitive man looking up and… ![“I had imagined a kind, ugly, intuitive man looking up and saying "Ah!" in an encouraging way, as if he could see something I couldn't and then I would find words to tell him how I was so scared, as I were being stuffed farther and farther into a black, airless sack with no way out. Then he would…” quote by Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/579/sylvia-plath-149_scared_i-had-imagined-a-kind-ugly-intuitive-man_2727703.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/579/sylvia-plath-149_scared_i-had-imagined-a-kind-ugly-intuitive-man_2727703.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/579/sylvia-plath-149_scared_i-had-imagined-a-kind-ugly-intuitive-man_2727703.jpg) > ““I had imagined a kind, ugly, intuitive man looking up and saying "Ah!" in an encouraging way, as if he could see something I couldn't and then I would find words to tell him how I was so scared, as I were being stuffed farther and farther into a black, airless sack with no way out. Then he would lean back in his chair and match the tips of his fingers together in a little steeple and tell me why I couldn't sleep and why I couldn't read and why I couldn't eat and why everything people did seemed so silly, because they only died in the end. And then, I thought, he would help me, step by step, to be myself again.”” [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes a suffocating inner darkness and a yearning for an empathetic guide to restore self. **In simple terms:** Feeling trapped, seeking help to rediscover self. Key Takeaway Seek supportive connections. Themes despair hope self‑discovery Mood melancholic hopeful Type poetic psychological When to use this quote - therapy - friendship - creative writing Key Concepts existentialism mental illness Questions to Reflect On - Who can you trust for support? - What steps can you take alone? A Different Perspective Help may not always be available. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Couldn Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/couldn-sleep/) [Imagined Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagined-kind-1513923/) [Intuitive Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intuitive-man-2930897/) [Scared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scared/) [Step By Step](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/step-by-step/) [Tell Scared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tell-scared-910550/) ## Related quotes > [I had imagined a kind, ugly, intuitive man looking up and say, 'Ah!' in an encouraging way, as if he could see something I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-had-imagined-a-kind-ugly-intuitive-man-looking-up-and-say-ah-in-an/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [There are ages in which the rational man and the intuitive man stand side by side, the one in fear of intuition, the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/there-are-ages-in-which-the-rational-man-and-the-intuitive-man-stand/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“I love you so much,and there are so many things that I didn't get to tell you. I was scared of the way you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tarryn-fisher/i-love-you-so-much-and-there-are-so-many-things-that-i-didn-t-get-to/) [Tarryn Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tarryn-fisher/) > [I never imagined that I would be the kind of person who is recognized when I am out and about just living my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/i-never-imagined-that-i-would-be-the-kind-of-person-who-is-recognized/) [Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/) > [It was great. Freedom even the imagined kind always is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/it-was-great-freedom-even-the-imagined-kind-always-is/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [I never, ever would have imagined the kind of career I've had. It just wouldn't have occurred to me that anything like this could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-widder/i-never-ever-would-have-imagined-the-kind-of-career-i-ve-had-it-just/) [Edith Widder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-widder/) > [They were nothing like the French people I had imagined. If anything, they were too kind, too generous and too knowledgable in the fields…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/they-were-nothing-like-the-french-people-i-had-imagined-if-anything/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [I shall never get out of this! There are two of me now: This new absolutely white person and the old yellow one, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-shall-never-get-out-of-this-there-are-two-of-me-now-this-new/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“The brave person is the one who says they care about the other person to their face. They tell them that even though they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-bell/the-brave-person-is-the-one-who-says-they-care-about-the-other-person/) [Christine Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-bell/) > [You can't put my talents in a box because my talents have put me in a mansion, and I'll be damned if anybody in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/logic/you-can-t-put-my-talents-in-a-box-because-my-talents-have-put-me-in-a/) [Logic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/logic/) > [“I didn't want to tell you I'd been scared, much less why. I guess that was stupid." "It was." "Aren't you supposed to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-robb/i-didn-t-want-to-tell-you-i-d-been-scared-much-less-why-i-guess-that/) [J.D. Robb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-robb/) > [I have Georges St-Pierre out here telling me 'you really think I'm afraid of you, man?' and I'm like you should be, bro. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-diaz/i-have-georges-st-pierre-out-here-telling-me-you-really-think-i-m/) [Nick Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-diaz/) > [You knew that talking dirty to me on the phone would get me here Cause we both wanted to do this but I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/micayla-ludick-basson/you-knew-that-talking-dirty-to-me-on-the-phone-would-get-me-here/) [Micayla Ludick Basson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/micayla-ludick-basson/) > [“Don't try to tell me it's because I'm scared, because the truth is the only time I'm not terrified is when I'm with you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-grant/don-t-try-to-tell-me-it-s-because-i-m-scared-because-the-truth-is-the/) [Donna Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-grant/) > [I think people who agree with Donald Trump have repeatedly made the case that he should be able to say whatever he wants to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-aydin/i-think-people-who-agree-with-donald-trump-have-repeatedly-made-the/) [Andrew Aydin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-aydin/) ## More by Sylvia Plath > [“It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs, and I didn't know what I was doing in New York.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/it-was-a-queer-sultry-summer-the-summer-they-electrocuted-the/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [I love life. But it is hard and I have so much, so very much to learn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-love-life-but-it-is-hard-and-i-have-so-much-so-very-much-to-learn/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [... These are my hands My knees. I may be skin and bone, Nevertheless, I am the same, identical woman. ... --Lady Lazarus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/these-are-my-hands-my-knees-i-may-be-skin-and-bone-nevertheless-i-am/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [Sure, I’m dramatic and sloppily semi-cynical and semi-sentimental. But, in leisure years I could grow and choose my way. Now I am living on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/sure-i-m-dramatic-and-sloppily-semi-cynical-and-semi-sentimental-but/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“People were made of nothing so much as dust, and I couldn't see that doctoring all that dust was a bit better than writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/people-were-made-of-nothing-so-much-as-dust-and-i-couldn-t-see-that/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“I couldn't stand the idea of a woman having to have a single pure life and a man being able to have a double…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-couldn-t-stand-the-idea-of-a-woman-having-to-have-a-single-pure/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [I saw the gooseflesh on my skin. I did not know what made it. I was not cold. Had a ghost passed over? No,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-saw-the-gooseflesh-on-my-skin-i-did-not-know-what-made-it-i-was-not/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [I have to live my life, and it is the only one I’ll ever have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-have-to-live-my-life-and-it-is-the-only-one-i-ll-ever-have/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“The city had faded my tan, though. I looked yellow as a Chinaman. Ordinarily, I would have been nervous about my dress and my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/the-city-had-faded-my-tan-though-i-looked-yellow-as-a-chinaman/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [Joy:show joy & enjoy: then others will be joyful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/joy-show-joy-enjoy-then-others-will-be-joyful/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [A million years of evolution, Eric said bitterly, and what are we? Animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/a-million-years-of-evolution-eric-said-bitterly-and-what-are-we/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“I have stitched life into me like a rare organ --from "Three Women: A Poem for Three Voices", written 1962”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-have-stitched-life-into-me-like-a-rare-organ-from-three-women-a/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [It is so much safer not to feel, not to let the world touch me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/it-is-so-much-safer-not-to-feel-not-to-let-the-world-touch-me/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“Flute Notes from a Reedy Pond" Now coldness comes sifting down, layer after layer, To our bower at the lily root. Overhead the old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/flute-notes-from-a-reedy-pond-now-coldness-comes-sifting-down-layer/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“The most saddening thing is to admit that I am not in love. I can only love (if that means self denial - or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/the-most-saddening-thing-is-to-admit-that-i-am-not-in-love-i-can-only/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) [Explore all 1,098 Sylvia Plath quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) ## More Scared quotes > [“That horrible stinging sensation returned, the muscles behind my eyes straining as the first tear began to fall. “I’m scared, too. For eighteen months…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-ashley/that-horrible-stinging-sensation-returned-the-muscles-behind-my-eyes/) [Devon Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-ashley/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [The beginning of genius is being scared shitless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-ferdinand-celine/the-beginning-of-genius-is-being-scared-shitless/) [Louis-Ferdinand Celine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-ferdinand-celine/) > [“She felt something for me too, deep down I knew it, but she was just scared of getting hurt again. I could wait thought;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsty-moseley/she-felt-something-for-me-too-deep-down-i-knew-it-but-she-was-just/) [Kirsty Moseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsty-moseley/) > [She still felt shell-shocked by all of it, numb. Beneath the numbness, though, was a raw and terrible anger that was unlike anything she'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-hannah/she-still-felt-shell-shocked-by-all-of-it-numb-beneath-the-numbness/) [Kristin Hannah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-hannah/) > [When I became Miss World, I couldn't believe I had won it. I used to sleep with my crown because I was scared someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/priyanka-chopra/when-i-became-miss-world-i-couldn-t-believe-i-had-won-it-i-used-to/) [Priyanka Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/priyanka-chopra/) > [What I love about watching classic horror films is that they take you on a ride and they obviously make you scared because you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-holmes/what-i-love-about-watching-classic-horror-films-is-that-they-take-you/) [Katie Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-holmes/) > [If you scared to take chances, you'll never have the answers...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/if-you-scared-to-take-chances-you-ll-never-have-the-answers/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [The ghost story movie that scared me the most was The Changeling with George C. Scott. I think that's sometimes overlooked, but it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-ghost-story-movie-that-scared-me-the-most-was-the-changeling-with/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The #MeToo campaign is monumental. It is giving a voice to so many too scared to speak out before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-smart/the-metoo-campaign-is-monumental-it-is-giving-a-voice-to-so-many-too/) [Elizabeth Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-smart/) > [I had always been scared of the unknown, and I think it had a lot to do with a lack of self-confidence (and wearing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-levy/i-had-always-been-scared-of-the-unknown-and-i-think-it-had-a-lot-to/) [Dan Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-levy/) > [According to Shakyamuni Buddha, it's normal for human beings to be anxious, because it's normal for human beings not to understand themselves. When you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reb-anderson/according-to-shakyamuni-buddha-it-s-normal-for-human-beings-to-be/) [Reb Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reb-anderson/) > [“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/) > [Hercules used noise! Brass bells! He scared them away with the most horrible sound he could-" said Percy "Percy... Chiron's collection!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/hercules-used-noise-brass-bells-he-scared-them-away-with-the-most/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [“To all the secret writers, late-night painters, would-be singers, lapsed and scared artists of every stripe, dig out your paintbrush, or your flute, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/to-all-the-secret-writers-late-night-painters-would-be-singers-lapsed/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) [Browse all 4,224 Scared quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scared/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I had imagined a kind, ugly, intuitive man looking up and saying \"Ah!\" in an encouraging way, as if he could see something I couldn't and then I would find words to tell him how I was so scared, as I were being stuffed farther and farther into a black, airless sack with no way out. Then he would lean back in his chair and match the tips of his fingers together in a little steeple and tell me why I couldn't sleep and why I couldn't read and why I couldn't eat and why everything people did seemed so silly, because they only died in the end. 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