--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The last thing I wanted was infinite…" description: "\"“The last thing I wanted was infinite security and to be the place an arrow shoots off from. I wanted change and excitement and to shoot off in all dir..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/774/sylvia-plath-149_change_the-last-thing-i-wanted-was-infinite-sec_1472295.jpg" --- # The last thing I wanted was infinite security and to be… ![“The last thing I wanted was infinite security and to be the place an arrow shoots off from. I wanted change and excitement and to shoot off in all directions myself, like the coloured arrows from a Fourth of July rocket.” quote by Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/774/sylvia-plath-149_change_the-last-thing-i-wanted-was-infinite-sec_1472295.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/774/sylvia-plath-149_change_the-last-thing-i-wanted-was-infinite-sec_1472295.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/774/sylvia-plath-149_change_the-last-thing-i-wanted-was-infinite-sec_1472295.jpg) > ““The last thing I wanted was infinite security and to be the place an arrow shoots off from. I wanted change and excitement and to shoot off in all directions myself, like the coloured arrows from a Fourth of July rocket.”” [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. The poet rejects static security, craving dynamic change and excitement, likening herself to a rocket’s exploding arrows that spread in many directions. **In simple terms:** She wants change, not safety. Key Takeaway Seek excitement over stagnant security. Themes change excitement freedom Mood defiant energetic Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - career choices - artistic pursuits - personal development Key Concepts existential yearning creative metaphor Questions to Reflect On - What risks are you willing to take for excitement? - How do you balance security with desire for change? A Different Perspective Too much change can lead to instability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Cybersecurity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cybersecurity/) [Fourth Of July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fourth-of-july/) ## Related quotes > [I wanted change and excitement and to shoot off in all directions myself, like the colored arrows from a Fourth of July rocket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/i-wanted-change-and-excitement-and-to-shoot-off-in-all-directions/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“And then I wondered if as soon as he came to like me he would sink into ordinariness, and if as soon as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/and-then-i-wondered-if-as-soon-as-he-came-to-like-me-he-would-sink-3/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“And then I wondered if as soon as he came to like me he would sink into ordinariness, and if as soon as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/and-then-i-wondered-if-as-soon-as-he-came-to-like-me-he-would-sink-2/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“That's one of the reasons I never wanted to get married. The last thing I wanted was infinite security and to be the place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/that-s-one-of-the-reasons-i-never-wanted-to-get-married-the-last-2/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [That’s one of the reasons I never wanted to get married. The last thing I wanted was infinite security and to be the place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/that-s-one-of-the-reasons-i-never-wanted-to-get-married-the-last/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“What a man wants is is an arrow into the future and what a woman is is the place the arrow shoots off from.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/what-a-man-wants-is-is-an-arrow-into-the-future-and-what-a-woman-is/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [What a man is is an arrow into the future, and what a woman is is the place the arrow shoots off from.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/what-a-man-is-is-an-arrow-into-the-future-and-what-a-woman-is-is-the/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [...there was the annual Fourth of July picketing at Independence Hall in Philadelphia. ...I thought it was ridiculous to have to go there in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-shelley/there-was-the-annual-fourth-of-july-picketing-at-independence-hall-in/) Martha Shelley > [I'd like to go out on top, preferably breaking a new world record on the Fourth of July.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-chestnut/i-d-like-to-go-out-on-top-preferably-breaking-a-new-world-record-on/) [Joey Chestnut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-chestnut/) > [“And if we succeed... If we somehow accomplish this thing that seems so impossible, it will be the most glorious victory imaginable. The Fourth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-devlin/and-if-we-succeed-if-we-somehow-accomplish-this-thing-that-seems-so/) [Dean Devlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-devlin/) > [Bastille Day is just like the Fourth of July except it takes place in France and we don't care about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/bastille-day-is-just-like-the-fourth-of-july-except-it-takes-place-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When we were the political slaves of King George, and wanted to be free, we called the maxim that "all men are created equal"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/when-we-were-the-political-slaves-of-king-george-and-wanted-to-be/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [A sucker punch came flying from somewhere in the back. As soon as we can see clearly with our big black eye, we're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toby-keith/a-sucker-punch-came-flying-from-somewhere-in-the-back-as-soon-as-we/) [Toby Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toby-keith/) > [What I’m talking about is more than recompense for past injustices—more than a handout, a payoff, hush money, or a reluctant bribe. What I’m…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/what-i-m-talking-about-is-more-than-recompense-for-past-injustices/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [Our opponents see an America in which every day is April 15, tax day. Well, we see an America in which every day is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/our-opponents-see-an-america-in-which-every-day-is-april-15-tax-day/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) ## 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 Arrows quotes > [With the arrival of electric technology, man has extended, or set outside himself, a live model of the central nervous system itself. To the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/with-the-arrival-of-electric-technology-man-has-extended-or-set/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [Pure essence, and pure matter, and the two joined into one were shot forth without flaw, like three bright arrows from a three-string bow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dante-alighieri/pure-essence-and-pure-matter-and-the-two-joined-into-one-were-shot/) [Dante Alighieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dante-alighieri/) > [I did archery when I was in high school. In our gym class we had two weeks of archery, and I remember taking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-barrowman/i-did-archery-when-i-was-in-high-school-in-our-gym-class-we-had-two/) [John Barrowman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-barrowman/) > [Game of Thrones. I'm all about it. I watch Arrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-r-mcqueen/game-of-thrones-i-m-all-about-it-i-watch-arrow/) [Steven R. McQueen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-r-mcqueen/) > [I have shot mine arrow o'er the house And hurt my brother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-have-shot-mine-arrow-o-er-the-house-and-hurt-my-brother/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I had a map on my wall that had a circle around Lubbock and then giant arrows pointing toward New York City and Los…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-corbin/i-had-a-map-on-my-wall-that-had-a-circle-around-lubbock-and-then/) [Barry Corbin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-corbin/) > [An arrow may fly through the air and leave no trace; but an ill thought leaves a trail like a serpent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-mackay/an-arrow-may-fly-through-the-air-and-leave-no-trace-but-an-ill/) [Charles Mackay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-mackay/) > [If you shoot an arrow and it goes real high... Hooray for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorian-corey/if-you-shoot-an-arrow-and-it-goes-real-high-hooray-for-you/) [Dorian Corey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorian-corey/) > [Our present time is indeed a criticizing and critical time, hovering between the wish, and the inability to believe. Our complaints are like arrows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-temple/our-present-time-is-indeed-a-criticizing-and-critical-time-hovering/) [William Temple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-temple/) > [You took a poison arrow and you aimed it at my heart. It's heavy and it's bitter, and it's tearing me apart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madonna-ciccone/you-took-a-poison-arrow-and-you-aimed-it-at-my-heart-it-s-heavy-and/) [Madonna Ciccone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madonna-ciccone/) > [How long the thick dark clouds can prevent the truth from shining? The truth is an arrow that can pass through any shield!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/how-long-the-thick-dark-clouds-can-prevent-the-truth-from-shining-the/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“Vasic said the words on Aden’s tongue. “The Arrows expect mercy from no one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nalini-singh/vasic-said-the-words-on-aden-s-tongue-the-arrows-expect-mercy-from-no/) [Nalini Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nalini-singh/) > [Follow your arrow / Wherever it points,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kacey-musgraves/follow-your-arrow-wherever-it-points/) [Kacey Musgraves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kacey-musgraves/) > [If the errors of my life have profited me one great truth it is this: believe. 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