--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't think of sex as a…" description: "\"I don't think of sex as a self-destructive impulse.\" — Thom Gunn" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/thom-gunn-15259_impulse_i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructi_1301316.png" --- # I don't think of sex as a self-destructive impulse. ![“I don't think of sex as a self-destructive impulse.” quote by Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/thom-gunn-15259_impulse_i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructi_1301316.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/thom-gunn-15259_impulse_i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructi_1301316.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/thom-gunn-15259_impulse_i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructi_1301316.png) > “I don't think of sex as a self-destructive impulse.” [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) ## 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 rejects the view that sexual desire is inherently harmful, seeing it as a natural part of human experience. **In simple terms:** Sex isn’t destructive; it’s natural. Key Takeaway Accept sexuality without shame. Themes identity desire human nature Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical cultural. When to use this quote - personal relationships - artistic expression - sexual health - cultural critique Key Concepts psychology social norms Questions to Reflect On - How does viewing sex as natural affect personal freedom? - What societal factors label desire as destructive? A Different Perspective Some may argue that unrestrained desire can cause harm. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self destructive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-destructive/) [Sex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sex/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [I think we all carry the seeds of our own destruction. You really have to be aware that just because something is good, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ferrara/i-think-we-all-carry-the-seeds-of-our-own-destruction-you-really-have/) [Adam Ferrara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ferrara/) > [“I remembered what it is I like about sex: what I like about sex is that I can lose myself in it entirely. 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Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-d-payne/) > [I never thought of myself as a sex symbol. I just do the cover of magazines. I think it’s really unfair men or people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-longoria/i-never-thought-of-myself-as-a-sex-symbol-i-just-do-the-cover-of/) [Eva Longoria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-longoria/) > [“Me: I think we should have sex again. Royce: Bad idea. Me: Why? Royce: I want more from you than sex. Me: Goodbye, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/me-i-think-we-should-have-sex-again-royce-bad-idea-me-why-royce-i/) [Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/) > [“I don’t get treadmills. You get all sweaty and go nowhere. Now, sex? You get all sweaty and go everywhere.” He lifted his head…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/i-don-t-get-treadmills-you-get-all-sweaty-and-go-nowhere-now-sex-you/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) ## More by Thom Gunn > [How sociable the garden was. We ate and talked in given light. The children put their toys to grass All the warm wakeful August…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/how-sociable-the-garden-was-we-ate-and-talked-in-given-light-the/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [It was difficult being a teacher and out of the closet in the '50s. By the time I retired, the English department was proud…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/it-was-difficult-being-a-teacher-and-out-of-the-closet-in-the-50s-by/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [We tend to put poems into factions. And it restricts our reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/we-tend-to-put-poems-into-factions-and-it-restricts-our-reading/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [We control the content of our dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/we-control-the-content-of-our-dreams/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [Deep feeling doesn't make for good poetry. 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They deepened my sense of God as the creator of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-linzey/when-i-was-in-my-teens-i-had-a-series-of-intensely-religious/) [Andrew Linzey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-linzey/) > [Impulse arrested spills over, and the flood is feeling, the flood is passion, the flood is even madness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/impulse-arrested-spills-over-and-the-flood-is-feeling-the-flood-is/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [Young men have strong passions and tend to gratify them indiscriminately. 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For, in a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/no-one-suffers-so-much-as-he-the-genius-with-the-people-and-therefore/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [If we are to define science, ... it does not consist so much in knowing, nor even in "organized knowledge," as it does in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sanders-peirce/if-we-are-to-define-science-it-does-not-consist-so-much-in-knowing/) [Charles Sanders Peirce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sanders-peirce/) > [The young man shivered. 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Stanley Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-stanley-hall/) Browse all 1,476 Impulse quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I don't think of sex as a self-destructive impulse.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thom Gunn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructive-impulse/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Impulse" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructive-impulse/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/thom-gunn-15259_impulse_i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructi_1301316.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/thom-gunn-15259_impulse_i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructi_1301316.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/thom-gunn-15259_impulse_i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructi_1301316.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I don't think of sex as a self-destructive impulse.” — Thom Gunn", "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": "Thom Gunn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I don't think of sex as...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructive-impulse/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructive-impulse/#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 } } ] } ```