--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I wanted to be a great white hunter, a…" description: "\"I wanted to be a great white hunter, a prospector for gold, or a slave trader. But then, when I was eight, my parents sent me to a boarding school in S..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/wilbur-smith-7617_book_i-wanted-to-be-a-great-white-hunter-a-pr_1173722.jpg" --- # I wanted to be a great white hunter, a prospector for… ![“I wanted to be a great white hunter, a prospector for gold, or a slave trader. But then, when I was eight, my parents sent me to a boarding school in South Africa. It was the equivalent of a British public school with cold showers, beatings and rotten food. But what it also had was a library full…” quote by Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/wilbur-smith-7617_book_i-wanted-to-be-a-great-white-hunter-a-pr_1173722.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/wilbur-smith-7617_book_i-wanted-to-be-a-great-white-hunter-a-pr_1173722.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/wilbur-smith-7617_book_i-wanted-to-be-a-great-white-hunter-a-pr_1173722.jpg) > “I wanted to be a great white hunter, a prospector for gold, or a slave trader. But then, when I was eight, my parents sent me to a boarding school in South Africa. It was the equivalent of a British public school with cold showers, beatings and rotten food. But what it also had was a library full of books.” [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A harsh boarding school experience introduced the narrator to literature, shaping his future path despite brutal conditions. **In simple terms:** School hardships led to love of books. Key Takeaway Seek knowledge even in adversity. Themes resilience education transformation Mood reflective inspirational Type narrative philosophical When to use this quote - personal growth - career choice - literary inspiration Key Concepts social class colonialism Questions to Reflect On - How did books change his outlook? - What role did adversity play? A Different Perspective Harsh environments can also cause trauma. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Boarding school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boarding-school/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [British](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/british/) [Cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cold/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gold/) [Hunters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hunters/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Public school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-school/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Slave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slave/) [South africa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/south-africa/) [Traders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traders/) ## Related quotes > [“(On Baron von Blixen:) Six feet of amiable Swede and, to my knowledge, the toughest, most durable White Hunter ever to snicker at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/on-baron-von-blixen-six-feet-of-amiable-swede-and-to-my-knowledge-the/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [When I was young, I always wanted to be great at football.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jameis-winston/when-i-was-young-i-always-wanted-to-be-great-at-football/) [Jameis Winston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jameis-winston/) > [In my youth, I wanted to be a great pantomimist -- but I found I had nothing to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-borge/in-my-youth-i-wanted-to-be-a-great-pantomimist-but-i-found-i-had/) [Victor Borge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-borge/) > [I always wanted to be a great actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-field/i-always-wanted-to-be-a-great-actor/) [Sally Field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-field/) > [We wanted to be in great shape, we wanted to be able to cope with zero gravity, we wanted to be able to cope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/we-wanted-to-be-in-great-shape-we-wanted-to-be-able-to-cope-with-zero/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [Ever since I signed, I've wanted to do great things in baseball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-correa/ever-since-i-signed-i-ve-wanted-to-do-great-things-in-baseball/) [Carlos Correa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-correa/) > [I'm sorry that 'Fringe' is gone. I really wanted to do more on that show. It was great!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-scott/i-m-sorry-that-fringe-is-gone-i-really-wanted-to-do-more-on-that-show/) [Jill Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-scott/) > [When I started out as a little kid, I didn't say 'I just want to run football.' I wanted to be a great athlete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herschel-walker/when-i-started-out-as-a-little-kid-i-didn-t-say-i-just-want-to-run/) [Herschel Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herschel-walker/) > [Coming in, I wanted to be a great player, and right now at the beginning of my career, I'm showing some slight sunshine that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kawhi-leonard/coming-in-i-wanted-to-be-a-great-player-and-right-now-at-the/) [Kawhi Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kawhi-leonard/) > [All I've ever wanted to do was be a great dad, and yet there's no stopping this existential mirror that's held up to yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-krasinski/all-i-ve-ever-wanted-to-do-was-be-a-great-dad-and-yet-there-s-no/) [John Krasinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-krasinski/) > [I've always wanted be as great as I could possibly be at the sport of boxing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-thurman/i-ve-always-wanted-be-as-great-as-i-could-possibly-be-at-the-sport-of/) [Keith Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-thurman/) > [I wanted to be great. And I loved Nashville, so that made it easy. I loved the music business. It made it easy for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandy-clark/i-wanted-to-be-great-and-i-loved-nashville-so-that-made-it-easy-i/) [Brandy Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandy-clark/) > [I never wanted to be famous. I only wanted to be great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-charles/i-never-wanted-to-be-famous-i-only-wanted-to-be-great/) [Ray Charles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-charles/) > [I wanted to be a great player, and I wasn't. I never got over that. I take that same energy into coaching.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tomlin/i-wanted-to-be-a-great-player-and-i-wasn-t-i-never-got-over-that-i/) [Mike Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tomlin/) > [More than rich, more than famous, more than happy...I wanted to be great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/more-than-rich-more-than-famous-more-than-happy-i-wanted-to-be-great/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) ## More by Wilbur Smith > [To me, my characters are more real than most people I meet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/to-me-my-characters-are-more-real-than-most-people-i-meet/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [Sometimes it is best for men not to attempt to interfere with destiny. Our prayers can be answered in ways which we do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/sometimes-it-is-best-for-men-not-to-attempt-to-interfere-with-destiny/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [“uninvited help he might offer would be rejected. He was surprised and delighted when she placed a hand on his shoulder as she climbed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/uninvited-help-he-might-offer-would-be-rejected-he-was-surprised-and/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [I still get enormous pleasure and a sense of fulfillment out of writing a book that I'm proud of. I see myself as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/i-still-get-enormous-pleasure-and-a-sense-of-fulfillment-out-of/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [My mother-in-law speaks not a word of English. I speak not a word of Tajiki. So I smile at her ingratiatingly and she fixes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/my-mother-in-law-speaks-not-a-word-of-english-i-speak-not-a-word-of/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [I used to own an island in the Seychelles and had a big boat there and one day I came across some Somali pirates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/i-used-to-own-an-island-in-the-seychelles-and-had-a-big-boat-there/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [The mistake the apartheid government made was they gave the black people nothing, so they had nothing to lose. But now a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/the-mistake-the-apartheid-government-made-was-they-gave-the-black/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [There is no quick way of making money. People come to you with tips for the races or offer the latest Ponzi scheme, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/there-is-no-quick-way-of-making-money-people-come-to-you-with-tips/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [I go on a hunting safari at least once a year to Botswana, which is fantastic because we have a huge area of wilderness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/i-go-on-a-hunting-safari-at-least-once-a-year-to-botswana-which-is/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [Usually halfway through a book I have a serious depression, so I go on safari on my ranch in South Africa, or fishing off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/usually-halfway-through-a-book-i-have-a-serious-depression-so-i-go-on/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [Litigation only makes lawyers fat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/litigation-only-makes-lawyers-fat/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [Let it simply be said that we know more about the details of the hours immediately before and the actual death of Jesus, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/let-it-simply-be-said-that-we-know-more-about-the-details-of-the/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [The first story I ever sold was to 'Argosy' magazine, which no longer exists. That issue also contained work by several other more celebrated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/the-first-story-i-ever-sold-was-to-argosy-magazine-which-no-longer/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [“I believe that there are dark and difficult days ahead, and you won't be playing for an increase in company dividens - you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/i-believe-that-there-are-dark-and-difficult-days-ahead-and-you-won-t/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [“the helmet badge blazed like a sunrise upon”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/the-helmet-badge-blazed-like-a-sunrise-upon/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) [Explore all 88 Wilbur Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) ## More Boarding school quotes > [“From the opening sentence, it is clear that we are in the presence of a writer with a distinctive voice and uncanny ability to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-doust/from-the-opening-sentence-it-is-clear-that-we-are-in-the-presence-of/) Jon Doust > [At age 10 or 12 he's going to boarding school in the Isle of Wight. The Isle of Wight is, of course, down at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-irons/at-age-10-or-12-he-s-going-to-boarding-school-in-the-isle-of-wight/) [Jeremy Irons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-irons/) > [I was a boarding school product from the age of eight, and I hated it. Though I do have a theory that boarding school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mawer/i-was-a-boarding-school-product-from-the-age-of-eight-and-i-hated-it/) [Simon Mawer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mawer/) > [I went to a boarding school when I was 13, and it was a very arty school, so there was an opportunity for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-thompson/i-went-to-a-boarding-school-when-i-was-13-and-it-was-a-very-arty/) [Teddy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-thompson/) > [I'm the first to admit I've had a sheltered life. I grew up in the country and went to a boarding school. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rickitt/i-m-the-first-to-admit-i-ve-had-a-sheltered-life-i-grew-up-in-the/) [Adam Rickitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rickitt/) > [“Inside, a mother superior, ethereal, delicate, who took me under her wing. She caressed me with her slender, soft hands, she sat next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fleur-jaeggy/inside-a-mother-superior-ethereal-delicate-who-took-me-under-her-wing/) Fleur Jaeggy > [My parents sent me from Venezuela to the Convent of Our Lady, a boarding school in Hastings, which was horrible - like Harry Potter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-busquets/my-parents-sent-me-from-venezuela-to-the-convent-of-our-lady-a/) [Carmen Busquets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-busquets/) > [You know I went to the Hunt Schools, a boarding school in Princeton, and I've heard so many Rhodes scholars have gone to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myron-rolle/you-know-i-went-to-the-hunt-schools-a-boarding-school-in-princeton/) [Myron Rolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/myron-rolle/) > [My dream, I remember, when I went to boarding school, was to have a study all my own, a little nook someplace where nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/my-dream-i-remember-when-i-went-to-boarding-school-was-to-have-a/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [I was a fat little boy when I was 10 years old! My mother, who didn't speak any English at all, said, 'I know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omar-sharif/i-was-a-fat-little-boy-when-i-was-10-years-old-my-mother-who-didn-t/) [Omar Sharif](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omar-sharif/) > [I went to boarding school at seven and cried and cried.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-everett/i-went-to-boarding-school-at-seven-and-cried-and-cried/) [Rupert Everett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-everett/) > [When I was 10 I went to the Drakensberg Boys Choir School, which is this idyllic Harry Potter-esque music boarding school in the mountains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/when-i-was-10-i-went-to-the-drakensberg-boys-choir-school-which-is/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [It was tough going to boarding school. It was very hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasmine-guinness/it-was-tough-going-to-boarding-school-it-was-very-hard-work/) [Jasmine Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasmine-guinness/) > [I went to boarding school Southern, religious, and straight, and I left boarding school not being at all religious and not being straight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hughes/i-went-to-boarding-school-southern-religious-and-straight-and-i-left/) [Chris Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hughes/) > [I had been kind of quite porky and happy at boarding school and not self-conscious at all; then, suddenly, I found myself in auditions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-had-been-kind-of-quite-porky-and-happy-at-boarding-school-and-not/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) [Browse all 141 Boarding school quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boarding-school/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I wanted to be a great white hunter, a prospector for gold, or a slave trader. 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