--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...it gratified him to feel like a…" description: "\"“...it gratified him to feel like a desperate man. He had got into the habit of seeing himself always in desperate straits. His unhappy temperament was..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3d/willa-cather-634_habits_it-gratified-him-to-feel-like-a-desperat_583554.jpg" --- # ...it gratified him to feel like a desperate man. He had… ![“...it gratified him to feel like a desperate man. He had got into the habit of seeing himself always in desperate straits. His unhappy temperament was like a cage; he could never get out of it; and he felt that other people, his wife in particular, must have put him there. It had never more than…” quote by Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3d/willa-cather-634_habits_it-gratified-him-to-feel-like-a-desperat_583554.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3d/willa-cather-634_habits_it-gratified-him-to-feel-like-a-desperat_583554.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3d/willa-cather-634_habits_it-gratified-him-to-feel-like-a-desperat_583554.jpg) > ““...it gratified him to feel like a desperate man. He had got into the habit of seeing himself always in desperate straits. His unhappy temperament was like a cage; he could never get out of it; and he felt that other people, his wife in particular, must have put him there. It had never more than dimly occurred to Frank that he made his own unhappiness.”” [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator recognizes that personal misery often stems from self‑imposed mental habits rather than external forces. **In simple terms:** Unhappiness is often self‑created. Key Takeaway Examine and change your own mental patterns. Themes self‑awareness responsibility psychology Mood reflective melancholic Type literary psychological When to use this quote - marriage counseling - personal therapy - self‑help workshops - career dissatisfaction Key Concepts cognitive bias internal locus of control Questions to Reflect On - What habits keep you feeling trapped? - How can you shift blame inward constructively? A Different Perspective Changing mindset is difficult and may meet resistance from loved ones. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Desperate Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desperate-man-1368903/) [Desperate Straits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desperate-straits-4791356/) [Frank Unhappiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frank-unhappiness-4791353/) [Habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Occurred Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/occurred-frank-4791354/) [Unhappy Temperament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappy-temperament-4791355/) ## Related quotes > [Place your army in deadly peril, and it will survive; plunge it into desperate straits, and it will come off in safety.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/place-your-army-in-deadly-peril-and-it-will-survive-plunge-it-into/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [“Look here!” he replied, pulling from his waist-coat a curiously constructed pistol, having a double-edged spring knife attached to the barrel. “That’s a great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-bronte/look-here-he-replied-pulling-from-his-waist-coat-a-curiously/) [Emily Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-bronte/) > [I am such a desperate man headed into a midlife crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-gass/i-am-such-a-desperate-man-headed-into-a-midlife-crisis/) [Kyle Gass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-gass/) > [Once a week, I am a very desperate man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-trudeau/once-a-week-i-am-a-very-desperate-man/) [Garry Trudeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-trudeau/) > [“Hope is a desperate man's currency.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tremblay/hope-is-a-desperate-man-s-currency/) [Paul Tremblay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tremblay/) > [“Mine were the actions of a desperate man. Present a defining moment to one and he'll bite every time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-brooks/mine-were-the-actions-of-a-desperate-man-present-a-defining-moment-to/) [Larry Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-brooks/) > [“Now on a sloping meadow hours into a fresh day, he found himself a desperate man, struggling to free himself from the shackles of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-van-booy/now-on-a-sloping-meadow-hours-into-a-fresh-day-he-found-himself-a/) [Simon Van Booy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-van-booy/) > [He said he'd take most any old thing He was a desperate man but when I showed him the... He turned around and ran.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harris/he-said-he-d-take-most-any-old-thing-he-was-a-desperate-man-but-when/) [Phil Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harris/) > [Tempt not a desperate man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/tempt-not-a-desperate-man/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [The Hallows, the Hallows. A desperate man’s dream!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-hallows-the-hallows-a-desperate-man-s-dream/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-lombardi/winning-is-a-habit-unfortunately-so-is-losing/) [Vince Lombardi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-lombardi/) > [I doubt that we Americans can come to terms with our money neuroses without understanding the more florid pathology of the very rich for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-slater/i-doubt-that-we-americans-can-come-to-terms-with-our-money-neuroses/) [Philip Slater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-slater/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [I would drink gallons of coffee a day. Even now, off caffeine, I talk faster than anyone you've ever met. I finally recognized that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-englander/i-would-drink-gallons-of-coffee-a-day-even-now-off-caffeine-i-talk/) [Nathan Englander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-englander/) > [“Malchut is also the Alma D’Itgalya, “the Revealed World.” Here our latent potential is actualized through behavior and expression.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laibl-wolf/malchut-is-also-the-alma-d-itgalya-the-revealed-world-here-our-latent/) [Laibl Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laibl-wolf/) ## More by Willa Cather > [The end is nothing; the road is all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/the-end-is-nothing-the-road-is-all/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Of all the bewildering things about a new country, the absence of human landmarks is one of the most depressing and disheartening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/of-all-the-bewildering-things-about-a-new-country-the-absence-of/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Success is less interesting than struggle. There is great pleasure in the effort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/success-is-less-interesting-than-struggle-there-is-great-pleasure-in/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“I only knew the schoolbooks said he "died in the wilderness, of a broken heart." "More than him has done that," said Antonia sadly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/i-only-knew-the-schoolbooks-said-he-died-in-the-wilderness-of-a/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“Have the last word ma'm," he said cheerfully. "It's a lady's privilege.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/have-the-last-word-ma-m-he-said-cheerfully-it-s-a-lady-s-privilege/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > ["More than him has done that," said Antonia sadly, and the girls murmured assent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/more-than-him-has-done-that-said-antonia-sadly-and-the-girls-murmured/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Nothing mattered ... but writing books, and living the kind of life that made it possible to write them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/nothing-mattered-but-writing-books-and-living-the-kind-of-life-that/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“Money and office and success are the consolations of impotence. Fortune turns kind to such solid people and lets them suck their bone in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/money-and-office-and-success-are-the-consolations-of-impotence/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [But she still had that something which fires the imagination, could still stop one's breath for a moment by a look or gesture that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/but-she-still-had-that-something-which-fires-the-imagination-could/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“You remember how homesick I used to get, and what long talks we used to have coming from school? We've someway always felt alike…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/you-remember-how-homesick-i-used-to-get-and-what-long-talks-we-used/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“He placed this book in my grandmother's hands, looked at her entreatingly, and said, with an earnestness which I shall never forget, "Te-e-ach, te-e-ach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/he-placed-this-book-in-my-grandmother-s-hands-looked-at-her/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [The sincerity of feeling that is possible between a writer and a reader is one of the finest things I know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/the-sincerity-of-feeling-that-is-possible-between-a-writer-and-a/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [One realizes that human relationships are the tragic necessity of human life; that they can never be wholly satisfactory, that every ego is half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/one-realizes-that-human-relationships-are-the-tragic-necessity-of/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Our tree became the talking tree of the fairy tale; legends and stories nestled like birds in its branches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/our-tree-became-the-talking-tree-of-the-fairy-tale-legends-and/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“Isn’t it queer: there are only two or three human stories, and they go on repeating themselves as fiercely as if they had never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/isn-t-it-queer-there-are-only-two-or-three-human-stories-and-they-go/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) [Explore all 434 Willa Cather quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) ## More Habits quotes > [“Malchut is also the Alma D’Itgalya, “the Revealed World.” Here our latent potential is actualized through behavior and expression.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laibl-wolf/malchut-is-also-the-alma-d-itgalya-the-revealed-world-here-our-latent/) [Laibl Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laibl-wolf/) > [I would drink gallons of coffee a day. Even now, off caffeine, I talk faster than anyone you've ever met. I finally recognized that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-englander/i-would-drink-gallons-of-coffee-a-day-even-now-off-caffeine-i-talk/) [Nathan Englander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-englander/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [I doubt that we Americans can come to terms with our money neuroses without understanding the more florid pathology of the very rich for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-slater/i-doubt-that-we-americans-can-come-to-terms-with-our-money-neuroses/) [Philip Slater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-slater/) > [Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-lombardi/winning-is-a-habit-unfortunately-so-is-losing/) [Vince Lombardi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-lombardi/) > [“the mind-numbing routine. It was the castration of thought,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/the-mind-numbing-routine-it-was-the-castration-of-thought/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [As you begin changing your thinking, start immediately to change your behaviour. Begin to act the part of the person you would like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-you-begin-changing-your-thinking-start-immediately-to-change-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“When it comes to smarts, adolescents like Jesse have plenty. What they lack, however, are some of the brain-based skills that we all need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-guare/when-it-comes-to-smarts-adolescents-like-jesse-have-plenty-what-they/) [Richard Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-guare/) > [“I settled into a contented routine of working, spending my free time with Veronica and, back in my student room, wanking explosively to fantasies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/i-settled-into-a-contented-routine-of-working-spending-my-free-time/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [We need to discover all over again that worship is natural to the Christian, as it was to the godly Israelites who wrote the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-i-packer/we-need-to-discover-all-over-again-that-worship-is-natural-to-the/) [J. I. Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-i-packer/) > [Chaos often breeds life, when order breeds habit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/chaos-often-breeds-life-when-order-breeds-habit/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [“Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess: Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old. Keep me from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prayer-of-an-anonymous-abbess-lord-thou-knowest-better-than-myself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you're in a meeting and a man talks loudly over you, rather than copying that behaviour and normalising it, what you could do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-foster/if-you-re-in-a-meeting-and-a-man-talks-loudly-over-you-rather-than/) [Dawn Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-foster/) > [Transparency pertains to impartial behavior, implies openness, communication, and accountability. Inculcate transparency in attitude and experience a life free of controversy and blame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-anil-kr-sinha/transparency-pertains-to-impartial-behavior-implies-openness/) [Dr Anil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-anil-kr-sinha/) [Browse all 12,567 Habits quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“...it gratified him to feel like a desperate man. He had got into the habit of seeing himself always in desperate straits. His unhappy temperament was like a cage; he could never get out of it; and he felt that other people, his wife in particular, must have put him there. 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