--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I find the attempt to find things out…" description: "\"I find the attempt to find things out, which scientists are possessed by, to be as human as breathing, or feeding, or sex. And so the science has to be..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/a-s-byatt-2-7553_attempt_i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-wh_1681286.jpg" --- # I find the attempt to find things out, which scientists… ![“I find the attempt to find things out, which scientists are possessed by, to be as human as breathing, or feeding, or sex. And so the science has to be in the novels as science and not just as metaphors.” quote by A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/a-s-byatt-2-7553_attempt_i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-wh_1681286.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/a-s-byatt-2-7553_attempt_i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-wh_1681286.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/a-s-byatt-2-7553_attempt_i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-wh_1681286.jpg) > “I find the attempt to find things out, which scientists are possessed by, to be as human as breathing, or feeding, or sex. And so the science has to be in the novels as science and not just as metaphors.” [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She argues that scientific curiosity is as innate as basic human needs, urging its inclusion in literature as real science. **In simple terms:** Science is a basic human drive, should appear as real science in novels. Key Takeaway Integrate authentic scientific inquiry into storytelling. Themes science literature human nature Mood thoughtful inspired Type literary educational When to use this quote - education - fiction - public understanding of science Key Concepts epistemology creative writing Questions to Reflect On - How can you make science compelling in a story? - What scientific themes resonate with readers? A Different Perspective Balancing scientific accuracy with narrative flow can be tough. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attempt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attempt/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Breathing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breathing/) [Feeding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feeding/) [Find](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/find/) [Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human/) [Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just/) [Metaphors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metaphors/) [Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels/) [Novels Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels-science-959527/) [Out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/out/) [Possessed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possessed/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Science Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science-novels-959528/) [Scientists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientists/) [Scientists Possessed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientists-possessed-959529/) [Sex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sex/) [Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things/) [Things Scientists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-scientists-959530/) [Which](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/which/) ## Related quotes > [I read the things that scientists have figured out, and apply what they say is beneficial, but at the end of the day I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-rogan/i-read-the-things-that-scientists-have-figured-out-and-apply-what/) [Joe Rogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-rogan/) > [You must never believe all these things which the scientists say because they always want more than they can get-they are never satisfied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-khrushchev/you-must-never-believe-all-these-things-which-the-scientists-say/) [Nikita Khrushchev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-khrushchev/) > [There are similarities between historical novels and science fiction. Being thrown into the Napoleonic Wars is just as much of a different world as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alastair-reynolds/there-are-similarities-between-historical-novels-and-science-fiction/) [Alastair Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alastair-reynolds/) > [As a kid, I didn't drift into the comic world too much because I preferred to read fantasies novels and science fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-sheehan/as-a-kid-i-didn-t-drift-into-the-comic-world-too-much-because-i/) [Robert Sheehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-sheehan/) > [I was someone who really loved fantasy novels and science fiction novels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-tobin-anderson/i-was-someone-who-really-loved-fantasy-novels-and-science-fiction/) [Matthew Tobin Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-tobin-anderson/) > [Life is like driving a car. You have to look left or right before you turn to your path, however you just have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simphiwe-ntuli/life-is-like-driving-a-car-you-have-to-look-left-or-right-before-you/) [Simphiwe Ntuli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simphiwe-ntuli/) > [If you don't take the time to sharpen your axe, you'll spend your whole life hacking away at missed opportunities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blake-toth/if-you-don-t-take-the-time-to-sharpen-your-axe-you-ll-spend-your/) [Blake Toth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blake-toth/) > [Heart and Brain are the two lords of life. In the metaphors of ordinary speech and in the stricter language of science, we use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-henry-lewes/heart-and-brain-are-the-two-lords-of-life-in-the-metaphors-of/) [George Henry Lewes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-henry-lewes/) > [“Sure, zombies can “be a metaphor.” They can represent the oppressed, as in Land of the Dead, or humanity’s feral nature, as in 28…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-westerfeld/sure-zombies-can-be-a-metaphor-they-can-represent-the-oppressed-as-in/) [Scott Westerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-westerfeld/) > [Time, space, and causality are only metaphors of knowledge, with which we explain things to ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/time-space-and-causality-are-only-metaphors-of-knowledge-with-which/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Cheating is like eating fast food. You do it, you enjoy it, and then you end up feeling like shit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/cheating-is-like-eating-fast-food-you-do-it-you-enjoy-it-and-then-you/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [The cure for mixed metaphors, I have always found, is for the patient to be obliged to draw a picture of the result.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-levin/the-cure-for-mixed-metaphors-i-have-always-found-is-for-the-patient/) [Bernard Levin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-levin/) > [May your spirit soar throughout the vast cathedral of your being. May your mind whirl joyful cartwheels of creativity. may your heart sing sweet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-lockwood-huie/may-your-spirit-soar-throughout-the-vast-cathedral-of-your-being-may/) [Jonathan Lockwood Huie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-lockwood-huie/) > [Because you continue to inhabit and believe your metaphors, you cannot see what is true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-p-young/because-you-continue-to-inhabit-and-believe-your-metaphors-you-cannot/) [William P. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-p-young/) > [“No algorithm exists for the metaphor, nor can a metaphor be produced by means of a computer’s precise instructions, no matter what the volume…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/no-algorithm-exists-for-the-metaphor-nor-can-a-metaphor-be-produced/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) ## More by A. S. Byatt > [There is a certain aesthetic pleasure in trying to imagine the unimaginable and failing, if you are a reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/there-is-a-certain-aesthetic-pleasure-in-trying-to-imagine-the/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [I am not an academic who happens to have written a novel. I am a novelist who happens to be quite good academically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-am-not-an-academic-who-happens-to-have-written-a-novel-i-am-a/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [“He had been violently confused by her real presence in the opposite inaccessible corner. For months he had been possessed by the imagination of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/he-had-been-violently-confused-by-her-real-presence-in-the-opposite/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [Narration is as much a part of human nature as breath and the circulation of the blood… storytelling is intrinsic to biological time, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/narration-is-as-much-a-part-of-human-nature-as-breath-and-the/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [“Pedro of Portugal's rapt and bizarre declaration of love, in 1356, for the embalmed corpse of his murdered wife, Inez de Castro, who swayed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/pedro-of-portugal-s-rapt-and-bizarre-declaration-of-love-in-1356-for/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [I don't think it is an easy thing to write and expect to be commercial, even if you are from Venus and a hermaphrodite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-don-t-think-it-is-an-easy-thing-to-write-and-expect-to-be/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [I am not sure how much good is done by moralising about fairy tales. This can be unsubtle - telling children that virtue will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-am-not-sure-how-much-good-is-done-by-moralising-about-fairy-tales/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [I'd like to write the way Matisse paints.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-d-like-to-write-the-way-matisse-paints/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [Louis de Bernires is in the direct line that runs through Dickens and Evelyn Waugh. . .he has only to look into his world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/louis-de-bernires-is-in-the-direct-line-that-runs-through-dickens-and/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [I'm more interested in books than people, and I always expect everybody else to be, but they're not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-m-more-interested-in-books-than-people-and-i-always-expect/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [I watch a lot of sport on television. I only watch certain sports, and I only watch them live - I don't think I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-watch-a-lot-of-sport-on-television-i-only-watch-certain-sports-and/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [“When the morning light came into the room it found them curled together in a nest of red and white sheets. It revealed also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/when-the-morning-light-came-into-the-room-it-found-them-curled/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [I think there are a lot more important things than art in the world. But not to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-think-there-are-a-lot-more-important-things-than-art-in-the-world/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [For a long time, I felt instinctively irritated - sometimes repelled - by scientific friends' automatic use of the word 'mechanism' for automatic bodily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/for-a-long-time-i-felt-instinctively-irritated-sometimes-repelled-by/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [I was no good at being a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-was-no-good-at-being-a-child/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) [Explore all 90 A. S. Byatt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) ## More Attempt quotes > [Even though you can't expect to defeat the absurdity of the world, you must make that attempt. That's morality, that's religion. That's art. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-ochs/even-though-you-can-t-expect-to-defeat-the-absurdity-of-the-world-you/) [Phil Ochs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-ochs/) > [I'm not technically proficient enough to attempt all kinds of music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-gallagher/i-m-not-technically-proficient-enough-to-attempt-all-kinds-of-music/) [Noel Gallagher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-gallagher/) > [Realizing that they can't get their agenda across: against religious liberty, against a culture of life, they can't get those issues across through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-parsley/realizing-that-they-can-t-get-their-agenda-across-against-religious/) [Rod Parsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-parsley/) > [It is sometimes a mistake to climb. It is always a mistake never even to make the attempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-sometimes-a-mistake-to-climb-it-is-always-a-mistake-never-even/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I will never attempt to even begin to make excuses for what I did in football.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-storey/i-will-never-attempt-to-even-begin-to-make-excuses-for-what-i-did-in/) [Peter Storey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-storey/) > [“We all perish in our last attempt to live.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/we-all-perish-in-our-last-attempt-to-live/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [There was an attempt on my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jovenel-moise/there-was-an-attempt-on-my-life/) [Jovenel Moise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jovenel-moise/) > [The publishing of a book is a worldwide event. The attempt to suppress a book is a worldwide event.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/the-publishing-of-a-book-is-a-worldwide-event-the-attempt-to-suppress/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Advocacy groups in the USA, as in other countries, may not be able to silence this hateful, cowardly and deceitful attack upon people’s humanity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-engela/advocacy-groups-in-the-usa-as-in-other-countries-may-not-be-able-to/) [Christina Engela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-engela/) > [There are many things that seem impossible only so long as one does not attempt them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-gide/there-are-many-things-that-seem-impossible-only-so-long-as-one-does/) [Andre Gide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-gide/) > [For purposes of marketing, writers are designated as poets, novelists, or something else. But writing is about matchmaking, an attempt to marry sensations with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teju-cole/for-purposes-of-marketing-writers-are-designated-as-poets-novelists/) [Teju Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teju-cole/) > [It's my first sort of commercial attempt, but it made sense for me because I'm not that kind of guy and I'm not going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/it-s-my-first-sort-of-commercial-attempt-but-it-made-sense-for-me/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [In all civilizations we've studied, all cultures that we know of across the Earth and across time have invested some kind of attempt to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-all-civilizations-we-ve-studied-all-cultures-that-we-know-of/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [It is sometimes a mistake to climb. It is always a mistake to never make the attempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/it-is-sometimes-a-mistake-to-climb-it-is-always-a-mistake-to-never/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [My explanation remains the same: It was an attempt to make the point that anyone who opposed the war can achieve their objective by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-p-moran/my-explanation-remains-the-same-it-was-an-attempt-to-make-the-point/) [James P. Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-p-moran/) [Browse all 516 Attempt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attempt/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I find the attempt to find things out, which scientists are possessed by, to be as human as breathing, or feeding, or sex. And so the science has to be in the novels as science and not just as metaphors.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "A. S. Byatt" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-which-scientists-are-possessed/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attempt" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-which-scientists-are-possessed/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/a-s-byatt-2-7553_attempt_i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-wh_1681286.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/a-s-byatt-2-7553_attempt_i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-wh_1681286.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f62/a-s-byatt-2-7553_attempt_i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-wh_1681286.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I find the attempt to find things out, which scientists are possessed by, to be as human as breathing, or…” — A. S. Byatt", "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": "A. S. Byatt", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I find the attempt to find...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-which-scientists-are-possessed/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-find-the-attempt-to-find-things-out-which-scientists-are-possessed/#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 } } ] } ```