--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If people are portrayed as monsters, we…" description: "\"If people are portrayed as monsters, we become disconnected from them, and to me that is not remotely interesting.\" — Alex Gibney" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/alex-gibney-7495_disconnected_if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-b_160206.jpg" --- # If people are portrayed as monsters, we become… ![“If people are portrayed as monsters, we become disconnected from them, and to me that is not remotely interesting.” quote by Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/alex-gibney-7495_disconnected_if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-b_160206.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/alex-gibney-7495_disconnected_if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-b_160206.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/alex-gibney-7495_disconnected_if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-b_160206.jpg) > “If people are portrayed as monsters, we become disconnected from them, and to me that is not remotely interesting.” [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that depicting people as monsters creates emotional distance, making stories uninteresting because they lack relatable humanity. **In simple terms:** Monsters alienate audiences, reducing interest. Key Takeaway Humanize characters to engage audiences. Themes storytelling empathy characterization Mood thoughtful critical Type analysis observation When to use this quote - films - novels - media portrayals - social commentary Key Concepts dehumanization engagement relatability Questions to Reflect On - How does portraying villains as human affect empathy? - What are the risks of over‑humanizing antagonists? A Different Perspective Monsters can symbolize internal struggles. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Monsters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monsters/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [All wrongfully convicted people are portrayed as monsters. But there's a special kind of monster that is a woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-knox/all-wrongfully-convicted-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-but-there-s/) [Amanda Knox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-knox/) > [I'm always hyperaware of the way in which working people are portrayed on the stage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-nottage/i-m-always-hyperaware-of-the-way-in-which-working-people-are/) [Lynn Nottage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-nottage/) > [If you see black people being portrayed in this one way well then, when you see a black person in real life, you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiki-layne/if-you-see-black-people-being-portrayed-in-this-one-way-well-then/) [KiKi Layne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiki-layne/) > [If your job was remotely interesting, there would be a show on A&E about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aziz-ansari/if-your-job-was-remotely-interesting-there-would-be-a-show-on-a-e/) [Aziz Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aziz-ansari/) > [“It amazes me that you can find all that shit even remotely interesting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/it-amazes-me-that-you-can-find-all-that-shit-even-remotely-interesting/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [The older I get, there doesn't seem to be anything remotely more interesting than talking about love and the lack of it and what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lowe/the-older-i-get-there-doesn-t-seem-to-be-anything-remotely-more/) [Nick Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lowe/) > [There's nothing remotely interesting to me about marketing music as a product.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-s-nothing-remotely-interesting-to-me-about-marketing-music-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [This is because fear and love are enemies. They come from two opposing kingdoms. Fear comes from the devil, who would like nothing more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-silk/this-is-because-fear-and-love-are-enemies-they-come-from-two-opposing/) [Danny Silk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-silk/) > [In theatres, you're kind of disconnected. Also, it's way too big for the likes of me. Unless you're Robin Williams or someone that can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norm-macdonald/in-theatres-you-re-kind-of-disconnected-also-it-s-way-too-big-for-the/) [Norm MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norm-macdonald/) > [My books have been translated into various languages and sold in other countries, but I never have any contact with the foreign publishers and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-zarr/my-books-have-been-translated-into-various-languages-and-sold-in/) [Sara Zarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-zarr/) > [Life is a biography, not a series of disconnected moments, more or less pleasurable but increasingly tedious and unsatisfying unless one imposes a purposive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-dalrymple/life-is-a-biography-not-a-series-of-disconnected-moments-more-or-less/) [Theodore Dalrymple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-dalrymple/) > [As politics is disconnected from its ethical and material moorings, it becomes easier to punish and imprison young people than to educate them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/as-politics-is-disconnected-from-its-ethical-and-material-moorings-it/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [If we fail to appreciate the soul that Easternism gives us, then what we have is a disconnected, Greco-Roman, Western, egocentric, compartmentalized, reductionist, fragmented,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-salatin/if-we-fail-to-appreciate-the-soul-that-easternism-gives-us-then-what/) [Joel Salatin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-salatin/) > [We are producing urban places which are disjointed and disconnected and not worthy of our civilisation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/we-are-producing-urban-places-which-are-disjointed-and-disconnected/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [Part of what we admire about a painting or a piece of music is the order which the artist has imposed upon what would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-storr/part-of-what-we-admire-about-a-painting-or-a-piece-of-music-is-the/) [Anthony Storr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-storr/) ## More by Alex Gibney > [Many people, including myself, thought of Jobs as an inventor, an Edison-like figure, but he wasn't. I did a documentary on James Brown recently;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/many-people-including-myself-thought-of-jobs-as-an-inventor-an-edison/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [Jobs' incredible skill was as a storyteller, a salesman. He could captivate our imaginations and reel us in. He was more P.T. Barnum than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/jobs-incredible-skill-was-as-a-storyteller-a-salesman-he-could/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [The internet connects us all and provides this fabulous fact-checking mechanism, and yet at the same time, the power of lies is conveyed much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/the-internet-connects-us-all-and-provides-this-fabulous-fact-checking/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [With every project I start out on, there's no footage. It's always a big slog to find the footage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/with-every-project-i-start-out-on-there-s-no-footage-it-s-always-a/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [Bill Gates, who is the classic computer nerd, as opposed to Steve who is, like the coolest guy in the world. And who is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/bill-gates-who-is-the-classic-computer-nerd-as-opposed-to-steve-who/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [Even with a villain, you don't want him just to be some pockmarked punchbag.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/even-with-a-villain-you-don-t-want-him-just-to-be-some-pockmarked/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [You see the natural progression of what happens when the executive gets power and then a new executive comes in. The new executive doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/you-see-the-natural-progression-of-what-happens-when-the-executive/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [The Barack Obama Administration has prosecuted more whistleblowers than all previous administrations combined. That's a staggering record. And it comes from a president who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/the-barack-obama-administration-has-prosecuted-more-whistleblowers/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [In the case of the Catholic Church, it's hard to understand how they so willfully sacrifice the children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/in-the-case-of-the-catholic-church-it-s-hard-to-understand-how-they/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [I feel that Julian Assange came to be both paranoid and self-regarding in ways that ultimately undermined his own mission. And so, the transparency…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/i-feel-that-julian-assange-came-to-be-both-paranoid-and-self/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [It's hard to make a living doing documentaries. Frankly, if it takes you five years to do a film, and that's the only film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/it-s-hard-to-make-a-living-doing-documentaries-frankly-if-it-takes/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [I'm a sports junkie, and I am interested in athletic will - how you exceed the expectations of your own performance when it counts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/i-m-a-sports-junkie-and-i-am-interested-in-athletic-will-how-you/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [To get discounts on some drugs, private insurers are willing to pay top prices for blockbuster pharmaceuticals like Vioxx, despite the fact that Vioxx…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/to-get-discounts-on-some-drugs-private-insurers-are-willing-to-pay/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [The sex abuse crisis in the Catholic Church is the result of what police call "noble cause corruption," the belief that because you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/the-sex-abuse-crisis-in-the-catholic-church-is-the-result-of-what/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) > [Whether or not he came to believe it - so many people, when they have a mission, come to believe something in a way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/whether-or-not-he-came-to-believe-it-so-many-people-when-they-have-a/) [Alex Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) [Explore all 90 Alex Gibney quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/) ## More Disconnected quotes > [Part of what we admire about a painting or a piece of music is the order which the artist has imposed upon what would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-storr/part-of-what-we-admire-about-a-painting-or-a-piece-of-music-is-the/) [Anthony Storr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-storr/) > [We are producing urban places which are disjointed and disconnected and not worthy of our civilisation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/we-are-producing-urban-places-which-are-disjointed-and-disconnected/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [If we fail to appreciate the soul that Easternism gives us, then what we have is a disconnected, Greco-Roman, Western, egocentric, compartmentalized, reductionist, fragmented,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-salatin/if-we-fail-to-appreciate-the-soul-that-easternism-gives-us-then-what/) [Joel Salatin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-salatin/) > [As politics is disconnected from its ethical and material moorings, it becomes easier to punish and imprison young people than to educate them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/as-politics-is-disconnected-from-its-ethical-and-material-moorings-it/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [Life is a biography, not a series of disconnected moments, more or less pleasurable but increasingly tedious and unsatisfying unless one imposes a purposive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-dalrymple/life-is-a-biography-not-a-series-of-disconnected-moments-more-or-less/) [Theodore Dalrymple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-dalrymple/) > [My books have been translated into various languages and sold in other countries, but I never have any contact with the foreign publishers and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-zarr/my-books-have-been-translated-into-various-languages-and-sold-in/) [Sara Zarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-zarr/) > [In theatres, you're kind of disconnected. Also, it's way too big for the likes of me. Unless you're Robin Williams or someone that can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norm-macdonald/in-theatres-you-re-kind-of-disconnected-also-it-s-way-too-big-for-the/) [Norm MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norm-macdonald/) > [This is because fear and love are enemies. They come from two opposing kingdoms. Fear comes from the devil, who would like nothing more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-silk/this-is-because-fear-and-love-are-enemies-they-come-from-two-opposing/) [Danny Silk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-silk/) > [“Every few minutes or so I would remember the look from the man who had wanted fifty cents, and I'd look at that framed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/every-few-minutes-or-so-i-would-remember-the-look-from-the-man-who/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [The experience of life that you and I have is pretty much a jigsaw puzzle in the box: Day-to-day experiences of disconnected pieces that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-adams/the-experience-of-life-that-you-and-i-have-is-pretty-much-a-jigsaw/) [Robert Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-adams/) > [You have to learn how to harness technology so you can use it for positive stuff without being disconnected from nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/talib-kweli/you-have-to-learn-how-to-harness-technology-so-you-can-use-it-for/) [Talib Kweli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/talib-kweli/) > [“I was already at one remove before the Internet came along. I need another remove? Now I have to spend the time that I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-ferris/i-was-already-at-one-remove-before-the-internet-came-along-i-need/) [Joshua Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-ferris/) > [We live in a paradox: connected electronically but disconnected interpersonally. However, when you recognize the problem, you can take steps to correct it. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hallowell/we-live-in-a-paradox-connected-electronically-but-disconnected/) [Edward Hallowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hallowell/) > [“We disconnected. And I wondered if we had ever truly connected.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-jerome-dickey/we-disconnected-and-i-wondered-if-we-had-ever-truly-connected/) [Eric Jerome Dickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-jerome-dickey/) > [“She was a stranger in her own life, a tourist in her own body.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-de-la-cruz/she-was-a-stranger-in-her-own-life-a-tourist-in-her-own-body/) [Melissa de la Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-de-la-cruz/) Browse all 213 Disconnected quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If people are portrayed as monsters, we become disconnected from them, and to me that is not remotely interesting.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alex Gibney" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-become-disconnected-from-them/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Disconnected" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-become-disconnected-from-them/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/alex-gibney-7495_disconnected_if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-b_160206.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/alex-gibney-7495_disconnected_if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-b_160206.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a3/alex-gibney-7495_disconnected_if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-b_160206.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If people are portrayed as monsters, we become disconnected from them, and to me that is not remotely…” — Alex Gibney", "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": "Alex Gibney", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-gibney/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If people are portrayed as monsters,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-become-disconnected-from-them/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-gibney/if-people-are-portrayed-as-monsters-we-become-disconnected-from-them/#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 } } ] } ```