--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And I am overwhelmed now by the awfulness…" description: "\"“And I am overwhelmed now by the awfulness of over-simplification. For now I realize that not only have I been guilty of it through this long and burni..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ee/alistair-macleod-32787_life_and-i-am-overwhelmed-now-by-the-awfulnes_79295.jpg" --- # And I am overwhelmed now by the awfulness of… ![“And I am overwhelmed now by the awfulness of over-simplification. For now I realize that not only have I been guilty of it through this long and burning day but also through most of my yet young life and it is only now that I am doubly its victim that I begin to vaguely understand. For I had…” quote by Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ee/alistair-macleod-32787_life_and-i-am-overwhelmed-now-by-the-awfulnes_79295.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ee/alistair-macleod-32787_life_and-i-am-overwhelmed-now-by-the-awfulnes_79295.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ee/alistair-macleod-32787_life_and-i-am-overwhelmed-now-by-the-awfulnes_79295.jpg) > ““And I am overwhelmed now by the awfulness of over-simplification. For now I realize that not only have I been guilty of it through this long and burning day but also through most of my yet young life and it is only now that I am doubly its victim that I begin to vaguely understand. For I had somehow thought that ‘going away’ was but a physical thing. And that it had only to do with movement and with labels like the silly ‘Vancouver’ that I had glibly rolled from off my tongue; or with the crossing of bodies of water or with the boundaries of borders. And because my father told me I was ‘free’ I had foolishly felt that it was really so. Just like that. And I realize now that the older people of my past are more complicated than perhaps I had ever thought. And that there are distinctions between my sentimental, romantic grandfather and his love for coal, and my stern and practical grandmother her hatred of it; and my quietly strong but passive mother and the souring extremes of my father’s passionate violence and the quiet power of his love. They are all so different. Perhaps it is possible I think now to be both and yet to see only one. For the man in whose glassed-in car I now sit sees only similarity. For him the people of this multi-scarred little town are reduced to but a few phrases and the act of sexual intercourse. They are only so many identical goldfish leading identical, incomprehensible lives within the glass prison of their bowl. And the people on the street view me from behind my own glass in much the same way and it is the way that I have looked at others in their ‘foreign licence’ cars and it is the kind of judgment that I myself have made. And yet it seems that neither these people nor this man are in any way unkind and not to understand does not necessarily mean that one is cruel. But one should at least be honest. And perhaps I have tried too hard to be someone else without realizing at first what I presently am. I do not know. I am not sure. But I do know that I cannot follow this man into a house that is so much like the one I have left this morning and go down into the sexual embrace of a woman who might well be my mother. And I do not know what she, my mother, may be like in the years to come when she is deprived of the lighting movement of my father’s body and the hammered pounding of his heart. For I do not know when he may die. And I do not know in what darkness she may cry out his name nor to whom. I do not know very much of anything, it seems, except that I have been wrong and dishonest with others and myself. And perhaps this man has left footprints on a soul I did not even know that I possessed.”” [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) ## 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 reflects on the danger of reducing complex lives and identities to simple labels, recognizing personal complicity in such oversimplification and the nuanced humanity of others. **In simple terms:** Over‑simplification erases individuality. Key Takeaway Complexity resists reduction. Themes identity complexity family dynamics perception empathy social judgment Mood reflective melancholic thoughtful Type personal essay philosophical reflection When to use this quote - navigating multicultural identity - reflecting on family legacy - encountering stereotypes in daily life - recognizing personal bias Key Concepts self‑awareness generational contrast cultural displacement subjective truth Practical Applications - deepening personal introspection - enhancing empathetic communication Questions to Reflect On - How does simplifying others affect our relationships? - What steps can we take to honor the full humanity of those around us? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Older people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/older-people/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Sexual intercourse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sexual-intercourse/) [Victim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victim/) [Young life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-life/) ## Related quotes > [Fighting hard...but realizing I'm fighting alone...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/fighting-hard-but-realizing-i-m-fighting-alone/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Leaving you wasnt the hard part. The hard part was realizing you never even realized I left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dev/leaving-you-wasnt-the-hard-part-the-hard-part-was-realizing-you-never/) [Dev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dev/) > [“You cannot look into a cradle and read the secret message traced by a divine hand and wrapped up in that bit of clay,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orison-swett-marden/you-cannot-look-into-a-cradle-and-read-the-secret-message-traced-by-a/) [Orison Swett Marden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orison-swett-marden/) > [In middle school, I had a teacher who regularly reminded students of the Monday night Young Life meetings he sponsored; on Tuesdays, he'd spend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-moser/in-middle-school-i-had-a-teacher-who-regularly-reminded-students-of/) [Laura Moser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-moser/) > [“Maybe I owe you something too, human," she said, drawing her pistol. 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One told how he had witnessed his cousin being shot in the back five times; another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-gruwell/the-stories-my-pupils-told-me-were-astonishing-one-told-how-he-had/) [Erin Gruwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-gruwell/) > [Your only Young Once , After that you have to Think of another Excuse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-jones/your-only-young-once-after-that-you-have-to-think-of-another-excuse/) [Victoria Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-jones/) > [Staying chaste until marriage, a commandment of my faith, was one of the most difficult challenges of my young life. I had a powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/feisal-abdul-rauf/staying-chaste-until-marriage-a-commandment-of-my-faith-was-one-of/) [Feisal Abdul Rauf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/feisal-abdul-rauf/) > [Life is precious Life is a god sent gift and it is your duty to live it to the full. You might face several…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaile-stewart/life-is-precious-life-is-a-god-sent-gift-and-it-is-your-duty-to-live/) [Kaile Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaile-stewart/) > [Learn as much as you can while you are young, since life becomes too busy later.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-scott/learn-as-much-as-you-can-while-you-are-young-since-life-becomes-too/) Dana Scott > [“These things I'd learned when I was young: Life is short and men are cruel, and ponies are born to suffer. I decided that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-lawrence/these-things-i-d-learned-when-i-was-young-life-is-short-and-men-are/) [Iain Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-lawrence/) > [I'm a Mommy's Girl - the strongest influence in my young life was my mom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susie-bright/i-m-a-mommy-s-girl-the-strongest-influence-in-my-young-life-was-my-mom/) [Susie Bright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susie-bright/) ## More by Alistair MacLeod > [Perhaps it is better to have a place to go to that you hate than to have no place at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/perhaps-it-is-better-to-have-a-place-to-go-to-that-you-hate-than-to/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [A Fiddle for Angus is a charming tale. This is a very fine book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/a-fiddle-for-angus-is-a-charming-tale-this-is-a-very-fine-book/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [“Some men,” she would add in ominous seriousness, “are nice as pie in public but within their own homes they are mean and miserly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/some-men-she-would-add-in-ominous-seriousness-are-nice-as-pie-in/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [I like to think that I am telling a story rather than writing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/i-like-to-think-that-i-am-telling-a-story-rather-than-writing-it/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [There is a kind of belief among my students that things that are true are interesting. 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I, obviously, don't think that should be there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/today-there-is-a-division-between-those-who-write-about-literature/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [“Sometimes it slanted against her window with a pinging sound, which meant it was close to hail, and then it was visible as tiny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/sometimes-it-slanted-against-her-window-with-a-pinging-sound-which/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [All of us are better when we're loved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/all-of-us-are-better-when-we-re-loved/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [And then there came into my heart a very great love for my father and I thought it was very much braver to spend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/and-then-there-came-into-my-heart-a-very-great-love-for-my-father-and/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [“Measure twice; cut once.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/measure-twice-cut-once/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [“ On a clear day you can see Prince Edward Island , we would say. Not "forever", just Prince Edward Island.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/on-a-clear-day-you-can-see-prince-edward-island-we-would-say-not/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [If people aren't creating literature, there would be nothing for people to criticize.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/if-people-aren-t-creating-literature-there-would-be-nothing-for/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) > [Writers write about what worries them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-macleod/writers-write-about-what-worries-them/) [Alistair MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) [Explore all 15 Alistair MacLeod quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-macleod/) ## More Life quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/) [Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/) > [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/) Deanna L. Lawlis > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) [Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“And I am overwhelmed now by the awfulness of over-simplification. For now I realize that not only have I been guilty of it through this long and burning day but also through most of my yet young life and it is only now that I am doubly its victim that I begin to vaguely understand. For I had somehow thought that ‘going away’ was but a physical thing. And that it had only to do with movement and with labels like the silly ‘Vancouver’ that I had glibly rolled from off my tongue; or with the crossing of bodies of water or with the boundaries of borders. And because my father told me I was ‘free’ I had foolishly felt that it was really so. Just like that. And I realize now that the older people of my past are more complicated than perhaps I had ever thought. And that there are distinctions between my sentimental, romantic grandfather and his love for coal, and my stern and practical grandmother her hatred of it; and my quietly strong but passive mother and the souring extremes of my father’s passionate violence and the quiet power of his love. They are all so different. Perhaps it is possible I think now to be both and yet to see only one. For the man in whose glassed-in car I now sit sees only similarity. For him the people of this multi-scarred little town are reduced to but a few phrases and the act of sexual intercourse. They are only so many identical goldfish leading identical, incomprehensible lives within the glass prison of their bowl. And the people on the street view me from behind my own glass in much the same way and it is the way that I have looked at others in their ‘foreign licence’ cars and it is the kind of judgment that I myself have made. And yet it seems that neither these people nor this man are in any way unkind and not to understand does not necessarily mean that one is cruel. But one should at least be honest. And perhaps I have tried too hard to be someone else without realizing at first what I presently am. I do not know. I am not sure. But I do know that I cannot follow this man into a house that is so much like the one I have left this morning and go down into the sexual embrace of a woman who might well be my mother. And I do not know what she, my mother, may be like in the years to come when she is deprived of the lighting movement of my father’s body and the hammered pounding of his heart. For I do not know when he may die. And I do not know in what darkness she may cry out his name nor to whom. I do not know very much of anything, it seems, except that I have been wrong and dishonest with others and myself. 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