--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Civilised life, you know, is based on a…" description: "\"Civilised life, you know, is based on a huge number of illusions in which we all collaborate willingly. The trouble is we forget after a while that the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ff/anonymous-1_civilised_civilised-life-you-know-is-based-on-a-hu_3161560.jpg" --- # Civilised life, you know, is based on a huge number of… ![“Civilised life, you know, is based on a huge number of illusions in which we all collaborate willingly. The trouble is we forget after a while that they are illusions and we are deeply shocked when reality is torn down around us.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ff/anonymous-1_civilised_civilised-life-you-know-is-based-on-a-hu_3161560.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ff/anonymous-1_civilised_civilised-life-you-know-is-based-on-a-hu_3161560.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ff/anonymous-1_civilised_civilised-life-you-know-is-based-on-a-hu_3161560.jpg) > “Civilised life, you know, is based on a huge number of illusions in which we all collaborate willingly. The trouble is we forget after a while that they are illusions and we are deeply shocked when reality is torn down around us.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society relies on shared false beliefs; when those are exposed, people react violently to reality. **In simple terms:** Society lives on shared illusions that shock when broken. Key Takeaway Question and test the assumptions you hold. Themes illusion society reality Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - political discourse - media consumption - personal relationships - education Key Concepts collective belief cognitive dissonance Questions to Reflect On - Which common belief might be an illusion? - How can we confront reality without causing harm? A Different Perspective Illusions can also provide comfort and social cohesion, making change difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Civilised](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilised/) [Civilised Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilised-life-2644105/) [Forget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forget/) [Forget Illusions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forget-illusions-5717042/) [Illusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illusion/) [Illusions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illusions/) [Illusions Collaborate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illusions-collaborate-5717041/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Numbers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/numbers/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Torn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/torn/) [Trouble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trouble/) ## Related quotes > [That monstrous tuberosity of civilised life, the capital of England.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/that-monstrous-tuberosity-of-civilised-life-the-capital-of-england/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Architecture, sculpture, painting, music, and poetry, may truly be called the efflorescence of civilised life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/architecture-sculpture-painting-music-and-poetry-may-truly-be-called/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [“We now lay in towns, where nobody troubled us with questions; we had floated into civilised life, where people pass without salutation. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/we-now-lay-in-towns-where-nobody-troubled-us-with-questions-we-had/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [If there was anything any Radchaai considered essential for civilised life, it was tea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-leckie/if-there-was-anything-any-radchaai-considered-essential-for-civilised/) [Ann Leckie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-leckie/) > [Going to a restaurant is one of my keenest pleasures. Meeting someplace with old and new friends, ordering wine, eating food, surrounded by strangers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-gopnik/going-to-a-restaurant-is-one-of-my-keenest-pleasures-meeting/) [Adam Gopnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-gopnik/) > [The purpose of education is to fit us for life in a civilised community, and it seems to follow from the subjects we study…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-burgess/the-purpose-of-education-is-to-fit-us-for-life-in-a-civilised/) [Anthony Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-burgess/) > [I think the police are a major part of the glue that holds civilised life together. They're not highly paid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-james/i-think-the-police-are-a-major-part-of-the-glue-that-holds-civilised/) [Peter James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-james/) > [“«How do we justify calling ourselves civilised, after all? Is it the books we read? The delicacy of our tastes? Our place in continuing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/how-do-we-justify-calling-ourselves-civilised-after-all-is-it-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [People who cling to their illusions find it difficult, if not impossible, to learn anything worth learning: a people under the necessity of creating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-who-cling-to-their-illusions-find-it-difficult-if-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I imagine you not telling me to whisper. I imagine you not saying oh don't say this literally. You want me to evoke as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-imagine-you-not-telling-me-to-whisper-i-imagine-you-not-saying-oh/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Experience comprises illusions lost, rather than wisdom gained.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/experience-comprises-illusions-lost-rather-than-wisdom-gained/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What sense does it make to build a castle of illusions? We can live in it for a short time, but when a storm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-sense-does-it-make-to-build-a-castle-of-illusions-we-can-live-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What is experience? A poor little hut constructed from the ruins of the palace of gold and marble called our illusions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-is-experience-a-poor-little-hut-constructed-from-the-ruins-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Another source of fallacy is the vicious circle of illusions which consists on the one hand of believing what we see, and on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/another-source-of-fallacy-is-the-vicious-circle-of-illusions-which/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Crowds create illusions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/crowds-create-illusions/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [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/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“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/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Civilised quotes > [Even today to be civilised is held to be synonymous with being westernised. Advanced countries devote large resources to formulating and spreading ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/even-today-to-be-civilised-is-held-to-be-synonymous-with-being/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [Civilised my syphilised yarbles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-burgess/civilised-my-syphilised-yarbles/) [Anthony Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-burgess/) > [On this waterlogged landscape…are scattered palaces and hovels…It is here that the human spirit becomes perfect, and at the same time brutalised, that civilisation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/on-this-waterlogged-landscape-are-scattered-palaces-and-hovels-it-is/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [When we get civilised, I believe children will go by number until they get old enough to choose their own names.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myrtle-reed/when-we-get-civilised-i-believe-children-will-go-by-number-until-they/) [Myrtle Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/myrtle-reed/) > [This extraordinary metal, the soul of every manufacture, and the mainspring perhaps of civilised society. Of iron.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-smiles/this-extraordinary-metal-the-soul-of-every-manufacture-and-the/) [Samuel Smiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-smiles/) > [The civilised cultures are the most cruel. It's the same with education - often it breeds sadistic forms of cruelty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-mckay/the-civilised-cultures-are-the-most-cruel-it-s-the-same-with/) [Nellie McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-mckay/) > [This generation may either be the last to exist in any semblance of a civilised world or that it will be the first to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-st-barbe-baker/this-generation-may-either-be-the-last-to-exist-in-any-semblance-of-a/) [Richard St. Barbe Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-st-barbe-baker/) > [Bombing is not especially inhumane. War itself is inhumane and the bombing plane, which is used to paralyse industry and transport, is a relatively…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/bombing-is-not-especially-inhumane-war-itself-is-inhumane-and-the/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [I suffered most inconvenience from the difficulty of getting news from the civilised world down river, from the irregularity of receipt of letters, parcels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-walter-bates/i-suffered-most-inconvenience-from-the-difficulty-of-getting-news/) [Henry Walter Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-walter-bates/) > [Architecture, sculpture, painting, music, and poetry, may truly be called the efflorescence of civilised life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/architecture-sculpture-painting-music-and-poetry-may-truly-be-called/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [You get the feeling that many of my guests feel that the French language gives them entry into a more cultivated, more intelligent world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-pivot/you-get-the-feeling-that-many-of-my-guests-feel-that-the-french/) [Bernard Pivot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-pivot/) > [All civilised countries should unite in the fight against international terrorism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/all-civilised-countries-should-unite-in-the-fight-against/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [The true savage is a slave, and is always talking about what he must do; the true civilised man is a free man, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/the-true-savage-is-a-slave-and-is-always-talking-about-what-he-must/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [The point about zero is that we do not need to use it in the operations of daily life. No one goes out to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/the-point-about-zero-is-that-we-do-not-need-to-use-it-in-the/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Sex is probably one of the last forms of human expression to enjoy such a direct connection with nature. It might be the primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-koerfer/sex-is-probably-one-of-the-last-forms-of-human-expression-to-enjoy/) [Thomas Koerfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-koerfer/) [Browse all 122 Civilised quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilised/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Civilised life, you know, is based on a huge number of illusions in which we all collaborate willingly. 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