--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Papa says curses are only stories cooked…" description: "\"“Papa says curses are only stories cooked up to deter thieves. He says there are sixty-five million specimens in this place, and if you have the right ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/anthony-doerr-886_curses_papa-says-curses-are-only-stories-cooked_2804375.png" --- # Papa says curses are only stories cooked up to deter… ![“Papa says curses are only stories cooked up to deter thieves. He says there are sixty-five million specimens in this place, and if you have the right teacher, each can be as interesting as the last.” quote by Anthony Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/anthony-doerr-886_curses_papa-says-curses-are-only-stories-cooked_2804375.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/anthony-doerr-886_curses_papa-says-curses-are-only-stories-cooked_2804375.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/anthony-doerr-886_curses_papa-says-curses-are-only-stories-cooked_2804375.png) > ““Papa says curses are only stories cooked up to deter thieves. He says there are sixty-five million specimens in this place, and if you have the right teacher, each can be as interesting as the last.”” [Anthony Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-doerr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Curses are just stories to deter thieves; each specimen can be fascinating with the right teacher. **In simple terms:** Stories deter thieves; learning makes all things interesting. Key Takeaway Teach to reveal wonder in every detail. Themes learning storytelling curiosity misdirection education Mood inquisitive hopeful Type literary educational When to use this quote - classroom teaching - museum tours - personal growth Key Concepts Pedagogical curiosity mythic deterrence knowledge empowerment Questions to Reflect On - How can you turn warnings into learning? - What makes a story compelling? A Different Perspective Not all stories deter; some may mislead. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Curses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curses/) ## Related quotes > [“I wasn’t sure I’d heard him right and I started to shake my head, but Matty piped up. “It’s a second chance,” he said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sloane-kennedy/i-wasn-t-sure-i-d-heard-him-right-and-i-started-to-shake-my-head-but/) [Sloane Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sloane-kennedy/) > [ “We're not like God, \[Papa\] says. We can't know. We can't live like we do know or should have known.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-meissner/we-re-not-like-god-papa-says-we-can-t-know-we-can-t-live-like-we-do/) [Susan Meissner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-meissner/) > [“Yes,' said Catherine, stroking his long soft hair, 'if I could only get papa's consent, I'd spend half my time with you - Pretty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-bronte/yes-said-catherine-stroking-his-long-soft-hair-if-i-could-only-get/) [Emily Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-bronte/) > [The boy heaved a sigh. "I would ask to go with you," he said, " but I have to finish my lessons. 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I think there is only life. That's enough.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/if-you-ask-me-i-don-t-think-there-are-any-such-things-as-curses-i/) [Junot Díaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [“Juju is not enough to protect you. Everything you have I will turn against you. I'll turn sugar bitter for you. I'll take your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-oyeyemi/juju-is-not-enough-to-protect-you-everything-you-have-i-will-turn/) [Helen Oyeyemi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-oyeyemi/) ## More by Anthony Doerr > [I was a nerdy kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-doerr/i-was-a-nerdy-kid/) [Anthony Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-doerr/) > [“he moved neither forward nor backward in time, but merely endured variations of the same day over and over. Maybe he was the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-doerr/he-moved-neither-forward-nor-backward-in-time-but-merely-endured/) [Anthony Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-doerr/) > [“Open your eyes, the Frenchman on the radio used to say, and see what you can with them before they close forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-doerr/open-your-eyes-the-frenchman-on-the-radio-used-to-say-and-see-what/) [Anthony Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-doerr/) > [“Just when we think we have a system, ...the system collapses. Just when we know our way around, we get lost. Just when we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-doerr/just-when-we-think-we-have-a-system-the-system-collapses-just-when-we/) [Anthony Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-doerr/) > [“An hour passed and another and then, like a glass of water overfilled - the meniscus inverting, going convex, gravity pulling at the edges,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-doerr/an-hour-passed-and-another-and-then-like-a-glass-of-water-overfilled/) [Anthony Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-doerr/) > [“For dinner, he orders wild boar cooked with fresh mushrooms. And a full bottle of Bordeaux. Especially during wartime, such things remain important. 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That's enough.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/if-you-ask-me-i-don-t-think-there-are-any-such-things-as-curses-i/) [Junot Díaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [It's really sad how many people believe in curses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peyton-hillis/it-s-really-sad-how-many-people-believe-in-curses/) [Peyton Hillis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peyton-hillis/) > [Great wealth often curses all who touch it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/great-wealth-often-curses-all-who-touch-it/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [There are no such things as curses; only people and their decisions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yvonne-wood/there-are-no-such-things-as-curses-only-people-and-their-decisions/) [Yvonne Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yvonne-wood/) > [Respect your curses, for they are the instruments of your destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/respect-your-curses-for-they-are-the-instruments-of-your-destiny/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Don't mistake your blessings for curses...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-mistake-your-blessings-for-curses/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Lyly screamed and ran to Tyler. “I can’t let you go until I tell you.” “Tell me what?” Tyler asked. “You’re the coolest boy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-k-savarese/lyly-screamed-and-ran-to-tyler-i-can-t-let-you-go-until-i-tell-you/) [Mary K. Savarese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-k-savarese/) > [“Especially given the severity of some of her curses. God help him if any of them ever came true. Why, he’d be a two-headed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kinley-macgregor/especially-given-the-severity-of-some-of-her-curses-god-help-him-if/) [Kinley MacGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kinley-macgregor/) > [“GOD can turn every curse into a blessings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/god-can-turn-every-curse-into-a-blessings/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“The trouble with atheism," Temoc said, "is that it offers a limited range of curses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-gladstone/the-trouble-with-atheism-temoc-said-is-that-it-offers-a-limited-range/) [Max Gladstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-gladstone/) > [“A man curses because he doesn't have the words to say what's on his mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/a-man-curses-because-he-doesn-t-have-the-words-to-say-what-s-on-his/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [The phrase "may you live in interesting times" is the lowest in a trilogy of Chinese curses that continue "may you come to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-phrase-may-you-live-in-interesting-times-is-the-lowest-in-a/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Curses aren’t passive things. They’ll fight back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/curses-aren-t-passive-things-they-ll-fight-back/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [... Corellian curses being a synergistic blend of vulgarity, obscenity, and outright blasphemy that were the only things really worth saying when one was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/corellian-curses-being-a-synergistic-blend-of-vulgarity-obscenity-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 136 Curses quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curses/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Papa says curses are only stories cooked up to deter thieves. 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