--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People were just too complex to reduce to…" description: "\"“People were just too complex to reduce to simple personality traits.”\" — Brandon Sanderson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aaf/brandon-sanderson-112_complex_people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-t_2743024.jpg" --- # People were just too complex to reduce to simple… ![“People were just too complex to reduce to simple personality traits.” quote by Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aaf/brandon-sanderson-112_complex_people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-t_2743024.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aaf/brandon-sanderson-112_complex_people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-t_2743024.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aaf/brandon-sanderson-112_complex_people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-t_2743024.jpg) > ““People were just too complex to reduce to simple personality traits.”” [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human complexity defies reduction to simple traits, demanding nuanced character portrayal. **In simple terms:** People are too complex for simple labels. Key Takeaway Write characters with depth. Themes character development complexity human nature Mood creative critical Type instructional inspirational When to use this quote - novel writing - screenwriting - role‑playing games Key Concepts psychology literary criticism Questions to Reflect On - How do you avoid clichés? - What details reveal hidden layers? A Different Perspective Stereotypes simplify storytelling. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Personality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personality/) [Personality traits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personality-traits/) [Simple person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simple-person/) ## Related quotes > [Sometimes it is said that I may not have a very simple personality. But my heart is in the right place. And you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joao-cancelo/sometimes-it-is-said-that-i-may-not-have-a-very-simple-personality/) [Joao Cancelo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joao-cancelo/) > [Admiration takes on a whole new level when you appreciate just how complex it is to run a modern business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-burns/admiration-takes-on-a-whole-new-level-when-you-appreciate-just-how/) [Ursula Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-burns/) > [The people are so just to complex thinking, that he is the simple and pure overlooked!!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-people-are-so-just-to-complex-thinking-that-he-is-the-simple-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My best personality trait that I think I'm very approachable. And my worst is that I can be moody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enrique-iglesias/my-best-personality-trait-that-i-think-i-m-very-approachable-and-my/) [Enrique Iglesias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enrique-iglesias/) > [I remember being in the same position as Ruby, when I no longer believed in God as I was raised to believe. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-m-soehnlein/i-remember-being-in-the-same-position-as-ruby-when-i-no-longer/) [K. M. Soehnlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-m-soehnlein/) > [There are quite a few honest songwriters out there writing about relationships and their own personality traits. But for some reason, once they step…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-bragg/there-are-quite-a-few-honest-songwriters-out-there-writing-about/) [Billy Bragg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-bragg/) > [More than any other personality trait, my mother seemed to be ruled by anger and sadness. She seemed to hate being a mother. Watching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merrill-markoe/more-than-any-other-personality-trait-my-mother-seemed-to-be-ruled-by/) [Merrill Markoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merrill-markoe/) > [Obama's personality traits, coupled with his extreme-leftist agenda, make him particularly dangerous to the American ideal and to the preservation of our founding principles,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-limbaugh/obama-s-personality-traits-coupled-with-his-extreme-leftist-agenda/) [David Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-limbaugh/) > [I'm a very simple person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-strawbridge/i-m-a-very-simple-person/) [Dick Strawbridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-strawbridge/) > [I am not a politician. I am just a simple person who has come to break down this system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/volodymyr-zelensky/i-am-not-a-politician-i-am-just-a-simple-person-who-has-come-to-break/) [Volodymyr Zelensky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/volodymyr-zelensky/) > [My work is based upon contemporary Greek poetry - poetry which is concerned with the problems of today's civilization and, of course, with simple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikis-theodorakis/my-work-is-based-upon-contemporary-greek-poetry-poetry-which-is/) [Mikis Theodorakis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikis-theodorakis/) > [I don't go to malls. I've just always been a simple person. I hang out, work out. That's what I think is fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-kuzma/i-don-t-go-to-malls-i-ve-just-always-been-a-simple-person-i-hang-out/) [Kyle Kuzma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-kuzma/) > [I am not at all interested in theories about cinema. I am only interested in images and people and sound. I am really a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-denis/i-am-not-at-all-interested-in-theories-about-cinema-i-am-only/) [Claire Denis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-denis/) > [The fathers greatest folly is that he believes he can be a much more simple person than he is; he is not really able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atom-egoyan/the-fathers-greatest-folly-is-that-he-believes-he-can-be-a-much-more/) [Atom Egoyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atom-egoyan/) > [I'm a very simple person. I don't use computers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-anne-moss/i-m-a-very-simple-person-i-don-t-use-computers/) [Carrie-Anne Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-anne-moss/) ## More by Brandon Sanderson > [“I’ll admit, Jasnah, that I empathize with your skepticism, but I don’t agree with it. I just think you've been looking for God in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/i-ll-admit-jasnah-that-i-empathize-with-your-skepticism-but-i-don-t/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [They say a man doesn't know himself until he faces death for the first time. . . I don't know about that. It seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/they-say-a-man-doesn-t-know-himself-until-he-faces-death-for-the/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“I wasn’t a nerd, mind you, but I’d spent a lot of my youth studying Epics, so I’d had limited experience with social interaction.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/i-wasn-t-a-nerd-mind-you-but-i-d-spent-a-lot-of-my-youth-studying/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“Why, Elend! That’s almost romantic—in a twisted ‘I’m going to make my wife want to kill me’ sort of way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/why-elend-that-s-almost-romantic-in-a-twisted-i-m-going-to-make-my/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“And...how much are we getting paid for achieving the impossible?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/and-how-much-are-we-getting-paid-for-achieving-the-impossible/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“Elantris was the one place where she could remember feeling unconditional acceptance. She had not been a princess, she had been something far better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/elantris-was-the-one-place-where-she-could-remember-feeling/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“Elend smiled. "Oh, come on. You have to admit that you're unusual, Vin. You're like some strange mixture of a noblewoman, a street urchin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/elend-smiled-oh-come-on-you-have-to-admit-that-you-re-unusual-vin-you/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“That is always how it is, though, isn't it?” Shuden asked. “Those who can least afford extravagance seem to be the ones most determined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/that-is-always-how-it-is-though-isn-t-it-shuden-asked-those-who-can/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“He says he’s letting the Stormfather judge you,” Moash added. “Jezerezeh, king of Heralds. He says that if you deserve to live, you will….”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/he-says-he-s-letting-the-stormfather-judge-you-moash-added-jezerezeh/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“The stories say the Nightwatcher might be capable of that. . . . Powerful spren. Vast spren.’ ‘Is he calling me vast?’ Syl said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/the-stories-say-the-nightwatcher-might-be-capable-of-that-powerful/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“But the mark of a great man is one who knows when to set aside the important things in order to accomplish the vital…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/but-the-mark-of-a-great-man-is-one-who-knows-when-to-set-aside-the/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“My life to yours. My breath beecome yours.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/my-life-to-yours-my-breath-beecome-yours/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“If you're always on time, it implies that you never have anything better you should be doing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/if-you-re-always-on-time-it-implies-that-you-never-have-anything/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [You are inexperienced. So was I, once. So is every man. The measure of a person is not how much they have lived. .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/you-are-inexperienced-so-was-i-once-so-is-every-man-the-measure-of-a/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“So I should not hate Adolin Kholin for wielding a corpse!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/so-i-should-not-hate-adolin-kholin-for-wielding-a-corpse/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) [Explore all 1,238 Brandon Sanderson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) ## More Complex quotes > [Ownership is a very complex judicial concept.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kapil-sibal/ownership-is-a-very-complex-judicial-concept/) [Kapil Sibal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kapil-sibal/) > [For many of us, work is the one place where we feel appreciated. The things that we long to experience at home - pride…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arlie-russell-hochschild/for-many-of-us-work-is-the-one-place-where-we-feel-appreciated-the/) [Arlie Russell Hochschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arlie-russell-hochschild/) > [I have faith in an audience being able to interpret complex material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-heineman/i-have-faith-in-an-audience-being-able-to-interpret-complex-material/) [Matthew Heineman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-heineman/) > [We're all complex human beings, and if some of that complexity shows through, I think it's advantageous for the movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-de-bont/we-re-all-complex-human-beings-and-if-some-of-that-complexity-shows/) [Jan de Bont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-de-bont/) > [Mike Tyson is the most complex person I've ever met in my life. I've known Mike since 1986. We're both from Brooklyn. I didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spike-lee/mike-tyson-is-the-most-complex-person-i-ve-ever-met-in-my-life-i-ve/) [Spike Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spike-lee/) > [Life is complex. It has real and imaginary components.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-potter/life-is-complex-it-has-real-and-imaginary-components/) Tom Potter > [As they grow, companies saturate their markets, become more complex and difficult to manage, and face larger and more entrenched competitors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-berenson/as-they-grow-companies-saturate-their-markets-become-more-complex-and/) [Alex Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-berenson/) > [“The act of consciousness is central; otherwise we are overrun by the complexes. The hero in each of us is required to answer the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hollis/the-act-of-consciousness-is-central-otherwise-we-are-overrun-by-the/) [James Hollis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hollis/) > [Post-minimalism implies music that's genre-less. Minimalism was very important because it came at a time when contemporary music had become so complex, so experimental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-beiser/post-minimalism-implies-music-that-s-genre-less-minimalism-was-very/) [Maya Beiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-beiser/) > [“The relationship of a girl and her favorite novel can be complex indeed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-cremer/the-relationship-of-a-girl-and-her-favorite-novel-can-be-complex/) [Andrea Cremer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-cremer/) > [I understand that finance can be very complex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-harrington/i-understand-that-finance-can-be-very-complex/) [Kevin Harrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-harrington/) > [“War is always more complex. Economics, history, religion all have a role, but not for the ones dodging the bullets. They just get blown…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-carter/war-is-always-more-complex-economics-history-religion-all-have-a-role/) [Bill Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-carter/) > [Through all those complex years I thought I was alone. I didn't care to look around and make this world my own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pantera/through-all-those-complex-years-i-thought-i-was-alone-i-didn-t-care/) [Pantera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pantera/) > [The Icesave matter is complex and it is understandable that the issue has been oversimplified by many. Unfortunately some of the basic facts of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johanna-siguroardottir/the-icesave-matter-is-complex-and-it-is-understandable-that-the-issue/) [Johanna Siguroardottir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johanna-siguroardottir/) > [Evil is relative - and what I mean by that is that our villains are as complex, as deep and as compelling as any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-johns/evil-is-relative-and-what-i-mean-by-that-is-that-our-villains-are-as/) [Geoff Johns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-johns/) Browse all 680 Complex quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“People were just too complex to reduce to simple personality traits.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Brandon Sanderson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-to-simple-personality-traits/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Complex" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-to-simple-personality-traits/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aaf/brandon-sanderson-112_complex_people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-t_2743024.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aaf/brandon-sanderson-112_complex_people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-t_2743024.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aaf/brandon-sanderson-112_complex_people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-t_2743024.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“People were just too complex to reduce to simple personality traits.” — Brandon Sanderson", "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": "Brandon Sanderson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“People were just too complex to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-to-simple-personality-traits/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/people-were-just-too-complex-to-reduce-to-simple-personality-traits/#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 } } ] } ```