--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No one wants the complete picture, the…" description: "\"“No one wants the complete picture, the whole story. It would leave no room for the fictions we need to tell ourselves about ourselves.”\" — Caite Dolan..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53f/caite-dolan-leach-34555_fictions_no-one-wants-the-complete-picture-the-wh_255115.jpg" --- # No one wants the complete picture, the whole story. It… ![“No one wants the complete picture, the whole story. It would leave no room for the fictions we need to tell ourselves about ourselves.” quote by Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53f/caite-dolan-leach-34555_fictions_no-one-wants-the-complete-picture-the-wh_255115.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53f/caite-dolan-leach-34555_fictions_no-one-wants-the-complete-picture-the-wh_255115.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53f/caite-dolan-leach-34555_fictions_no-one-wants-the-complete-picture-the-wh_255115.jpg) > ““No one wants the complete picture, the whole story. It would leave no room for the fictions we need to tell ourselves about ourselves.”” [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People avoid full truth to preserve comforting narratives about identity. **In simple terms:** We like stories that let us see ourselves positively. Key Takeaway Accept incomplete pictures and question comforting myths. Themes identity self‑deception truth Mood reflective critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal reflection - media consumption - self‑assessment Key Concepts psychology narrative bias Questions to Reflect On - How do you benefit from self‑deception? - What narratives do you cling to? A Different Perspective Full truth can be destabilizing and may cause anxiety. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fictions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fictions/) ## Related quotes > [If you ever find yourself in the wrong story, leave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-ever-find-yourself-in-the-wrong-story-leave/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's so many years of reading story. You leave work and it goes away till you see it air on television.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-young/it-s-so-many-years-of-reading-story-you-leave-work-and-it-goes-away/) [Jacob Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-young/) > [A picture story is a sequence of images combined with text in such a way that pictures and words reinforce each other. They produce…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-rothstein/a-picture-story-is-a-sequence-of-images-combined-with-text-in-such-a/) [Arthur Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-rothstein/) > [A picture story just doesn't run like a film. It doesn't have 24 frames per second. It doesn't deal with this illusion of movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-katchor/a-picture-story-just-doesn-t-run-like-a-film-it-doesn-t-have-24-2/) [Ben Katchor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-katchor/) > [It is a great honor for me to be compared to Henri Cartier-BressonBut I believe there is a very big difference in the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastiao-salgado/it-is-a-great-honor-for-me-to-be-compared-to-henri-cartier-bressonbut/) [Sebastiao Salgado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastiao-salgado/) > [She paints a pretty picture,but the story has a twist…her paintbrush is a razor,and her canvuse is her wrist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/she-paints-a-pretty-picture-but-the-story-has-a-twist-her-paintbrush/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A picture story just doesn't run like a film. It doesn't have 24 frames per second. It doesn't deal with this illusion of movement.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-katchor/a-picture-story-just-doesn-t-run-like-a-film-it-doesn-t-have-24/) [Ben Katchor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-katchor/) > [“He already knew the first time he saw Dimple’s picture that their story would become a sort of legend”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandhya-menon/he-already-knew-the-first-time-he-saw-dimple-s-picture-that-their/) [Sandhya Menon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandhya-menon/) > [She can paint a lovley picture, but the story has a twist...her paint brush is a razor...and her canvouse is her wrist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alicia-tschantre/she-can-paint-a-lovley-picture-but-the-story-has-a-twist-her-paint/) Alicia Tschantre > [“I have no idea how to help you with all of this. So tell me, okay? Tell me what you need and tell me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-henry/i-have-no-idea-how-to-help-you-with-all-of-this-so-tell-me-okay-tell/) [Emily Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-henry/) > [Pretty much always. We need to tell the story of our life to someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/pretty-much-always-we-need-to-tell-the-story-of-our-life-to-someone/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [I don't need to have someone tell me what I'm going to be entertained by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-huh/i-don-t-need-to-have-someone-tell-me-what-i-m-going-to-be-entertained/) [Ben Huh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-huh/) > [It seems we need someone to know us as we are - with all we have done - and forgive us. We need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-miller/it-seems-we-need-someone-to-know-us-as-we-are-with-all-we-have-done/) [Sue Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-miller/) > [“I think we need to tell each other everything we’ve found out. And it’ll take us a good long time, and we might as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/i-think-we-need-to-tell-each-other-everything-we-ve-found-out-and-it/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [You need to tell the truth to the audience, or they will throw a brick through the TV. They'll turn you off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-cranston/you-need-to-tell-the-truth-to-the-audience-or-they-will-throw-a-brick/) [Bryan Cranston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-cranston/) ## More by Caite Dolan-Leach > [“puzzling is not a solitary game: every move the puzzler makes, the puzzlemaker has made before; every piece the puzzler picks up, and picks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/puzzling-is-not-a-solitary-game-every-move-the-puzzler-makes-the/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“The letters of our DNA signify our origins, even if they can’t inscribe our futures.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/the-letters-of-our-dna-signify-our-origins-even-if-they-can-t/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“You know, you can start all kinds of relationships in your life,” Nadine continues. “But you only start life once. And you start it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/you-know-you-can-start-all-kinds-of-relationships-in-your-life-nadine/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“I’m not a fucking secretary. I didn’t become a feminist so I could end up tapping out correspondence”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/i-m-not-a-fucking-secretary-i-didn-t-become-a-feminist-so-i-could-end/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“I know that I’m merely forestalling the moment when there will be no more books to read, when I’ll reach the end of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/i-know-that-i-m-merely-forestalling-the-moment-when-there-will-be-no/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“Thirty minutes later, I’m left with a few wads of cash and a dildo but no more drugs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/thirty-minutes-later-i-m-left-with-a-few-wads-of-cash-and-a-dildo-but/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“I know that I’m merely forestalling the moment when there will be no more books to read, when I’ll reach the end of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/i-know-that-i-m-merely-forestalling-the-moment-when-there-will-be-no-2/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“I stop in exasperation and almost storm out of the Airstream, fed up with myself and with my sister, filled with that itchy combination…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/i-stop-in-exasperation-and-almost-storm-out-of-the-airstream-fed-up/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“Surrounded by all these physical traces, I wonder what it will be like to go to kindergarten fifteen years from now. Whether kids will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/surrounded-by-all-these-physical-traces-i-wonder-what-it-will-be-like/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“It’s maddeningly painful not to be able to speak with the dead. But maybe what Zelda was trying to tell me is that it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/it-s-maddeningly-painful-not-to-be-able-to-speak-with-the-dead-but/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“I wonder if this is what so terrifies people about digital technology, the idea that there will be a record of every moment, every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/i-wonder-if-this-is-what-so-terrifies-people-about-digital-technology/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“People must be terrified of losing all mystery.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/people-must-be-terrified-of-losing-all-mystery/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) > [“Few things are more shameful than insolvency in a country where poverty is a moral failing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caite-dolan-leach/few-things-are-more-shameful-than-insolvency-in-a-country-where/) [Caite Dolan-Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) [Explore all 14 Caite Dolan-Leach quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caite-dolan-leach/) ## More Fictions quotes > [“She smiled sinisterly. Light mist started to slowly swirl around us. All I could see was her, the tall rocks and the white wall.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-sehyun-song/she-smiled-sinisterly-light-mist-started-to-slowly-swirl-around-us/) [Erica Sehyun Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-sehyun-song/) > [Religious fictions,fates are illusion to science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/you-ng-micky-m-yzzy/religious-fictions-fates-are-illusion-to-science/) You'ng Micky M'yzzy > [“He had a respect for facts maybe this was one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/he-had-a-respect-for-facts-maybe-this-was-one/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [Our lives are fictions, a work we leave behind, signed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/our-lives-are-fictions-a-work-we-leave-behind-signed/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [“This is not one of your fictions where people bleed ink.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-paul-winter/this-is-not-one-of-your-fictions-where-people-bleed-ink/) Terence Paul Winter > [“I told you; I am Arianna, the Siren, your Guardian, and how is a Guardian supposed to do her job if she is clueless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-sehyun-song/i-told-you-i-am-arianna-the-siren-your-guardian-and-how-is-a-guardian/) [Erica Sehyun Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-sehyun-song/) > [“Generations are fictions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-chang/generations-are-fictions/) [Jeff Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-chang/) > [“There is a continuity of all things that make classifications fictions. But all human knowledge depends upon arrangements. Then all books--scientific, theological, philosophical--are only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-fort/there-is-a-continuity-of-all-things-that-make-classifications/) [Charles Fort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-fort/) > [In merest prudence men should teach . . . That science ranks as monstrous things Two pairs of upper limbs; so wings-- E'en Angel's wings!--are fictions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-austin-dobson/in-merest-prudence-men-should-teach-that-science-ranks-as-monstrous/) [Henry Austin Dobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-austin-dobson/) > [Contrary to what Kafka does, I always like to refer all of my fictions to the level of reality, He, on the other hand,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/contrary-to-what-kafka-does-i-always-like-to-refer-all-of-my-fictions/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [Art is amoral, whether we accept this or not; it does not take sides. The finest fictions are cold at heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/art-is-amoral-whether-we-accept-this-or-not-it-does-not-take-sides/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) > [And I am a writer, writer of fictions I am the heart that you call home And I've written pages upon pages Trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-meloy/and-i-am-a-writer-writer-of-fictions-i-am-the-heart-that-you-call/) [Colin Meloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-meloy/) > [“Men may write fictions portraying lowly life as it is, or as it is not—may expatiate with owlish gravity upon the bliss of ignorance—discourse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/men-may-write-fictions-portraying-lowly-life-as-it-is-or-as-it-is-not/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [“Perhaps we are all fictions, father, in the mind of God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/perhaps-we-are-all-fictions-father-in-the-mind-of-god/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [“An author's ultimate reward is expanding mankind's understanding of our world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-mathews/an-author-s-ultimate-reward-is-expanding-mankind-s-understanding-of/) Richard Mathews [Browse all 93 Fictions quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fictions/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“No one wants the complete picture, the whole story. 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