--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think people are propelled towards…" description: "\"I think people are propelled towards violence, and what propels them is much more interesting than the actual act of violence itself.\" — Colin Farrell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/216/colin-farrell-2887_acts-of-violence_i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-vio_1615979.png" --- # I think people are propelled towards violence, and what… ![“I think people are propelled towards violence, and what propels them is much more interesting than the actual act of violence itself.” quote by Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/216/colin-farrell-2887_acts-of-violence_i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-vio_1615979.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/216/colin-farrell-2887_acts-of-violence_i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-vio_1615979.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/216/colin-farrell-2887_acts-of-violence_i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-vio_1615979.png) > “I think people are propelled towards violence, and what propels them is much more interesting than the actual act of violence itself.” [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Violence is driven by deeper motivations, which are more intriguing than the violent act itself. **In simple terms:** Underlying motives behind violence are more compelling than the act. Key Takeaway Explore root causes of aggression. Themes violence motivation psychology society Mood analytical thoughtful Type investigative philosophical When to use this quote - crime analysis - social work - policy making Key Concepts human behavior causality conflict resolution Questions to Reflect On - What societal factors fuel violent impulses? - How can we address underlying causes effectively? A Different Perspective Focusing on motives may overlook immediate safety concerns. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acts of violence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acts-of-violence/) [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Violence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violence/) ## Related quotes > [War is an act of violence pushed to its utmost limits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/war-is-an-act-of-violence-pushed-to-its-utmost-limits/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [The attention of the media is only caught by acts of violence... so I must perform this act of violence against myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-change/the-attention-of-the-media-is-only-caught-by-acts-of-violence-so-i/) Kathy Change > [When a trans woman gets called a man, that is an act of violence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laverne-cox/when-a-trans-woman-gets-called-a-man-that-is-an-act-of-violence/) [Laverne Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laverne-cox/) > [One act of violence takes four generations to heal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/one-act-of-violence-takes-four-generations-to-heal/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I have yet to see a serious act of violence that was not provoked by the experience of feeling shamed and humiliated, disrespected and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gilligan/i-have-yet-to-see-a-serious-act-of-violence-that-was-not-provoked-by-2/) [James Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gilligan/) > [Every act of violence is also a message that needs to be understood. (23-24)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-vanier/every-act-of-violence-is-also-a-message-that-needs-to-be-understood/) [Jean Vanier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-vanier/) > [It takes four generations to recover from every act of violence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-adamson/it-takes-four-generations-to-recover-from-every-act-of-violence/) [Rebecca Adamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-adamson/) > [War is an act of violence pushed to its utmost bounds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/war-is-an-act-of-violence-pushed-to-its-utmost-bounds/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [The introduction of numbers as coordinates is an act of violence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-weyl/the-introduction-of-numbers-as-coordinates-is-an-act-of-violence/) [Hermann Weyl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-weyl/) > [We know we can't stop every act of violence, every act of evil in the world, but maybe we could try to stop one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/we-know-we-can-t-stop-every-act-of-violence-every-act-of-evil-in-the/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [War therefore is an act of violence to compel our opponent to fulfill our will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/war-therefore-is-an-act-of-violence-to-compel-our-opponent-to-fulfill/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [An unjust law in itself is an act of violence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/an-unjust-law-in-itself-is-an-act-of-violence/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [The cost of growth is always a small act of violence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/the-cost-of-growth-is-always-a-small-act-of-violence/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [The life of the mind is always more interesting than the real. The idea is often more interesting than the actual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-chapman/the-life-of-the-mind-is-always-more-interesting-than-the-real-the/) [Rob Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-chapman/) > [“An act of violence, no matter how small, can never be justified if it can be avoided.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/an-act-of-violence-no-matter-how-small-can-never-be-justified-if-it/) [Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/) ## More by Colin Farrell > [Initially, less appealing to me than the idea of a vampire that is drawn by some misgiving or drawn by some sense of longing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/initially-less-appealing-to-me-than-the-idea-of-a-vampire-that-is/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [I miss the people, the pubs, the canal, fish and chips - curry sauce on the side - cheese and nachos with jalapeno peppers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-miss-the-people-the-pubs-the-canal-fish-and-chips-curry-sauce-on/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [I had a list of about 35 restaurants, 25 of which were fast-food joints all around Los Angeles and I didn't get a quarter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-had-a-list-of-about-35-restaurants-25-of-which-were-fast-food/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [I couldn't care less about who sees my bits ... My friends asked how I could do scenes like that and not get excited,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-couldn-t-care-less-about-who-sees-my-bits-my-friends-asked-how-i/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [I get no kicks from going to the gym. It doesn't do it for me. Never has. Some people enjoy working out. But that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-get-no-kicks-from-going-to-the-gym-it-doesn-t-do-it-for-me-never/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [At the end of the day, it's all one version of telling a story. I treated this as if it was a two million…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/at-the-end-of-the-day-it-s-all-one-version-of-telling-a-story-i/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [Vampires have always held a very seductive kind of lore and have always been some variety of attractive, whether it's attractiveness that's born of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/vampires-have-always-held-a-very-seductive-kind-of-lore-and-have/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [I was well aware of that when I heard they were remaking 'Total Recall.' My first reaction was: 'Ewww, really okay?' And the director…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-was-well-aware-of-that-when-i-heard-they-were-remaking-total-recall/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [Being Irish is very much a part of who I am. I take it everywhere with me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/being-irish-is-very-much-a-part-of-who-i-am-i-take-it-everywhere-with/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [Quite often on a movie like Total Recall you have this training period of two or three months where, like on the first 'Underworld'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/quite-often-on-a-movie-like-total-recall-you-have-this-training/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [I count 'Underworld 4' as my training period for 'Total Recall.' I do think it was hard because I didn't realize how tired I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-count-underworld-4-as-my-training-period-for-total-recall-i-do/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [Maybe finding love is an impossibility. I've been lucky enough in my life to have been in love a few times. I've felt how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/maybe-finding-love-is-an-impossibility-i-ve-been-lucky-enough-in-my/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [An actor said recently that, unless you're a parent, you shouldn't play a parent in a film. I don't know who said it, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/an-actor-said-recently-that-unless-you-re-a-parent-you-shouldn-t-play/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [Myself and Yorgos Lanthimos, we spoke a little bit and I was at a certain body weight that I was closer to making a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/myself-and-yorgos-lanthimos-we-spoke-a-little-bit-and-i-was-at-a/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [Most of actor's work is done at home, in your hotel room, in the wee hours of the morning thinking and reading and feeling,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/most-of-actor-s-work-is-done-at-home-in-your-hotel-room-in-the-wee/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) [Explore all 146 Colin Farrell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) ## More Acts of violence quotes > [There was a man named Robert Dear who in court said he was a warrior for the babies, whose ex-wife talked about his Christian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hayes/there-was-a-man-named-robert-dear-who-in-court-said-he-was-a-warrior/) [Chris Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hayes/) > [“By the time they're out of preschool, most children have already seen thousands of acts of violence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-k-vaughan/by-the-time-they-re-out-of-preschool-most-children-have-already-seen/) [Brian K. Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-k-vaughan/) > [We would never ask any other faith community to stand up and condemn acts of violence committed by people within their groups. The fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-sarsour/we-would-never-ask-any-other-faith-community-to-stand-up-and-condemn/) [Linda Sarsour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-sarsour/) > [I learned that victims come in all image - some raped, some witnessing an act of violence, some losing loved ones. I learned that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zainab-salbi/i-learned-that-victims-come-in-all-image-some-raped-some-witnessing/) [Zainab Salbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zainab-salbi/) > [I want people around the world to hear me. To all those who would do us harm, no act of terror will go unpunished.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-want-people-around-the-world-to-hear-me-to-all-those-who-would-do/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [How do we deal with not just the acts of violence, but the extremist ideology that lies behind them? Because though the numbers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/how-do-we-deal-with-not-just-the-acts-of-violence-but-the-extremist/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [Muslim leaders around the globe have to continue working with us to decisively and unequivocally reject the hateful ideology that groups like ISIL and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/muslim-leaders-around-the-globe-have-to-continue-working-with-us-to/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The introduction of numbers as coordinates by reference to the particular division scheme of the open one-dimensional continuum is an act of violence whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-weyl/the-introduction-of-numbers-as-coordinates-by-reference-to-the/) [Hermann Weyl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-weyl/) > [“He wished he understood where they come from: all the terrorists, religious revolutionists and hate-criminals. Did terrorizing entire communities of people help them sleep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thisuri-wanniarachchi/he-wished-he-understood-where-they-come-from-all-the-terrorists/) [Thisuri Wanniarachchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thisuri-wanniarachchi/) > [By the age of 18, the average American has witnessed 200,000 acts of violence on television, most of them occurring during Game 1 of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-rushin/by-the-age-of-18-the-average-american-has-witnessed-200-000-acts-of/) [Steve Rushin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-rushin/) > [Of course I tensed up when he touched me. To be with him was to hurt him-inevitably. And that's what I'd felt as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/of-course-i-tensed-up-when-he-touched-me-to-be-with-him-was-to-hurt/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [We have agreed with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to cease all acts of violence against the Israelis and against the Palestinians wherever they are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-abbas/we-have-agreed-with-prime-minister-ariel-sharon-to-cease-all-acts-of/) [Mahmoud Abbas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-abbas/) > [I feel like acts of violence against women are detestable, and they need to be dealt with, and they are important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-priestley/i-feel-like-acts-of-violence-against-women-are-detestable-and-they/) [Jason Priestley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-priestley/) > [Another bigger problem is the fact that these incidents of police violence continue to occur because far too often the officers on the force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hakeem-jeffries/another-bigger-problem-is-the-fact-that-these-incidents-of-police/) [Hakeem Jeffries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hakeem-jeffries/) > [During the summer of 2009, the debate on health care reform was emotional and intense. At its best, it represented the free exchange of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chellie-pingree/during-the-summer-of-2009-the-debate-on-health-care-reform-was/) [Chellie Pingree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chellie-pingree/) [Browse all 133 Acts of violence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acts-of-violence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think people are propelled towards violence, and what propels them is much more interesting than the actual act of violence itself.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Colin Farrell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-violence-and-what-propels-them/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Acts of violence" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-violence-and-what-propels-them/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/216/colin-farrell-2887_acts-of-violence_i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-vio_1615979.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/216/colin-farrell-2887_acts-of-violence_i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-vio_1615979.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/216/colin-farrell-2887_acts-of-violence_i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-vio_1615979.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think people are propelled towards violence, and what propels them is much more interesting than the…” — Colin Farrell", "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": "Colin Farrell", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think people are propelled towards...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-violence-and-what-propels-them/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-think-people-are-propelled-towards-violence-and-what-propels-them/#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 } } ] } ```