--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The world is quite ruthless in selecting…" description: "\"The world is quite ruthless in selecting between the dream and the reality, even where we will not.\" — Cormac McCarthy" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/cormac-mccarthy-181_dream_the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting_1690349.jpg" --- # The world is quite ruthless in selecting between the dream… ![“The world is quite ruthless in selecting between the dream and the reality, even where we will not.” quote by Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/cormac-mccarthy-181_dream_the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting_1690349.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/cormac-mccarthy-181_dream_the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting_1690349.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/cormac-mccarthy-181_dream_the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting_1690349.jpg) > “The world is quite ruthless in selecting between the dream and the reality, even where we will not.” [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life forces harsh choices between idealism and harsh reality, often beyond our control. **In simple terms:** Dreams clash with reality, forcing tough decisions. Key Takeaway Accept reality, adapt goals. Themes choice reality dreams harshness Mood reflective somber Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - personal goals - career planning - creative pursuits - relationship decisions Key Concepts existentialism determinism moral ambiguity Questions to Reflect On - What compromises are you making between ideal and real? - How do you reconcile disappointment? A Different Perspective Dreams may be unattainable, leading to disillusionment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) [Dream reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream-reality/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Quite Ruthless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quite-ruthless-1049504/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Ruthless Selecting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ruthless-selecting-1049506/) [Selecting Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/selecting-dream-1049505/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [I was known for being quite... ruthless at ABB. I drove hard targets, pushed my people. But I was always fair. 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For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-cooler-days-have-brought-a-wistful-mood-upon-him-the-smell-of/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“The events of the world can have no separate life from the world. And yet the world itself can have no temporal view of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-events-of-the-world-can-have-no-separate-life-from-the-world-and/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“I had two dreams about him after he died. I dont remember the first one all that well but it was about meetin him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/i-had-two-dreams-about-him-after-he-died-i-dont-remember-the-first/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“You think people was meaner then than they are now? the deputy said. The old man was looking out at the flooded town. 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Where'd he go?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/ultimo-hombre-last-man-standing-must-ve-been-one-where-d-he-go/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“To seek out the upright. No fall but preceded by a declination. He took great marching steps into the nothingness, counting them against his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/to-seek-out-the-upright-no-fall-but-preceded-by-a-declination-he-took/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“They went through the last of the cars and then walked up the track to the locomotive and climbed up to the catwalk. Rust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/they-went-through-the-last-of-the-cars-and-then-walked-up-the-track/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“Night fell upon them dark and starblown and the wagon grew swollen near mute with dew. 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I had an awesome dream.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-had-a-dream-i-had-an-awesome-dream/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“His dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/his-dream-must-have-seemed-so-close-that-he-could-hardly-fail-to/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) [Browse all 26,527 Dream quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The world is quite ruthless in selecting between the dream and the reality, even where we will not.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Cormac McCarthy" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting-between-the-dream-and-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dream" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting-between-the-dream-and-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/cormac-mccarthy-181_dream_the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting_1690349.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/cormac-mccarthy-181_dream_the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting_1690349.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b22/cormac-mccarthy-181_dream_the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting_1690349.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The world is quite ruthless in selecting between the dream and the reality, even where we will not.” — Cormac McCarthy", "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": "Cormac McCarthy", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The world is quite ruthless in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting-between-the-dream-and-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-world-is-quite-ruthless-in-selecting-between-the-dream-and-the/#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 } } ] } ```