--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Exactly. That's what's been happening…" description: "\"“Exactly. That's what's been happening here for the past ten thousand years: You've been doing what you damn well please with the world. And of course ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/daniel-quinn-1786_evolution_exactly-that-s-what-s-been-happening-her_2029544.png" --- # Exactly. That's what's been happening here for the past… ![“Exactly. That's what's been happening here for the past ten thousand years: You've been doing what you damn well please with the world. And of course you mean to go right on doing what you damn well please with it, because the whole damn thing belongs to you.” quote by Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/daniel-quinn-1786_evolution_exactly-that-s-what-s-been-happening-her_2029544.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/daniel-quinn-1786_evolution_exactly-that-s-what-s-been-happening-her_2029544.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/266/daniel-quinn-1786_evolution_exactly-that-s-what-s-been-happening-her_2029544.png) > ““Exactly. That's what's been happening here for the past ten thousand years: You've been doing what you damn well please with the world. And of course you mean to go right on doing what you damn well please with it, because the whole damn thing belongs to you.”” [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critiques humanity’s entitlement to dominate nature, urging humility and responsibility. **In simple terms:** Humanity should not act as if the world belongs to us. Key Takeaway Adopt stewardship over exploitation. Themes environment philosophy ethics Mood reflective critical Type philosophical activist When to use this quote - environmental activism - education curricula - corporate responsibility Key Concepts anthropocentrism environmental ethics humility Questions to Reflect On - What responsibilities do we have to the planet? - How can humility change policy? A Different Perspective May be idealistic without actionable steps. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Exactly Happening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exactly-happening-3720112/) [Humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Ownership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ownership/) [Past Thousand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-thousand-3152674/) [Right Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-doing/) [Thing Belongs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing-belongs-282158/) [Thousand years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-years/) ## Related quotes > [We want to believe that we can continue doing what we've done for the past thousand years and not worry about the consequences coming…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/we-want-to-believe-that-we-can-continue-doing-what-we-ve-done-for-the/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [If we go on as we are, we will destroy in the next century everything that the poets have been singing about for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-bodsworth/if-we-go-on-as-we-are-we-will-destroy-in-the-next-century-everything/) [Fred Bodsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-bodsworth/) > [“The only thing that belongs to us is our LIFE. Yet, we waste it in the pursuit of meaningless things that will never belong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rvm/the-only-thing-that-belongs-to-us-is-our-life-yet-we-waste-it-in-the/) [RVM](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rvm/) > [To each thing belongs it's measure. Occasion is best to know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pindar/to-each-thing-belongs-it-s-measure-occasion-is-best-to-know/) [Pindar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pindar/) > [Whoever knows how to take, to defend, the thing, to him belongs property.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-stirner/whoever-knows-how-to-take-to-defend-the-thing-to-him-belongs-property/) [Max Stirner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-stirner/) > [Poetry's a thing that belongs to everyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-trethewey/poetry-s-a-thing-that-belongs-to-everyone/) [Natasha Trethewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-trethewey/) > [You can never loose a thing If it belongs to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbey-lincoln/you-can-never-loose-a-thing-if-it-belongs-to-you/) [Abbey Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbey-lincoln/) > [“Many peoples practiced agriculture, but they were never obsessed by the delusion that what they were doing was \*right\*, that everyone in the entire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/many-peoples-practiced-agriculture-but-they-were-never-obsessed-by/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [Wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it. Right is right Even if only your are doing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wrong-is-wrong-even-if-everyone-is-doing-it-right-is-right-even-if/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Outside ideas of right doing and wrong doing there is a field. I'll meet you there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/outside-ideas-of-right-doing-and-wrong-doing-there-is-a-field-i-ll/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [The mere difference between failure and success is doing thing nearly right .. or doing it exactly right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zzanie/the-mere-difference-between-failure-and-success-is-doing-thing-nearly/) [Zzanie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zzanie/) > [Sometimes you have to steer away from the crowd in order to be a better person. It's not always easy, that's for sure. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-elkeles/sometimes-you-have-to-steer-away-from-the-crowd-in-order-to-be-a/) [Simone Elkeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-elkeles/) > [The zest of life lies in right doing, not in the garnered harvest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lancaster-spalding/the-zest-of-life-lies-in-right-doing-not-in-the-garnered-harvest/) [John Lancaster Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lancaster-spalding/) > [Knowing what is right is not the same as doing what is right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-caine/knowing-what-is-right-is-not-the-same-as-doing-what-is-right/) [Christine Caine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-caine/) > [What am I doing? Oh yeah, that's right, I'm doing me, I'm doing me. I'm living life right now, man, and this what I'mma…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/what-am-i-doing-oh-yeah-that-s-right-i-m-doing-me-i-m-doing-me-i-m/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) ## More by Daniel Quinn > [“Because we imagine that we are what humanity was divinely destined to become, we assume that our prehistoric ancestors were trying to be us,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/because-we-imagine-that-we-are-what-humanity-was-divinely-destined-to/) [daniel quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [The deer aren't our prey or our possessions -- they're us. They're us at one point in the cycle of life and we're them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/the-deer-aren-t-our-prey-or-our-possessions-they-re-us-they-re-us-at/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [ “\[N\]ow we have a clearer idea what this story is all about: The world was made for man, and man was made to rule… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/n-ow-we-have-a-clearer-idea-what-this-story-is-all-about-the-world/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [The premise of the Taker story is 'the world belongs to man'. … The premise of the Leaver story is 'man belongs to the world'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/the-premise-of-the-taker-story-is-the-world-belongs-to-man-the/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [“Pharaohs It took Khufu twenty-three years to build his Great Pyramid at Giza, where some eleven hundred stone blocks, each weighing about two and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/pharaohs-it-took-khufu-twenty-three-years-to-build-his-great-pyramid/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [Man's destiny was to conquer and rule the world, and this is what he's done.. almost. He hasn't quite made it, and it looks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/man-s-destiny-was-to-conquer-and-rule-the-world-and-this-is-what-he-s/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [“Many peoples practiced agriculture, but they were never obsessed by the delusion that what they were doing was \*right\*, that everyone in the entire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/many-peoples-practiced-agriculture-but-they-were-never-obsessed-by/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [“No undesirable behavior has ever been eliminated by passing a law against it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/no-undesirable-behavior-has-ever-been-eliminated-by-passing-a-law/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [“How easy it is first to leap to a false conclusion about someone and then to view everything he does in light of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/how-easy-it-is-first-to-leap-to-a-false-conclusion-about-someone-and/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [Far and away the most futile admonition Christ ever offered was when he said, 'Have no care for tomorrow. Don't worry about whether you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/far-and-away-the-most-futile-admonition-christ-ever-offered-was-when/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [During your lifetime, the people of our culture are going to figure out how to live sustainably on this planet--or they're not. Either way,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/during-your-lifetime-the-people-of-our-culture-are-going-to-figure/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [“Everyone in your culture knows this. Man was born to turn the world into a paradise, but tragically he was born flawed. And so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/everyone-in-your-culture-knows-this-man-was-born-to-turn-the-world/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [Most beginning writers - and I was the same - are like chefs trying to cook great dishes that they've never tasted themselves. How…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/most-beginning-writers-and-i-was-the-same-are-like-chefs-trying-to/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [“Westereners often think that the East is one vast Buddhist temple, which is rather like thinking the West is one vast Carthusian monastery. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/westereners-often-think-that-the-east-is-one-vast-buddhist-temple/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [“Man's destiny was to conquer and rule the world, and this is what he's done--almost. He hasn't quite made it, and it looks as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/man-s-destiny-was-to-conquer-and-rule-the-world-and-this-is-what-he-s-2/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) [Explore all 208 Daniel Quinn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) ## More Evolution quotes > [I rap when I'm rich. I rap when I'm broke. I rap when I'm bullshit in the street. I rap about only having one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/i-rap-when-i-m-rich-i-rap-when-i-m-broke-i-rap-when-i-m-bullshit-in/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“A question for Christians who accept evolution: When did we gain a "soul"? Did Homo habilis have a soul? Homo ergaster? Did God only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/a-question-for-christians-who-accept-evolution-when-did-we-gain-a/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) > [If the polymer chain assumes a helicoidal conformation in the crystalline state, and if it does not contain asymmetric carbon atoms, it can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giulio-natta/if-the-polymer-chain-assumes-a-helicoidal-conformation-in-the/) [Giulio Natta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giulio-natta/) > [“Genetics is a science full of gods, Mr. Sanchez.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valeria-luiselli/genetics-is-a-science-full-of-gods-mr-sanchez/) [Valeria Luiselli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valeria-luiselli/) > [We became Homo sapiens not that long ago, from the scientific perspective, and we've retained a lot of our beast nature. We've done all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangechi-mutu/we-became-homo-sapiens-not-that-long-ago-from-the-scientific/) [Wangechi Mutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangechi-mutu/) > [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) > [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/) [George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/) > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Evolution happens in jumps, very rapidly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/evolution-happens-in-jumps-very-rapidly/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [The true nature of soul is right knowledge, right faith and right conduct. The soul, so long as it is subject to transmigration, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virchand-gandhi/the-true-nature-of-soul-is-right-knowledge-right-faith-and-right/) [Virchand Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virchand-gandhi/) > [“Toshiaki learned that all living organisms were governed by their DNA. He was impressed by perfection of this system.Why did existence have the ability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hideaki-sena/toshiaki-learned-that-all-living-organisms-were-governed-by-their-dna/) [Hideaki Sena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hideaki-sena/) > [The shelves of many evangelicals are full of books that point out the flaws in evolution, discuss it only as a theory, and almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-collins/the-shelves-of-many-evangelicals-are-full-of-books-that-point-out-the/) [Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-collins/) > [I'm all about evolution. I'm the first person to judge myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-weeknd/i-m-all-about-evolution-i-m-the-first-person-to-judge-myself/) [The Weeknd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-weeknd/) > [The next evolution of content marketing is not more content; it's better distribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-penn/the-next-evolution-of-content-marketing-is-not-more-content-it-s/) [Chris Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-penn/) [Browse all 6,185 Evolution quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Exactly. That's what's been happening here for the past ten thousand years: You've been doing what you damn well please with the world. 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