--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They've been given an explanation of how…" description: "\"“They've been given an explanation of how things came to be this way, and this stills their alarm. This explanation covers everything, including the de..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/143/daniel-quinn-1786_environment_they-ve-been-given-an-explanation-of-how_2174034.jpg" --- # They've been given an explanation of how things came to be… ![“They've been given an explanation of how things came to be this way, and this stills their alarm. This explanation covers everything, including the deterioration of the ozone layer, the pollution of the oceans, the destruction of the rain forests, and even human extinction—and it satisfies them…” quote by Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/143/daniel-quinn-1786_environment_they-ve-been-given-an-explanation-of-how_2174034.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/143/daniel-quinn-1786_environment_they-ve-been-given-an-explanation-of-how_2174034.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/143/daniel-quinn-1786_environment_they-ve-been-given-an-explanation-of-how_2174034.jpg) > ““They've been given an explanation of how things came to be this way, and this stills their alarm. This explanation covers everything, including the deterioration of the ozone layer, the pollution of the oceans, the destruction of the rain forests, and even human extinction—and it satisfies them. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that it pacifies them. They put their shoulders to the wheel during the day, stupefy themselves with drugs or television at night, and try not to think too searchingly about the world they're leaving their children to cope with.”” [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. People accept a comforting narrative that explains global crises, which pacifies them and discourages deeper reflection or action. **In simple terms:** Comforting stories stop people from confronting real problems. Key Takeaway Question the narratives that soothe you. Themes environment complacency responsibility Mood reflective critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - family discussions - education - policy debates - personal lifestyle choices Key Concepts existentialism critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - What narratives are you accepting without question? - How does comfort hinder action? A Different Perspective The narrative may oversimplify complex issues, ignoring systemic factors. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children Cope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children-cope-3741681/) [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Environmental degradation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environmental-degradation/) [Environmental protection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environmental-protection/) [Given Explanation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/given-explanation-4666650/) [Human Extinction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-extinction-457074/) [Humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity/) [Humanity-society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity-society/) [Leaving Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leaving-children-806585/) [Ozone layer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ozone-layer/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Pollution Oceans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pollution-oceans-2375939/) ## Related quotes > [“They put their shoulders to the wheel during the day, stupefy themselves with drugs or television at night, and try not to think too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/they-put-their-shoulders-to-the-wheel-during-the-day-stupefy/) [Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/) > [It's not just global warming, it's not just a loss of biodiversity, it's not just the pollution of our oceans and the clearing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/it-s-not-just-global-warming-it-s-not-just-a-loss-of-biodiversity-it/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [Plague has hung over human history. The biggest human extinction was after 1492 in North and South America when the mortality rate was 95…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/plague-has-hung-over-human-history-the-biggest-human-extinction-was/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [No one can say how long the process of human extinction might take, but as it proceeds, the same global order will prevail that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-sternfeld/no-one-can-say-how-long-the-process-of-human-extinction-might-take/) [Joel Sternfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-sternfeld/) > [“I shall not assess arguments and evidence for competing views about when human extinction will occur. We know it will occur, and this fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-benatar/i-shall-not-assess-arguments-and-evidence-for-competing-views-about/) [David Benatar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-benatar/) > [“This is not war, its human extinction. ~ Optimus Prime”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-akart/this-is-not-war-its-human-extinction-optimus-prime/) [Bobby Akart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-akart/) > [We're not just being dramatic talking about a human extinction - that's the pathway we're on. We have to look at the bigger picture.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-bradbrook/we-re-not-just-being-dramatic-talking-about-a-human-extinction-that-s/) [Gail Bradbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-bradbrook/) > [The UN has given us until 2020 to change the course of humanity. If that doesn't happen human extinction in my children's lifetime is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-bradbrook/the-un-has-given-us-until-2020-to-change-the-course-of-humanity-if/) [Gail Bradbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-bradbrook/) > [Human extinction in our children's lifetime, it should be your top news item every single day, what's happening, you should be holding politicians to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-bradbrook/human-extinction-in-our-children-s-lifetime-it-should-be-your-top/) [Gail Bradbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-bradbrook/) > [I actually think leaving your children alone to fantasize, to write, to make projects on their own is good for them. Breathing down their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/i-actually-think-leaving-your-children-alone-to-fantasize-to-write-to/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [If we keep on ignoring and leaving children to their own devices at home, they become latchkey kids, and trust me, the consequences of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-braeden/if-we-keep-on-ignoring-and-leaving-children-to-their-own-devices-at/) [Eric Braeden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-braeden/) > [If we do not get our act together and transform our energy system away from fossil fuel, there is a real question as to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/if-we-do-not-get-our-act-together-and-transform-our-energy-system/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [Your children should love the Lord, work hard, and experience the joy of trusting God. More important than leaving your children an inheritance is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-alcorn/your-children-should-love-the-lord-work-hard-and-experience-the-joy/) [Randy Alcorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-alcorn/) > [I will do anything, including highway robbery and murder, to avoid leaving my children in poverty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/i-will-do-anything-including-highway-robbery-and-murder-to-avoid/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [“We often ask ourselves what world we are leaving to our children,” he once said. “We might want to ask, too: What children are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-staff-of-the-wall-street-journal/we-often-ask-ourselves-what-world-we-are-leaving-to-our-children-he/) [The Staff of the Wall Street Journal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-staff-of-the-wall-street-journal/) ## 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. 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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 Environment quotes > [I feel like the future is unwritten. So many of the things that we write now haven't been about educating people on the environment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flansburgh/i-feel-like-the-future-is-unwritten-so-many-of-the-things-that-we/) [John Flansburgh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flansburgh/) > [This welfare for wealthy companies wastes taxpayer dollars, harms the environment, and makes a mockery of the recent reductions in federal social spending programs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-nader/this-welfare-for-wealthy-companies-wastes-taxpayer-dollars-harms-the/) [Ralph Nader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-nader/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [Plainly, the environment must be a living one, directed by a higher intelligence, arranged by an adult who is prepared for his mission.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/plainly-the-environment-must-be-a-living-one-directed-by-a-higher/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [In the current climate, things that are true, brave human stories become political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/in-the-current-climate-things-that-are-true-brave-human-stories/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [They paved paradise and put up a parkin lot With a pink hotel, a boutique, and a swingin' hot spot Don't it always seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/they-paved-paradise-and-put-up-a-parkin-lot-with-a-pink-hotel-a/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. 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Prothero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-r-prothero/) > [Assuming normal winter weather, we currently anticipate the coal markets to remain difficult through 2015; while we always strive to operate a full capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-craft/assuming-normal-winter-weather-we-currently-anticipate-the-coal/) [Joe Craft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-craft/) > [It's the same with this idea of a literate public, and also of a democracy in which people have access to and really read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hass/it-s-the-same-with-this-idea-of-a-literate-public-and-also-of-a/) [Robert Hass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hass/) > [Of course, learning is strengthened and solidified when it occurs in a safe, secure and normal environment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-bertrand-aristide/of-course-learning-is-strengthened-and-solidified-when-it-occurs-in-a/) [Jean-Bertrand Aristide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-bertrand-aristide/) [Browse all 8,669 Environment quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“They've been given an explanation of how things came to be this way, and this stills their alarm. 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