--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sanity can take one of only two forms…" description: "\"Sanity can take one of only two forms: that of ignorance, or denial.\" — Derek R. Audette" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35e/derek-r-audette-13963_denial_sanity-can-take-one-of-only-two-forms-th_12311.jpg" --- # Sanity can take one of only two forms: that of ignorance… ![“Sanity can take one of only two forms: that of ignorance, or denial.” quote by Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35e/derek-r-audette-13963_denial_sanity-can-take-one-of-only-two-forms-th_12311.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35e/derek-r-audette-13963_denial_sanity-can-take-one-of-only-two-forms-th_12311.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35e/derek-r-audette-13963_denial_sanity-can-take-one-of-only-two-forms-th_12311.jpg) > “Sanity can take one of only two forms: that of ignorance, or denial.” [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Sanity is reduced to either willful ignorance or outright denial, highlighting a binary view of rationality. **In simple terms:** Sanity = ignorance or denial. Key Takeaway Rationality can be a false dichotomy. Themes cognition psychology philosophy critical thinking human behavior Mood skeptical cautious reflective Type aphorism observation cautionary When to use this quote - political discourse - corporate decision‑making - personal relationships - media consumption - education Key Concepts cognitive bias self-deception truth avoidance Practical Applications - risk assessment - ethical leadership Questions to Reflect On - What evidence supports a more nuanced view of sanity? - How does this binary framing affect dialogue? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Denial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/denial/) [Ignorance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Sanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sanity/) ## Related quotes > [What’s looming in the shadows of our ignorance and denial is a critique of civilization itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lierre-keith/what-s-looming-in-the-shadows-of-our-ignorance-and-denial-is-a/) [Lierre Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lierre-keith/) > [“To recklessly excuse a failure is to believe that I’ve effectively erased it from the story of my life, when I’ve actually imprinted it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/to-recklessly-excuse-a-failure-is-to-believe-that-i-ve-effectively/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [“Too much sanity may be madness — and maddest of all: to see life as it is, and not as it should be!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes/too-much-sanity-may-be-madness-and-maddest-of-all-to-see-life-as-it/) [Miguel de Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes/) > [We have now left Reason and Sanity Junction. Next stop, Looneyville.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/we-have-now-left-reason-and-sanity-junction-next-stop-looneyville/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [“I need to ask, are you afraid of spiders?" Nicholas blinked, suddenly caught off guard, "Yes, I'm afraid of spiders." "Were you always?" "What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-irwin/i-need-to-ask-are-you-afraid-of-spiders-nicholas-blinked-suddenly/) [Stephen M. Irwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-irwin/) > [Order is the sanity of the mind, the health of the body, the peace of the city, the security of the state. As the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/order-is-the-sanity-of-the-mind-the-health-of-the-body-the-peace-of/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [If you tell me, I will leave you alone," I said. "And if you don't tell me, I am going to grab the nearest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/if-you-tell-me-i-will-leave-you-alone-i-said-and-if-you-don-t-tell-me/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [“Sanity is seriously over-rated!!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hamley/sanity-is-seriously-over-rated/) Paul Hamley > [It wouldn't make for sanity would it, living with the devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daphne-du-maurier/it-wouldn-t-make-for-sanity-would-it-living-with-the-devil/) [Daphne du Maurier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daphne-du-maurier/) > [“It isn't for the moment you are stuck that you need courage, but for the long uphill climb back to sanity, faith and security.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/it-isn-t-for-the-moment-you-are-stuck-that-you-need-courage-but-for/) [Anne Morrow Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) > [I only have so much energy, so something had to go. This is why, at the end of the day, I've preserved my sanity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiri-te-kanawa/i-only-have-so-much-energy-so-something-had-to-go-this-is-why-at-the/) [Kiri Te Kanawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiri-te-kanawa/) > [I never have written every day. When I'm writing a book, I write Monday through Friday. I always try to take Saturday and pretend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/i-never-have-written-every-day-when-i-m-writing-a-book-i-write-monday/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [Everything was so designed by Hannibal to break down Will in the first season, until Will's sanity became questionable. It's so much easier to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-fuller/everything-was-so-designed-by-hannibal-to-break-down-will-in-the/) [Bryan Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-fuller/) > [I am crazy as hell, but I know it. And knowing it is a kind of sanity that makes the sickness worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-am-crazy-as-hell-but-i-know-it-and-knowing-it-is-a-kind-of-sanity/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [If you have never lost your sanity, then you have never been in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-have-never-lost-your-sanity-then-you-have-never-been-in-love/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Derek R. Audette > [If you're going to condemn a people based on the actions of the worst of its ranks; take a good look at the worst…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/if-you-re-going-to-condemn-a-people-based-on-the-actions-of-the-worst/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [No matter how substandard you feel your skill or talent may be, If you never produce your art, the world will always remain deprived…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/no-matter-how-substandard-you-feel-your-skill-or-talent-may-be-if-you/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [There has got to be a point that exists somewhere, when a rational person just has to shake his head and say: 'You know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/there-has-got-to-be-a-point-that-exists-somewhere-when-a-rational/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [Abstraction is an exercise in a pre-assured failure. It is a futile attempt to communicate the non-communicable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/abstraction-is-an-exercise-in-a-pre-assured-failure-it-is-a-futile/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [Thoughts, words, ideas and information, free from any bonds or restrictions, is the very concrete which pours out a foundation strong enough that upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/thoughts-words-ideas-and-information-free-from-any-bonds-or/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [The question is not whether the good outweighs the bad. The question is whether or not the good excuses the bad. And, in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/the-question-is-not-whether-the-good-outweighs-the-bad-the-question/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [Without compassion, true gratitude is an impossibility. If we are to feel gratitude towards another for their deeds, then we must have compassion for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/without-compassion-true-gratitude-is-an-impossibility-if-we-are-to/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [Gratitude free of compassion is selfishness. It is nothing more than being happy for what has been done to benefit you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/gratitude-free-of-compassion-is-selfishness-it-is-nothing-more-than/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [One of the most distinguishing differences between liberals and conservatives in America is that the average Liberal feels that we should have little reservation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/one-of-the-most-distinguishing-differences-between-liberals-and/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [In a world where God does not exist, any reasonable person must see that the propensity toward selfishness should be the most venerated of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/in-a-world-where-god-does-not-exist-any-reasonable-person-must-see/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [Those who are offended by something are most often those who deserve to be offended by it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/those-who-are-offended-by-something-are-most-often-those-who-deserve/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [If you want to know what true art is: Go outside on a clear night, wait until it gets very, very dark, then look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/if-you-want-to-know-what-true-art-is-go-outside-on-a-clear-night-wait/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [The nobility which exists within any cause is to be found not in any achievement, but instead within the struggle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/the-nobility-which-exists-within-any-cause-is-to-be-found-not-in-any/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [The universal methodology of the tyrant is always incrementalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/the-universal-methodology-of-the-tyrant-is-always-incrementalism/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) > [More often than not, in order to find truth, a wise man must suffer the ravings of the insane. There is no undiscovered truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-r-audette/more-often-than-not-in-order-to-find-truth-a-wise-man-must-suffer-the/) [Derek R. Audette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) [Explore all 48 Derek R. Audette quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-r-audette/) ## More Denial quotes > [Because after you've crossed some lines, you just keep crossing them. And there's no escaping from constant escape. Distracting ourselves. Avoiding confrontation. Getting past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/because-after-you-ve-crossed-some-lines-you-just-keep-crossing-them/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [A mistake doesnt make you a fool, but denying it surely makes you one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/a-mistake-doesnt-make-you-a-fool-but-denying-it-surely-makes-you-one/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [It is through suppression that hells are formed in us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-glaspell/it-is-through-suppression-that-hells-are-formed-in-us/) [Susan Glaspell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-glaspell/) > [Atheist’s denial of God’s existence needs just as much substantiation as does the theist’s claim; the atheist must give plausible reasons for rejecting God’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-copan/atheist-s-denial-of-god-s-existence-needs-just-as-much-substantiation/) [Paul Copan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-copan/) > [But we need to be very clear: because of our decades of collective denial, no gradual, incremental options are now available to us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/but-we-need-to-be-very-clear-because-of-our-decades-of-collective/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [What you try to bury just ends up burying you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-wagner/what-you-try-to-bury-just-ends-up-burying-you/) [Jane Wagner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-wagner/) > [Its up to any government to decide how to react to the denial of basic human rights anywhere in the world, including Egypt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-elbaradei/its-up-to-any-government-to-decide-how-to-react-to-the-denial-of/) [Mohamed ElBaradei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-elbaradei/) > [“Research on organised abuse emphasises the diversity of organised abuse cases, and the ways in which serious forms of child maltreatment cluster in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-salter/research-on-organised-abuse-emphasises-the-diversity-of-organised/) [Michael Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-salter/) > [“Living in denial only makes finding the truth that much harder.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-f/living-in-denial-only-makes-finding-the-truth-that-much-harder/) Jules F > [Denial leads to closure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aruho-marwin-machiaveli/denial-leads-to-closure/) Aruho Marwin Machiaveli > [People are in denial all the time, hiding things. If I tell you a racist or dirty joke and you laugh, you're telling me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-landau/people-are-in-denial-all-the-time-hiding-things-if-i-tell-you-a/) [Martin Landau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-landau/) > [It is not a question of who dances but of who or what does not dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-st-denis/it-is-not-a-question-of-who-dances-but-of-who-or-what-does-not-dance/) [Ruth St. Denis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-st-denis/) > [What’s looming in the shadows of our ignorance and denial is a critique of civilization itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lierre-keith/what-s-looming-in-the-shadows-of-our-ignorance-and-denial-is-a/) [Lierre Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lierre-keith/) > [“You can hold on to the smallest doubt and take comfort in it, stay in denial and go on with your carefree life, until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-beck/you-can-hold-on-to-the-smallest-doubt-and-take-comfort-in-it-stay-in/) [Glenn Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-beck/) > [Human beings have the incredible capacity for denial. I think they do. And although it's really hard to believe, I have my doubts. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/human-beings-have-the-incredible-capacity-for-denial-i-think-they-do/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) [Browse all 1,463 Denial quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/denial/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Sanity can take one of only two forms: that of ignorance, or denial.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Derek R. 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