--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Why do they spend their time with cows…" description: "\"“Why do they spend their time with cows when they are surely the more natural companions to unicorns, griffins and dragons? The answer is that the rook..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/diane-setterfield-1008_animal_why-do-they-spend-their-time-with-cows-w_1798720.png" --- # Why do they spend their time with cows when they are… ![“Why do they spend their time with cows when they are surely the more natural companions to unicorns, griffins and dragons? The answer is that the rook lives as he wishes. When he wants the entertainment of human company he is more likely to seek out the drunken poet or the wild-eyed crone than a…” quote by Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/diane-setterfield-1008_animal_why-do-they-spend-their-time-with-cows-w_1798720.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/diane-setterfield-1008_animal_why-do-they-spend-their-time-with-cows-w_1798720.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/diane-setterfield-1008_animal_why-do-they-spend-their-time-with-cows-w_1798720.png) > ““Why do they spend their time with cows when they are surely the more natural companions to unicorns, griffins and dragons? The answer is that the rook lives as he wishes. When he wants the entertainment of human company he is more likely to seek out the drunken poet or the wild-eyed crone than a damsel with a cornet.”” [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage suggests that mythical creatures prefer freedom and choose human companionship only for entertainment, highlighting the rook's autonomy. **In simple terms:** Creatures value freedom and seek human fun. Key Takeaway Embrace autonomy and choose joyful company. Themes freedom creature myth human interaction autonomy entertainment Mood reflective thoughtful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - creative writing - fantasy worldbuilding - character development - storytelling - literary analysis Key Concepts mythology choice social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How does autonomy shape our social choices? - What does seeking entertainment reveal about our nature? A Different Perspective The rook's preference may oversimplify complex relationships between beings. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Rook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rook/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Medicine and writing are natural companions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-patterson/medicine-and-writing-are-natural-companions/) [Kevin Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-patterson/) > [“Whatever was going on with Rook and Coll officially didn’t matter anymore. They’d just have to rot in prison by themselves. He’d join them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-kellison/whatever-was-going-on-with-rook-and-coll-officially-didn-t-matter/) [Erin Kellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-kellison/) > [“I opened my eyes, wanting to watch him come, to see what his beautiful face looked like when he was lost in the moment.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mimi-jean-pamfiloff/i-opened-my-eyes-wanting-to-watch-him-come-to-see-what-his-beautiful/) [Mimi Jean Pamfiloff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mimi-jean-pamfiloff/) > [“The caw of a rook on its homeward way, Oh! These shall be the music for me, For I love I love the path…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-cook/the-caw-of-a-rook-on-its-homeward-way-oh-these-shall-be-the-music-for/) [Eliza Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliza-cook/) > [“The rook is my favorite piece.’ she said. ‘It’s the one you think you don’t have to watch out for. It is straightforward. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/the-rook-is-my-favorite-piece-she-said-it-s-the-one-you-think-you-don/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [“Rook's heart beat against my fingertips through his soft feathers, and my eyes sank closed as I murmured drowsy endearments to the spoiled prince…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-rogerson/rook-s-heart-beat-against-my-fingertips-through-his-soft-feathers-and/) [Margaret Rogerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-rogerson/) > [“I want to live the rest of my house in a house built exactly like a rook.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-fischer/i-want-to-live-the-rest-of-my-house-in-a-house-built-exactly-like-a/) [Bobby Fischer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-fischer/) > [“Believe me, Rook,” he says with a serious expression. “If I was coming on to you, you’d have no trouble recognizing it.” He turns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-a-huss/believe-me-rook-he-says-with-a-serious-expression-if-i-was-coming-on/) [J.A. Huss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-a-huss/) > [“I'd say she's ready, wouldn't you?" --The Rook, The Looking Glass Wars”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-beddor/i-d-say-she-s-ready-wouldn-t-you-the-rook-the-looking-glass-wars/) [Frank Beddor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-beddor/) > [“What a pretty bird you are," I crooned. His struggling slowed, then stilled. I felt him cock his head. "What a lovely bird," I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-rogerson/what-a-pretty-bird-you-are-i-crooned-his-struggling-slowed-then/) [Margaret Rogerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-rogerson/) > [Always put the rook behind the pawn… Except when it is incorrect to do so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siegbert-tarrasch/always-put-the-rook-behind-the-pawn-except-when-it-is-incorrect-to-do/) [Siegbert Tarrasch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siegbert-tarrasch/) > [“He wrote as if he were the reader. It was also how he kept his writing from becoming too cute, which is to say,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-castle/he-wrote-as-if-he-were-the-reader-it-was-also-how-he-kept-his-writing/) [Richard Castle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-castle/) > [A Rook is of the value of five Pawns and a fraction, and may be exchanged for a minor Piece and two Pawns. Two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-staunton/a-rook-is-of-the-value-of-five-pawns-and-a-fraction-and-may-be/) [Howard Staunton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-staunton/) > [The only good Rook is a working Rook!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-reshevsky/the-only-good-rook-is-a-working-rook/) [Samuel Reshevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-reshevsky/) > [“I flicked over his rook, his bishop, and protected my queen. I mouth, Don't fuck with with me. These five people mean more to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becca-ritchie/i-flicked-over-his-rook-his-bishop-and-protected-my-queen-i-mouth-don/) [Becca Ritchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becca-ritchie/) ## More by Diane Setterfield > [“They are more real than the books on the shelves, books that are sketched with the barest hint of a line here and there,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/they-are-more-real-than-the-books-on-the-shelves-books-that-are/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“Margaret Lea.” “The biographer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/margaret-lea-the-biographer/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“He was the first of my ghosts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/he-was-the-first-of-my-ghosts/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“It was like living entirely inside a book.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/it-was-like-living-entirely-inside-a-book/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“Then something rang a bell in his mind. What”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/then-something-rang-a-bell-in-his-mind-what/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [What better way to get to know someone than through her choice and treatment of books?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/what-better-way-to-get-to-know-someone-than-through-her-choice-and/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“I have always been a reader; I have read at every stage of my life, and there has never been a time when reading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/i-have-always-been-a-reader-i-have-read-at-every-stage-of-my-life-and/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“Yesterday or the day before, while I had been going about my business, quietly and in private, some unknown person—some stranger—had gone to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/yesterday-or-the-day-before-while-i-had-been-going-about-my-business/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“the Missus stood like a ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/the-missus-stood-like-a-ghost/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“But perhaps the answer is to stop writing altogether, for when I do write, even now as I write this very sentence, this very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/but-perhaps-the-answer-is-to-stop-writing-altogether-for-when-i-do/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [Our clients' faces, with the customary outward paleness and inner glow of the book lover.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/our-clients-faces-with-the-customary-outward-paleness-and-inner-glow/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“He felt something move in his chest, as though an organ had been removed and something unfamiliar left in its place. A sentiment he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/he-felt-something-move-in-his-chest-as-though-an-organ-had-been/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [Still in my coat and hat, I sank onto the stair to read the letter. (I never read without making sure I am in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/still-in-my-coat-and-hat-i-sank-onto-the-stair-to-read-the-letter-i/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [I still believe in stories. I still forget myself when I am in the middle of a good book. Books are for me, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/i-still-believe-in-stories-i-still-forget-myself-when-i-am-in-the/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [Of course I loved books more than people. Of course I valued "Jane Eyre" over the anonymous stranger...Of course all of Shakespeare was worth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people-of-course-i-valued-jane-eyre/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) [Explore all 292 Diane Setterfield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. 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He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. 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It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Why do they spend their time with cows when they are surely the more natural companions to unicorns, griffins and dragons? The answer is that the rook lives as he wishes. 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