--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [Lee Oswald] saw himself as part of…" description: "\"“[Lee Oswald] saw himself as part of something vast and sweeping. He was the product of a sweeping history, he and his mother, locked into a process, a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/don-delillo-294_every-day_lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-someth_1262688.jpg" --- # \[Lee Oswald\] saw himself as part of something vast and… ![“[Lee Oswald] saw himself as part of something vast and sweeping. He was the product of a sweeping history, he and his mother, locked into a process, a system of money and property that diminished their human worth every day, as if by scientific law. The books made him part of something. Something…” quote by Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/don-delillo-294_every-day_lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-someth_1262688.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/don-delillo-294_every-day_lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-someth_1262688.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/don-delillo-294_every-day_lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-someth_1262688.jpg) > ““\[Lee Oswald\] saw himself as part of something vast and sweeping. He was the product of a sweeping history, he and his mother, locked into a process, a system of money and property that diminished their human worth every day, as if by scientific law. The books made him part of something. Something led up to his presence in this room, in this particular skin, and something would follow. Men in small rooms. Men reading and waiting, struggling with secret and feverish ideas.”” [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests individuals are shaped by vast historical and economic forces that reduce personal value, making them feel part of an inevitable, impersonal system. **In simple terms:** People are driven by big forces that strip away individuality. Key Takeaway Recognize and question the systems that define you. Themes identity history economics determinism alienation Mood melancholic critical thoughtful Type literary philosophical social commentary When to use this quote - political activism - personal reflection - academic analysis - media critique Key Concepts social determinism materialism existentialism Questions to Reflect On - How do you see your choices within larger systems? - Can you reclaim agency despite systemic pressures? A Different Perspective It may overstate the power of structures, ignoring personal agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Oswald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oswald/) ## Related quotes > [“The cropped photo that Life printed with Oswald holding a rifle was found in a box removed from the garage and taken to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-brussell/the-cropped-photo-that-life-printed-with-oswald-holding-a-rifle-was/) [Mae Brussell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-brussell/) > [The figure of the gunman in the window was inextricable from the victim and his history. This sustained Oswald in his cell. It gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/the-figure-of-the-gunman-in-the-window-was-inextricable-from-the/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“Maybe that was true of marriage everywhere. Between times, in their own living rooms, the men seemed to be resting for the next round…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/maybe-that-was-true-of-marriage-everywhere-between-times-in-their-own/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [If Lee Harvey Oswald had nothing to do with President Kennedy's assassination and was framed…this otherwise independent and defiant would-be revolutionary, who disliked taking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-bugliosi/if-lee-harvey-oswald-had-nothing-to-do-with-president-kennedy-s/) [Vincent Bugliosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-bugliosi/) > [It would certainly be interesting to know what the CIA knew about Oswald six weeks before the assassination, but the contents of this particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-garrison/it-would-certainly-be-interesting-to-know-what-the-cia-knew-about/) [Jim Garrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-garrison/) > [I was just down in Dallas, Texas...the Assassination Museum...it's really accurate, you know, 'cause Oswald's not in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-was-just-down-in-dallas-texas-the-assassination-museum-it-s-really/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [I know that Oswald killed Kennedy. Now, was he pushed? Encouraged to do it by outsiders? Possibly. Possibly. Was he sitting down with Fidel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-o-reilly/i-know-that-oswald-killed-kennedy-now-was-he-pushed-encouraged-to-do/) [Bill O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-o-reilly/) > [“I spent many years charting their course, and documenting the banks they visited, the associations they had in common. Jack Ruby did not know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-brussell/i-spent-many-years-charting-their-course-and-documenting-the-banks/) [Mae Brussell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-brussell/) > [ There was an American girl, Priscilla Johnson. She worked for U.P. in Moscow. She knew \[John\] Kennedy, and she met \[Lee Harvey\] Oswald around… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/there-was-an-american-girl-priscilla-johnson-she-worked-for-u-p-in/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [ It is very difficult for \[people\] to accept the idea that someone as inconsequential as Oswald could have killed someone as consequential as Kennedy. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dallek/it-is-very-difficult-for-people-to-accept-the-idea-that-someone-as/) [Robert Dallek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-dallek/) > [I think he Oswald felt he was a failure and for the United States and for President Kennedy and all of us. He knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sherman-cooper/i-think-he-oswald-felt-he-was-a-failure-and-for-the-united-states-and/) [John Sherman Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sherman-cooper/) > [I met Lee Harvey Oswald, in Moscow just after he defected. One night I was having dinner with a friend, an Italian newspaper cor­respondent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/i-met-lee-harvey-oswald-in-moscow-just-after-he-defected-one-night-i/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“The prevailing opinion is that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. He didn’t. None of us do. All of us are accompanied by the things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-tobolowsky/the-prevailing-opinion-is-that-lee-harvey-oswald-acted-alone-he-didn/) [Stephen Tobolowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-tobolowsky/) > [To think that guys who grew up in the '60s would make a miniseries supporting the idea that Oswald acted alone is something I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-goetzman/to-think-that-guys-who-grew-up-in-the-60s-would-make-a-miniseries/) [Gary Goetzman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-goetzman/) > [It's impossible to write about the Kennedy assassination and its aftermath without taking note of twenty-five years of paranoia which has collected around that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/it-s-impossible-to-write-about-the-kennedy-assassination-and-its/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) ## More by Don DeLillo > [“We all know how the thing we secretly fear is not a secret at all but the open and eternal thing that predicts its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/we-all-know-how-the-thing-we-secretly-fear-is-not-a-secret-at-all-but/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [Everything is barely weeks. Everything is days. We have minutes to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/everything-is-barely-weeks-everything-is-days-we-have-minutes-to-live/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [The novel is the dream release, the suspension of reality that history needs to escape its own brutal confinements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/the-novel-is-the-dream-release-the-suspension-of-reality-that-history/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“As I listened I thought a featureless baggy man was striking me in slow motion with a well-polished stone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/as-i-listened-i-thought-a-featureless-baggy-man-was-striking-me-in/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“Murray said, 'I don't trust anybody's nostalgia but my own. Nostalgia is a product of dissatisfaction and rage. It´s a settling of grievances between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/murray-said-i-don-t-trust-anybody-s-nostalgia-but-my-own-nostalgia-is/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“She is beginning to think it is possible that all creation is a spurt of blank matter that chances to make an emerald planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/she-is-beginning-to-think-it-is-possible-that-all-creation-is-a-spurt/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“Those who have abandoned belief must still believe in us. They are sure that they are right not to believe but they know belief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/those-who-have-abandoned-belief-must-still-believe-in-us-they-are/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“The plane had lost power in all three engines, dropped from thirty-four thousand feet to twelve thousand feet. Something like four miles. When the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/the-plane-had-lost-power-in-all-three-engines-dropped-from-thirty/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“Grass: I live in a great steel tower that reflects the blazing sun. People catch fire just walking by. The more bodies that pile…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/grass-i-live-in-a-great-steel-tower-that-reflects-the-blazing-sun/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“What people discard could make a nation”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/what-people-discard-could-make-a-nation/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“Marriage is something we make from available materials. In this sense it’s improvised, it’s almost offhand. Maybe this is why we know so little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/marriage-is-something-we-make-from-available-materials-in-this-sense/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [The true life is not reducible to words spoken or written, not by anyone, ever. The true life takes place when we're alone, thinking,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/the-true-life-is-not-reducible-to-words-spoken-or-written-not-by/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [I've come to think of Europe as a hardcover book, America as the paperback version.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/i-ve-come-to-think-of-europe-as-a-hardcover-book-america-as-the/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [There is a set of balances and rhythms to a novel that we can't experience in real life. So I think there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/there-is-a-set-of-balances-and-rhythms-to-a-novel-that-we-can-t/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“There is no lie in war or preparation of war that can't be defended. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/there-is-no-lie-in-war-or-preparation-of-war-that-can-t-be-defended/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) [Explore all 699 Don DeLillo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) ## More Every day quotes > [“Don’t allow anyone to pressure you into taking a job in a field that doesn’t feel right in your gut. You are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-james/don-t-allow-anyone-to-pressure-you-into-taking-a-job-in-a-field-that/) Alison James > [OBSESSED, p.p. Vexed by an evil spirit, like the Gadarene swine and other critics. Obsession was once more common than it is now. Arasthus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/obsessed-p-p-vexed-by-an-evil-spirit-like-the-gadarene-swine-and/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [I loved the game so much that even though our playing field was muddy and we had many trees on it, I used to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-clemente/i-loved-the-game-so-much-that-even-though-our-playing-field-was-muddy/) [Roberto Clemente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-clemente/) > [On stage, you can bring all those strong emotions that you don't have the opportunity to live. You don't want to die for love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvie-guillem/on-stage-you-can-bring-all-those-strong-emotions-that-you-don-t-have/) [Sylvie Guillem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvie-guillem/) > [A real Christian in an odd number anyway. He feels supreme love for One whom he has never seen, talks familiarly every day to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-real-christian-in-an-odd-number-anyway-he-feels-supreme-love-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think naturally I've been kind of a lead-by-doing guy. Just showing up to work every day. You never ask teammates something you wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrell-suggs/i-think-naturally-i-ve-been-kind-of-a-lead-by-doing-guy-just-showing/) [Terrell Suggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrell-suggs/) > [Love is the Key started in 1994 with a simple idea: that Love is the Key that would open all the doors in life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/love-is-the-key/love-is-the-key-started-in-1994-with-a-simple-idea-that-love-is-the/) [Love Is The Key®](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/love-is-the-key/) > [Being under-recruited coming out of Highland, I've carried that with me. I keep pushing forward, keep working hard every day, keep my head on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-daniels/being-under-recruited-coming-out-of-highland-i-ve-carried-that-with/) [Mike Daniels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-daniels/) > [“(one would say yes, if not every day, at least fairly regularly), whether only for yourself or also for others (often only for yourself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/one-would-say-yes-if-not-every-day-at-least-fairly-regularly-whether/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“Are you sure?" he asked in a low voice. "Because if I had the chance... I would spend every moment of every day with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-monir/are-you-sure-he-asked-in-a-low-voice-because-if-i-had-the-chance-i/) [Alexandra Monir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-monir/) > [I don't think I've ever bench-pressed anything in my life. Until about two years ago I swam a mile almost every day. Then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-antosca/i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-bench-pressed-anything-in-my-life-until-about/) [Nick Antosca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-antosca/) > [I have to justify my job every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-silva/i-have-to-justify-my-job-every-day/) [Marco Silva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-silva/) > [Merlin' was awesome, but the costumes would drive you insane. Every day, you'd get into chain mail and wear 30 pounds of that stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eoin-macken/merlin-was-awesome-but-the-costumes-would-drive-you-insane-every-day/) [Eoin Macken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eoin-macken/) > [This cold weather has set all the young Folks to providing Bedfellows. I have signed two or three Licences every Day \[as a Fairfax…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mason/this-cold-weather-has-set-all-the-young-folks-to-providing-bedfellows/) [George Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mason/) > [I work every day. Sometimes I don't accomplish anything every day, but if I don't work every day, I get depressed and get afraid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/i-work-every-day-sometimes-i-don-t-accomplish-anything-every-day-but/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) Browse all 16,614 Every day quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“[Lee Oswald] saw himself as part of something vast and sweeping. He was the product of a sweeping history, he and his mother, locked into a process, a system of money and property that diminished their human worth every day, as if by scientific law. The books made him part of something. Something led up to his presence in this room, in this particular skin, and something would follow. Men in small rooms. Men reading and waiting, struggling with secret and feverish ideas.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Don DeLillo" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-something-vast-and-sweeping-he-was/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Every day" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-something-vast-and-sweeping-he-was/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/don-delillo-294_every-day_lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-someth_1262688.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/don-delillo-294_every-day_lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-someth_1262688.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/530/don-delillo-294_every-day_lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-someth_1262688.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“[Lee Oswald] saw himself as part of something vast and sweeping. He was the product of a sweeping history…” — Don DeLillo", "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": "Don DeLillo", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“[Lee Oswald] saw himself as part...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-something-vast-and-sweeping-he-was/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/lee-oswald-saw-himself-as-part-of-something-vast-and-sweeping-he-was/#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 } } ] } ```