--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We will follow the bullet trajectories…" description: "\"“We will follow the bullet trajectories backwards to the lives that occupy the shadows, actual men who moan in their dreams.”\" — Don DeLillo" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/don-delillo-294_assassination_we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-b_2590511.jpg" --- # We will follow the bullet trajectories backwards to the… ![“We will follow the bullet trajectories backwards to the lives that occupy the shadows, actual men who moan in their dreams.” quote by Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/don-delillo-294_assassination_we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-b_2590511.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/don-delillo-294_assassination_we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-b_2590511.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/don-delillo-294_assassination_we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-b_2590511.jpg) > ““We will follow the bullet trajectories backwards to the lives that occupy the shadows, actual men who moan in their dreams.”” [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. Tracing bullet paths reveals hidden lives behind shadows **In simple terms:** Following bullets uncovers hidden lives Key Takeaway Investigate underlying causes of visible events Themes investigation shadow identity Mood eerie thoughtful Type literary analytical When to use this quote - crime investigation - historical research - personal introspection - media analysis Key Concepts Causal analysis existential inquiry Questions to Reflect On - What lies behind observed events? - How to balance visible and hidden narratives? A Different Perspective Focus on surface may miss deeper truth ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Assassination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assassination/) [Conspiracies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conspiracies/) [Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) ## Related quotes > [Perhaps we've invented conspiracies for our own psychic well-being, to heal ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/perhaps-we-ve-invented-conspiracies-for-our-own-psychic-well-being-to/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“The dangerous secrets used to be held outside the government. Plots, conspiracies, secrets of revolution, secrets of the end of the social order. Now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/the-dangerous-secrets-used-to-be-held-outside-the-government-plots/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [If we are on the outside, we assume a conspiracy is the perfect working of a scheme. Silent nameless men with unadorned hearts. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/if-we-are-on-the-outside-we-assume-a-conspiracy-is-the-perfect/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [There are conspiracies all over the Senate floor on any day!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arlen-specter/there-are-conspiracies-all-over-the-senate-floor-on-any-day/) [Arlen Specter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arlen-specter/) > [“2 Hours for this conclusion is too much and it's ne big fucking lost... ... What we know about the world... people and so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deyth-banger/2-hours-for-this-conclusion-is-too-much-and-it-s-ne-big-fucking-lost/) Deyth Banger > [“Holy conspiracies, Batman!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-nicholas/holy-conspiracies-batman/) [Annie Nicholas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-nicholas/) > [In fact, I point out that all the conspiracies in history - especially during the last 5000 years - are actually different aspects of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eustace-mullins/in-fact-i-point-out-that-all-the-conspiracies-in-history-especially/) [Eustace Mullins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eustace-mullins/) > [The most dangerous and successful conspiracies take place in public, in plain sight, under the clear, bright light of day -- usually with TV…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/the-most-dangerous-and-successful-conspiracies-take-place-in-public/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [“We are always in a constant state of conspiracies, at least thats what they keep telling us...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faith-brashear/we-are-always-in-a-constant-state-of-conspiracies-at-least-thats-what/) Faith Brashear > [Donald Trump believes in conspiracies. He has thin skin and is impulsive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-lieu/donald-trump-believes-in-conspiracies-he-has-thin-skin-and-is/) [Ted Lieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-lieu/) > [I thought that was the coolest thing in the world, the idea of somebody trying to solve mysteries. I would see conspiracies in everything.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-hirsch/i-thought-that-was-the-coolest-thing-in-the-world-the-idea-of/) [Alex Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-hirsch/) > [“The trouble with believing conspiracies is you start seeing them everywhere, right? And everything becomes a part of them. But, of course, the trouble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-ross-clara/the-trouble-with-believing-conspiracies-is-you-start-seeing-them/) [J. Ross Clara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-ross-clara/) > [“It is indispensable for us to undermine all faith, to tear out of the mind of the "goyim" the very principle of god-head and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/protocols-of-the-learned-elders-of-zion/it-is-indispensable-for-us-to-undermine-all-faith-to-tear-out-of-the/) Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion > [I'm absolutely obsessed with conspiracies and have been since I was a kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-moffatt/i-m-absolutely-obsessed-with-conspiracies-and-have-been-since-i-was-a/) [Scarlett Moffatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-moffatt/) > [“Conspiracies are fun and entertaining. The only thing to be afraid of are the facts that surround them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-yvonne-moon/conspiracies-are-fun-and-entertaining-the-only-thing-to-be-afraid-of/) Lynn Yvonne Moon ## 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 Assassination quotes > [If it comes to a question of law, the charges they brought against me - the Espionage Act - is called the quintessential political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-it-comes-to-a-question-of-law-the-charges-they-brought-against-me/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [ We have the ability to take him \[President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez\] out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-robertson/we-have-the-ability-to-take-him-president-of-venezuela-hugo-chavez/) [Pat Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-robertson/) > [“Assassination is murder with a touch more precision. Brother Sim is precise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lawrence/assassination-is-murder-with-a-touch-more-precision-brother-sim-is/) [Mark Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lawrence/) > [Strange, (is it not?) that battles, martyrs, blood, even assassination should so condense - perhaps only really lastingly condense - a Nationality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/strange-is-it-not-that-battles-martyrs-blood-even-assassination/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [In modern day academia, secretly assassinating your peers is not necessarily performed the same way it was in king Tarquins day. The growth in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-spacey/in-modern-day-academia-secretly-assassinating-your-peers-is-not/) [Simon Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-spacey/) > [The Romans have provided a lot of writers with a model for various interstellar empires, of course, and no wonder. The Roman Empire is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-leckie/the-romans-have-provided-a-lot-of-writers-with-a-model-for-various/) [Ann Leckie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-leckie/) > [We know from Talmadge Hayer, one of the men who carried out the assassination, who was shot by Ruben X as he tried to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manning-marable/we-know-from-talmadge-hayer-one-of-the-men-who-carried-out-the/) [Manning Marable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manning-marable/) > [Assassination's the fastest way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/assassination-s-the-fastest-way/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [“He also had a condition that was referred to as granulated eyelids and it caused him to blink more than usual, as if he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-hansen/he-also-had-a-condition-that-was-referred-to-as-granulated-eyelids/) [Ron Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-hansen/) > [“Hundreds of political assassinations related to minority races, labor leaders and spokesmen against fascism have taken place in the U.S. since World War II.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-brussell/hundreds-of-political-assassinations-related-to-minority-races-labor/) [Mae Brussell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-brussell/) > [However, after the assassination of Salman Taseer, the killer of Salman Taseer was welcomed by the religious fanatics. And they showered rose petals on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shahbaz-bhatti/however-after-the-assassination-of-salman-taseer-the-killer-of-salman/) [Shahbaz Bhatti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shahbaz-bhatti/) > [There is not a single celebrated Southern name in any of the departments of human industry except those of war, assassination, lynching, murder, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/there-is-not-a-single-celebrated-southern-name-in-any-of-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I think that the implication of King's assassination has not been fully appreciated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-louis-gates/i-think-that-the-implication-of-king-s-assassination-has-not-been/) [Henry Louis Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-louis-gates/) > [The Senate has been debased to the level of a forum of hate and character assassination sheltered by the shield of congressional immunity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-chase-smith/the-senate-has-been-debased-to-the-level-of-a-forum-of-hate-and/) [Margaret Chase Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-chase-smith/) > [A deep, black grief gripped Robert Kennedy in the months following his brother's assassination. He lost weight, fell into melancholy silences, wore his brother's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurston-clarke/a-deep-black-grief-gripped-robert-kennedy-in-the-months-following-his/) Thurston Clarke [Browse all 264 Assassination quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assassination/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We will follow the bullet trajectories backwards to the lives that occupy the shadows, actual men who moan in their dreams.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Don DeLillo" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-backwards-to-the-lives-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Assassination" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-backwards-to-the-lives-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/don-delillo-294_assassination_we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-b_2590511.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/don-delillo-294_assassination_we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-b_2590511.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff4/don-delillo-294_assassination_we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-b_2590511.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We will follow the bullet trajectories backwards to the lives that occupy the shadows, actual men who moan…” — 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": "“We will follow the bullet trajectories...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-backwards-to-the-lives-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/we-will-follow-the-bullet-trajectories-backwards-to-the-lives-that/#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 } } ] } ```