--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is terrific,” Arthur thought to…" description: "\"“This is terrific,” Arthur thought to himself, “Nelson’s Column has gone, McDonald’s has gone, all that’s left is me and the words Mostly harmless. Any..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfd/douglas-adams-122_nelson-column_this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himse_2896252.png" --- # This is terrific,” Arthur thought to himself, “Nelson’s… ![“This is terrific,” Arthur thought to himself, “Nelson’s Column has gone, McDonald’s has gone, all that’s left is me and the words Mostly harmless. Any second now all that will be left is Mostly harmless. And yesterday the planet seemed to be going so well.” A” quote by Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfd/douglas-adams-122_nelson-column_this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himse_2896252.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfd/douglas-adams-122_nelson-column_this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himse_2896252.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfd/douglas-adams-122_nelson-column_this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himse_2896252.png) > ““This is terrific,” Arthur thought to himself, “Nelson’s Column has gone, McDonald’s has gone, all that’s left is me and the words Mostly harmless. Any second now all that will be left is Mostly harmless. And yesterday the planet seemed to be going so well.” A”” [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Amidst chaos, the narrator finds solace in simple, harmless words, reflecting existential absurdity. **In simple terms:** Finding comfort in simple words during chaos. Key Takeaway Embrace simplicity in absurd times. Themes absurdity solace existentialism Mood wry thoughtful Type literary humorous When to use this quote - personal crisis - societal collapse - creative writing Key Concepts nihilism humor Questions to Reflect On - What “mostly harmless” thoughts sustain you? - How does humor help confront chaos? A Different Perspective Humor may mask deeper issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [Whoever becomes the head of the National Theater finds himself in a position like that of Nelson's Column - pigeons dump on you because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/whoever-becomes-the-head-of-the-national-theater-finds-himself-in-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Well, let me see. He stole a bicycle and rode it, not using his hands at any point, through Trafalgar Square. He attempted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/well-let-me-see-he-stole-a-bicycle-and-rode-it-not-using-his-hands-at/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) ## More by Douglas Adams > [2,000 years ago one man got nailed to a tree for saying how great it would be if everyone was nice to each other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/2-000-years-ago-one-man-got-nailed-to-a-tree-for-saying-how-great-it/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [What a wonderfully exciting cough,' said the little man, quite startled by it, 'do you mind if I join you?' And with that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/what-a-wonderfully-exciting-cough-said-the-little-man-quite-startled/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [The technology involved in making anything invisible is so infinitely complex that nine hundred and ninety-nine billion, nine hundred and ninety-nine million, nine hundred…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-technology-involved-in-making-anything-invisible-is-so-infinitely/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [One is never alone with a rubber duck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/one-is-never-alone-with-a-rubber-duck/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [This must be Thursday. I never could get the hang of Thursdays.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/this-must-be-thursday-i-never-could-get-the-hang-of-thursdays/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [There are some oddities in the perspective with which we see the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/there-are-some-oddities-in-the-perspective-with-which-we-see-the-world/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“Eight hours West sat a man alone on a beach mourning an inexplicable loss. He could only think of his loss in little packets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/eight-hours-west-sat-a-man-alone-on-a-beach-mourning-an-inexplicable/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“The Universe, the whole infinite Universe. The infinite suns, the infinite distances between them, and yourself an invisible dot on an invisible dot, infinitely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-universe-the-whole-infinite-universe-the-infinite-suns-the/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [People always make this totally artificial distinction between what is commercial and what is good. They quote that maxim "Nobody ever lost money underestimating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/people-always-make-this-totally-artificial-distinction-between-what/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/any-man-who-can-hitch-the-length-and-breadth-of-the-galaxy-rough-it/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [ Does God know he \[exists\]?" "Of course he does. Otherwise, you could not have asked the question, and I could not have answered. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/does-god-know-he-exists-of-course-he-does-otherwise-you-could-not/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“When we told our guide that we didn't want to go to all the tourist places he took us instead to the places where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/when-we-told-our-guide-that-we-didn-t-want-to-go-to-all-the-tourist/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“But Douglas was a genius, because he saw the world differently, and more importantly, he could communicate the world he saw.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/but-douglas-was-a-genius-because-he-saw-the-world-differently-and/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“The bits which did mean anything were often so wonderfully buried that no one could ever spot them slipping past in the avalanche of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-bits-which-did-mean-anything-were-often-so-wonderfully-buried/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [You come to me for advice, but you can't cope with anything you don't recognize. Hmmm. So we'll have to tell you something you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/you-come-to-me-for-advice-but-you-can-t-cope-with-anything-you-don-t/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) [Explore all 1,168 Douglas Adams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) ## More Nelson Column quotes > [Whoever becomes the head of the National Theater finds himself in a position like that of Nelson's Column - pigeons dump on you because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/whoever-becomes-the-head-of-the-national-theater-finds-himself-in-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Well, let me see. He stole a bicycle and rode it, not using his hands at any point, through Trafalgar Square. He attempted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/well-let-me-see-he-stole-a-bicycle-and-rode-it-not-using-his-hands-at/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) Browse all 3 Nelson Column quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“This is terrific,” Arthur thought to himself, “Nelson’s Column has gone, McDonald’s has gone, all that’s left is me and the words Mostly harmless. Any second now all that will be left is Mostly harmless. And yesterday the planet seemed to be going so well.” A”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Douglas Adams" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himself-nelson-s-column-has-gone/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Nelson Column" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himself-nelson-s-column-has-gone/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfd/douglas-adams-122_nelson-column_this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himse_2896252.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfd/douglas-adams-122_nelson-column_this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himse_2896252.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfd/douglas-adams-122_nelson-column_this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himse_2896252.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“This is terrific,” Arthur thought to himself, “Nelson’s Column has gone, McDonald’s has gone, all that’s…” — Douglas Adams", "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": "Douglas Adams", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“This is terrific,” Arthur thought to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himself-nelson-s-column-has-gone/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/this-is-terrific-arthur-thought-to-himself-nelson-s-column-has-gone/#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 } } ] } ```