--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Neanderthal man listened to stories, if…" description: "\"Neanderthal man listened to stories, if one may judge by the shape of his skull.\" — E. M. Forster" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8c/e-m-forster-1118_ifs_neanderthal-man-listened-to-stories-if-o_745773.png" --- # Neanderthal man listened to stories, if one may judge by… ![“Neanderthal man listened to stories, if one may judge by the shape of his skull.” quote by E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8c/e-m-forster-1118_ifs_neanderthal-man-listened-to-stories-if-o_745773.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8c/e-m-forster-1118_ifs_neanderthal-man-listened-to-stories-if-o_745773.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8c/e-m-forster-1118_ifs_neanderthal-man-listened-to-stories-if-o_745773.png) > “Neanderthal man listened to stories, if one may judge by the shape of his skull.” [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humans infer cultural habits from physical traits, but such judgments are speculative and shallow. **In simple terms:** We guess behavior from appearance, which can be misleading. Key Takeaway Avoid judging others by looks alone. Themes judgment culture anthropology Mood reflective critical Type observational analytical When to use this quote - social interaction - historical analysis - education - media criticism Key Concepts stereotyping interpretation Questions to Reflect On - How might we better understand others beyond appearance? - What biases affect our interpretations of physical traits? A Different Perspective Physical appearance does not reliably reveal inner life. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Neanderthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neanderthal/) [Neanderthals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neanderthals/) [Shapes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shapes/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) ## Related quotes > [Neanderthal man listened to stories, if one may judge by the shape of his skull. The primitive audience was an audience of shock-heads, gaping…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/neanderthal-man-listened-to-stories-if-one-may-judge-by-the-shape-of-2/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [Let no one mistake it for comedy, farcical though it may be in all its details. It serves notice on the country that Neanderthal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/let-no-one-mistake-it-for-comedy-farcical-though-it-may-be-in-all-its/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [“I suggest that the type of consciousness – not merely the degree of intelligence – that Neanderthals possessed was different in important respects from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-david-lewis-williams/i-suggest-that-the-type-of-consciousness-not-merely-the-degree-of/) [James David Lewis-Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-david-lewis-williams/) > [“Whereas the food debris of the Neanderthals shows a wide variety of animal bones, suggesting that they took whatever they could find, archaeological remnants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/whereas-the-food-debris-of-the-neanderthals-shows-a-wide-variety-of/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Men are not as sophisticated as women. They're not as mature as women. They're not as connected with their emotions as women...There's a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-levine/men-are-not-as-sophisticated-as-women-they-re-not-as-mature-as-women/) [Adam Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-levine/) > [Chauvet Cave is rather like the awakening of the modern human soul or I would say the awakening of modern human culture. Because Neanderthal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/chauvet-cave-is-rather-like-the-awakening-of-the-modern-human-soul-or/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [The definition of who's literate and who's not keeps changing. So, in Neanderthal times, if you painted on a cave wall, that was enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-enriquez/the-definition-of-who-s-literate-and-who-s-not-keeps-changing-so-in/) [Juan Enriquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-enriquez/) > [Asian Homo erectus died without issue and does not enter our immediate ancestry (for we evolved from African populations); Neanderthal people were collateral cousins,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/asian-homo-erectus-died-without-issue-and-does-not-enter-our/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [I BET WHEN NEANDERTHAL KIDS would make a snowman, someone would always end up saying, "Don't forget the thick heavy brows." 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