--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Have you seen Marcus?\" he asked his ugly…" description: "\"“Have you seen Marcus?\" he asked his ugly friend. \"Yes, he was stoping some people in the Violet Room from climbing the curtains.\" \"What for?\" \"They we..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/ellen-kushner-19902_friendship_have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-f_552595.jpg" --- # Have you seen Marcus?" he asked his ugly friend. "Yes, he… ![“Have you seen Marcus?" he asked his ugly friend. "Yes, he was stoping some people in the Violet Room from climbing the curtains." "What for?" "They were not professionals." "Oh.” quote by Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/ellen-kushner-19902_friendship_have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-f_552595.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/ellen-kushner-19902_friendship_have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-f_552595.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/ellen-kushner-19902_friendship_have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-f_552595.jpg) > ““Have you seen Marcus?" he asked his ugly friend. "Yes, he was stoping some people in the Violet Room from climbing the curtains." "What for?" "They were not professionals." "Oh.”” [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A humorous exchange highlights absurdity of policing non‑experts in a trivial setting. **In simple terms:** People often over‑police trivial matters. Key Takeaway Question authority when stakes are low. Themes absurdity authority humor Mood playful ironic Type anecdotal satirical When to use this quote - office politics - online forums - community groups - club meetings Key Concepts social norms expertise power dynamics Questions to Reflect On - When does harmless fun become harmful? - Who decides who is a professional? A Different Perspective The joke may downplay genuine safety concerns. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) ## Related quotes > [“Fae can’t lie, you know. But they can, and do, manipulate the truth.” “What’s the difference?” Mina asked. “Like, if you asked me if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chanda-hahn/fae-can-t-lie-you-know-but-they-can-and-do-manipulate-the-truth-what/) [Chanda Hahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chanda-hahn/) > [I always feel like the ugly friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rayy/i-always-feel-like-the-ugly-friend/) Rayy > [I'm always the ugly friend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-always-the-ugly-friend/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Ami leaned into his side and inhaled the fresh scent of man. “Uh, no. Sometimes my biological clock threatens to explode like a ticking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-watson/ami-leaned-into-his-side-and-inhaled-the-fresh-scent-of-man-uh-no/) [Penny Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-watson/) > [“She took a second look at him, at his fancy tailored suit. Dark gray with pinstripes. Oh please, like she’d really believe he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cherise-sinclair/she-took-a-second-look-at-him-at-his-fancy-tailored-suit-dark-gray/) [Cherise Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cherise-sinclair/) > [“Is your life really so bad? This city is full of opportunities –” “Can you call it a city?” Marcus asked. “No gymnasium, no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-johnson/is-your-life-really-so-bad-this-city-is-full-of-opportunities-can-you/) [Matthew Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-johnson/) > [“But my best friend from college was silent for a long time. She, of all of my friends, had seen the parade of sad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/but-my-best-friend-from-college-was-silent-for-a-long-time-she-of-all/) [Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/) > [If you love some one for who they are not for there body or how many friend so when you say I love you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknow/if-you-love-some-one-for-who-they-are-not-for-there-body-or-how-many/) Unknow > [I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and always had a penchant for rhyming. I started listening to hip hop through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hoodie-allen/i-ve-been-writing-songs-since-i-was-10-years-old-and-always-had-a/) [Hoodie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hoodie-allen/) > [Friends are like stars you can't always see them, but you know they're there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknwon/friends-are-like-stars-you-can-t-always-see-them-but-you-know-they-re/) Unknwon > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/) Maureen Andeson > [I never believed in trying to do anything. Whatever I set out to do I found I had already accomplished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/i-never-believed-in-trying-to-do-anything-whatever-i-set-out-to-do-i/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Ellen Kushner > [“The time of testing, and of playing, was over. This was the final duel for one of them. Now they were fighting for their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/the-time-of-testing-and-of-playing-was-over-this-was-the-final-duel/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [“But I saw the pair of them, along with everyone else. Hard to miss. Him towering like a raggedy scarecrow in that flapping black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/but-i-saw-the-pair-of-them-along-with-everyone-else-hard-to-miss-him/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [“What was it about scholarship and learning, he wondered, that seemed to wither the hearts of University men, leaving them incapable of loving anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/what-was-it-about-scholarship-and-learning-he-wondered-that-seemed-to/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [Across the troubled maelstrom of time, people always need a beer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/across-the-troubled-maelstrom-of-time-people-always-need-a-beer/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [A masterwork. A particularly American magic realism that touches the heart of race and childhood in our country; it's 100 Years of Solitude for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/a-masterwork-a-particularly-american-magic-realism-that-touches-the/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [“I let the insults go by. A good swordsman doesn't pay attention to words in a fight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/i-let-the-insults-go-by-a-good-swordsman-doesn-t-pay-attention-to/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [Current cant equates fantasy with escapism, and current fashion would have it that fantasy is both easy to read and to write. It isn't.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/current-cant-equates-fantasy-with-escapism-and-current-fashion-would/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [“There's the road to heaven, and there's the road to hell, and there? That's the road to Faerie.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/there-s-the-road-to-heaven-and-there-s-the-road-to-hell-and-there/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [Is this politics? I suppose I am going to have to learn all about it, if I am to run Lord Ferris's household, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/is-this-politics-i-suppose-i-am-going-to-have-to-learn-all-about-it/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [Honest change? Honest? Has someone altered the definition of the word while my back was turned, or have you recently developed a sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/honest-change-honest-has-someone-altered-the-definition-of-the-word/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [I'm the Duke of Riverside. I build things here and pretty much keep the peace, and discourage certain behaviors. If you think all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/i-m-the-duke-of-riverside-i-build-things-here-and-pretty-much-keep/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [Utterly ingenious! Tiffany Trent has more fine invention at her fingertips than a roomful of magical Leonardos!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/utterly-ingenious-tiffany-trent-has-more-fine-invention-at-her/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [Yo-Yo Ma and Bobby McFerrin together again for the first time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/yo-yo-ma-and-bobby-mcferrin-together-again-for-the-first-time/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [“Blake Lost his temper. "But they didn't do anything to you, did they?" He inquired savagely. "When they heard your Southern accent and your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/blake-lost-his-temper-but-they-didn-t-do-anything-to-you-did-they-he/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [He said, 'They're only whores,' as though their very availability rendered them worthless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/he-said-they-re-only-whores-as-though-their-very-availability/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) [Explore all 28 Ellen Kushner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) ## More Friendship quotes > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I never believed in trying to do anything. Whatever I set out to do I found I had already accomplished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/i-never-believed-in-trying-to-do-anything-whatever-i-set-out-to-do-i/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/) Maureen Andeson > [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Friends are like stars you can't always see them, but you know they're there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknwon/friends-are-like-stars-you-can-t-always-see-them-but-you-know-they-re/) Unknwon > [I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and always had a penchant for rhyming. I started listening to hip hop through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hoodie-allen/i-ve-been-writing-songs-since-i-was-10-years-old-and-always-had-a/) [Hoodie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hoodie-allen/) > [If you love some one for who they are not for there body or how many friend so when you say I love you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknow/if-you-love-some-one-for-who-they-are-not-for-there-body-or-how-many/) Unknow > [“But my best friend from college was silent for a long time. She, of all of my friends, had seen the parade of sad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/but-my-best-friend-from-college-was-silent-for-a-long-time-she-of-all/) [Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/) > [You smile upon your friend to-day, To-day his ills are over; You hearken to the lover's say, And happy is the lover. 'Tis late…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-smile-upon-your-friend-to-day-to-day-his-ills-are-over-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“way. A true friend isn't the one that agrees with everything you say or do. A true friend is someone that has your back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shameek-speight/way-a-true-friend-isn-t-the-one-that-agrees-with-everything-you-say/) [Shameek Speight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shameek-speight/) > [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [“Kings don’t move mountains as a favor to a friend,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-whalen-turner/kings-don-t-move-mountains-as-a-favor-to-a-friend/) [Megan Whalen Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-whalen-turner/) > [I have friends and family that identify as LGBTQ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mace/i-have-friends-and-family-that-identify-as-lgbtq/) [Nancy Mace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mace/) > [“The real purpose of friendship was to discover and exploit weakness in others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-thompson/the-real-purpose-of-friendship-was-to-discover-and-exploit-weakness/) [Brian Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-thompson/) [Browse all 45,469 Friendship quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Have you seen Marcus?\" he asked his ugly friend. \"Yes, he was stoping some people in the Violet Room from climbing the curtains.\" \"What for?\" \"They were not professionals.\" \"Oh.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ellen Kushner" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-friend-yes-he-was-stoping-some/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Friendship" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-friend-yes-he-was-stoping-some/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/ellen-kushner-19902_friendship_have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-f_552595.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/ellen-kushner-19902_friendship_have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-f_552595.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/ellen-kushner-19902_friendship_have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-f_552595.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Have you seen Marcus?\" he asked his ugly friend. \"Yes, he was stoping some people in the Violet Room from…” — Ellen Kushner", "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": "Ellen Kushner", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Have you seen Marcus?\" he asked...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-friend-yes-he-was-stoping-some/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/have-you-seen-marcus-he-asked-his-ugly-friend-yes-he-was-stoping-some/#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 } } ] } ```