--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What an immature, self-destructive…" description: "\"“What an immature, self-destructive, antiquated mischief is man! How obscure and gross his prancing and chattering on his little stage of evolution! Ho..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/144/evelyn-waugh-850_animals_what-an-immature-self-destructive-antiqu_2786648.jpg" --- # What an immature, self-destructive, antiquated mischief is… ![“What an immature, self-destructive, antiquated mischief is man! How obscure and gross his prancing and chattering on his little stage of evolution! How loathsome and beyond words boring all the thoughts and self-approval of his biological by-product! this half-formed, ill-conditioned body! this…” quote by Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/144/evelyn-waugh-850_animals_what-an-immature-self-destructive-antiqu_2786648.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/144/evelyn-waugh-850_animals_what-an-immature-self-destructive-antiqu_2786648.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/144/evelyn-waugh-850_animals_what-an-immature-self-destructive-antiqu_2786648.jpg) > ““What an immature, self-destructive, antiquated mischief is man! How obscure and gross his prancing and chattering on his little stage of evolution! How loathsome and beyond words boring all the thoughts and self-approval of his biological by-product! this half-formed, ill-conditioned body! this erratic, maladjusted mechanism of his soul: on one side the harmonious instincts and balanced responses of the animal, on the other the inflexible purpose of the engine, and between them man, equally alien from the being of Nature and the doing of the machine, the vile becoming !”” [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Man is a conflicted creature, torn between animal instincts and artificial constructs, leading to self‑destruction. **In simple terms:** Man is torn between nature and artificiality. Key Takeaway Recognize inner conflict. Themes existential philosophical critique Mood critical melancholic Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - modern life - technology - self‑reflection - art criticism Key Concepts human nature mechanical alienation Questions to Reflect On - What drives the alienation of humanity? - How can we reconcile instinct and intellect? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on negativity may ignore human resilience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) [Biology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biology/) [Humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity/) [Immature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immature/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) ## Related quotes > [“The culture without children is forever immature, self-obsessed and rightous. 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Describe your self-esteem and how you exhibit self-love.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennie-mccarty/do-you-consider-yourself-valuable-do-you-value-yourself-less-than-or/) Tennie McCarty > [“The thing was still loathsome--more loathsome, if possible, than before--and the scarlet dew that spotted the hand seemed brighter, and more like blood newly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-thing-was-still-loathsome-more-loathsome-if-possible-than-before/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The most loathsome materialism is not the kind people usually think of, but the sort that attempts to let dead ideas pass for living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-most-loathsome-materialism-is-not-the-kind-people-usually-think/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“My killing a loathsome, harmful louse, a filthy old moneylender woman who brought no good to anyone, to murder whom would pardon forty sins,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/my-killing-a-loathsome-harmful-louse-a-filthy-old-moneylender-woman/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“Life is some kind of loathsome hag who is forever threatening to turn beautiful”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-meredith/life-is-some-kind-of-loathsome-hag-who-is-forever-threatening-to-turn/) [William Meredith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-meredith/) > [“You! 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Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling/) > [Sport is a loathsome and dangerous pursuit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-humphries/sport-is-a-loathsome-and-dangerous-pursuit/) [Barry Humphries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-humphries/) > [“As a tourist, you become economically significant but existentially loathsome”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/as-a-tourist-you-become-economically-significant-but-existentially/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [There is nothing so loathsome as a sentimental surrealist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/there-is-nothing-so-loathsome-as-a-sentimental-surrealist/) [Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/) > [“Where is there a wretch So wicked and loathsome as I? I have forsaken my Maker, So faithless have I been.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohandas-karamchand-gandhi/where-is-there-a-wretch-so-wicked-and-loathsome-as-i-i-have-forsaken/) Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi > [“The best reason for committing loathsome and detestable acts--and let's face it, I am considered something of an expert in this field--is purely for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-fforde/the-best-reason-for-committing-loathsome-and-detestable-acts-and-let/) [Jasper Fforde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-fforde/) > [“Well, I love geraniums, and anybody who does not love geraniums must obviously be a depraved and loathsome person.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beverley-nichols/well-i-love-geraniums-and-anybody-who-does-not-love-geraniums-must/) [Beverley Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beverley-nichols/) > [I hate all the loathsome nonsense that goes with patriotism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/i-hate-all-the-loathsome-nonsense-that-goes-with-patriotism/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) ## More by Evelyn Waugh > [If, for instance, they have heard something from the postman, they attribute it to a semi-official statement; if they have fallen into conversation with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/if-for-instance-they-have-heard-something-from-the-postman-they/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [One can write, think and pray exclusively of others; dreams are all egocentric.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/one-can-write-think-and-pray-exclusively-of-others-dreams-are-all/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [“Sometimes," Helena continued, "I have a terrible dream of the future. 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I can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/i-ve-always-been-bad-probably-i-shall-be-bad-again-punished-again-but/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [His courtesy was somewhat extravagant. He would write and thank people who wrote to thank him for wedding presents and when he encountered anyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/his-courtesy-was-somewhat-extravagant-he-would-write-and-thank-people/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [Limbo is the place. 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