--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We were the first human beings who would…" description: "\"“We were the first human beings who would never see anything for the first time. We stare at the wonders of the world, dull-eyed, underwhelmed. Mona Li..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/592/gillian-flynn-316_empire-state_we-were-the-first-human-beings-who-would_1499276.jpg" --- # We were the first human beings who would never see… ![“We were the first human beings who would never see anything for the first time. We stare at the wonders of the world, dull-eyed, underwhelmed. Mona Lisa, the Pyramids, the Empire State Building. Jungle animals on attack, ancient icebergs collapsing, volcanoes erupting. I can’t recall a single…” quote by Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/592/gillian-flynn-316_empire-state_we-were-the-first-human-beings-who-would_1499276.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/592/gillian-flynn-316_empire-state_we-were-the-first-human-beings-who-would_1499276.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/592/gillian-flynn-316_empire-state_we-were-the-first-human-beings-who-would_1499276.jpg) > ““We were the first human beings who would never see anything for the first time. We stare at the wonders of the world, dull-eyed, underwhelmed. Mona Lisa, the Pyramids, the Empire State Building. Jungle animals on attack, ancient icebergs collapsing, volcanoes erupting. I can’t recall a single amazing thing I have seen firsthand that I didn’t immediately reference to a movie or TV show. A fucking commercial. You know the awful singsong of the blasé: Seeeen it.”” [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote laments modern desensitization, where extraordinary experiences are filtered through media references, diminishing authentic wonder. **In simple terms:** We see wonders but compare them to movies, losing true awe. Key Takeaway Seek experiences without media comparison. Themes desensitization media saturation authenticity Mood reflective critical contemplative Type philosophical observational When to use this quote - travel - museum visits - natural phenomena - personal reflection Key Concepts cultural critique psychology perception Questions to Reflect On - How can you experience wonder without media lenses? - What does authentic awe feel like? A Different Perspective May overlook genuine moments by constantly referencing pop culture. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Empire state building](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empire-state-building/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“It seemed to me that there was nothing new to be discovered ever again. Our society was utterly, ruinously derivative...we were the first human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/it-seemed-to-me-that-there-was-nothing-new-to-be-discovered-ever/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“We were the first human beings who would never see anythign for the first time. We stare at the wonders of the world, dull-eyed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/we-were-the-first-human-beings-who-would-never-see-anythign-for-the/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“I can’t recall a single amazing thing I have seen firsthand that I didn’t immediately reference to a movie or TV show.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/i-can-t-recall-a-single-amazing-thing-i-have-seen-firsthand-that-i/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Our society was utterly, ruinously derivative (although the word derivative as a criticism is itself derivative). We were the first human beings who would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/our-society-was-utterly-ruinously-derivative-although-the-word/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“For several years, I had been bored. Not a whining, restless child's boredom (although I was not above that) but a dense, blanketing malaise.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/for-several-years-i-had-been-bored-not-a-whining-restless-child-s/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“We stare at the wonders of the world, dulled-eyed, underwhelmed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flynn-gillian/we-stare-at-the-wonders-of-the-world-dulled-eyed-underwhelmed/) Flynn Gillian > [I've seen firsthand how books can change people's lives. It happened to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-pelecanos/i-ve-seen-firsthand-how-books-can-change-people-s-lives-it-happened/) [George Pelecanos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-pelecanos/) > [I have seen firsthand that being president doesnt change who you are,it reveals who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-obama/i-have-seen-firsthand-that-being-president-doesnt-change-who-you-are/) [Michelle Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-obama/) > [I think that women are uniquely suited to the job of directing, and I've seen it firsthand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-langley/i-think-that-women-are-uniquely-suited-to-the-job-of-directing-and-i/) [Donna Langley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-langley/) > [“We've seen firsthand the footprints of the Mordant's treachery.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-azinger/we-ve-seen-firsthand-the-footprints-of-the-mordant-s-treachery/) [Karen Azinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-azinger/) > [I've seen firsthand the high human cost of war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/i-ve-seen-firsthand-the-high-human-cost-of-war/) [Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/) > [Entertainers and sports figures achieve fame and wealth but find the world empty and dull without the solace and stimulation of drugs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-cuomo/entertainers-and-sports-figures-achieve-fame-and-wealth-but-find-the/) [Mario Cuomo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-cuomo/) > [You've got to deal with the world with all of its troubles, while you've still got this alternate image. It's not about being in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larkin-grimm/you-ve-got-to-deal-with-the-world-with-all-of-its-troubles-while-you/) [Larkin Grimm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larkin-grimm/) > [“Too much anthropos makes the world a dull hole.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-herbert-lawrence/too-much-anthropos-makes-the-world-a-dull-hole/) [David Herbert Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-herbert-lawrence/) > [The word 'mundane' has come to mean 'boring' and 'dull', and it really shouldn't - it should mean the opposite. Because it comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-word-mundane-has-come-to-mean-boring-and-dull-and-it-really/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## More by Gillian Flynn > [“Our kind of love can go into remission, but it's always waiting to return. Like the world sweetest cancer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/our-kind-of-love-can-go-into-remission-but-it-s-always-waiting-to/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [The midwest is great because it hasn't been entirely claimed. There's more room to write about it; it's harder to write about New York,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/the-midwest-is-great-because-it-hasn-t-been-entirely-claimed-there-s/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Sometimes it is all too loud.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/sometimes-it-is-all-too-loud/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“My thank-yous always come out rather labored. I often don't give them at all. People do what they're supposed to do and then wait…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/my-thank-yous-always-come-out-rather-labored-i-often-don-t-give-them/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [There’s something disturbing about recalling a warm memory and feeling utterly cold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/there-s-something-disturbing-about-recalling-a-warm-memory-and/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“My life has begun to feel like an epilogue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/my-life-has-begun-to-feel-like-an-epilogue/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“The Victorians, especially southern Victorians, needed a lot of room to stray away from each other, to duck tuberculosis and flu, to avoid rapacious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/the-victorians-especially-southern-victorians-needed-a-lot-of-room-to/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“You think: Oh, here is the rest of my life. It’s finally arrived.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/you-think-oh-here-is-the-rest-of-my-life-it-s-finally-arrived/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [What a generous thing that is, I realize, for a husband to try to make his wife laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/what-a-generous-thing-that-is-i-realize-for-a-husband-to-try-to-make/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [I am a great believer in jobs for teens. They teach important life lessons, build character, and inflict just the right amount of humiliation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/i-am-a-great-believer-in-jobs-for-teens-they-teach-important-life/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“you'd literally lie, cheat, and steal -hell, kill- to convince people you are a good guy”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/you-d-literally-lie-cheat-and-steal-hell-kill-to-convince-people-you/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [My imagination is more tweaked by imagining the lives of the people who were there before us. I don't need to give myself the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/my-imagination-is-more-tweaked-by-imagining-the-lives-of-the-people/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Given my druthers now, I’d prefer a snapshot of Warren Harding’s wife, “the Duchess,” who recorded the smallest offenses in a little red notebook…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/given-my-druthers-now-i-d-prefer-a-snapshot-of-warren-harding-s-wife/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [A town so suffocating and small, you tripped over people you hated every day. People who knew things about you. It's the kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/a-town-so-suffocating-and-small-you-tripped-over-people-you-hated/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“For a long time Cool Girl offended me. I used to see men - friends, coworkers, strangers - giddy over these awful pretender women,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/for-a-long-time-cool-girl-offended-me-i-used-to-see-men-friends/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) [Explore all 668 Gillian Flynn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) ## More Empire state quotes > [We'd always come into Syracuse for the Empire State Games and the stair fair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beau-biden/we-d-always-come-into-syracuse-for-the-empire-state-games-and-the/) [Beau Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beau-biden/) > [“... and left decimated. Not for myself, but for all the single women out there trying to date. I wanted to run to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-schumer/and-left-decimated-not-for-myself-but-for-all-the-single-women-out/) [Amy Schumer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-schumer/) > [When I first came to New York City, what I was thrilled about was not the Empire State Building, or the Statue of Liberty;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gibbons/when-i-first-came-to-new-york-city-what-i-was-thrilled-about-was-not/) [Dave Gibbons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gibbons/) > [My favorite optimist was an American who jumped off the Empire State Building, and as he passed the 42nd floor, the window washers heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/my-favorite-optimist-was-an-american-who-jumped-off-the-empire-state/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [“You can build the Empire State Building. Train the Prussian army. Elevate the hierarchy of a totalitarian state higher than the throne of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/you-can-build-the-empire-state-building-train-the-prussian-army/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [I see a New York that is once again the empire state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-paladino/i-see-a-new-york-that-is-once-again-the-empire-state/) [Carl Paladino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-paladino/) > [“Nerd boy? Where he? (Biff) 'Okay... sad that they couldn’t even form a complete sentence. See what happens when you abuse steroids? Dudes should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/nerd-boy-where-he-biff-okay-sad-that-they-couldn-t-even-form-a/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“Our society was utterly, ruinously derivative (although the word derivative as a criticism is itself derivative). We were the first human beings who would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/our-society-was-utterly-ruinously-derivative-although-the-word/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Everyone knows what a penny dropped form the top of the Empire State Building can do. So if it started to rain pennies, millions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/everyone-knows-what-a-penny-dropped-form-the-top-of-the-empire-state/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [Owning great landmarks such as the Empire State Building or Trump Tower or the General Motors Building or the Plaza Hotel - there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/owning-great-landmarks-such-as-the-empire-state-building-or-trump/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [“After a week's worth of failed fairy tales—stories that made my eyelids flutter open and not shut—my father tried telling me stories that belonged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monique-truong/after-a-week-s-worth-of-failed-fairy-tales-stories-that-made-my/) [Monique Truong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monique-truong/) > [“But sometimes, I feel like something's missing, and I can’t quite put my finger on it. That little something extra. Excitement. A challenge. An…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-michele/but-sometimes-i-feel-like-something-s-missing-and-i-can-t-quite-put/) [Beth Michele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-michele/) > [Eddie Fisher married to Elizabeth Taylor is like me trying to wash the Empire State Building with a bar of soap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-rickles/eddie-fisher-married-to-elizabeth-taylor-is-like-me-trying-to-wash/) [Don Rickles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-rickles/) > [Overall, The Population Bomb was probably too optimistic. I was writing about climate change - Anne and I actually wrote the book. We discussed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-r-ehrlich/overall-the-population-bomb-was-probably-too-optimistic-i-was-writing/) [Paul R. Ehrlich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-r-ehrlich/) > [I knew a girl so ugly, I took her to the top of the Empire State building and planes started to attack her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-dangerfield/i-knew-a-girl-so-ugly-i-took-her-to-the-top-of-the-empire-state/) [Rodney Dangerfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-dangerfield/) Browse all 85 Empire state quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We were the first human beings who would never see anything for the first time. We stare at the wonders of the world, dull-eyed, underwhelmed. Mona Lisa, the Pyramids, the Empire State Building. Jungle animals on attack, ancient icebergs collapsing, volcanoes erupting. I can’t recall a single amazing thing I have seen firsthand that I didn’t immediately reference to a movie or TV show. A fucking commercial. 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