--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I know, but it is a pleasant fiction, my…" description: "\"“I know, but it is a pleasant fiction, my dear, and the sheer impossibility of a quest is no reason to abandon it.”\" — Graham McNeill" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/graham-mcneill-36447_adventure_i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-d_1587555.jpg" --- # I know, but it is a pleasant fiction, my dear, and the… ![“I know, but it is a pleasant fiction, my dear, and the sheer impossibility of a quest is no reason to abandon it.” quote by Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/graham-mcneill-36447_adventure_i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-d_1587555.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/graham-mcneill-36447_adventure_i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-d_1587555.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/graham-mcneill-36447_adventure_i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-d_1587555.jpg) > ““I know, but it is a pleasant fiction, my dear, and the sheer impossibility of a quest is no reason to abandon it.”” [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Even impossible quests hold value; abandoning them denies potential wonder. **In simple terms:** Impossible quests still matter. Key Takeaway Pursue despite odds. Themes adventure hope impossibility Mood hopeful inspirational Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - creative projects - scientific research - personal goals Key Concepts mythology motivation Questions to Reflect On - Is the quest worth the cost? - What defines a “pleasant fiction”? A Different Perspective Obsession can waste resources. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adventure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adventure/) [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Impossibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impossibility/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“Do you know why our race is doomed, Pellinore? Because it has fallen in love with the pleasant fiction that we are somehow above…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/do-you-know-why-our-race-is-doomed-pellinore-because-it-has-fallen-in/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [“You are not the first person to come here, and you will most likely not be the last. Many souls have arrived here in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-harlem/you-are-not-the-first-person-to-come-here-and-you-will-most-likely/) [Rebecca Harlem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-harlem/) > [“I told you; I am Arianna, the Siren, your Guardian, and how is a Guardian supposed to do her job if she is clueless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-sehyun-song/i-told-you-i-am-arianna-the-siren-your-guardian-and-how-is-a-guardian/) [Erica Sehyun Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-sehyun-song/) > [“Sunny, a silver boy of nine, daydreams of rescuing two princesses: “The princesses’ savior was a gallant knight. No! A prince! The valiant prince…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andri-e-elia/sunny-a-silver-boy-of-nine-daydreams-of-rescuing-two-princesses-the/) [Andri E. Elia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andri-e-elia/) > [Fiction that isn't an author's personal adventure into the frightening or the unknown isn't worth writing for anything but money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-franzen/fiction-that-isn-t-an-author-s-personal-adventure-into-the/) [Jonathan Franzen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-franzen/) > [“She smiled sinisterly. Light mist started to slowly swirl around us. All I could see was her, the tall rocks and the white wall.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-sehyun-song/she-smiled-sinisterly-light-mist-started-to-slowly-swirl-around-us/) [Erica Sehyun Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-sehyun-song/) > [When you look fear in the face, you are able to say to yourself, 'I lived through this horror. I can take the next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-roosevelt/when-you-look-fear-in-the-face-you-are-able-to-say-to-yourself-i/) [Eleanor Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-roosevelt/) > [Impossible situations do breed invention and creativity, but they are also where God provides miracles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-blake-michiels/impossible-situations-do-breed-invention-and-creativity-but-they-are/) [Jordan Blake Michiels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-blake-michiels/) > [The impossibility of separating the nomenclature of a science from the science itself, is owing to this, that every branch of physical science must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-lavoisier/the-impossibility-of-separating-the-nomenclature-of-a-science-from/) [Antoine Lavoisier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-lavoisier/) > [If you've never had a God-sized dream that scared you half to death, then you haven't really come to life. If you've never been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/if-you-ve-never-had-a-god-sized-dream-that-scared-you-half-to-death/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [A mature mind is one who understands the impossibility of knowing the ultimate, and with this understanding there is a new dimension: the dimension…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/a-mature-mind-is-one-who-understands-the-impossibility-of-knowing-the/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [It is physically impossible to lick your own elbow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tee-shepard/it-is-physically-impossible-to-lick-your-own-elbow/) [Tee Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tee-shepard/) > [ When the fountains of government \[borrowing\] abundance began to dry up, when through lack of funds and the impossibility of negotiating fresh loans the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-t-flynn/when-the-fountains-of-government-borrowing-abundance-began-to-dry-up/) [John T. Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-t-flynn/) > [The surprise of an army is now next to an impossibility. ... Prearranged surprises are rare and difficult because in order to plan one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-henri-jomini/the-surprise-of-an-army-is-now-next-to-an-impossibility-prearranged/) [Antoine-Henri Jomini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-henri-jomini/) > [I could not limit my values and pursuits to what makes others comfortable. Being possessed by a promise I live without options. I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/i-could-not-limit-my-values-and-pursuits-to-what-makes-others/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) ## More by Graham McNeill > [“I was there the day that Horus fell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/i-was-there-the-day-that-horus-fell/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“You fuss too much over making the "right" choice Gaius. All we need do is make a good choice, see it through, and accept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/you-fuss-too-much-over-making-the-right-choice-gaius-all-we-need-do/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“When you have come to the edge of all that you know and are about to drop off into the darkness of the unknown,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/when-you-have-come-to-the-edge-of-all-that-you-know-and-are-about-to/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“One should never see a drinking establishment well lit, he thought, it just makes it look even sadder.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/one-should-never-see-a-drinking-establishment-well-lit-he-thought-it/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“He (the Emperor) once said of ancient Earth that there were torches, who were the teachers, but also extinguishers, who were the priests.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/he-the-emperor-once-said-of-ancient-earth-that-there-were-torches-who/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“I cannot accept that,' said Uriel. 'The destruction of the Emperor's loyal subjects cannot be right.' 'We cannot always do what is right, Uriel.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/i-cannot-accept-that-said-uriel-the-destruction-of-the-emperor-s/) [Graham Mcneill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“In mockery are the seeds of impiety sown.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/in-mockery-are-the-seeds-of-impiety-sown/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“The dead do not squabble as this land’s rulers do. The dead do not fight one another. The dead have no desires, no petty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/the-dead-do-not-squabble-as-this-land-s-rulers-do-the-dead-do-not/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“Ignorance and fear create the gods, enthusiasm and deceit adorn them, and human weakness worships them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/ignorance-and-fear-create-the-gods-enthusiasm-and-deceit-adorn-them/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“A world of death is a world of stagnation, without the change that makes it worthwhile. What you call uncertainty, I call life itself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/a-world-of-death-is-a-world-of-stagnation-without-the-change-that/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“The Emperor tells us that civilization will only achieve perfection when the last stone of the last church falls upon the last priest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/the-emperor-tells-us-that-civilization-will-only-achieve-perfection/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) > [“A wise man of Old Earth had once claimed that science would destroy mankind, not through its weapons of mass destruction, but through finally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/a-wise-man-of-old-earth-had-once-claimed-that-science-would-destroy/) [Graham McNeill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) [Explore all 13 Graham McNeill quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/) ## More Adventure quotes > [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 painted the words "GREAT ADVENTURE" in Beijing, Dallas, San Francisco, Copenhagen, and Japan. What it means to me is completely different to everybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-eine/i-painted-the-words-great-adventure-in-beijing-dallas-san-francisco/) [Ben Eine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-eine/) > [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [I am attracted to looking at the different things language can mean even in one sometimes quite ordinary utterance. Writing is partly about listening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rae-armantrout/i-am-attracted-to-looking-at-the-different-things-language-can-mean/) [Rae Armantrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rae-armantrout/) > [What a thrill. You know you've entered new territory when you realise that your outfit cost more than your film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-yu/what-a-thrill-you-know-you-ve-entered-new-territory-when-you-realise/) Jessica Yu > [“So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-supertramp-chris-mccandless/so-many-people-live-within-unhappy-circumstances-and-yet-will-not/) Alexander Supertramp Chris McCandless > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [“Exactly. I think the original tantric Buddhists took notice of was some very wise old people who never studied in their youth, but took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-niemczura/exactly-i-think-the-original-tantric-buddhists-took-notice-of-was/) [Joe Niemczura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-niemczura/) > [As an adventurer...I try to protect against the downside. I make sure I have covered as many eventualities as I can. In the end,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/as-an-adventurer-i-try-to-protect-against-the-downside-i-make-sure-i/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [“Love can give you such happiness, then can break the very heart it filled, leaving a hole that can never be fixed or protected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mcleod/love-can-give-you-such-happiness-then-can-break-the-very-heart-it/) Kevin McLeod > [“It always gave Wolf a peculiar thrill thus to tighten his grip upon his stick, thus to wrap himself more closely in his faded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cowper-powys/it-always-gave-wolf-a-peculiar-thrill-thus-to-tighten-his-grip-upon/) [John Cowper Powys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cowper-powys/) > [“It all had to be squeezed and squeezed again, to provide a thrill, to provide enjoyment. What did people mean, with their simply determined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence-2/it-all-had-to-be-squeezed-and-squeezed-again-to-provide-a-thrill-to/) [D.H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence-2/) > [I am not an adventurous person but I am gutsy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahul-vaidya/i-am-not-an-adventurous-person-but-i-am-gutsy/) [Rahul Vaidya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahul-vaidya/) > [Our civilization, bequeathed to us by fierce adventurers, eaters of meat and hunters, is so full of hurry and combat, so busy about many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/our-civilization-bequeathed-to-us-by-fierce-adventurers-eaters-of/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) [Browse all 7,690 Adventure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adventure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I know, but it is a pleasant fiction, my dear, and the sheer impossibility of a quest is no reason to abandon it.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Graham McNeill" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-dear-and-the-sheer/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Adventure" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-dear-and-the-sheer/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/graham-mcneill-36447_adventure_i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-d_1587555.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/graham-mcneill-36447_adventure_i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-d_1587555.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7d/graham-mcneill-36447_adventure_i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-d_1587555.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I know, but it is a pleasant fiction, my dear, and the sheer impossibility of a quest is no reason to…” — Graham McNeill", "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": "Graham McNeill", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-mcneill/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I know, but it is a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-dear-and-the-sheer/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-mcneill/i-know-but-it-is-a-pleasant-fiction-my-dear-and-the-sheer/#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 } } ] } ```