--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Accidents and chance are words used by…" description: "\"Accidents and chance are words used by persons who do not think clearly when they attempt to account for certain happenings. Anyone who thinks must be ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9b/harold-percival-56872_accident_accidents-and-chance-are-words-used-by-p_2429151.jpg" --- # Accidents and chance are words used by persons who do not… ![“Accidents and chance are words used by persons who do not think clearly when they attempt to account for certain happenings. Anyone who thinks must be convinced that in a world as orderly as this there is no room for the words accident and chance.” quote by Harold Percival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9b/harold-percival-56872_accident_accidents-and-chance-are-words-used-by-p_2429151.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9b/harold-percival-56872_accident_accidents-and-chance-are-words-used-by-p_2429151.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9b/harold-percival-56872_accident_accidents-and-chance-are-words-used-by-p_2429151.jpg) > “Accidents and chance are words used by persons who do not think clearly when they attempt to account for certain happenings. Anyone who thinks must be convinced that in a world as orderly as this there is no room for the words accident and chance.” [Harold Percival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-percival/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Accidents and chance are excuses for lack of logical reasoning; the world is orderly and deterministic. **In simple terms:** No accidents, only cause and effect Key Takeaway Adopt rational analysis of events Themes determinism logic philosophy Mood analytical skeptical Type philosophical academic When to use this quote - scientific inquiry - problem solving - risk assessment Key Concepts Causality critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - How do you handle truly unpredictable events? - Can all outcomes be predicted? A Different Perspective Overlooks randomness in complex systems. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accident](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accident/) [Accidents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accidents/) [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [I always think of myself not so much as a painter but as a medium for accident and chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/i-always-think-of-myself-not-so-much-as-a-painter-but-as-a-medium-for/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [Me being an actor was an accident, and not something I wanted to do, because I knew what happened eventually. Yeah, maybe you'd get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-fisher/me-being-an-actor-was-an-accident-and-not-something-i-wanted-to-do/) [Carrie Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-fisher/) > [When you hear someone use the word 'meds' instead of the word 'medicine,' chances are they're no stranger to massive doses of mind-altering psychotropic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/when-you-hear-someone-use-the-word-meds-instead-of-the-word-medicine/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [If you are not happy while getting rich, chances are that you will not be happy when you do get rich.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/if-you-are-not-happy-while-getting-rich-chances-are-that-you-will-not/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [If you don't enjoy getting up and working and finishing your work and sitting down to a meal with family or friends, then the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/if-you-don-t-enjoy-getting-up-and-working-and-finishing-your-work-and/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [I see negotiations as an honest attempt to reach a deal that's great for everyone at the table. But sometimes, for whatever reason, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-o-leary/i-see-negotiations-as-an-honest-attempt-to-reach-a-deal-that-s-great/) [Kevin O'Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-o-leary/) > [Fate knows all about you, it knows your fears and your weaknesses and your confidences and strengths, and it can be ready for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-lebbon/fate-knows-all-about-you-it-knows-your-fears-and-your-weaknesses-and/) [Tim Lebbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-lebbon/) > [Woman dwell always in the palace of unpalatable truth and never by any chance is there a magic talisman to save them from their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcfee/woman-dwell-always-in-the-palace-of-unpalatable-truth-and-never-by/) [William McFee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcfee/) > [The biggest risk is not taking any risk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-zuckerberg/the-biggest-risk-is-not-taking-any-risk/) [Mark Zuckerberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-zuckerberg/) > [Fortune is a prize to be won. Adventure is the road to it. Chance is what may lurk in the shadows at the roadside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/fortune-is-a-prize-to-be-won-adventure-is-the-road-to-it-chance-is/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [A man who carries a cat by the tail is getting experience that will always be helpful. He isn't likely to grow dim or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/a-man-who-carries-a-cat-by-the-tail-is-getting-experience-that-will/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Why should man fear since chance is all in all for him, and he can clearly foreknow nothing? Best to live lightly, as one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/why-should-man-fear-since-chance-is-all-in-all-for-him-and-he-can/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [Chances are that any helpful two-year-old will break some eggs. We are often not very good at things when we are new. But there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-naomi-remen/chances-are-that-any-helpful-two-year-old-will-break-some-eggs-we-are/) [Rachel Naomi Remen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-naomi-remen/) > [Hold tenderly that which you cherish, for it is precious and a tight grip may crush it. Do not let the fear of dropping…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-alberti/hold-tenderly-that-which-you-cherish-for-it-is-precious-and-a-tight/) Bob Alberti > [The chances are that you have already come to believe that happiness is unattainable. But men have attained it. And they have attained it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/the-chances-are-that-you-have-already-come-to-believe-that-happiness/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) ## More by Harold Percival > [For you it is possible to do anything; the only thing impossible for you to do is to do wrong, inasmuch as you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-percival/for-you-it-is-possible-to-do-anything-the-only-thing-impossible-for/) [Harold Percival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-percival/) > [This is the law: Every thing existing on the physical plane is an exteriorization of thought, which must be balanced through the one who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-percival/this-is-the-law-every-thing-existing-on-the-physical-plane-is-an/) [Harold Percival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-percival/) > [Consciousness is the ultimate Reality; compared with it, all else is illusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-percival/consciousness-is-the-ultimate-reality-compared-with-it-all-else-is/) [Harold Percival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-percival/) > [A thought has no size in the physical sense but is vast as compared to the physical acts and objects into which it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-percival/a-thought-has-no-size-in-the-physical-sense-but-is-vast-as-compared/) [Harold Percival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-percival/) > [Yes, there is a Government of this changing world. The Government is not in the changing world. It is in the Realm of Permanence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-percival/yes-there-is-a-government-of-this-changing-world-the-government-is/) [Harold Percival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-percival/) [Explore all 6 Harold Percival quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-percival/) ## More Accident quotes > [Fame, we may understand, is no sure test of merit, but only a probability of such: it is an accident, not a property, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/fame-we-may-understand-is-no-sure-test-of-merit-but-only-a/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [I went to school at night in L.A. to brush up on my engineering while I applied to the astronaut program. I really did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-jemison/i-went-to-school-at-night-in-l-a-to-brush-up-on-my-engineering-while/) [Mae Jemison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-jemison/) > [“The accident in your rearview mirror already happened. The one in front of you is still preventable. Pay attention.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nakia-r-laushaul/the-accident-in-your-rearview-mirror-already-happened-the-one-in/) [Nakia R. Laushaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nakia-r-laushaul/) > [People dont get married by accident and they dont get divorced by accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-hayes/people-dont-get-married-by-accident-and-they-dont-get-divorced-by/) [Darren Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-hayes/) > [My father had Parkinson's, though he actually died following a bicycle accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kt-tunstall/my-father-had-parkinson-s-though-he-actually-died-following-a-bicycle/) [KT Tunstall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kt-tunstall/) > [A tragic car accident put me in a wheelchair and dashed my hopes and dreams for the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-cawthorn/a-tragic-car-accident-put-me-in-a-wheelchair-and-dashed-my-hopes-and/) [Madison Cawthorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-cawthorn/) > [My musical career was an accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sade-adu/my-musical-career-was-an-accident/) [Sade Adu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sade-adu/) > [The spirit in the body is like wine in a glass; when it spills, it seeps into air and earth and light….It’s a mistake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-michaels/the-spirit-in-the-body-is-like-wine-in-a-glass-when-it-spills-it/) [Anne Michaels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-michaels/) > [accident ruled every corner of the universe except the chambers of the human heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-guterson/accident-ruled-every-corner-of-the-universe-except-the-chambers-of/) [David Guterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-guterson/) > [There is a French expression that says: to be exposed to an accident, to cross a street without looking at the cars means exposing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/there-is-a-french-expression-that-says-to-be-exposed-to-an-accident/) [Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/) > [It's no accident that most self-help groups use 'anonymous' in their names; to Americans, the first step toward redemption is a ritual wiping out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/it-s-no-accident-that-most-self-help-groups-use-anonymous-in-their/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [High birth is an accident, not a virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pietro-metastasio/high-birth-is-an-accident-not-a-virtue/) [Pietro Metastasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pietro-metastasio/) > [“I just got out of the hospital. I was in a speed reading accident. I hit a book mark and flew across the room.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/i-just-got-out-of-the-hospital-i-was-in-a-speed-reading-accident-i/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [However, I met with a horrible accident while riding my bike in Sangla Valley. 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