--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In their precise tracings-out and subtle…" description: "\"In their precise tracings-out and subtle causations, the strongest and fieriest emotions of life defy all analytical insight.\" — Herman Melville" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad2/herman-melville-162_causation_in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle_1306953.jpg" --- # In their precise tracings-out and subtle causations, the… ![“In their precise tracings-out and subtle causations, the strongest and fieriest emotions of life defy all analytical insight.” quote by Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad2/herman-melville-162_causation_in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle_1306953.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad2/herman-melville-162_causation_in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle_1306953.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad2/herman-melville-162_causation_in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle_1306953.jpg) > “In their precise tracings-out and subtle causations, the strongest and fieriest emotions of life defy all analytical insight.” [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intense emotions resist logical analysis and cannot be fully understood through reason alone. **In simple terms:** Strong feelings defy logic. Key Takeaway Accept that some experiences are beyond rational explanation. Themes emotion intuition limits of reason Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - personal relationships - artistic creation - conflict resolution Key Concepts existentialism psychology subjectivity Questions to Reflect On - How do you handle feelings that seem irrational? - Can logic ever fully capture human passion? A Different Perspective Even with analysis, emotions may remain mysterious. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Causation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/causation/) [Causations Strongest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/causations-strongest-4311633/) [Emotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion/) [Emotions Of Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotions-of-life-223908/) [Fieriest Emotions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fieriest-emotions-4311629/) [Insight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insight/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Precise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/precise/) [Precise Tracings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/precise-tracings-4311631/) [Strongest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strongest/) [Subtle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subtle/) [Subtle Causations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subtle-causations-4311632/) [Tracing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tracing/) [Tracings Subtle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tracings-subtle-4311630/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) ## Related quotes > [To express the emotions of life is to live. To express the life of emotions is to make art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-heap/to-express-the-emotions-of-life-is-to-live-to-express-the-life-of/) [Jane Heap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-heap/) > [“I did not act in this fashion deliberately; I did not prefer this kind of relationship with people. I wanted a life in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-wright/i-did-not-act-in-this-fashion-deliberately-i-did-not-prefer-this-kind/) [Richard Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-wright/) > [“I have been using art as a means to the emotions of life and reading into it the ideas of life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-bell/i-have-been-using-art-as-a-means-to-the-emotions-of-life-and-reading/) [Clive Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-bell/) > [By making the place and the people and the feelings real, by the time someone closes the cover of one of my books, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/by-making-the-place-and-the-people-and-the-feelings-real-by-the-time/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) ## More by Herman Melville > [“and man, though idiotic, and knowing not what he does, yet full of the sweet things of love and gratitude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/and-man-though-idiotic-and-knowing-not-what-he-does-yet-full-of-the/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“But were the coming narrative to reveal in any instance, the complete abasement of poor Starbuck's fortitude, scarce might I have the heart to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/but-were-the-coming-narrative-to-reveal-in-any-instance-the-complete/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“(On Ralph Waldo Emerson)I love all men who dive. Any fish can swim near the surface, but it takes a great whale to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/on-ralph-waldo-emerson-i-love-all-men-who-dive-any-fish-can-swim-near/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“So seemed it to me, as I stood at her helm, and for long hours silently guided the way of this fire-ship on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/so-seemed-it-to-me-as-i-stood-at-her-helm-and-for-long-hours-silently/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“the only real owner of anything is its commander;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/the-only-real-owner-of-anything-is-its-commander/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“Consider the subtleness of the sea; how its most dreaded creatures glide under water, unapparent for the most part, and treacherously hidden beneath the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/consider-the-subtleness-of-the-sea-how-its-most-dreaded-creatures/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“Is it that by its indefiniteness it shadows forth the heartless voids and immensities of the universe, and thus stabs us from behind with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/is-it-that-by-its-indefiniteness-it-shadows-forth-the-heartless-voids/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“Now, as I before hinted, I have no objection to any person's religion, be it what it may, so long as that person does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/now-as-i-before-hinted-i-have-no-objection-to-any-person-s-religion/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [Let America first praise mediocrity even, in her children, before she praises... the best excellence in the children of any other land.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/let-america-first-praise-mediocrity-even-in-her-children-before-she/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [Only the man who says no is free](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/only-the-man-who-says-no-is-free/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [Beneath those stars is a universe of gliding monsters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/beneath-those-stars-is-a-universe-of-gliding-monsters/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“Yet this is life. For hardly have we mortals by long toilings extracted from this world's vast bulk its small but valuable sperm; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/yet-this-is-life-for-hardly-have-we-mortals-by-long-toilings/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [I never fancied broiling fowls; - though once broiled, judiciously buttered, and judgmatically salted and peppered, there is no one who will speak more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/i-never-fancied-broiling-fowls-though-once-broiled-judiciously/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [War should be carried on like a monsoon; one changeless determination of every particle towards the one unalterable aim.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/war-should-be-carried-on-like-a-monsoon-one-changeless-determination/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [Genius is full of trash.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/genius-is-full-of-trash/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) [Explore all 1,009 Herman Melville quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) ## More Causation quotes > [All is bound by the law of causation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/all-is-bound-by-the-law-of-causation/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [The parallelism, or denial of any causation between mind and body, derives basically, and fallaciously, from a theory of substances as having complete concepts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gonzalo-rodriguez-pereyra/the-parallelism-or-denial-of-any-causation-between-mind-and-body/) [Gonzalo Rodriguez-Pereyra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gonzalo-rodriguez-pereyra/) > [“8. The Application of the Law of Causation to Morals. Although it may be needless to state here the law of causation at any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaiten-nukariya/8-the-application-of-the-law-of-causation-to-morals-although-it-may/) [Kaiten Nukariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaiten-nukariya/) > [If ... we choose a group of social phenomena with no antecedent knowledge of the causation or absence of causation among them, then the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-fisher/if-we-choose-a-group-of-social-phenomena-with-no-antecedent-knowledge/) [Ronald Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-fisher/) > [“While the powers of the Primal Cause lie in causation, it shows itself in process through thoughts, perception and conception. It is the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dew-platt/while-the-powers-of-the-primal-cause-lie-in-causation-it-shows-itself/) [Dew Platt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dew-platt/) > [“correlation and causation. It’s one thing to be linked to a disease; it’s quite another to cause a disease, which implies a directing, controlling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-h-lipton/correlation-and-causation-it-s-one-thing-to-be-linked-to-a-disease-it/) [Bruce H. Lipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-h-lipton/) > [“Most of you will have heard the maxim "correlation does not imply causation." Just because two variables have a statistical relationship with each other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate-silver/most-of-you-will-have-heard-the-maxim-correlation-does-not-imply/) [Nate Silver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate-silver/) > [Science was tearing through the 'fine-spun ecclesiastical cobwebs' to behold a new cosmos, in which our Earth is merely an 'eccentric speck' - a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-desmond/science-was-tearing-through-the-fine-spun-ecclesiastical-cobwebs-to/) [Adrian Desmond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-desmond/) > [Everything that we know is within our universe, and everything within our universe is moulded by the conditions of space, time, and causation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/everything-that-we-know-is-within-our-universe-and-everything-within/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [“As you can see, it is very hard to say what causation is. This has led some philosophers to deny that there are causes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-s-kidder/as-you-can-see-it-is-very-hard-to-say-what-causation-is-this-has-led/) [David S. Kidder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-s-kidder/) > [It is a character that pays everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-character-that-pays-everywhere/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To plead the organic causation of a religious state of mind, then, in refutation of its claim to possess superior spiritual value, is quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/to-plead-the-organic-causation-of-a-religious-state-of-mind-then-in/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [The enlightened man is one with the law of causation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wumen-huikai/the-enlightened-man-is-one-with-the-law-of-causation/) [Wumen Huikai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wumen-huikai/) > [“on reasoning about patterns of causation. They are products of System 1. In 1944, at about the same”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-kahneman/on-reasoning-about-patterns-of-causation-they-are-products-of-system/) [Daniel Kahneman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-kahneman/) > [The effort to eliminate synthetic pesticides because of unsubstantiated fears about residues in food will make fruits and vegetables more expensive, decrease consumption, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-ames/the-effort-to-eliminate-synthetic-pesticides-because-of/) [Bruce Ames](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-ames/) [Browse all 98 Causation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/causation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In their precise tracings-out and subtle causations, the strongest and fieriest emotions of life defy all analytical insight.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Herman Melville" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle-causations-the-strongest-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Causation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle-causations-the-strongest-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad2/herman-melville-162_causation_in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle_1306953.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad2/herman-melville-162_causation_in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle_1306953.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad2/herman-melville-162_causation_in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle_1306953.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In their precise tracings-out and subtle causations, the strongest and fieriest emotions of life defy all…” — Herman Melville", "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": "Herman Melville", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In their precise tracings-out and subtle...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle-causations-the-strongest-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/in-their-precise-tracings-out-and-subtle-causations-the-strongest-and/#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 } } ] } ```