--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is no simple explanation for…" description: "\"“There is no simple explanation for anything important any of us do, and the human tragedy, or the human irony, consists in the necessity of living wit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/hugh-maclennan-30554_irony_there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anyth_2461876.jpg" --- # There is no simple explanation for anything important any… ![“There is no simple explanation for anything important any of us do, and the human tragedy, or the human irony, consists in the necessity of living with the consequences of actions performed under the pressure of compulsions so obscure we do not and cannot understand them.” quote by Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/hugh-maclennan-30554_irony_there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anyth_2461876.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/hugh-maclennan-30554_irony_there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anyth_2461876.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/hugh-maclennan-30554_irony_there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anyth_2461876.jpg) > ““There is no simple explanation for anything important any of us do, and the human tragedy, or the human irony, consists in the necessity of living with the consequences of actions performed under the pressure of compulsions so obscure we do not and cannot understand them.”” [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Important actions are driven by obscure compulsions, leaving us to bear unclear consequences. **In simple terms:** We act under hidden forces and face their outcomes. Key Takeaway Seek awareness of hidden motives before acting. Themes compulsion human tragedy consequence self‑knowledge Mood reflective serious Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - therapy - mindfulness practice - ethical decision‑making - self‑analysis - critical reflection Key Concepts psychology free will ethical responsibility Questions to Reflect On - What hidden drives influence your choices? - Can you accept responsibility for actions you barely understand? A Different Perspective Understanding hidden motives is difficult and may be unsettling. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Consequences Of Actions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consequences-of-actions-213435/) [Human Irony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-irony-663815/) [Human Tragedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-tragedy-663814/) [Irony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/irony/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Necessity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/necessity/) [Tragedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tragedy/) [Tragedy Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tragedy-human-472674/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) ## Related quotes > [But that night as I drove back to Montreal, I at least discovered this: that there is no simple explanation for anything important any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/but-that-night-as-i-drove-back-to-montreal-i-at-least-discovered-this/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [For me the Holocaust was not only a Jewish tragedy, but also a human tragedy. After the war, when I saw that the Jews…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-wiesenthal/for-me-the-holocaust-was-not-only-a-jewish-tragedy-but-also-a-human/) [Simon Wiesenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-wiesenthal/) > [Is it perhaps the one necessity of love, that it be needed? And the one great human tragedy that it so rarely is?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/is-it-perhaps-the-one-necessity-of-love-that-it-be-needed-and-the-one/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [We know that the Zanj (blacks) are the least intelligent and the least discerning of mankind, and the least capable of understanding the consequences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-know-that-the-zanj-blacks-are-the-least-intelligent-and-the-least/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Moral truth, resting entirely upon the ascertained consequences of actions, supposes a process of observation and reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-wright/moral-truth-resting-entirely-upon-the-ascertained-consequences-of/) [Frances Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-wright/) > [History is not, of course, a cookbook offering pretested recipes. It teaches by analogy, not by maxims. It can illuminate the consequences of actions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/history-is-not-of-course-a-cookbook-offering-pretested-recipes-it/) [Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/) > [You have to think about the consequences of actions, and if they're negative, that shouldn't be your choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-je-hoon/you-have-to-think-about-the-consequences-of-actions-and-if-they-re/) [Lee Je-hoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-je-hoon/) > [The tragedy of the human condition is that the thing that makes us most human - community - originates in the inhumanity of war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-friedman/the-tragedy-of-the-human-condition-is-that-the-thing-that-makes-us/) [George Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-friedman/) > [Maybe the tragedy of the human race was that we had forgotten that we are each divine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-maclaine/maybe-the-tragedy-of-the-human-race-was-that-we-had-forgotten-that-we/) [Shirley MacLaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-maclaine/) > [The real tragedy of human existence is not that we are nasty by nature, but that a cruel structural asymmetry grants to rare events…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/the-real-tragedy-of-human-existence-is-not-that-we-are-nasty-by/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [“This is a badly broken world, full of wars and cruelty and senseless tragedy. Every human being who inhabits it is served his or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/this-is-a-badly-broken-world-full-of-wars-and-cruelty-and-senseless/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Every tragedy of the human experience can be attributed to one human decision - the decision to withdraw from each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/every-tragedy-of-the-human-experience-can-be-attributed-to-one-human/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [The tragedy of human life consists in our vain attempts to stretch the limits of things which can never become unlimited, to reach the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/the-tragedy-of-human-life-consists-in-our-vain-attempts-to-stretch/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [“I didn’t believe for a minute that this liquid colossus, which had brought about the death of hundreds of humans within itself, with which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/i-didn-t-believe-for-a-minute-that-this-liquid-colossus-which-had/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“This attack is the greatest tragedy in human history,” Avasarala said. “They want the belt to rise up so they can hide behind the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-s-a-corey/this-attack-is-the-greatest-tragedy-in-human-history-avasarala-said/) [James S.A. Corey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-s-a-corey/) ## More by Hugh MacLennan > [But that night as I drove back to Montreal, I at least discovered this: that there is no simple explanation for anything important any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/but-that-night-as-i-drove-back-to-montreal-i-at-least-discovered-this/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [“Happiness annihilates time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/happiness-annihilates-time/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [The Socialists can scheme their schemes and the Liberals can dream their dreams, but we, at least, have work to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/the-socialists-can-scheme-their-schemes-and-the-liberals-can-dream/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [The farmer's way of saving money: to be owed by someone he trusted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/the-farmer-s-way-of-saving-money-to-be-owed-by-someone-he-trusted/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [In comparison with a loving human being, everything else is worthless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/in-comparison-with-a-loving-human-being-everything-else-is-worthless/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [“Timothy's eyes followed the straight back, the high shoulders, and the crisp white hair out of the door and out of his life --…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/timothy-s-eyes-followed-the-straight-back-the-high-shoulders-and-the/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [“This campus was an island of quiet in the city's roar, and at night it was an island of dark in the city's blaze.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/this-campus-was-an-island-of-quiet-in-the-city-s-roar-and-at-night-it/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [“Marx is only half right when he calls religion the opium of the people. It may turn a lot of people into sheep, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/marx-is-only-half-right-when-he-calls-religion-the-opium-of-the/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [Love, sought as an escape from the burden of the self, turns rapidly into a captivity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/love-sought-as-an-escape-from-the-burden-of-the-self-turns-rapidly/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [“Death suddenly seemed unimportant and life seemed everything”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/death-suddenly-seemed-unimportant-and-life-seemed-everything/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [Man is a thinking animal, a talking animal, a toolmaking animal, a building animal, a political animal, a fantasizing animal. But, in the twilight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/man-is-a-thinking-animal-a-talking-animal-a-toolmaking-animal-a/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [“It was as though the whole world was thrown back six or seven hundred years without having the organizations those ancient peoples had." He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/it-was-as-though-the-whole-world-was-thrown-back-six-or-seven-hundred/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [“Wise Penelope! That's was Odysseus said to his wife when he got home. I don't think he ever told her he loved her. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/wise-penelope-that-s-was-odysseus-said-to-his-wife-when-he-got-home-i/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [“He sat down again. He wanted her body, even though there were plenty of other bodies he could have. Which meant, I suppose, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/he-sat-down-again-he-wanted-her-body-even-though-there-were-plenty-of/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) > [The Greeks, who knew everything, understood that without the orgy there is no middle ground between bedlam and Toronto ... we need the healing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/the-greeks-who-knew-everything-understood-that-without-the-orgy-there/) [Hugh MacLennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) [Explore all 17 Hugh MacLennan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/) ## More Irony quotes > [“Don’t waste your time trying to explain yourself to people that are committed to misunderstanding you. Instead, commit your time to explaining who they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/don-t-waste-your-time-trying-to-explain-yourself-to-people-that-are/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) > [..ReLAtionship is just like reading a bo0k... it d0esnt w0rk if y0ur n0t on the same paGe..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megz/relationship-is-just-like-reading-a-bo0k-it-d0esnt-w0rk-if-y0ur-n0t/) [Megz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megz/) > [“sometimes when everything seems at its worst when all conspires and gnaws and the hours, days, weeks years seem wasted – stretched there upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/sometimes-when-everything-seems-at-its-worst-when-all-conspires-and/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [“Some women walk towards a better future. Others have chauffeurs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ljupka-cvetanova/some-women-walk-towards-a-better-future-others-have-chauffeurs/) [Ljupka Cvetanova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ljupka-cvetanova/) > [Why do single women take advice from other single women? That's like Stevie Wonder giving Ray Charles driving directions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hussein-nishah/why-do-single-women-take-advice-from-other-single-women-that-s-like/) [Hussein Nishah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hussein-nishah/) > [Without a trace of irony I can say I have been blessed with brilliant enemies. I owe them a great debt, because they redoubled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/without-a-trace-of-irony-i-can-say-i-have-been-blessed-with-brilliant/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [“... a man doesn't like to have his ego popped, especially when he prides himself on his sagacity, and then to be proved wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-a-bucchianeri/a-man-doesn-t-like-to-have-his-ego-popped-especially-when-he-prides/) [E.A. Bucchianeri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-a-bucchianeri/) > [These eyes see through all of your lies. My mind knows you're not right for me. My mouth tells you to leave. My heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/these-eyes-see-through-all-of-your-lies-my-mind-knows-you-re-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I’ll MAKE you be free whether you want to or not.’ -The Savage”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/i-ll-make-you-be-free-whether-you-want-to-or-not-the-savage/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [Teenagers: The most misunderstood people on earth. Treated like children and expected to act like adults.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/teenagers-the-most-misunderstood-people-on-earth-treated-like/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But any one watching keenly the stealthy convergence of human lots, sees a slow preparation of effects from one life on another, which tells…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/but-any-one-watching-keenly-the-stealthy-convergence-of-human-lots/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“He liked the Leedses. He was sorry that he had been to the morgue. He thought the madman who visited them might have liked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-harris/he-liked-the-leedses-he-was-sorry-that-he-had-been-to-the-morgue-he/) [Thomas Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-harris/) > [The sense of tragedy - according to Aristotle - comes, ironically enough, not from the protagonist's weak points but from his good qualities. Do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-sense-of-tragedy-according-to-aristotle-comes-ironically-enough/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“I've never written a quote I feel would be suitable for my gravestone. Wouldn't it be ironic if it were this one? Oh, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-lilly/i-ve-never-written-a-quote-i-feel-would-be-suitable-for-my-gravestone/) [Ryan Lilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-lilly/) > [Peter Cooper looks at the world with an artist's eye and a human heart and soul. His songs are the work of an original,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-kristofferson/peter-cooper-looks-at-the-world-with-an-artist-s-eye-and-a-human/) [Kris Kristofferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-kristofferson/) [Browse all 1,888 Irony quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/irony/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There is no simple explanation for anything important any of us do, and the human tragedy, or the human irony, consists in the necessity of living with the consequences of actions performed under the pressure of compulsions so obscure we do not and cannot understand them.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hugh MacLennan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anything-important-any-of-us-do/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Irony" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anything-important-any-of-us-do/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/hugh-maclennan-30554_irony_there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anyth_2461876.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/hugh-maclennan-30554_irony_there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anyth_2461876.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4dd/hugh-maclennan-30554_irony_there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anyth_2461876.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is no simple explanation for anything important any of us do, and the human tragedy, or the human…” — Hugh MacLennan", "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": "Hugh MacLennan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-maclennan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“There is no simple explanation for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anything-important-any-of-us-do/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-maclennan/there-is-no-simple-explanation-for-anything-important-any-of-us-do/#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 } } ] } ```