--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is the world that shapes people’s…" description: "\"“It is the world that shapes people’s minds. It is men who have shaped the world. So women’s minds are shaped by men. From earliest childhood, the worl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b6/ian-mcewan-494_feminism_it-is-the-world-that-shapes-people-s-min_2836241.png" --- # It is the world that shapes people’s minds. It is men who… ![“It is the world that shapes people’s minds. It is men who have shaped the world. So women’s minds are shaped by men. From earliest childhood, the world they see is made by men. Now the women lie to themselves and there is confusion and unhappiness everywhere.” quote by Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b6/ian-mcewan-494_feminism_it-is-the-world-that-shapes-people-s-min_2836241.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b6/ian-mcewan-494_feminism_it-is-the-world-that-shapes-people-s-min_2836241.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b6/ian-mcewan-494_feminism_it-is-the-world-that-shapes-people-s-min_2836241.png) > ““It is the world that shapes people’s minds. It is men who have shaped the world. So women’s minds are shaped by men. From earliest childhood, the world they see is made by men. Now the women lie to themselves and there is confusion and unhappiness everywhere.”” [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Societal structures shape minds; men dominate narratives, causing confusion for women. **In simple terms:** Men shape world, women confused. Key Takeaway Challenge gendered narratives. Themes gender identity power socialization psychology culture inequality self-perception conflict Mood critical thoughtful analytical Type literary philosophical social commentary When to use this quote - education reform - media representation - personal reflection - policy change Key Concepts feminist theory psychology sociology Questions to Reflect On - How does media shape gender identity? - What can individuals do to reshape narratives? A Different Perspective Not all societies follow this pattern. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Women lie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women-lie/) ## Related quotes > [If I could have one superpower, I'd be like Mel Gibson in 'What Women Want,' where he reads women's minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-lochte/if-i-could-have-one-superpower-i-d-be-like-mel-gibson-in-what-women/) [Ryan Lochte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-lochte/) > [We are formed and molded by our thoughts. Those whose minds are shaped by selfless thoughts give joy when they speak or act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/we-are-formed-and-molded-by-our-thoughts-those-whose-minds-are-shaped/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [We are formed and molded by our thoughts. Those whose minds are shaped by selfless thoughts give joy when they speak or act. Joy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddha/we-are-formed-and-molded-by-our-thoughts-those-whose-minds-are-shaped-2/) [Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddha/) > [By God's design, I believe our hearts and minds are shaped by Story. It's how we learn. It's how we make sense of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-curtis-higgs/by-god-s-design-i-believe-our-hearts-and-minds-are-shaped-by-story-it/) [Liz Curtis Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-curtis-higgs/) > [If you or I had lived 500 years ago, our worldview, and the decisions we made as a result, would have been utterly different.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/if-you-or-i-had-lived-500-years-ago-our-worldview-and-the-decisions/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [Our minds are shaped by the books we read. Our characters, by the people we meet. 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Are we... partners?” How many women down the ages had smiled at men in just this way and asked a similar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-k-lentz/she-smiled-so-are-we-partners-how-many-women-down-the-ages-had-smiled/) P.K. Lentz > [Our company is geared toward making the lives of women run more efficiently. Every single day, day in and day out, we're thinking, How…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooklyn-decker/our-company-is-geared-toward-making-the-lives-of-women-run-more/) [Brooklyn Decker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brooklyn-decker/) > [The arena of women's lives is somewhat more intimate. If a woman goes out with an incredibly attractive man and they break up, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/the-arena-of-women-s-lives-is-somewhat-more-intimate-if-a-woman-goes/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) ## More by Ian McEwan > [“As you will see, we do not believe that artists have an obligation to strike up attitudes to the war. Indeed, they are wise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/as-you-will-see-we-do-not-believe-that-artists-have-an-obligation-to/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [You could say that all novels are spy novels and all novelists are spy masters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/you-could-say-that-all-novels-are-spy-novels-and-all-novelists-are/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I've never had a moment's doubt. I love you. I believe in you completely. You are my dearest one. My reason for life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-ve-never-had-a-moment-s-doubt-i-love-you-i-believe-in-you/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“It is shaming sometimes, how the body will not, or cannot, lie about emotions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/it-is-shaming-sometimes-how-the-body-will-not-or-cannot-lie-about/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“While my friends struggled and calculated, I reached a solution by a set of floating steps that were partly visual, partly just a feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/while-my-friends-struggled-and-calculated-i-reached-a-solution-by-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Once, on a walk by a river- Eskdale in low reddish sunlight, with a dusting of snow- his daughter quoted to him an opening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/once-on-a-walk-by-a-river-eskdale-in-low-reddish-sunlight-with-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Perhaps it's one of those cases of a microcosm giving you the whole world. 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And it is a terrifying prospect and actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-would-rather-be-physically-disabled-obviously-than-mentally-i-would/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Words, as I'm beginning to appreciate, can make things true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/words-as-i-m-beginning-to-appreciate-can-make-things-true/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I couldn't think about novels at all. It seemed the only writing that was appropriate to that horrendous event was journalism, reportage. And, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-couldn-t-think-about-novels-at-all-it-seemed-the-only-writing-that/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I did not kill my father, but I sometimes felt I had helped him on his way. And but for the fact that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-did-not-kill-my-father-but-i-sometimes-felt-i-had-helped-him-on-his/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) [Explore all 496 Ian McEwan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## More Feminism quotes > [“But benevolent patriarchy is still patriarchy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/but-benevolent-patriarchy-is-still-patriarchy/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [“This story is not at all an uncommon one in tech circles, including gaming. 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Why? The “integrated” agency will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoram-wind/women-will-be-at-least-50-percent-of-the-communications-community/) Yoram Wind [Browse all 15,705 Feminism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is the world that shapes people’s minds. It is men who have shaped the world. So women’s minds are shaped by men. From earliest childhood, the world they see is made by men. 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