--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We knew so little about eachother. We lay…" description: "\"We knew so little about eachother. We lay mostly submerged, like ice floes with our visible social selves projecting only cool and white. Here was a ra..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca2/ian-mcewan-494_cybersecurity_we-knew-so-little-about-eachother-we-lay_2744417.png" --- # We knew so little about eachother. We lay mostly… ![“We knew so little about eachother. We lay mostly submerged, like ice floes with our visible social selves projecting only cool and white. Here was a rare sight below the waves, of a man's privacy and turmoil, of his dignity upended by the overpowering necessity of pure fantasy, pure thought, by…” quote by Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca2/ian-mcewan-494_cybersecurity_we-knew-so-little-about-eachother-we-lay_2744417.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca2/ian-mcewan-494_cybersecurity_we-knew-so-little-about-eachother-we-lay_2744417.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca2/ian-mcewan-494_cybersecurity_we-knew-so-little-about-eachother-we-lay_2744417.png) > “We knew so little about eachother. We lay mostly submerged, like ice floes with our visible social selves projecting only cool and white. Here was a rare sight below the waves, of a man's privacy and turmoil, of his dignity upended by the overpowering necessity of pure fantasy, pure thought, by the irreducible human element - Mind.” [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. The quote reflects on how people hide their true inner turmoil behind a calm exterior, revealing the depth of the mind when privacy is stripped away. **In simple terms:** People hide inner chaos behind a calm surface. Key Takeaway Recognize and respect hidden inner struggles. Themes privacy identity vulnerability mind fantasy Mood introspective melancholic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal relationships - therapy sessions - creative writing - team dynamics Key Concepts psychology human nature existentialism Questions to Reflect On - How do you notice hidden struggles? - What protects personal privacy? A Different Perspective Not everyone reveals inner turmoil, so assumptions may be wrong. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cybersecurity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cybersecurity/) [Dignity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dignity/) [Elements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elements/) [Fantasy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fantasy/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Ice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ice/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Knew Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knew-little/) [Lay Submerged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lay-submerged-3051791/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Overpowering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overpowering/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) [Privacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/privacy/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Sight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sight/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Submerged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/submerged/) [Submerged Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/submerged-like-3051792/) [Thought Irreducible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-irreducible-3051790/) [Turmoil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turmoil/) [Wave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wave/) [White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/white/) ## Related quotes > [We know so little about each other. We lie mostly submerged, like ice floes, with our visible social selves projecting only cool and white.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/we-know-so-little-about-each-other-we-lie-mostly-submerged-like-ice/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“How could they be so certain of the superiority of their truths when they knew so little, if anything at all, about other cultures,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-shafak/how-could-they-be-so-certain-of-the-superiority-of-their-truths-when/) [Elif Shafak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-shafak/) > [We thus see that the Greeks of the early ages knew little of any real people except those to the east and south of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bulfinch/we-thus-see-that-the-greeks-of-the-early-ages-knew-little-of-any-real/) [Thomas Bulfinch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bulfinch/) > [Like practically everyone who grew up in Miami, I knew little about its history. 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I knew a little about the difficulties, just bits of news in the media.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hassan-blasim/the-trail-of-secret-migration-was-a-shock-to-me-i-knew-a-little-about/) [Hassan Blasim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hassan-blasim/) > [I found that they knew but little of the history of their race, and could be entertained by stories about their ancestors as readily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-found-that-they-knew-but-little-of-the-history-of-their-race-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [When I was touring and spending so much time on the bus, I realized that I actually knew very little about the industry that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ty-herndon/when-i-was-touring-and-spending-so-much-time-on-the-bus-i-realized/) [Ty Herndon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ty-herndon/) > [In 1992, I was in school. I did hear about Harshad Mehta and one of my cousins lost some money in the stock market,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pratik-gandhi/in-1992-i-was-in-school-i-did-hear-about-harshad-mehta-and-one-of-my/) [Pratik Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pratik-gandhi/) > [“He was a man of great depth but of limited breadth, so that while he knew very little, he knew a great deal about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-flynn/he-was-a-man-of-great-depth-but-of-limited-breadth-so-that-while-he/) [Michael Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-flynn/) ## 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. 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Like a spode dinner plate. Or a single cell. Or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/perhaps-it-s-one-of-those-cases-of-a-microcosm-giving-you-the-whole/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [Who you get, and how it works out- there's so much luck involved, as well as the million branching consequences of your conscious choice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/who-you-get-and-how-it-works-out-there-s-so-much-luck-involved-as/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“On Chesil Beach he could have called out to Florence, he could have gone after her. 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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 Cybersecurity quotes > [If we gave up our freedom as the price of security, we would no longer be the great nation that we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-bader-ginsburg/if-we-gave-up-our-freedom-as-the-price-of-security-we-would-no-longer/) [Ruth Bader Ginsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-bader-ginsburg/) > [We live in the greatest country in the world because of the veterans who have sacrificed their lives for our freedom and the security…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-husted/we-live-in-the-greatest-country-in-the-world-because-of-the-veterans/) [Jon Husted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-husted/) > [“Every select man strives instinctively for a citadel and a privacy, where he is FREE from the crowd, the many, the majority-- where he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/every-select-man-strives-instinctively-for-a-citadel-and-a-privacy/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Our engagement through international economics, trade, these trade agreements, is vital and is linked to our national security. This is a lesson we learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-boustany/our-engagement-through-international-economics-trade-these-trade/) [Charles Boustany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-boustany/) > [“Responsibility to yourself means refusing to let others do your thinking, talking, and naming for you...it means that you do not treat your body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/responsibility-to-yourself-means-refusing-to-let-others-do-your/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [I'm OK with guns in schools, if it's a security, trained security personnel. 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We lay mostly submerged, like ice floes with our visible social selves projecting only cool and white. 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