--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The theatre is an attack on mankind…" description: "\"“The theatre is an attack on mankind carried on by magic: to victimize an audience every night, to make them laugh and cry and suffer and miss their tr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87f/iris-murdoch-993_actor_the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carr_2312274.jpg" --- # The theatre is an attack on mankind carried on by magic… ![“The theatre is an attack on mankind carried on by magic: to victimize an audience every night, to make them laugh and cry and suffer and miss their trains.” quote by Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87f/iris-murdoch-993_actor_the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carr_2312274.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87f/iris-murdoch-993_actor_the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carr_2312274.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87f/iris-murdoch-993_actor_the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carr_2312274.jpg) > ““The theatre is an attack on mankind carried on by magic: to victimize an audience every night, to make them laugh and cry and suffer and miss their trains.”” [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The theater manipulates audiences, evoking strong emotions and distraction from everyday life. **In simple terms:** Theater exploits emotions and distracts people. Key Takeaway Recognize how media can manipulate feelings. Themes art manipulation emotion distraction Mood reflective critical Type analytical observational When to use this quote - watching a play - consuming media - public speaking - political rallies Key Concepts theatre psychology illusion Questions to Reflect On - How do you stay aware of emotional manipulation? - What role does humor play in control? A Different Perspective Audience agency can be limited by the medium's design. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Attack Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attack-mankind-4749995/) [Every night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/every-night/) [Fitness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fitness/) [Magic Victimize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic-victimize-5496515/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) [Theatre Attack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre-attack-1075853/) [Victimize Audience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victimize-audience-1075854/) ## Related quotes > [“The theatre is an attack on mankind carried on by magic: to victimize an audience every night, to make them laugh and cry and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carried-on-by-magic-to-victimize-2/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Every murder strikes at the heart of civilization; it is an attack on all mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rae-foley/every-murder-strikes-at-the-heart-of-civilization-it-is-an-attack-on/) [Rae Foley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rae-foley/) > [I still think photographers should be lashed out at. They should be put in a cage where you can poke them with a stick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-penn/i-still-think-photographers-should-be-lashed-out-at-they-should-be/) [Sean Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-penn/) > [Some weeks, I'm super-duper busy, so I can only fit cardio in here and there, a lot of stuff happens in the afternoon, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-underwood/some-weeks-i-m-super-duper-busy-so-i-can-only-fit-cardio-in-here-and/) [Carrie Underwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-underwood/) > [“I'm going to lay it out straight for you here, Carson. And the reason that I'm going to do that is because I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mia-sheridan/i-m-going-to-lay-it-out-straight-for-you-here-carson-and-the-reason/) [Mia Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mia-sheridan/) > [Every night I go to sleep smiling, even when I have a bad day. I'm just thankful that God allowed me to live it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-night-i-go-to-sleep-smiling-even-when-i-have-a-bad-day-i-m-just/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I have heard several people justify working long hours and getting home from work late it night by saying things like, “I have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-willey/i-have-heard-several-people-justify-working-long-hours-and-getting/) [Daniel Willey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-willey/) > [“Her silent singing wrapped around the story she was telling herself, which she extended further every night on the deck. (Averill often told herself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/her-silent-singing-wrapped-around-the-story-she-was-telling-herself/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [“It suddenly seemed to Laurel that all the absences in her own life, every loss and sadness, every nightmare in the dark, every unexplained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/it-suddenly-seemed-to-laurel-that-all-the-absences-in-her-own-life/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) > [I don't know if I've come of age, but I'm certainly older now. I feel shrunken, as if there's a tiny ancient Oliver Tate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-dunthorne/i-don-t-know-if-i-ve-come-of-age-but-i-m-certainly-older-now-i-feel/) [Joe Dunthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-dunthorne/) > [“When at last we arrived in Mannheim, I found that my apartment had been rented to a family whose young son was an amputee.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/captain-hank-bracker-suppresed-i-rise/when-at-last-we-arrived-in-mannheim-i-found-that-my-apartment-had/) [Captain Hank Bracker, "Suppresed I Rise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/captain-hank-bracker-suppresed-i-rise/) > [I'm always looking at new ways to tell a joke so that it doesn't get stale while working on new jokes every night or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-burr/i-m-always-looking-at-new-ways-to-tell-a-joke-so-that-it-doesn-t-get/) [Bill Burr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-burr/) > [“Maybe I'd absorbed the capacity to hurt someone by listening to my parents every night, who were under the impression that turning the volume…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-yu/maybe-i-d-absorbed-the-capacity-to-hurt-someone-by-listening-to-my/) [Charles Yu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-yu/) > [“You can date every girl in town as far as I’m concerned. I hate you. I pray every night that you’ll fall victim to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-harrington/you-can-date-every-girl-in-town-as-far-as-i-m-concerned-i-hate-you-i/) [Kim Harrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-harrington/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) [Alan W. Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-powers/) ## More by Iris Murdoch > [Falling out of love is chiefly a matter of forgetting how charming someone is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/falling-out-of-love-is-chiefly-a-matter-of-forgetting-how-charming/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [One doesn't have to get anywhere in a marriage. It's not a public conveyance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/one-doesn-t-have-to-get-anywhere-in-a-marriage-it-s-not-a-public/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“I think being a woman is like being Irish... Everyone says you're important and nice, but you take second place all the time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-think-being-a-woman-is-like-being-irish-everyone-says-you-re/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Art is the final cunning of the human soul which would rather do anything than face the gods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/art-is-the-final-cunning-of-the-human-soul-which-would-rather-do/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [The sending of a letter constitutes a magical grasp upon the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-sending-of-a-letter-constitutes-a-magical-grasp-upon-the-future/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [emotions really exist at the bottom of the personality or at the top. in the middle they are acted. this is why all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/emotions-really-exist-at-the-bottom-of-the-personality-or-at-the-top/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [I have used the word "attention," which I borrow from Simone Weil, to express the idea of a just and loving gaze directed upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-have-used-the-word-attention-which-i-borrow-from-simone-weil-to/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Starting a novel is opening a door on a misty landscape; you can still see very little but you can smell the earth and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/starting-a-novel-is-opening-a-door-on-a-misty-landscape-you-can-still/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [Art and morality are, with certain provisos…one. Their essence is the same. The essence of both of them is love. Love is the perception…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/art-and-morality-are-with-certain-provisos-one-their-essence-is-the/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [being homosexual doesn't determine a man's whole character any more than being heterosexual does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/being-homosexual-doesn-t-determine-a-man-s-whole-character-any-more/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [All artists dream of a silence which they must enter, as some creatures return to the sea to spawn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/all-artists-dream-of-a-silence-which-they-must-enter-as-some/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“Oh if only I could take my mother away and never know of these things again. But it was impossible, the machine would go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/oh-if-only-i-could-take-my-mother-away-and-never-know-of-these-things/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [We defend ourselves by descriptions and tame the world by generalizing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/we-defend-ourselves-by-descriptions-and-tame-the-world-by-generalizing/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [“I'm sorry I was awful. I'm so full of terrors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-m-sorry-i-was-awful-i-m-so-full-of-terrors/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [I live, I live, with an absolutely continuous sense of failure. I am always defeated, always. Every book is the wreck of a perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-live-i-live-with-an-absolutely-continuous-sense-of-failure-i-am/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) [Explore all 306 Iris Murdoch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) ## More Actor quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I once told someone I could act. They totally bought it. I've been getting away with it ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akshay-kumar/i-once-told-someone-i-could-act-they-totally-bought-it-i-ve-been/) [Akshay Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akshay-kumar/) > [There has got to be a way for me to have a role on TV or in film that is just as normal as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adeel-akhtar/there-has-got-to-be-a-way-for-me-to-have-a-role-on-tv-or-in-film-that/) [Adeel Akhtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adeel-akhtar/) > [I love casting against type and doing things you wouldn't expect, because I think you get more interesting performances that way. Hollywood loves to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-s-goyer/i-love-casting-against-type-and-doing-things-you-wouldn-t-expect/) [David S. Goyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-s-goyer/) > [I'm an actor, so I'm never going to feel like I've done enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italia-ricci/i-m-an-actor-so-i-m-never-going-to-feel-like-i-ve-done-enough/) [Italia Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italia-ricci/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [When I was 13, I auditioned for the theater school, and I was there for four years. In the meantime, I did my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-de-armas/when-i-was-13-i-auditioned-for-the-theater-school-and-i-was-there-for/) [Ana de Armas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-de-armas/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) > [Actors don't hate acting. Most people don't hate acting! Whether you're a child mucking around with your friends or a grown up being paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-hewson/actors-don-t-hate-acting-most-people-don-t-hate-acting-whether-you-re/) [Liv Hewson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-hewson/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [I never planned to do female roles. It just happened. I was typecast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divine/i-never-planned-to-do-female-roles-it-just-happened-i-was-typecast/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divine/) > [Once I committed to acting, this has been it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-hudson/once-i-committed-to-acting-this-has-been-it/) [Ernie Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-hudson/) [Browse all 21,590 Actor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The theatre is an attack on mankind carried on by magic: to victimize an audience every night, to make them laugh and cry and suffer and miss their trains.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Iris Murdoch" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carried-on-by-magic-to-victimize/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Actor" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carried-on-by-magic-to-victimize/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87f/iris-murdoch-993_actor_the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carr_2312274.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87f/iris-murdoch-993_actor_the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carr_2312274.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87f/iris-murdoch-993_actor_the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carr_2312274.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The theatre is an attack on mankind carried on by magic: to victimize an audience every night, to make them…” — Iris Murdoch", "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": "Iris Murdoch", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The theatre is an attack on...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carried-on-by-magic-to-victimize/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-theatre-is-an-attack-on-mankind-carried-on-by-magic-to-victimize/#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 } } ] } ```