--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The very madness of the scheme protects it." description: "\"The very madness of the scheme protects it.\" — Iris Murdoch" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/iris-murdoch-993_madness_the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects_1827543.png" --- # The very madness of the scheme protects it. ![“The very madness of the scheme protects it.” quote by Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/iris-murdoch-993_madness_the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects_1827543.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/iris-murdoch-993_madness_the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects_1827543.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/iris-murdoch-993_madness_the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects_1827543.png) > “The very madness of the scheme protects it.” [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 scheme’s inherent absurdity serves as its own protection, shielding it from critique. **In simple terms:** Madness guards the plan. Key Takeaway Recognize when complexity hides flaws. Themes psychology literature paradox Mood thoughtful critical Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal relationships - organizational planning - creative writing Key Concepts self‑deception protective mechanisms narrative structure Questions to Reflect On - When does protective madness become harmful? - How to balance creativity with clarity? A Different Perspective Complexity can also obscure necessary change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Madness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/madness/) [Schemes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/schemes/) ## Related quotes > [A scheme of which every part promises delight, can never be successful; and general disappointment is only warded off by the defence of some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/a-scheme-of-which-every-part-promises-delight-can-never-be-successful/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [The mid-day meal is a well-intentioned scheme and has to be implemented effectively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-mid-day-meal-is-a-well-intentioned-scheme-and-has-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To insist on one's place in the scheme of things and to live up to that place.To empower others in their reaching for some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-fulghum/to-insist-on-one-s-place-in-the-scheme-of-things-and-to-live-up-to/) [Robert Fulghum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-fulghum/) > [I have no grand scheme.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-attell/i-have-no-grand-scheme/) [Dave Attell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-attell/) > [A practical scheme, says Oscar Wilde, is either one already in existence, or a scheme that could be carried out under the existing conditions;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-goldman/a-practical-scheme-says-oscar-wilde-is-either-one-already-in/) [Emma Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-goldman/) > [I'm scared of actors with a scheme.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/i-m-scared-of-actors-with-a-scheme/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [It's been the structure of my life: you scheme and plan and try and fail and try again and accumulate and lose and win…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-weintraub/it-s-been-the-structure-of-my-life-you-scheme-and-plan-and-try-and/) [Jerry Weintraub](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-weintraub/) > [The whole government is a Ponzi scheme.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-madoff/the-whole-government-is-a-ponzi-scheme/) [Bernard Madoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-madoff/) > [Sometimes, people forget my record of fiscal conservatism on major issues in the state legislature. The greatest example is my voting against the pension…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-lance/sometimes-people-forget-my-record-of-fiscal-conservatism-on-major/) [Leonard Lance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-lance/) > [No scheme pays as well as legitimate business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-w-howe/no-scheme-pays-as-well-as-legitimate-business/) [E. W. Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-w-howe/) > [It’s hard to come up with a scheme to thwart some other scheme you don’t even know about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-black/it-s-hard-to-come-up-with-a-scheme-to-thwart-some-other-scheme-you/) [Holly Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-black/) > [Your scheme must be the framework of the universe; all other schemes will soon be ruins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/your-scheme-must-be-the-framework-of-the-universe-all-other-schemes/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The wall that protects you, also imprisons you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jeffers/the-wall-that-protects-you-also-imprisons-you/) [Susan Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jeffers/) > [We need a strong farm bill that gives assistance to farmers during times of drought, creates markets for local goods, protects our environment, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-ellison/we-need-a-strong-farm-bill-that-gives-assistance-to-farmers-during/) [Keith Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-ellison/) > [Ignorance Protects itself, And protected, Ignorance grows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-butler/ignorance-protects-itself-and-protected-ignorance-grows/) [Octavia Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-butler/) ## 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 Madness quotes > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) > [“Madness,” he exclaimed to himself, in astonishment, faltering. “Madness! What do they want? Once again, once again!” War once again, war that had so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/madness-he-exclaimed-to-himself-in-astonishment-faltering-madness/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [“the characteristics the modern mind prides itself on are precisely those of madness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/the-characteristics-the-modern-mind-prides-itself-on-are-precisely/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs; Being purg'd, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes; Being vex'd, a sea nourish'd with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/love-is-a-smoke-made-with-the-fume-of-sighs-being-purg-d-a-fire/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Not everyone is capable of madness; and of those lucky enough to be capable, not many have the courage for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-strindberg/not-everyone-is-capable-of-madness-and-of-those-lucky-enough-to-be/) [August Strindberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-strindberg/) > [Impulse arrested spills over, and the flood is feeling, the flood is passion, the flood is even madness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/impulse-arrested-spills-over-and-the-flood-is-feeling-the-flood-is/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [“No man is normal without a tinge of madness in him! Madness in a person is a sign of intelligence, whoever they are. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fahad-basheer/no-man-is-normal-without-a-tinge-of-madness-in-him-madness-in-a/) [Fahad Basheer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fahad-basheer/) > [“I swam across the torrent of my madness, and pulled myself upon the shore of a new and better sanity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-hardinge/i-swam-across-the-torrent-of-my-madness-and-pulled-myself-upon-the/) [Frances Hardinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-hardinge/) > [“One person's strange is another person's normal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-harper/one-person-s-strange-is-another-person-s-normal/) [Dani Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-harper/) > [Why is it, my shadow-striding friend, that we don't fear dreams? We lose consciousness, lose control, things happen with no apparent logic and abiding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brent-weeks/why-is-it-my-shadow-striding-friend-that-we-don-t-fear-dreams-we-lose/) [Brent Weeks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brent-weeks/) > [Let your love drive you mad, mad about life, mad about the smell of Jasmine. Mad about the painting that reminds you of one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melody-minagar/let-your-love-drive-you-mad-mad-about-life-mad-about-the-smell-of/) [Melody Minagar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melody-minagar/) > [I wish you a wrestling match with your Creative Muse that will last a lifetime. ... I wish craziness and foolishness and madness upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-wish-you-a-wrestling-match-with-your-creative-muse-that-will-last-a/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“Passion often makes a madman of the cleverest man, and renders the greatest fools clever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/passion-often-makes-a-madman-of-the-cleverest-man-and-renders-the/) [François de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [But what struck me was the book-madness of the place--books lay scattered across the unmade bed and the top of a battered-looking desk, books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-millhauser/but-what-struck-me-was-the-book-madness-of-the-place-books-lay/) [Steven Millhauser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-millhauser/) > [Ruin, eldest daughter of Zeus, she blinds us all, that fatal madness—she with those delicate feet of hers, never touching the earth, gliding over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/ruin-eldest-daughter-of-zeus-she-blinds-us-all-that-fatal-madness-she/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) [Browse all 3,501 Madness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/madness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The very madness of the scheme protects it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Iris Murdoch" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Madness" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/iris-murdoch-993_madness_the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects_1827543.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/iris-murdoch-993_madness_the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects_1827543.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/iris-murdoch-993_madness_the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects_1827543.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The very madness of the scheme protects it.” — 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 very madness of the scheme...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/the-very-madness-of-the-scheme-protects-it/#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 } } ] } ```