--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whenever his eyes happen to graze…" description: "\"“Whenever his eyes happen to graze Mindy's, she senses shame on her behalf: because of her prettiness; because she sleeps with Lou; because she keeps t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c7/jennifer-egan-825_a_whenever-his-eyes-happen-to-graze-mindy_1882184.jpg" --- # Whenever his eyes happen to graze Mindy's, she senses… ![“Whenever his eyes happen to graze Mindy's, she senses shame on her behalf: because of her prettiness; because she sleeps with Lou; because she keeps telling herself this trip constitutes anthropological research into group dynamics and ethnographic enclaves, when really what she's after is luxury…” quote by Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c7/jennifer-egan-825_a_whenever-his-eyes-happen-to-graze-mindy_1882184.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c7/jennifer-egan-825_a_whenever-his-eyes-happen-to-graze-mindy_1882184.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c7/jennifer-egan-825_a_whenever-his-eyes-happen-to-graze-mindy_1882184.jpg) > ““Whenever his eyes happen to graze Mindy's, she senses shame on her behalf: because of her prettiness; because she sleeps with Lou; because she keeps telling herself this trip constitutes anthropological research into group dynamics and ethnographic enclaves, when really what she's after is luxury, adventure, and a break from her four insomniac roommates.”” [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator observes a woman's internal conflict between genuine curiosity and self‑serving motives, exposing how personal ambition can masquerade as scholarly interest. **In simple terms:** She pretends to study others while seeking luxury and escape. Key Takeaway Examine your motives before claiming altruism. Themes identity self‑deception relationships masquerade materialism Mood reflective critical introspective Type psychological literary When to use this quote - dating - career moves - friendship - self‑analysis Key Concepts authenticity ethical introspection social dynamics personal ambition Questions to Reflect On - Are your actions driven by curiosity or convenience? - What does true empathy require? A Different Perspective The description may oversimplify complex emotional states. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [A](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/a/) [Ethnographic Enclaves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethnographic-enclaves-2664659/) [Graze Mindy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/graze-mindy-2664656/) [Hills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hills/) [Insomniac Roommates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insomniac-roommates-2664658/) [Mindy Senses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mindy-senses-2664657/) [Safari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/safari/) [Senses Shame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/senses-shame-2664660/) ## Related quotes > [I did go on safari in Kenya when I was 17, with my mother, stepfather and little brother, and I kept a careful journal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-did-go-on-safari-in-kenya-when-i-was-17-with-my-mother-stepfather/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [Not in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would be living in a safari park!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-weymouth/not-in-my-wildest-dreams-did-i-imagine-i-would-be-living-in-a-safari/) [Emma Weymouth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-weymouth/) > [“Hi If you have desire to book Ranthambore tiger safari at a very reasonable price then visit this website theearthsafari.com Through this website you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alana-abel/hi-if-you-have-desire-to-book-ranthambore-tiger-safari-at-a-very/) [Alana Abel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alana-abel/) > [I never knew of a morning in Africa when I woke that I was not happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/i-never-knew-of-a-morning-in-africa-when-i-woke-that-i-was-not-happy/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“So what are you going to do about Brandon's hymen safari?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kresley-cole/so-what-are-you-going-to-do-about-brandon-s-hymen-safari/) [Kresley Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kresley-cole/) > [If you're Maasai Mara National Park in Kenya, if you're in Serengeti National Park in Tanzania, you don't get out of your vehicle and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/if-you-re-maasai-mara-national-park-in-kenya-if-you-re-in-serengeti/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) > [Guns have metamorphosed into cameras in this earnest comedy, the ecology safari, because nature has ceased to be what it always had been -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/guns-have-metamorphosed-into-cameras-in-this-earnest-comedy-the/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [Reminds me of my safari in Africa. 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So it's a paradox of this sort of parallel life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/to-a-lot-of-africans-seeing-an-animal-is-a-something-of-a-rarity-so/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [I'd prefer to do the safari on foot, like they did in the old days and just take the camp with you, not driving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-mcgrath/i-d-prefer-to-do-the-safari-on-foot-like-they-did-in-the-old-days-and/) [Glenn McGrath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-mcgrath/) > [Tourists who go to Africa have more of a traditional experience than Africans do. A tourist goes on safari; Africans don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/tourists-who-go-to-africa-have-more-of-a-traditional-experience-than/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) ## More by Jennifer Egan > [“Behind the desk was nothing but view-the whole city flung out in front of us the way street vendors fling out their towels packed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/behind-the-desk-was-nothing-but-view-the-whole-city-flung-out-in/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I just think that, for my particular personality, feeling slightly invisible is always a help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-just-think-that-for-my-particular-personality-feeling-slightly/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [Between books, I have to throw out everything I did before, because the tools I've used to write the previous book will not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/between-books-i-have-to-throw-out-everything-i-did-before-because-the/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [As a reader and a writer, I'm happiest when apparently mutually exclusive states can somehow coexist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/as-a-reader-and-a-writer-i-m-happiest-when-apparently-mutually/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I teach intermittently, and while I enjoy it, I don't find that it's a calling for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-teach-intermittently-and-while-i-enjoy-it-i-don-t-find-that-it-s-a/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [Like all failed experiments, that one taught me something I didn’t expect: one key ingredient of so-called experience is the delusional faith that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/like-all-failed-experiments-that-one-taught-me-something-i-didn-t/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [“Thousands of solar panels lift and tilt at the same time, in the same way. 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I know what’s going on because it’s the same thing that always happens: give me something nice, something I love or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/the-seconds-pass-i-know-what-s-going-on-because-it-s-the-same-thing/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I had this idea that I could hire myself out as a person to go on archeological digs and dig, without any training! I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-had-this-idea-that-i-could-hire-myself-out-as-a-person-to-go-on/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [At night, the house thick with sleep, she would peer out her bedroom window at the trees and sky and feel the presence of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/at-night-the-house-thick-with-sleep-she-would-peer-out-her-bedroom/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I number my drafts, and by the time a book is done, I'll have 75 or 80 drafts of some sections.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-book-is-done-i-ll-have-75-or-80/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [Read at the level at which you want to write. 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Never Think That You Are. You Are Not A Mistake. Never Think That You Are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-are-not-a-mistake-never-think-that-you-are-you-are-not-a-mistake/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“15. “The love of money is the root of all evil” (1Timothy 6:10, KJV). That’s why Jesus issues more warnings about materialism and wealth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-c-dobson/15-the-love-of-money-is-the-root-of-all-evil-1timothy-6-10-kjv-that-s/) [James C. Dobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-c-dobson/) > [“31. The human body seems indestructible when we are young. However, it is incredibly fragile and must be care for if it is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-c-dobson/31-the-human-body-seems-indestructible-when-we-are-young-however-it/) [James C. Dobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-c-dobson/) > [I can't ever sleep at night. 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