---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Men tend to try to struggle to be more…"
description: "\"Men tend to try to struggle to be more rational and reduce things to simplicity more and are more impatient with ambiguity than women are.\" — John Crowley"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/john-crowley-7544_ambiguity_men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-r_1456571.jpg"
---

#  Men tend to try to struggle to be more rational and reduce…

![“Men tend to try to struggle to be more rational and reduce things to simplicity more and are more impatient with ambiguity than women are.” quote by John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/john-crowley-7544_ambiguity_men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-r_1456571.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/john-crowley-7544_ambiguity_men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-r_1456571.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/john-crowley-7544_ambiguity_men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-r_1456571.jpg)

> “Men tend to try to struggle to be more rational and reduce things to simplicity more and are more impatient with ambiguity than women are.”

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Men often prioritize rationality and simplicity, showing less tolerance for ambiguity compared to women.

**In simple terms:** Men favor clear logic over uncertainty.

Key Takeaway

Embrace ambiguity and diverse thinking.

Themes

gender rationality ambiguity communication psychology

Mood

reflective analytical

Type

observational philosophical

When to use this quote

- workplace discussions
- team projects
- conflict resolution
- personal relationships

Key Concepts

cognitive bias gender differences decision making

Questions to Reflect On

- How does ambiguity foster creativity?
- In what ways can patience improve understanding?

A Different Perspective

Oversimplification can overlook valuable nuance.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Ambiguity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambiguity/) [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Simplicity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simplicity/) [Struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle/) [Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women/)

## Related quotes

> […Man's struggle to be rational about himself, about his relationship to his own society and to other peoples and nations involves a constant search…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/man-s-struggle-to-be-rational-about-himself-about-his-relationship-to/)

[J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/)

> [Men tend to be hierarchical, but women are driven to make lateral connections so they can cooperate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-fisher/men-tend-to-be-hierarchical-but-women-are-driven-to-make-lateral/)

[Helen Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-fisher/)

> [If you do microcredit with men, they tend to quickly drink it. They don't pay you back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-goodall/if-you-do-microcredit-with-men-they-tend-to-quickly-drink-it-they-don/)

[Jane Goodall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-goodall/)

> [“Why do big men tend to have such little brains? Perhaps they get by on brawn too often, and their minds dry up like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-abercrombie/why-do-big-men-tend-to-have-such-little-brains-perhaps-they-get-by-on/)

[Joe Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-abercrombie/)

> [Men tend to feel threatened; women tend to feel guilty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/men-tend-to-feel-threatened-women-tend-to-feel-guilty/)

[Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/)

> [Neither gender is routinely more jealous - although women are more willing to work to win back a lover, while men tend to flaunt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-fisher/neither-gender-is-routinely-more-jealous-although-women-are-more/)

[Helen Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-fisher/)

> [Men do tend to talk about things on a much higher level.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-ellmers/men-do-tend-to-talk-about-things-on-a-much-higher-level/)

[Renee Ellmers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-ellmers/)

> [Soft men tend to be born from soft countries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herodotus/soft-men-tend-to-be-born-from-soft-countries/)

[Herodotus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herodotus/)

> [Men tend to listen in what I call a reductive way, which is to say for a point, for a solution. You know, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-treasure/men-tend-to-listen-in-what-i-call-a-reductive-way-which-is-to-say-for/)

[Julian Treasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-treasure/)

> [Men tend to define themselves by what they do, and so if you're dealing with a character who's trying to figure that out, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-soderbergh/men-tend-to-define-themselves-by-what-they-do-and-so-if-you-re/)

[Steven Soderbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-soderbergh/)

> [Men tend to be selfish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caprice-bourret/men-tend-to-be-selfish/)

[Caprice Bourret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caprice-bourret/)

> [“Rather than consider personality to be an excuse for their success, men tend to see it for what it is—a form of competence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-young/rather-than-consider-personality-to-be-an-excuse-for-their-success/)

[Valerie Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-young/)

> [“Men tend to die when you slide steel beneath their skin and wiggle it around. Even priests.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-staveley/men-tend-to-die-when-you-slide-steel-beneath-their-skin-and-wiggle-it/)

[Brian Staveley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-staveley/)

> [“Men tend to be more orthodox in belief. Their concern for the rules keeps a congregation from drifting toward mushy moral relativism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-murrow/men-tend-to-be-more-orthodox-in-belief-their-concern-for-the-rules/)

[David Murrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-murrow/)

> [“Men tend to think all of their points were good, and they sure as hell didn’t need me to boost their already inflated egos.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-rain/men-tend-to-think-all-of-their-points-were-good-and-they-sure-as-hell/)

[J.R. Rain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-rain/)

## More by John Crowley

> [“The Crows of the region could have told them that there are almost always more Crows around them than they can see; but like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/the-crows-of-the-region-could-have-told-them-that-there-are-almost/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [Learning to decipher words had only added to the pleasures of holding spines and turning pages, measuring the journey to the end with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/learning-to-decipher-words-had-only-added-to-the-pleasures-of-holding/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [It occurred to him that seeing a woman's child is like seeing a woman naked, in the way it changes how her face looks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/it-occurred-to-him-that-seeing-a-woman-s-child-is-like-seeing-a-woman/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [“He learned, though slowly, what all great harrowed lovers learn: that love is what most surely compels love -- is perhaps, except for brute…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/he-learned-though-slowly-what-all-great-harrowed-lovers-learn-that/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [“...only think a moment that we are here now, and that that was then, and it has come to this, and how odd, odd,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/only-think-a-moment-that-we-are-here-now-and-that-that-was-then-and/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [Love is a myth.' 'Love is a myth,' Grandfather Trout said. 'Like summer.' 'What?' 'In winter,'Grandfather Trout said, 'summer is a myth. A report,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/love-is-a-myth-love-is-a-myth-grandfather-trout-said-like-summer-what/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [“The Tale was behind them. And it was to there they journeyed. One step would take them there; they were there already”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/the-tale-was-behind-them-and-it-was-to-there-they-journeyed-one-step/)

[john crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [“They called him John Storm: John after his grandfather, but Storm after his father and his mother.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/they-called-him-john-storm-john-after-his-grandfather-but-storm-after/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [“Handsome guy, Victor, in a brutal, black-Irish way. Like most New York bartenders, he was really an actor, or was it the reverse? ("Novelty")”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/handsome-guy-victor-in-a-brutal-black-irish-way-like-most-new-york/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [The things that make us happy make us wise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/the-things-that-make-us-happy-make-us-wise/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [“There was a game she had played with Sophie in the long hallways of Edgewood, where she and Sophie would stand as far apart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/there-was-a-game-she-had-played-with-sophie-in-the-long-hallways-of/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [“... their lives were full of quiet drama, full of vague yet thrilling signs that life was not as the common run supposed it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/their-lives-were-full-of-quiet-drama-full-of-vague-yet-thrilling/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [It was anyway all a long time ago; the world, we know now, is as it is and not different; if there was ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/it-was-anyway-all-a-long-time-ago-the-world-we-know-now-is-as-it-is/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [“I could be listening to Painted Red weave the stories of the saints in her rich roomy voice, and beginning to see how all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/i-could-be-listening-to-painted-red-weave-the-stories-of-the-saints/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

> [“What you learn as you get older is that the world is old, and has been old for a long time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/what-you-learn-as-you-get-older-is-that-the-world-is-old-and-has-been/)

[John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

[Explore all 88 John Crowley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/)

## More Ambiguity quotes

> [The position is clear - there is no ambiguity in Sinn Fein's position. We, along with all the other parties, have signed up to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-mcguinness/the-position-is-clear-there-is-no-ambiguity-in-sinn-fein-s-position/)

[Martin McGuinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-mcguinness/)

> [Ambiguity is necessary in some of my stories, not in all. In those, it certainly contributes to the richness of the story. I doubt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/ambiguity-is-necessary-in-some-of-my-stories-not-in-all-in-those-it/)

[Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/)

> [During the Cold War, we lived in coded times when it wasn't easy and there were shades of grey and ambiguity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/during-the-cold-war-we-lived-in-coded-times-when-it-wasn-t-easy-and/)

[John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/)

> [You cannot grow in the integrative dance of action and contemplation without a strong tolerance for ambiguity, an ability to allow, forgive, and contain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/you-cannot-grow-in-the-integrative-dance-of-action-and-contemplation/)

[Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/)

> [I blame my grandfather 100 percent for his oldest son's death. I don't think there's any ambiguity there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-l-trump/i-blame-my-grandfather-100-percent-for-his-oldest-son-s-death-i-don-t/)

[Mary L. Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-l-trump/)

> [I think the relationship between social-dominance orientation in people and the extent to which they're made uncomfortable by ambiguity and novelty is really important.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-sapolsky/i-think-the-relationship-between-social-dominance-orientation-in/)

[Robert Sapolsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-sapolsky/)

> [Yet again, an ancient answer echoes across the centuries: Listen! Listen to stories! For what stories do, above all else, is hold up a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-kurtz/yet-again-an-ancient-answer-echoes-across-the-centuries-listen-listen/)

[Ernest Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-kurtz/)

> [My path to wisdom began when I stopped pretending to know things I didn't know. When I explicitly admitted to the limits of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tucker-max/my-path-to-wisdom-began-when-i-stopped-pretending-to-know-things-i/)

[Tucker Max](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tucker-max/)

> [If there is a single tragic flaw that mars our biggest enterprises, it is conservatism - the failure to fail, and fail big, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/if-there-is-a-single-tragic-flaw-that-mars-our-biggest-enterprises-it/)

[Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/)

> [In order to be as free as I possibly can, in my own imagination, I can't take positions that are closed. Everything I've ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/in-order-to-be-as-free-as-i-possibly-can-in-my-own-imagination-i-can/)

[Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/)

> [I've always been drawn to ambiguity in pop music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-furman/i-ve-always-been-drawn-to-ambiguity-in-pop-music/)

[Ezra Furman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-furman/)

> [I believe that we can still have a genre of scientific books suitable for and accessible alike to professionals and interested laypeople. The concepts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/i-believe-that-we-can-still-have-a-genre-of-scientific-books-suitable/)

[Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/)

> [I am in the utmost perplexity, yand have wished a hundred times, that if there is a A God, nature would manifest him without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/i-am-in-the-utmost-perplexity-yand-have-wished-a-hundred-times-that/)

[Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/)

> [There's a lot of ambiguity in life, and so often, our art is very neatly wrapped up at the end, when our lives never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-coon/there-s-a-lot-of-ambiguity-in-life-and-so-often-our-art-is-very/)

[Carrie Coon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-coon/)

> [“Man must not attempt to dispel the ambiguity of his being but, on the contrary, accept the task of realizing it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/man-must-not-attempt-to-dispel-the-ambiguity-of-his-being-but-on-the/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

[Browse all 431 Ambiguity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambiguity/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Men tend to try to struggle to be more rational and reduce things to simplicity more and are more impatient with ambiguity than women are.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "John Crowley"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-rational-and-reduce-things-to/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Ambiguity"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-rational-and-reduce-things-to/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/john-crowley-7544_ambiguity_men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-r_1456571.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/john-crowley-7544_ambiguity_men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-r_1456571.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c49/john-crowley-7544_ambiguity_men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-r_1456571.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Men tend to try to struggle to be more rational and reduce things to simplicity more and are more impatient…” — John Crowley",
                "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": "John Crowley",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-crowley/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Men tend to try to struggle...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-rational-and-reduce-things-to/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-crowley/men-tend-to-try-to-struggle-to-be-more-rational-and-reduce-things-to/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
