--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What should a story seek to emulate…" description: "\"“What should a story seek to emulate, Augustus? A ringing alarm? A call to arms? A morphine drip? Of course, like all interrogation of the universe, th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54a/john-green-12_interrogation_what-should-a-story-seek-to-emulate-augu_2431135.jpg" --- # What should a story seek to emulate, Augustus? A ringing… ![“What should a story seek to emulate, Augustus? A ringing alarm? A call to arms? A morphine drip? Of course, like all interrogation of the universe, this line of inquiry inevitably reduces us to asking what it means to be human and whether—to borrow a phrase from the angst-encumbered…” quote by John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54a/john-green-12_interrogation_what-should-a-story-seek-to-emulate-augu_2431135.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54a/john-green-12_interrogation_what-should-a-story-seek-to-emulate-augu_2431135.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54a/john-green-12_interrogation_what-should-a-story-seek-to-emulate-augu_2431135.jpg) > ““What should a story seek to emulate, Augustus? A ringing alarm? A call to arms? A morphine drip? Of course, like all interrogation of the universe, this line of inquiry inevitably reduces us to asking what it means to be human and whether—to borrow a phrase from the angst-encumbered sixteen-year-olds you no doubt revile—there is a point to it all.”” [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories should explore humanity, questioning purpose and meaning amid suffering. **In simple terms:** Stories probe human purpose and meaning. Key Takeaway Reflect on life's purpose through narrative. Themes meaning humanity existentialism Mood thoughtful introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - education - therapy - creative writing - public speaking Key Concepts literature philosophy psychology Questions to Reflect On - What does it mean to be human? - How can stories balance hope and despair? A Different Perspective Focusing on existential questions may alienate audiences seeking escapism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Asking Means](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asking-means-282974/) [Interrogation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interrogation/) [Interrogation Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interrogation-universe-282973/) [Like Interrogation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-interrogation-282972/) [Story Seek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story-seek-282975/) ## Related quotes > [“This comment, however, leads me to wonder: What do you mean by meant? Given the final futility of our struggle, is the fleeting jolt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/this-comment-however-leads-me-to-wonder-what-do-you-mean-by-meant/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [If there is something to gain and nothing to lose by asking, by all means ask!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-clement-stone/if-there-is-something-to-gain-and-nothing-to-lose-by-asking-by-all/) [W. Clement Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-clement-stone/) > [Asking someone to go out with you means, I love you even with your flaws and your traits even how you act bad or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/asking-someone-to-go-out-with-you-means-i-love-you-even-with-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We pray pious blether, our will is not in it, and then we say God does not answer; we never asked Him for anything.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/we-pray-pious-blether-our-will-is-not-in-it-and-then-we-say-god-does/) [Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/) > [Given the final futility of our struggle, is the fleeting jolt of meaning that art gives us valuable? Or is the only value in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/given-the-final-futility-of-our-struggle-is-the-fleeting-jolt-of/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Lean in, invade that foot and a half that is all theirs, their own space. Lean back when you get what you want. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/lean-in-invade-that-foot-and-a-half-that-is-all-theirs-their-own/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [The CIA has acknowledged that it has detained about 100 terrorists since 9/11, and about a third of them have been subjected to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-brennan/the-cia-has-acknowledged-that-it-has-detained-about-100-terrorists/) [John O. Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-brennan/) > [The novelist's intuition for the sacred differs from the translator's interrogation of the sacred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/the-novelist-s-intuition-for-the-sacred-differs-from-the-translator-s/) [Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/) > [I met a woman in Albuquerque and she came and hung out with me in the trailer. It was really just more to kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlize-theron/i-met-a-woman-in-albuquerque-and-she-came-and-hung-out-with-me-in-the/) [Charlize Theron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlize-theron/) > [The greatest reward of this constant interrogation, confrontation with the brutality of my country, is that it has freed me from hosts and myths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/the-greatest-reward-of-this-constant-interrogation-confrontation-with/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [I have never worked on interrogation; I have never seen an interrogation, and I have only a passing knowledge of the literature on interrogation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-have-never-worked-on-interrogation-i-have-never-seen-an/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [ \[In geology,\] As in history, the material in hand remains silent if no questions are asked. The nature of these questions depends on the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-geology-as-in-history-the-material-in-hand-remains-silent-if-no/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) is largely an interrogation agency for whistle-blowers that extracts their full range of knowledge without upholding their legal rights.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/occupational-safety-health-administration-osha-is-largely-an/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [“But they argued as lawyers do, they twisted every answer I gave until it sounded like the opposite meaning, and I became so confused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-j-parris/but-they-argued-as-lawyers-do-they-twisted-every-answer-i-gave-until/) [S.J. Parris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-j-parris/) > [A place has almost the shyness of a person, with strangers; and its secret is not to be surprised by a too direct interrogation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-symons/a-place-has-almost-the-shyness-of-a-person-with-strangers-and-its/) [Arthur Symons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-symons/) ## More by John Green > [Issac:"I dislike living in a world without Augustus Waters." Computer: "I don't understand-" Issac: "Me neither. Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I just want to stay away from people and read books and think”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-just-want-to-stay-away-from-people-and-read-books-and-think/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [She smiled with all the delight of a kid on Christmas morning and said, "Y'all smoke to enjoy it. I smoke to die." -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-smiled-with-all-the-delight-of-a-kid-on-christmas-morning-and/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [A Margo for each of us--and each more mirror than window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/a-margo-for-each-of-us-and-each-more-mirror-than-window/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“No one ever says good-bye unless they want to see you again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/no-one-ever-says-good-bye-unless-they-want-to-see-you-again/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Traffic's not too bad on Sheridan, and I'm cornering the car like it's the Indy 500, and we're listening to my favorite NMH song,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/traffic-s-not-too-bad-on-sheridan-and-i-m-cornering-the-car-like-it-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Praise God for good nurses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/praise-god-for-good-nurses/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [So I was ugly. I was never fat, really, and I never wore headgear or had zits or anything. But I was ugly. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/so-i-was-ugly-i-was-never-fat-really-and-i-never-wore-headgear-or-had/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“said to him quietly, as if I couldn’t hear or something. Dad was about to respond but I interrupted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/said-to-him-quietly-as-if-i-couldn-t-hear-or-something-dad-was-about/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I believe humans have souls, and I believe in the conservation of souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-believe-humans-have-souls-and-i-believe-in-the-conservation-of-souls/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“He was hot. A nonhotboy stares at you relentlessly and it is, at best, awkward and, at worst, a form of assault. But a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-was-hot-a-nonhotboy-stares-at-you-relentlessly-and-it-is-at-best/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia. (...) You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/imagining-the-future-is-a-kind-of-nostalgia-you-spend-your-whole-life/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) [Explore all 3,614 John Green quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## More Interrogation quotes > [A place has almost the shyness of a person, with strangers; and its secret is not to be surprised by a too direct interrogation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-symons/a-place-has-almost-the-shyness-of-a-person-with-strangers-and-its/) [Arthur Symons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-symons/) > [“But they argued as lawyers do, they twisted every answer I gave until it sounded like the opposite meaning, and I became so confused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-j-parris/but-they-argued-as-lawyers-do-they-twisted-every-answer-i-gave-until/) [S.J. Parris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-j-parris/) > [“Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) is largely an interrogation agency for whistle-blowers that extracts their full range of knowledge without upholding their legal rights.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/occupational-safety-health-administration-osha-is-largely-an/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [ \[In geology,\] As in history, the material in hand remains silent if no questions are asked. The nature of these questions depends on the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-geology-as-in-history-the-material-in-hand-remains-silent-if-no/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I have never worked on interrogation; I have never seen an interrogation, and I have only a passing knowledge of the literature on interrogation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-have-never-worked-on-interrogation-i-have-never-seen-an/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [The greatest reward of this constant interrogation, confrontation with the brutality of my country, is that it has freed me from hosts and myths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/the-greatest-reward-of-this-constant-interrogation-confrontation-with/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [I met a woman in Albuquerque and she came and hung out with me in the trailer. It was really just more to kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlize-theron/i-met-a-woman-in-albuquerque-and-she-came-and-hung-out-with-me-in-the/) [Charlize Theron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlize-theron/) > [The novelist's intuition for the sacred differs from the translator's interrogation of the sacred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/the-novelist-s-intuition-for-the-sacred-differs-from-the-translator-s/) [Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/) > [The CIA has acknowledged that it has detained about 100 terrorists since 9/11, and about a third of them have been subjected to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-brennan/the-cia-has-acknowledged-that-it-has-detained-about-100-terrorists/) [John O. Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-brennan/) > [“Lean in, invade that foot and a half that is all theirs, their own space. Lean back when you get what you want. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/lean-in-invade-that-foot-and-a-half-that-is-all-theirs-their-own/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [Maugham then offers the greatest advice anyone could give to a young author: "At the end of an interrogation sentence, place a question mark.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/maugham-then-offers-the-greatest-advice-anyone-could-give-to-a-young/) [Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/) > [You've gotta understand - when you interview someone, it's not an interrogation. It's not the Nuremberg Trials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/you-ve-gotta-understand-when-you-interview-someone-it-s-not-an/) [Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/) > [The hon. gentleman had better spare his interrogations if they are as senseless as that one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-tupper/the-hon-gentleman-had-better-spare-his-interrogations-if-they-are-as/) [Charles Tupper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-tupper/) > [Photography is only intuition, a perpetual interrogation - everything except a stage set.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-cartier-bresson/photography-is-only-intuition-a-perpetual-interrogation-everything/) [Henri Cartier-Bresson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-cartier-bresson/) > [There is ...a huge tacit conspiracy between the U.S. government, its agencies and its multinational corporations, on the one hand, and local business and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-s-herman/there-is-a-huge-tacit-conspiracy-between-the-u-s-government-its/) [Edward S. Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-s-herman/) [Browse all 162 Interrogation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interrogation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“What should a story seek to emulate, Augustus? A ringing alarm? A call to arms? A morphine drip? Of course, like all interrogation of the universe, this line of inquiry inevitably reduces us to asking what it means to be human and whether—to borrow a phrase from the angst-encumbered sixteen-year-olds you no doubt revile—there is a point to it all.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Green" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/what-should-a-story-seek-to-emulate-augustus-a-ringing-alarm-a-call/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Interrogation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/what-should-a-story-seek-to-emulate-augustus-a-ringing-alarm-a-call/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54a/john-green-12_interrogation_what-should-a-story-seek-to-emulate-augu_2431135.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54a/john-green-12_interrogation_what-should-a-story-seek-to-emulate-augu_2431135.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54a/john-green-12_interrogation_what-should-a-story-seek-to-emulate-augu_2431135.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What should a story seek to emulate, Augustus? 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