---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Grief seems at first to destroy not just…"
description: "\"Grief seems at first to destroy not just all patterns, but also to destroy a belief that a pattern exists.\" — Julian Barnes"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/julian-barnes-522_belief_grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just_3173128.jpg"
---

#  Grief seems at first to destroy not just all patterns, but…

![“Grief seems at first to destroy not just all patterns, but also to destroy a belief that a pattern exists.” quote by Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/julian-barnes-522_belief_grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just_3173128.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/julian-barnes-522_belief_grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just_3173128.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/julian-barnes-522_belief_grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just_3173128.jpg)

> “Grief seems at first to destroy not just all patterns, but also to destroy a belief that a pattern exists.”

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

## About This Quote

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

Grief can shatter our sense of order and challenge the belief that life follows predictable patterns.

**In simple terms:** Grief disrupts our sense of order.

Key Takeaway

Accept uncertainty, find new meaning.

Themes

grief loss order belief

Mood

melancholic reflective

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- counseling
- support groups
- creative expression

Key Concepts

existentialism psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- How does grief change your view of life's predictability?
- What new patterns can emerge after loss?

A Different Perspective

Some find that grief eventually reveals deeper patterns.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) [Patterns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patterns/)

## Related quotes

> [If you were to destroy the belief in immortality in mankind, not only love but every living force on which the continuation of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/if-you-were-to-destroy-the-belief-in-immortality-in-mankind-not-only/)

[Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/)

> [The United States can certainly defeat North Vietnam, but the United States cannot defeat a guerrilla war which is being raged from a sanctuary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-brzezinski/the-united-states-can-certainly-defeat-north-vietnam-but-the-united/)

[Zbigniew Brzezinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-brzezinski/)

> [Be a pattern to others, and then all will go well; for as a whole city is affected by the licentious passions and vices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/be-a-pattern-to-others-and-then-all-will-go-well-for-as-a-whole-city/)

[Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/)

> [Write against patterns. Go against the devils. Write what you never write. Lie. Validate what you don’t validate. Indulge what you don’t like. Wallow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deena-metzger/write-against-patterns-go-against-the-devils-write-what-you-never/)

[Deena Metzger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deena-metzger/)

> [Instead of weeping when a tragedy occurs in a songbird's life, it sings away its grief. I believe we could well follow the pattern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/instead-of-weeping-when-a-tragedy-occurs-in-a-songbird-s-life-it/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [When we have the same thought again, the line of the original thought is deepened, causing what's called a memory trace. With each repetition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lysa-terkeurst/when-we-have-the-same-thought-again-the-line-of-the-original-thought/)

[Lysa TerKeurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lysa-terkeurst/)

> [Finding patterns is easy in any kind of data-rich environment; that's what mediocre gamblers do. The key is in determining whether the patterns represent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate-silver/finding-patterns-is-easy-in-any-kind-of-data-rich-environment-that-s/)

[Nate Silver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate-silver/)

> [Studying Sol's interior by looking for analogous patterns on its incandescent face is known as helioseismology, an active - if largely unpronounceable - research…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/studying-sol-s-interior-by-looking-for-analogous-patterns-on-its/)

[Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/)

> [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/)

> [Elevated locations imply elevated purposes, even in American cities departing as radically as Los Angeles does from the traditional planning patterns of the Eastern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-filler/elevated-locations-imply-elevated-purposes-even-in-american-cities/)

[Martin Filler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-filler/)

> [Memories seem to surface in no particular order, with no time attached. Yesterday can seem as distant as last year. My life now consists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-olsson/memories-seem-to-surface-in-no-particular-order-with-no-time-attached/)

[Linda Olsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-olsson/)

> [Thoroughly understand what it is to understand, and not only will you understand the broad lines of all there is to be understood but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-lonergan/thoroughly-understand-what-it-is-to-understand-and-not-only-will-you/)

[Bernard Lonergan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-lonergan/)

> [If you choose to draw from the inner well of free will, then you can make choices that are outside your current karmic patterns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-choose-to-draw-from-the-inner-well-of-free-will-then-you-can/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/)

Greg Perry

> [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/)

[Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/)

## More by Julian Barnes

> [“You put together two things that have not been put together before. And the world is changed. People may not notice at the time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/you-put-together-two-things-that-have-not-been-put-together-before/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [“I settled into a contented routine of working, spending my free time with Veronica and, back in my student room, wanking explosively to fantasies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/i-settled-into-a-contented-routine-of-working-spending-my-free-time/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [The greatest patriotism is to tell your country when it is behaving dishonorably, foolishly, viciously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/the-greatest-patriotism-is-to-tell-your-country-when-it-is-behaving/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [“There is only good vodka and very good vodka—there is no such thing as bad vodka.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/there-is-only-good-vodka-and-very-good-vodka-there-is-no-such-thing/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [Alice Munro can move characters through time in a way that no other writer can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/alice-munro-can-move-characters-through-time-in-a-way-that-no-other/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [How rarely do our emotions meet the object they seem to deserve? How hopelessly we signal; how dark the sky; how big the waves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/how-rarely-do-our-emotions-meet-the-object-they-seem-to-deserve-how/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [You put together two people who have not been put together before. Sometimes it is like that first attempt to harness a hydrogen balloon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/you-put-together-two-people-who-have-not-been-put-together-before/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [“Also, when you are young, you think you can predict the likely pains and bleaknesses that age might bring. You imagine yourself being lonely,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/also-when-you-are-young-you-think-you-can-predict-the-likely-pains/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [“Why slum it where people were burdened by yesterday, and the day before, and the day before that? By history? Here, on the Island,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/why-slum-it-where-people-were-burdened-by-yesterday-and-the-day/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [“In those years before mobile phones, email and Skype, travelers depended on the rudimentary communications system known as the postcard. Other methods--the long-distance phone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/in-those-years-before-mobile-phones-email-and-skype-travelers/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [“My train was late, slowed by the usual Sunday engineering work. I got home in the early evening. I remember that I had a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/my-train-was-late-slowed-by-the-usual-sunday-engineering-work-i-got/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [In life, every ending is just the start of another story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/in-life-every-ending-is-just-the-start-of-another-story/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [“Indeed, isn’t the whole business of ascribing responsibility kind of a cop-out? We want to blame an individual so that everyone else is exculpated.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/indeed-isn-t-the-whole-business-of-ascribing-responsibility-kind-of-a/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [Some of the freckles I once loved are now closer to liver spots. But it’s still the eyes we look at, isn’t it? That’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/some-of-the-freckles-i-once-loved-are-now-closer-to-liver-spots-but/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [“And what percentage of people take up the option to die off?’ She looked at me, her glance telling me to be calm. ‘Oh,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/and-what-percentage-of-people-take-up-the-option-to-die-off-she/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

[Explore all 454 Julian Barnes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

## More Belief quotes

> [“Cine a ucis stelele? Cine a surpat drumul spre viitor al celor din morminte?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ionel-teodoreanu/cine-a-ucis-stelele-cine-a-surpat-drumul-spre-viitor-al-celor-din/)

[Ionel Teodoreanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ionel-teodoreanu/)

> [“MIND &amp; GRIND Self-belief and hard work can propel you past more talented peers”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamil-ali/mind-grind-self-belief-and-hard-work-can-propel-you-past-more/)

[Kamil Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamil-ali/)

> [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/)

[Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/)

> [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/)

[Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/)

> [It took me 20 years of hard training to get the physique I have today. what you need is what i had - BELIEF…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/branch-warren/it-took-me-20-years-of-hard-training-to-get-the-physique-i-have-today/)

[Branch Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/branch-warren/)

> [“Here is a fundamental difference between the man of faith and the man of unbelief. The unbeliever is 'of the world', judges everything by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-w-pink/here-is-a-fundamental-difference-between-the-man-of-faith-and-the-man/)

[Arthur W. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-w-pink/)

> [“She herself vacillated when it came to belief. She did not particularly believe in God. Or, rather, she didn't believe in a particular God.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allegra-goodman/she-herself-vacillated-when-it-came-to-belief-she-did-not/)

[Allegra Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allegra-goodman/)

> [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/)

[Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/)

> [“Rigid traditions capture souls prisons of spiritual thought man’s religion has captured a god grown too small and very weak.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-w-earle/rigid-traditions-capture-souls-prisons-of-spiritual-thought-man-s/)

[David W Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-w-earle/)

> [We can find common qualities and common values that have made Britain the country it is. Our belief in tolerance and liberty which shines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-brown/we-can-find-common-qualities-and-common-values-that-have-made-britain/)

[Gordon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-brown/)

> [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/)

[Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/)

> [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [In business, as in politics, it is never easy to go against the beliefs and attitudes held by the majority. The businessman who moves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-paul-getty/in-business-as-in-politics-it-is-never-easy-to-go-against-the-beliefs/)

[J. Paul Getty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-paul-getty/)

> [There's no greatest moment in the arts. It's a life; it's a continuity thing. You can't have a great moment because it's spiritual. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-neiman/there-s-no-greatest-moment-in-the-arts-it-s-a-life-it-s-a-continuity/)

[LeRoy Neiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-neiman/)

> [To preserve an unclouded capacity for the enjoyment of life is an unusual moral and psychological achievement. Contrary to popular belief, it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/to-preserve-an-unclouded-capacity-for-the-enjoyment-of-life-is-an/)

[Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/)

[Browse all 10,268 Belief quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Grief seems at first to destroy not just all patterns, but also to destroy a belief that a pattern exists.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Julian Barnes"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just-all-patterns-but-also-to/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Belief"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just-all-patterns-but-also-to/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/julian-barnes-522_belief_grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just_3173128.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/julian-barnes-522_belief_grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just_3173128.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/julian-barnes-522_belief_grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just_3173128.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Grief seems at first to destroy not just all patterns, but also to destroy a belief that a pattern exists.” — Julian Barnes",
                "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": "Julian Barnes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Grief seems at first to destroy...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just-all-patterns-but-also-to/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/grief-seems-at-first-to-destroy-not-just-all-patterns-but-also-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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
