--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Behind all this bad behaviour was an…" description: "\"“Behind all this bad behaviour was an insecurity magnificent in scope, metaphysical in nature. Space was big, and the boys from Earth were awed despite..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/041/m-john-harrison-15805_astronomy_behind-all-this-bad-behaviour-was-an-ins_1936168.jpg" --- # Behind all this bad behaviour was an insecurity… ![“Behind all this bad behaviour was an insecurity magnificent in scope, metaphysical in nature. Space was big, and the boys from Earth were awed despite themselves by the things they found there: but worse, their science was a mess. Every race they met on their way through the Core had a star drive…” quote by M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/041/m-john-harrison-15805_astronomy_behind-all-this-bad-behaviour-was-an-ins_1936168.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/041/m-john-harrison-15805_astronomy_behind-all-this-bad-behaviour-was-an-ins_1936168.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/041/m-john-harrison-15805_astronomy_behind-all-this-bad-behaviour-was-an-ins_1936168.jpg) > ““Behind all this bad behaviour was an insecurity magnificent in scope, metaphysical in nature. Space was big, and the boys from Earth were awed despite themselves by the things they found there: but worse, their science was a mess. Every race they met on their way through the Core had a star drive based on a different theory. All those theories worked, even when they ruled out one another's basic assumptions. You could travel between the stars, it began to seem, by assuming anything \[. . . .\] It was affronting to discover that. So when they fetched up on the edge of the Tract, looked it in the eye, and began to despatch their doomed entradas, the Earthlings were hoping to find, among other things, some answers. They wondered why the universe, which seemed so harsh on top, was underneath so pliable. Anything worked. Wherever you looked, you found. They were hoping to find out why.”” [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage highlights humanity’s existential insecurity and the chaotic diversity of scientific theories, suggesting that the universe’s flexibility challenges our need for certainty. **In simple terms:** Humans feel insecure; many theories work, making reality seem pliable. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty and seek deeper understanding. Themes insecurity science cosmos uncertainty exploration Mood wonderful reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - space travel - first contact - scientific research - philosophical inquiry Key Concepts philosophical relativism epistemic humility pluralism Questions to Reflect On - What does the universe’s pliability reveal about human knowledge? - How can we balance openness with rigor? 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After you grow up, you should start reading for other purposes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/i-think-it-s-undignified-to-read-for-the-purposes-of-escape-after-you/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [Everyone loves a mysterious country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/everyone-loves-a-mysterious-country/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“As they moved from exhibit to exhibit like reluctant tourists in some artist's studio, Buffin sat on a stool with his limbs tense. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/as-they-moved-from-exhibit-to-exhibit-like-reluctant-tourists-in-some/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“He ran toward the light. When he passed the corpse of his dead friend, he began to weep again. 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Unpredictable and sporadic successes make you more addicted, not less.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/writing-s-like-gambling-unpredictable-and-sporadic-successes-make-you/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“You can't cure people of their character,' she read. After this he had crossed something out then gone on, 'You can't even change yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/you-can-t-cure-people-of-their-character-she-read-after-this-he-had/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“When the landed gentry cut up a seed cake for tea it makes no difference to the cake which of them holds the knife;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/when-the-landed-gentry-cut-up-a-seed-cake-for-tea-it-makes-no/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [Egnaro is a secret known to everyone but yourself. It is a country or a city to which you have never been; it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/egnaro-is-a-secret-known-to-everyone-but-yourself-it-is-a-country-or/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [A good ground rule for writing in any genre is, start with a form, then undermine its confidence in itself. Ask what it's afraid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/a-good-ground-rule-for-writing-in-any-genre-is-start-with-a-form-then/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“Write something about me then,' he said when I came back. He grinned. 'Go on! Now! I bet you can!' 'I don't do portraits,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/write-something-about-me-then-he-said-when-i-came-back-he-grinned-go/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) > [“I think it’s undignified to read for the purposes of escape…. If you read for escape you will never try to change your life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-john-harrison/i-think-it-s-undignified-to-read-for-the-purposes-of-escape-if-you/) [M. John Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) [Explore all 41 M. John Harrison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-john-harrison/) ## More Astronomy quotes > [I have inside me the winds, the deserts, the oceans, the stars, and everything created in the universe. We were all made by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-have-inside-me-the-winds-the-deserts-the-oceans-the-stars-and/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [Wen daylight turns to a darkened hue, D lovely stars hinting at u, ur heart beat tells u something true, That some 1 badly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/butterfly-kisses/wen-daylight-turns-to-a-darkened-hue-d-lovely-stars-hinting-at-u-ur/) [Butterfly\_Kisses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/butterfly-kisses/) > [Home is behind, the world ahead, And there are many paths to tread Through shadows to the edge of night, Until the stars are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/home-is-behind-the-world-ahead-and-there-are-many-paths-to-tread/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In the movie, the stars above the ship bear no correspondence to any constellations in a real sky. 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The cosmic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/the-reason-so-many-of-us-are-obsessed-with-becoming-stars-is-because/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) [Browse all 6,190 Astronomy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astronomy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Behind all this bad behaviour was an insecurity magnificent in scope, metaphysical in nature. Space was big, and the boys from Earth were awed despite themselves by the things they found there: but worse, their science was a mess. Every race they met on their way through the Core had a star drive based on a different theory. All those theories worked, even when they ruled out one another's basic assumptions. You could travel between the stars, it began to seem, by assuming anything [. . . .] It was affronting to discover that. 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