--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He had never spoken to Uncle Richard, but…" description: "\"“He had never spoken to Uncle Richard, but he knew that he was a radiologist who put tubes into people's groins and pushed them up into their brains to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74c/mark-haddon-1056_uncle_he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but_2176341.jpg" --- # He had never spoken to Uncle Richard, but he knew that he… ![“He had never spoken to Uncle Richard, but he knew that he was a radiologist who put tubes into people's groins and pushed them up into their brains to clear blockages like chimney sweeps did and this was a glorious idea.” quote by Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74c/mark-haddon-1056_uncle_he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but_2176341.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74c/mark-haddon-1056_uncle_he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but_2176341.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74c/mark-haddon-1056_uncle_he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but_2176341.jpg) > ““He had never spoken to Uncle Richard, but he knew that he was a radiologist who put tubes into people's groins and pushed them up into their brains to clear blockages like chimney sweeps did and this was a glorious idea.”” [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A vivid, darkly humorous description of a radiologist’s invasive procedure, likening it to chimney sweeping, highlighting absurdity and awe. **In simple terms:** Radiologist’s work is oddly compared to chimney sweeping. Key Takeaway Recognize the blend of grotesque detail and fascination. Themes medicine humor absurdity technology ethics Mood darkly humorous ironic thought‑provoking Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - hospital settings - medical education - creative writing - film visual - null Key Concepts invasive procedures medical imaging metaphor clinical practice Questions to Reflect On - How does humor affect perception of medical work? - What ethical lines are crossed in such descriptions? A Different Perspective The comparison may trivialize serious medical procedures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Uncle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncle/) ## Related quotes > [“Richard knew he was fighting for his life, and he was terribly happy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-kushner/richard-knew-he-was-fighting-for-his-life-and-he-was-terribly-happy/) [Ellen Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-kushner/) > [“Richard knew, of course, that his was thought to be an unlucky title; only twice before had a Richard ruled England, and both met…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-kay-penman/richard-knew-of-course-that-his-was-thought-to-be-an-unlucky-title/) [Sharon Kay Penman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-kay-penman/) > [“It was possible, Richard knew, to be away from home too long, to forget all the things you once knew by heart. He didn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/it-was-possible-richard-knew-to-be-away-from-home-too-long-to-forget/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [I only wanted Uncle Vernon standing by his own car (a Hudson) on a clear day, I got him and the car. Ialso got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-friedlander/i-only-wanted-uncle-vernon-standing-by-his-own-car-a-hudson-on-a/) [Lee Friedlander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-friedlander/) > [My uncle Claude was my favorite uncle he was also my godfather. He and I were really, really close. He used to take me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/smokey-robinson/my-uncle-claude-was-my-favorite-uncle-he-was-also-my-godfather-he-and/) [Smokey Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/smokey-robinson/) > [“Kevin’s nice front bulge in his jeans. 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"My favorite uncle is a jackass.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eoin-colfer/and-i-will-not-be-beaten-by-that-jackass-jackass-said-foaly-wounded/) [Eoin Colfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eoin-colfer/) > [My aunt and uncle are clearly civilians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-kimmel/my-aunt-and-uncle-are-clearly-civilians/) [Jimmy Kimmel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-kimmel/) > [My dad and uncle were so protective so whenever someone would say or do something to harm us they were right there. They were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moeen-ali/my-dad-and-uncle-were-so-protective-so-whenever-someone-would-say-or/) [Moeen Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moeen-ali/) > [You know, I'm from Baltimore; nobody has anything. When somebody had talent, I was hiring my uncle, my cousin, you know? Getting people that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sisqo/you-know-i-m-from-baltimore-nobody-has-anything-when-somebody-had/) [Sisqo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sisqo/) > [“Things are more like they are now...than they have EVER been before!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uncle-arnie-mamath/things-are-more-like-they-are-now-than-they-have-ever-been-before/) Uncle Arnie Mamath ## More by Mark Haddon > [But I said that you could still want something that is very unlikely to happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/but-i-said-that-you-could-still-want-something-that-is-very-unlikely/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [“So often these days she seemed to hover between worlds, none of them wholly real.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/so-often-these-days-she-seemed-to-hover-between-worlds-none-of-them/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [And I know I can do this because I went to London on my own, and because I solved the mystery…and I was brave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/and-i-know-i-can-do-this-because-i-went-to-london-on-my-own-and/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [And what he meant was that maths wasn't like life because in life there are no straightforward answers in the end](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/and-what-he-meant-was-that-maths-wasn-t-like-life-because-in-life/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [You love someone, you've got to let something go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/you-love-someone-you-ve-got-to-let-something-go/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [“when you describe something by using a word for something that it isn’t. This means that the word metaphor is a metaphor. I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/when-you-describe-something-by-using-a-word-for-something-that-it-isn/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [“They are very logical but you could never work out the rules, even if you spent all your time thinking about them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/they-are-very-logical-but-you-could-never-work-out-the-rules-even-if/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [“Places remained and time flowed through them like wind through the grass. Right now. This was the future turning into the past. One thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/places-remained-and-time-flowed-through-them-like-wind-through-the/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [I suffer depression only in the sense that I am a writer. We don't have proper jobs to go to. We are on our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/i-suffer-depression-only-in-the-sense-that-i-am-a-writer-we-don-t/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [I better make the plot good. I wanted to make it grip people on the first page and have a big turning point in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/i-better-make-the-plot-good-i-wanted-to-make-it-grip-people-on-the/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [“And it was strange because he was calling, "Christopher. . . ? Christopher. . . ?" and I could see my name written out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/and-it-was-strange-because-he-was-calling-christopher-christopher-and/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [A lot of roles for people with disabilities are quite patronising. It's a real pity when they are just used to give dull PC…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/a-lot-of-roles-for-people-with-disabilities-are-quite-patronising-it/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [I do not like strangers because I do not like people I have never met before. They are hard to understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/i-do-not-like-strangers-because-i-do-not-like-people-i-have-never-met/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [“Lots of people wrote to the magazine to say that Marilyn vos Savant was wrong, even when she explained very carefully why she was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/lots-of-people-wrote-to-the-magazine-to-say-that-marilyn-vos-savant/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [I read very, very little fiction as a kid. All the books I can remember are junior science books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/i-read-very-very-little-fiction-as-a-kid-all-the-books-i-can-remember/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) [Explore all 278 Mark Haddon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) ## More Uncle quotes > [“Things are more like they are now...than they have EVER been before!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uncle-arnie-mamath/things-are-more-like-they-are-now-than-they-have-ever-been-before/) Uncle Arnie Mamath > [You know, I'm from Baltimore; nobody has anything. When somebody had talent, I was hiring my uncle, my cousin, you know? Getting people that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sisqo/you-know-i-m-from-baltimore-nobody-has-anything-when-somebody-had/) [Sisqo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sisqo/) > [My dad and uncle were so protective so whenever someone would say or do something to harm us they were right there. They were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moeen-ali/my-dad-and-uncle-were-so-protective-so-whenever-someone-would-say-or/) [Moeen Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moeen-ali/) > [My aunt and uncle are clearly civilians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-kimmel/my-aunt-and-uncle-are-clearly-civilians/) [Jimmy Kimmel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-kimmel/) > [And I will not be beaten by that jackass." "Jackass?" said Foaly, wounded. "My favorite uncle is a jackass.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eoin-colfer/and-i-will-not-be-beaten-by-that-jackass-jackass-said-foaly-wounded/) [Eoin Colfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eoin-colfer/) > [“Trust me, dear, with the amount that you read, I guarantee that your eyes will never go bad.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-renee-backen/trust-me-dear-with-the-amount-that-you-read-i-guarantee-that-your/) [Lindsey Renee Backen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-renee-backen/) > [“You want to hear the truth about my uncle? I’ll tell you,’ said Laurent, a new light in his eyes. ‘I’ll tell you what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-pacat/you-want-to-hear-the-truth-about-my-uncle-i-ll-tell-you-said-laurent/) [C.S. Pacat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-pacat/) > [“You think that nothing matters as long as you're together, that nothing can harm you two or come between you because you're somehow protected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-khoury/you-think-that-nothing-matters-as-long-as-you-re-together-that/) [Jessica Khoury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-khoury/) > [I don't think I could compare myself to Macaulay Culkin, because we're pretty much two different kinds of actors. He's done a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-bonsall/i-don-t-think-i-could-compare-myself-to-macaulay-culkin-because-we-re/) [Brian Bonsall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-bonsall/) > [“Kevin’s nice front bulge in his jeans. If everything were different, he’d still let Will’s cowboy uncle plow him for a night or three.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leta-blake/kevin-s-nice-front-bulge-in-his-jeans-if-everything-were-different-he/) [Leta Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leta-blake/) > [My uncle Claude was my favorite uncle he was also my godfather. He and I were really, really close. He used to take me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/smokey-robinson/my-uncle-claude-was-my-favorite-uncle-he-was-also-my-godfather-he-and/) [Smokey Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/smokey-robinson/) > [I only wanted Uncle Vernon standing by his own car (a Hudson) on a clear day, I got him and the car. Ialso got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-friedlander/i-only-wanted-uncle-vernon-standing-by-his-own-car-a-hudson-on-a/) [Lee Friedlander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-friedlander/) > [Little Richard played my uncle on 'Full House.' He's fabulous. I remember him being incredibly kind to me. 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Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse/) [Browse all 568 Uncle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncle/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He had never spoken to Uncle Richard, but he knew that he was a radiologist who put tubes into people's groins and pushed them up into their brains to clear blockages like chimney sweeps did and this was a glorious idea.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Haddon" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but-he-knew-that-he-was-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Uncle" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but-he-knew-that-he-was-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74c/mark-haddon-1056_uncle_he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but_2176341.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74c/mark-haddon-1056_uncle_he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but_2176341.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74c/mark-haddon-1056_uncle_he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but_2176341.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“He had never spoken to Uncle Richard, but he knew that he was a radiologist who put tubes into people's…” — Mark Haddon", "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": "Mark Haddon", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“He had never spoken to Uncle...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but-he-knew-that-he-was-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/he-had-never-spoken-to-uncle-richard-but-he-knew-that-he-was-a/#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 } } ] } ```