--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you came from Mars and tried to…" description: "\"If you came from Mars and tried to analyse British or American society through novels, you'd think our society was preponderantly full of middle-aged, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/mark-haddon-1056_american_if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analy_1574281.png" --- # If you came from Mars and tried to analyse British or… ![“If you came from Mars and tried to analyse British or American society through novels, you'd think our society was preponderantly full of middle-aged, slightly alcoholic, middle-class, intellectual men, most of whom are divorced from their families and have nothing to do with children.” quote by Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/mark-haddon-1056_american_if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analy_1574281.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/mark-haddon-1056_american_if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analy_1574281.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/mark-haddon-1056_american_if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analy_1574281.png) > “If you came from Mars and tried to analyse British or American society through novels, you'd think our society was preponderantly full of middle-aged, slightly alcoholic, middle-class, intellectual men, most of whom are divorced from their families and have nothing to do with children.” [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. British and American societies appear dominated by middle‑aged, alcoholic, intellectual men, often divorced and childless, as reflected in novels. **In simple terms:** Novels portray a narrow, male‑centric view of society. Key Takeaway Seek diverse voices to broaden cultural representation. Themes gender bias literary stereotypes social observation Mood critical analytical Type literary observational When to use this quote - book clubs - curriculum design - media analysis - author outreach Key Concepts male dominance middle‑age focus alcoholism family disconnect Questions to Reflect On - How does this portrayal affect readers’ perceptions? - What stories challenge this stereotype? A Different Perspective This view may be outdated or overly generalized. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american/) [American society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-society/) [Analyse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/analyse/) [British](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/british/) [Came](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/came/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Divorced](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divorced/) [Families](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/families/) [Full](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/full/) [Intellectual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellectual/) [Mars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mars/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Middle aged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-aged/) [Middle class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-class/) [Most](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/most/) [Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nothing/) [Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels/) [Our](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our/) [Slightly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slightly/) [Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society/) [Society Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society-novels-5933086/) [Society Preponderantly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society-preponderantly-5933085/) [Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think/) [Think Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-society/) [Through](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/through/) [Tried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tried/) [Whom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whom/) [You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/) ## Related quotes > [I analyse everything I do to see if I can do better, that's how I grew over the years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-leclerc/i-analyse-everything-i-do-to-see-if-i-can-do-better-that-s-how-i-grew/) [Charles Leclerc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-leclerc/) > [I take a situation, analyse it, break it down, put it in the form I want it to be in, and then I toss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-marie-presley/i-take-a-situation-analyse-it-break-it-down-put-it-in-the-form-i-want/) [Lisa Marie Presley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-marie-presley/) > [How can you analyse what is funny? What's funny to one isn't funny to another... What's funny to you is a personal thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-dawson/how-can-you-analyse-what-is-funny-what-s-funny-to-one-isn-t-funny-to/) [Les Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-dawson/) > [How well you eat and rest helps you analyse your energy reserves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saina-nehwal/how-well-you-eat-and-rest-helps-you-analyse-your-energy-reserves/) [Saina Nehwal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saina-nehwal/) > [There are many times when I sit back and try to analyse the things that I could have done differently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shamita-shetty/there-are-many-times-when-i-sit-back-and-try-to-analyse-the-things/) [Shamita Shetty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shamita-shetty/) > [If you pick up that information, the first metre or two, the ball coming out of the hand, you can analyse what's coming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ab-de-villiers/if-you-pick-up-that-information-the-first-metre-or-two-the-ball/) [AB de Villiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ab-de-villiers/) > [When I analyse the music, I can get really extreme.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-hazlewood/when-i-analyse-the-music-i-can-get-really-extreme/) [Charles Hazlewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-hazlewood/) > [If you have an opponent who is clearly better than you, then OK, you have something to analyse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-tuchel/if-you-have-an-opponent-who-is-clearly-better-than-you-then-ok-you/) [Thomas Tuchel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-tuchel/) > [You cannot analyse your personality. It is like trying to understand the essential characteristics of a person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tabu/you-cannot-analyse-your-personality-it-is-like-trying-to-understand/) [Tabu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tabu/) > [It is not possible to become a great player without having learned how to analyse deeply and accurately.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dvoretsky/it-is-not-possible-to-become-a-great-player-without-having-learned/) [Mark Dvoretsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dvoretsky/) > [“To analyse cyber-security, we need to augment our current research to include monitoring at the centre, and this too needs to dive deep into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-osborne/to-analyse-cyber-security-we-need-to-augment-our-current-research-to/) [Mark Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-osborne/) > [“How to be creative. Grasp, analyse, organise, let it flow.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/how-to-be-creative-grasp-analyse-organise-let-it-flow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's being honest with yourself, being honest with your team, listening to them and being open to tell them your fears and what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrey-rublev/it-s-being-honest-with-yourself-being-honest-with-your-team-listening/) [Andrey Rublev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrey-rublev/) > [“En ting er fagkyndig analyse, en annen ting kvaksalveranalyse og onaniterapi.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harald-schjelderup/en-ting-er-fagkyndig-analyse-en-annen-ting-kvaksalveranalyse-og/) [Harald Schjelderup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harald-schjelderup/) > [When you lose games, you analyse them more than when you win.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georginio-wijnaldum/when-you-lose-games-you-analyse-them-more-than-when-you-win/) [Georginio Wijnaldum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georginio-wijnaldum/) ## 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 American quotes > [I wasn't attracted to American cinema, but I fell in love with Los Angeles the minute I arrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-wasn-t-attracted-to-american-cinema-but-i-fell-in-love-with-los/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [William Maxwell's my favorite North American writer, I think. And an Irish writer who used to write for 'The New Yorker' called Maeve Brennan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/william-maxwell-s-my-favorite-north-american-writer-i-think-and-an/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [I have fallen in love with American names, the sharp names that never get fat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vincent-benet/i-have-fallen-in-love-with-american-names-the-sharp-names-that-never/) [Stephen Vincent Benet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vincent-benet/) > [I really like a lot of American country stuff, so my music has that influence, but I don't like to be set within a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade-bird/i-really-like-a-lot-of-american-country-stuff-so-my-music-has-that/) [Jade Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade-bird/) > [I certainly don't think that the heirs of the American Revolution were a particularly noble class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-brands/i-certainly-don-t-think-that-the-heirs-of-the-american-revolution/) [H. W. Brands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-w-brands/) > [Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act in a tremendous investment to support millions of workers without a paycheck and behind on bills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/congress-passed-the-american-rescue-plan-act-in-a-tremendous/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy and employ almost half of the working population. Yet because of their size, they rarely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-lipinski/small-businesses-are-the-backbone-of-the-american-economy-and-employ/) [Dan Lipinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-lipinski/) > [Although I write in English, and despite the fact that I'm from America, I consider myself an Armenian writer. The words I use are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/although-i-write-in-english-and-despite-the-fact-that-i-m-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [When we first sold the Wallace and Gromit shorts to America, people suggested we get rid of the strange British accents and put clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-park/when-we-first-sold-the-wallace-and-gromit-shorts-to-america-people/) [Nick Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-park/) > [Firefighters and rescue workers are American superheroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-kennedy/firefighters-and-rescue-workers-are-american-superheroes/) [Kerry Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-kennedy/) > [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [New York and San Francisco are distinctly different. San Francisco is driving the American media, not New York. You have young, microwaved millionaires and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-whitlock/new-york-and-san-francisco-are-distinctly-different-san-francisco-is/) [Jason Whitlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-whitlock/) > [Well look, CIA is an agency that has to collect intelligence, do operations. We have to take risks and it's important that we take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-panetta/well-look-cia-is-an-agency-that-has-to-collect-intelligence-do/) [Leon Panetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-panetta/) > [Food as a hobby used to be an elite pastime, and it has become something that is totally ordinary for people of every background.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-goodyear/food-as-a-hobby-used-to-be-an-elite-pastime-and-it-has-become/) [Dana Goodyear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-goodyear/) > [It's important for American soldiers to be culturally sensitive when deployed in foreign countries. But it's just as important for the U.S. never to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-bauer/it-s-important-for-american-soldiers-to-be-culturally-sensitive-when/) [Gary Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-bauer/) [Browse all 7,717 American quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you came from Mars and tried to analyse British or American society through novels, you'd think our society was preponderantly full of middle-aged, slightly alcoholic, middle-class, intellectual men, most of whom are divorced from their families and have nothing to do with children.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Haddon" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analyse-british-or-american/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analyse-british-or-american/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/mark-haddon-1056_american_if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analy_1574281.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/mark-haddon-1056_american_if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analy_1574281.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47a/mark-haddon-1056_american_if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analy_1574281.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you came from Mars and tried to analyse British or American society through novels, you'd think our…” — 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": "If you came from Mars and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analyse-british-or-american/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/if-you-came-from-mars-and-tried-to-analyse-british-or-american/#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 } } ] } ```