--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Even when there are banalities, they're…" description: "\"Even when there are banalities, they're usually kind of benign banalities.\" — Michael McKean" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/michael-mckean-15387_benign_even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-u_1093745.jpg" --- # Even when there are banalities, they're usually kind of… ![“Even when there are banalities, they're usually kind of benign banalities.” quote by Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/michael-mckean-15387_benign_even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-u_1093745.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/michael-mckean-15387_benign_even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-u_1093745.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/michael-mckean-15387_benign_even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-u_1093745.jpg) > “Even when there are banalities, they're usually kind of benign banalities.” [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The statement suggests that even trivial or mundane details are generally harmless and not threatening. **In simple terms:** Banal things are usually harmless. Key Takeaway Don’t overreact to minor details. Themes mundane harmless perception Mood lighthearted observational Type humorous philosophical When to use this quote - office environment - social interactions - media consumption - creative writing - personal reflection Key Concepts everyday life psychology stress management Questions to Reflect On - What seemingly trivial detail has impacted you? - When do you ignore harmless information? A Different Perspective Some banalities can mask deeper issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Banalities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/banalities-1177480/) [Banalities Usually](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/banalities-usually-2840992/) [Benign](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benign/) [Benign Banalities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benign-banalities-2840991/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Kind Benign](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind-benign-2748152/) ## Related quotes > [For people who live their lives in classical music the Three Tenors is a kind of benign tumor: unsightly but not life threatening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-holland/for-people-who-live-their-lives-in-classical-music-the-three-tenors/) [Bernard Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-holland/) > [Thinking about it, you know, our phones are everything. They're kind of benign.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosemarie-dewitt/thinking-about-it-you-know-our-phones-are-everything-they-re-kind-of/) [Rosemarie DeWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosemarie-dewitt/) > [Comedy is good at analysing and dealing with evil because it doesn't present it as evil but a collection of banalities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-farr/comedy-is-good-at-analysing-and-dealing-with-evil-because-it-doesn-t/) [David Farr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-farr/) > [There is no blue without yellow and without orange, and if you put in blue, then you must put in yellow, and orange too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-van-gogh/there-is-no-blue-without-yellow-and-without-orange-and-if-you-put-in/) [Vincent Van Gogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-van-gogh/) > [The great work of art is the complete banality, and the fault with most banalities is that they are not banal enough. Banality here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asger-jorn/the-great-work-of-art-is-the-complete-banality-and-the-fault-with/) [Asger Jorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asger-jorn/) > [“In the face of death, he had nothing to lose by speaking of the intimacies of love. Yet, in the face of life, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-brooker/in-the-face-of-death-he-had-nothing-to-lose-by-speaking-of-the/) [Gerard Brooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-brooker/) > [The banalities of a great man pass for wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-chase/the-banalities-of-a-great-man-pass-for-wit/) [Alexander Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-chase/) > [Beneficent spirals, operating by benign feedback, mean that everything needful is not required at once: each individual improvement is beneficial for the whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/beneficent-spirals-operating-by-benign-feedback-mean-that-everything/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) > [Acid wasn't getting a whole lot of bad press at the time, and as I saw the whole bad-press thing happen, I became aware…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-rettig/acid-wasn-t-getting-a-whole-lot-of-bad-press-at-the-time-and-as-i-saw/) [Tommy Rettig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-rettig/) > [Every single empire in its official discourse has said that it is not like all the others, that its circumstances are special, that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/every-single-empire-in-its-official-discourse-has-said-that-it-is-not/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [Cultural institutions by and large share one primary objective: herd control. Even when ostensibly benign, their propensity for manipulation, compartmentalization, standardization and suppression of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/cultural-institutions-by-and-large-share-one-primary-objective-herd/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Fame is indeed beautiful and benign and gentle and satisfying, but happiness is something at once tender and brilliant beyond all things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-maclane/fame-is-indeed-beautiful-and-benign-and-gentle-and-satisfying-but/) [Mary MacLane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-maclane/) > [Factory-farm lobbyists are so powerful and so well funded and they do everything in their power to hide the truth about farming. They keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/factory-farm-lobbyists-are-so-powerful-and-so-well-funded-and-they-do/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) > [Whereas religions may serve a benign purpose by letting many people feel comfortable with the level of morality they themselves can attain, no religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-dennett/whereas-religions-may-serve-a-benign-purpose-by-letting-many-people/) [Daniel Dennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-dennett/) > [The plausible outcomes range from the gradual and benign to the more precipitous and damaging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-geithner/the-plausible-outcomes-range-from-the-gradual-and-benign-to-the-more/) [Timothy Geithner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-geithner/) ## More by Michael McKean > [I think 'The X-Files' was a very important moment in TV history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/i-think-the-x-files-was-a-very-important-moment-in-tv-history/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [They were kind of like little Stephen King stories... but these go back many hundreds of years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/they-were-kind-of-like-little-stephen-king-stories-but-these-go-back/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [On film, when you're driving home from the set, you realize what you should have done, but it's too late. When you're taking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/on-film-when-you-re-driving-home-from-the-set-you-realize-what-you/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [Jazz, isn't that just a series of mistakes diguised as musical composition?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/jazz-isn-t-that-just-a-series-of-mistakes-diguised-as-musical/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [There's more than one way to do TV just like there's more than one way to do widescreen movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/there-s-more-than-one-way-to-do-tv-just-like-there-s-more-than-one/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [Those people that you know for a long time and that you love, they're the easiest to talk to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/those-people-that-you-know-for-a-long-time-and-that-you-love-they-re/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [After I left 'Laverne & Shirley,' I got a ton of offers to play the goofy guy next door, and there were a couple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/after-i-left-laverne-shirley-i-got-a-ton-of-offers-to-play-the-goofy/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [I was working with Bryan Cranston in 'All the Way.' We were about to make an entrance together - I was Hoover, he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/i-was-working-with-bryan-cranston-in-all-the-way-we-were-about-to/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [David Lander and I met in September of 1965. We were both students at Carnegie Tech, as it was then known. Before the Mellon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/david-lander-and-i-met-in-september-of-1965-we-were-both-students-at/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [I'm all over the place. As you may have seen from the credits, I write with everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/i-m-all-over-the-place-as-you-may-have-seen-from-the-credits-i-write/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [I watch my wife knitting, and it's like watching close-up magic to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/i-watch-my-wife-knitting-and-it-s-like-watching-close-up-magic-to-me/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [When we can figure out a way to really tour and make a profit, then we'll do it again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/when-we-can-figure-out-a-way-to-really-tour-and-make-a-profit-then-we/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [Some people stay in the academic world just to avoid becoming self-aware. You can quote me on that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/some-people-stay-in-the-academic-world-just-to-avoid-becoming-self/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [Some of the most interesting characters in literature and in movies and TV have been ones that you can't quite figure out all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/some-of-the-most-interesting-characters-in-literature-and-in-movies/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) > [There are people in the world who won't watch a movie that's in black and white. There's got to be a special place in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/there-are-people-in-the-world-who-won-t-watch-a-movie-that-s-in-black/) [Michael McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) [Explore all 43 Michael McKean quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/) ## More Benign quotes > [The plausible outcomes range from the gradual and benign to the more precipitous and damaging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-geithner/the-plausible-outcomes-range-from-the-gradual-and-benign-to-the-more/) [Timothy Geithner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-geithner/) > [Whereas religions may serve a benign purpose by letting many people feel comfortable with the level of morality they themselves can attain, no religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-dennett/whereas-religions-may-serve-a-benign-purpose-by-letting-many-people/) [Daniel Dennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-dennett/) > [Factory-farm lobbyists are so powerful and so well funded and they do everything in their power to hide the truth about farming. They keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/factory-farm-lobbyists-are-so-powerful-and-so-well-funded-and-they-do/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) > [Fame is indeed beautiful and benign and gentle and satisfying, but happiness is something at once tender and brilliant beyond all things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-maclane/fame-is-indeed-beautiful-and-benign-and-gentle-and-satisfying-but/) [Mary MacLane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-maclane/) > [Cultural institutions by and large share one primary objective: herd control. Even when ostensibly benign, their propensity for manipulation, compartmentalization, standardization and suppression of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/cultural-institutions-by-and-large-share-one-primary-objective-herd/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Every single empire in its official discourse has said that it is not like all the others, that its circumstances are special, that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-said/every-single-empire-in-its-official-discourse-has-said-that-it-is-not/) [Edward Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-said/) > [Acid wasn't getting a whole lot of bad press at the time, and as I saw the whole bad-press thing happen, I became aware…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-rettig/acid-wasn-t-getting-a-whole-lot-of-bad-press-at-the-time-and-as-i-saw/) [Tommy Rettig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-rettig/) > [Beneficent spirals, operating by benign feedback, mean that everything needful is not required at once: each individual improvement is beneficial for the whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/beneficent-spirals-operating-by-benign-feedback-mean-that-everything/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) > [I looked up at the mass of signs and stars in the night sky and laid myself open for the first time to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/i-looked-up-at-the-mass-of-signs-and-stars-in-the-night-sky-and-laid/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Orders can be benign or malign, but the habit of obeying them can become ingrained.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-dalrymple/orders-can-be-benign-or-malign-but-the-habit-of-obeying-them-can/) [Theodore Dalrymple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-dalrymple/) > [Intelligence may indeed be a benign influence creating isolated groups of philosopher-kings far apart in the heavens... On the other hand, intelligence may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/intelligence-may-indeed-be-a-benign-influence-creating-isolated/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [Every major player is working on this technology of artificial intelligence. As of now, it's benign... but I would say that the day is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-bell/every-major-player-is-working-on-this-technology-of-artificial/) [Ted Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-bell/) > [Of course, I prefer organic farming to chemical-dependent farming, but sometimes absolutist organic prescriptions go too far. I don't even rule out the possibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristram-stuart/of-course-i-prefer-organic-farming-to-chemical-dependent-farming-but/) [Tristram Stuart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristram-stuart/) > [How do you survive living in a cell knowing you are innocent? Many of those exonerated whom I have met seem to have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-lagravenese/how-do-you-survive-living-in-a-cell-knowing-you-are-innocent-many-of/) [Richard LaGravenese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-lagravenese/) > [Human nature has its fatal weaknesses, but 'love' means embracing the whole of human nature, the bad within the good, the benign within the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/qiu-miaojin/human-nature-has-its-fatal-weaknesses-but-love-means-embracing-the/) [Qiu Miaojin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/qiu-miaojin/) [Browse all 210 Benign quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benign/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Even when there are banalities, they're usually kind of benign banalities.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael McKean" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-usually-kind-of-benign/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Benign" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-usually-kind-of-benign/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/michael-mckean-15387_benign_even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-u_1093745.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/michael-mckean-15387_benign_even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-u_1093745.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/035/michael-mckean-15387_benign_even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-u_1093745.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Even when there are banalities, they're usually kind of benign banalities.” — Michael McKean", "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": "Michael McKean", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mckean/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Even when there are banalities, they're...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-usually-kind-of-benign/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mckean/even-when-there-are-banalities-they-re-usually-kind-of-benign/#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 } } ] } ```