---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We have stopped natural selection from…"
description: "\"“We have stopped natural selection from purifying the species because deep in our heart of hearts, we are all terrified that we won't make the cut.”\" —..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10e/moxie-mezcal-45800_natural-selection_we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-p_690510.jpg"
---

#  We have stopped natural selection from purifying the…

![“We have stopped natural selection from purifying the species because deep in our heart of hearts, we are all terrified that we won't make the cut.” quote by Moxie Mezcal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10e/moxie-mezcal-45800_natural-selection_we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-p_690510.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10e/moxie-mezcal-45800_natural-selection_we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-p_690510.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10e/moxie-mezcal-45800_natural-selection_we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-p_690510.jpg)

> ““We have stopped natural selection from purifying the species because deep in our heart of hearts, we are all terrified that we won't make the cut.””

[Moxie Mezcal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/)

## About This Quote

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

Human fear of failure leads us to halt natural selection, preventing the species from improving itself.

**In simple terms:** Fear stops progress.

Key Takeaway

Embrace challenges to grow.

Themes

evolution psychology fear progress

Mood

anxious reflective

Type

motivational philosophical

When to use this quote

- career advancement
- personal development
- scientific research
- social change

Key Concepts

natural selection species improvement psychological barriers

Questions to Reflect On

- What risks are you avoiding?
- How does fear shape your decisions?

A Different Perspective

Fear can also motivate caution and safety.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Natural selection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural-selection/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Terrified](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrified/)

## Related quotes

> [Nature stopped being natural decades ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamais-cascio/nature-stopped-being-natural-decades-ago/)

[Jamais Cascio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamais-cascio/)

> [The Christians who engaged in infamous persecutions and shameful inquisitions were not evil men but misguided men. The churchmen who felt they had an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-christians-who-engaged-in-infamous-persecutions-and-shameful/)

[Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/)

> [To suppose that the eye could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest possible degree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/to-suppose-that-the-eye-could-have-been-formed-by-natural-selection/)

[Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/)

> [“Fears were learned, but they were also inherited. Natural Selection. Run from the lion. Jump away from the tiny, poisonous insects. They exist for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-miranda/fears-were-learned-but-they-were-also-inherited-natural-selection-run/)

[Megan Miranda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-miranda/)

> [“The second irony of evolutionary biology is that this transubstantiation of natural theology into the grand narrative of natural selection has itself taken the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-lustig/the-second-irony-of-evolutionary-biology-is-that-this/)

Abigail Lustig

> [It may be said that natural selection is daily and hourly scrutinizing, throughout the world, every variation, even the slightest; rejecting that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/it-may-be-said-that-natural-selection-is-daily-and-hourly/)

[Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/)

> [Ultimately, of course, you must decide for yourself whether the subjective psychological effects created by your evolved cognitive biases reflect an objective reality, perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-bering/ultimately-of-course-you-must-decide-for-yourself-whether-the/)

[Jesse Bering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-bering/)

> [Zoocentrism is the primary fallacy of human sociobiology, for this view of human behavior rests on the argument that if the actions of "lower"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/zoocentrism-is-the-primary-fallacy-of-human-sociobiology-for-this/)

[Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/)

> [“The most essential prediction of Darwinism is that, given an astronomical number of chances, unintelligent processes can make seemingly-designed systems, ones of the complexity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-behe/the-most-essential-prediction-of-darwinism-is-that-given-an/)

[Michael J. Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-behe/)

> [The facts of variability, of the struggle for existence, of adaptation to conditions, were notorious enough; but none of us had suspected that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-facts-of-variability-of-the-struggle-for-existence-of-adaptation/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I believe in the theory of evolution, but I believe as well in the allegorical truth of creation theory. In other words, I believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-langan/i-believe-in-the-theory-of-evolution-but-i-believe-as-well-in-the/)

[Christopher Langan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-langan/)

> [“Once, on a walk by a river- Eskdale in low reddish sunlight, with a dusting of snow- his daughter quoted to him an opening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/once-on-a-walk-by-a-river-eskdale-in-low-reddish-sunlight-with-a/)

[Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/)

> [. . . by natural selection our mind has adapted itself to the conditions of the external world. It has adopted the geometry most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-poincare/by-natural-selection-our-mind-has-adapted-itself-to-the-conditions-of/)

[Henri Poincare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-poincare/)

> [The right to live does not connote the right of each man to reproduce his kind ... As we lessen the stringency of natural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-pearson/the-right-to-live-does-not-connote-the-right-of-each-man-to-reproduce/)

[Karl Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-pearson/)

> [“there is every reason to suppose that people living in agrarian societies were subject to intense forces of natural selection. But what traits were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-wade/there-is-every-reason-to-suppose-that-people-living-in-agrarian/)

[Nicholas Wade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-wade/)

## More by Moxie Mezcal

> [“You can leave a place, you can leave a situation. You can quit a job, move to a different house, forget a thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/you-can-leave-a-place-you-can-leave-a-situation-you-can-quit-a-job/)

[Moxie Mezcal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/)

> [“Unfortunately, I somehow equated rebelling with turning into a giant asshole.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/unfortunately-i-somehow-equated-rebelling-with-turning-into-a-giant/)

[Moxie Mezcal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/)

> [“I realized a long time ago not to worry about whodunnit; the more answers you find, the more questions they'll keep raising.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/i-realized-a-long-time-ago-not-to-worry-about-whodunnit-the-more/)

[Moxie Mezcal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/)

> [“If we are not willing to destroy the beauty we have created, we become slaves to it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/if-we-are-not-willing-to-destroy-the-beauty-we-have-created-we-become/)

[Moxie Mezcal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/)

> [“They always try to trick you, deliberately throwing extraneous plot lines just to confuse and misguide you, withholding important information until the last chapter,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/they-always-try-to-trick-you-deliberately-throwing-extraneous-plot/)

[Moxie Mezcal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/)

> [“...the age of surveillance is only a symptom of the new hyper-narcissism that has infected our collective reality tunnels. We invite the surveillance cameras…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/the-age-of-surveillance-is-only-a-symptom-of-the-new-hyper-narcissism/)

[Moxie Mezcal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/)

> [“Who needs luck when you've got a key?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/who-needs-luck-when-you-ve-got-a-key/)

[Moxie Mezcal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/)

> [“All your dreams are ground to dust in the gears of time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/all-your-dreams-are-ground-to-dust-in-the-gears-of-time/)

[Moxie Mezcal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/)

[Explore all 9 Moxie Mezcal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/)

## More Natural selection quotes

> [“there is every reason to suppose that people living in agrarian societies were subject to intense forces of natural selection. But what traits were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-wade/there-is-every-reason-to-suppose-that-people-living-in-agrarian/)

[Nicholas Wade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-wade/)

> [The right to live does not connote the right of each man to reproduce his kind ... As we lessen the stringency of natural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-pearson/the-right-to-live-does-not-connote-the-right-of-each-man-to-reproduce/)

[Karl Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-pearson/)

> [. . . by natural selection our mind has adapted itself to the conditions of the external world. It has adopted the geometry most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-poincare/by-natural-selection-our-mind-has-adapted-itself-to-the-conditions-of/)

[Henri Poincare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-poincare/)

> [“Once, on a walk by a river- Eskdale in low reddish sunlight, with a dusting of snow- his daughter quoted to him an opening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/once-on-a-walk-by-a-river-eskdale-in-low-reddish-sunlight-with-a/)

[Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/)

> [I believe in the theory of evolution, but I believe as well in the allegorical truth of creation theory. In other words, I believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-langan/i-believe-in-the-theory-of-evolution-but-i-believe-as-well-in-the/)

[Christopher Langan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-langan/)

> [The facts of variability, of the struggle for existence, of adaptation to conditions, were notorious enough; but none of us had suspected that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-facts-of-variability-of-the-struggle-for-existence-of-adaptation/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“The most essential prediction of Darwinism is that, given an astronomical number of chances, unintelligent processes can make seemingly-designed systems, ones of the complexity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-behe/the-most-essential-prediction-of-darwinism-is-that-given-an/)

[Michael J. Behe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-behe/)

> [Zoocentrism is the primary fallacy of human sociobiology, for this view of human behavior rests on the argument that if the actions of "lower"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/zoocentrism-is-the-primary-fallacy-of-human-sociobiology-for-this/)

[Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/)

> [Ultimately, of course, you must decide for yourself whether the subjective psychological effects created by your evolved cognitive biases reflect an objective reality, perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-bering/ultimately-of-course-you-must-decide-for-yourself-whether-the/)

[Jesse Bering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-bering/)

> [It may be said that natural selection is daily and hourly scrutinizing, throughout the world, every variation, even the slightest; rejecting that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/it-may-be-said-that-natural-selection-is-daily-and-hourly/)

[Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/)

> [“The second irony of evolutionary biology is that this transubstantiation of natural theology into the grand narrative of natural selection has itself taken the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-lustig/the-second-irony-of-evolutionary-biology-is-that-this/)

Abigail Lustig

> [“Fears were learned, but they were also inherited. Natural Selection. Run from the lion. Jump away from the tiny, poisonous insects. They exist for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-miranda/fears-were-learned-but-they-were-also-inherited-natural-selection-run/)

[Megan Miranda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-miranda/)

> [To suppose that the eye could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest possible degree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/to-suppose-that-the-eye-could-have-been-formed-by-natural-selection/)

[Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/)

> [The Christians who engaged in infamous persecutions and shameful inquisitions were not evil men but misguided men. The churchmen who felt they had an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-christians-who-engaged-in-infamous-persecutions-and-shameful/)

[Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/)

> [“The earliest form of natural selection was simply a selection of stable forms and a rejection of unstable ones. There is no mystery about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-earliest-form-of-natural-selection-was-simply-a-selection-of/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

[Browse all 456 Natural selection quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural-selection/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“We have stopped natural selection from purifying the species because deep in our heart of hearts, we are all terrified that we won't make the cut.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Moxie Mezcal"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-purifying-the-species-because/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Natural selection"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-purifying-the-species-because/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10e/moxie-mezcal-45800_natural-selection_we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-p_690510.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10e/moxie-mezcal-45800_natural-selection_we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-p_690510.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10e/moxie-mezcal-45800_natural-selection_we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-p_690510.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We have stopped natural selection from purifying the species because deep in our heart of hearts, we are all…” — Moxie Mezcal",
                "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": "Moxie Mezcal",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moxie-mezcal/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“We have stopped natural selection from...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-purifying-the-species-because/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moxie-mezcal/we-have-stopped-natural-selection-from-purifying-the-species-because/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
