--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The naive thing I suppose is simply that…" description: "\"The naive thing I suppose is simply that we thought, in the words of Francis Fukuyama, that we had reached the end of history and we were entering a br..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcb/nicholas-meyer-16558_brave_the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that_862838.png" --- # The naive thing I suppose is simply that we thought, in… ![“The naive thing I suppose is simply that we thought, in the words of Francis Fukuyama, that we had reached the end of history and we were entering a brave new world minus the Soviet Union where everything was going to be peaches and cream.” quote by Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcb/nicholas-meyer-16558_brave_the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that_862838.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcb/nicholas-meyer-16558_brave_the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that_862838.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcb/nicholas-meyer-16558_brave_the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that_862838.png) > “The naive thing I suppose is simply that we thought, in the words of Francis Fukuyama, that we had reached the end of history and we were entering a brave new world minus the Soviet Union where everything was going to be peaches and cream.” [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The belief that history has ended leads to complacency about future challenges, ignoring new complexities after the Cold War. **In simple terms:** Thinking history is over makes us ignore future problems. Key Takeaway Recognize ongoing change and adapt. Themes history politics optimism Mood reflective cautious Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - policy planning - global relations - technology forecasts - social movements Key Concepts Fukuyama’s end of history post‑Cold War dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How does believing in a final stage affect decision‑making? - What new challenges are we overlooking? A Different Perspective Optimism may blind us to emerging threats. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Brave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brave/) [Brave new world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brave-new-world/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [New world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-world/) [Soviet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soviet/) [Soviet union](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soviet-union/) [Unions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unions/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“Each people behaves as if it had reached the end of history.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/each-people-behaves-as-if-it-had-reached-the-end-of-history/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [As a kid, I was naive. One thing I did have a dream of, though: I had a dream I would make a kung-fu…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rza/as-a-kid-i-was-naive-one-thing-i-did-have-a-dream-of-though-i-had-a/) [Rza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rza/) > [You kill -- You die." That was probably the most naive thing I've ever said. The fact is -- in most cases, NOW, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kirkman/you-kill-you-die-that-was-probably-the-most-naive-thing-i-ve-ever/) [Robert Kirkman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kirkman/) > [It is always important to know when something has reached its end. Closing circles, shutting doors, finishing chapters, it doesnt matter what we call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-is-always-important-to-know-when-something-has-reached-its-end/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“It is always important to know when something has reached its end. Closing circles, shutting doors, finishing chapters, it doesn’t matter what we call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-is-always-important-to-know-when-something-has-reached-its-end-2/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [I felt like I had reached the end of a period of life, where the work was jumping about and pushing something new every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-cooke/i-felt-like-i-had-reached-the-end-of-a-period-of-life-where-the-work/) [Nigel Cooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-cooke/) > [Never be satisfied, Keep pushing. Never believe you've arrived or that you have reached the end. That's actually just the beginning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/never-be-satisfied-keep-pushing-never-believe-you-ve-arrived-or-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But a pawn could become a queen if she reached the end and came back again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-harrison/but-a-pawn-could-become-a-queen-if-she-reached-the-end-and-came-back/) [Kim Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-harrison/) > [To see where something leads, it's best to wait until you've reached the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-millman/to-see-where-something-leads-it-s-best-to-wait-until-you-ve-reached/) [Dan Millman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-millman/) > [When you feel that you have reached the end and that you cannot go one step further, when life seems to be drained of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eileen-caddy/when-you-feel-that-you-have-reached-the-end-and-that-you-cannot-go/) [Eileen Caddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eileen-caddy/) > [I won't miss Grissom. It was a complete life for me that's reached its end, and it's reached it in the right way, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-petersen/i-won-t-miss-grissom-it-was-a-complete-life-for-me-that-s-reached-its/) [William Petersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-petersen/) > [We have reached the end of the road that is built on the set of traits held out for male identity--advance at any cost,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-have-reached-the-end-of-the-road-that-is-built-on-the-set-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If serious reading dwindles to near nothingness, it will probably mean that the thing we're talking about when we use the word "identity" has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/if-serious-reading-dwindles-to-near-nothingness-it-will-probably-mean/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [Walk, walk till you reached the end of the road, where all of your dreams awaits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/walk-walk-till-you-reached-the-end-of-the-road-where-all-of-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I’m not going to have what I want from you until you’ve reached the end of the road with him. I’ve got all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-day/i-m-not-going-to-have-what-i-want-from-you-until-you-ve-reached-the/) [Sylvia Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-day/) ## More by Nicholas Meyer > [Actors will change their face, will change their hair, will change their voice, will disappear into the role. A movie star doesn't disappear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/actors-will-change-their-face-will-change-their-hair-will-change/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [No rock and roll ensemble, however inspired, can deliver the kind of musical variety obtainable with the resources of 110 instruments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/no-rock-and-roll-ensemble-however-inspired-can-deliver-the-kind-of/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [Roddenberry had his own utopian vision about he perfectibility of man, and I never really believed that. And I don’t think the show demonstrates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/roddenberry-had-his-own-utopian-vision-about-he-perfectibility-of-man/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [There are moments in one's life where you look back and you say, 'Well, I wish I had done this differently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/there-are-moments-in-one-s-life-where-you-look-back-and-you-say-well/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [I never gave my career much strategic thought. Maybe I should have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/i-never-gave-my-career-much-strategic-thought-maybe-i-should-have/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [Movie studios, Hollywood studios, by and large are not making the kind of movies that I go to see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/movie-studios-hollywood-studios-by-and-large-are-not-making-the-kind/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [I wrote an article not so long ago that was published in the Los Angeles Times, and I think I titled it "Movies vs.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/i-wrote-an-article-not-so-long-ago-that-was-published-in-the-los/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [The first thing that put me on the map was my Sherlock Holmes novel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/the-first-thing-that-put-me-on-the-map-was-my-sherlock-holmes-novel/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [But you have to understand what that really did is that it opened these DVDs to be sources of oral history instead of puff…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/but-you-have-to-understand-what-that-really-did-is-that-it-opened/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [My father's book is about is about a number of things, but about Houdini's rage to not be a failure like his father, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/my-father-s-book-is-about-is-about-a-number-of-things-but-about/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [I'm mainly interested in people trying to figure s#!t out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/i-m-mainly-interested-in-people-trying-to-figure-s-t-out/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [An actor is someone who pretends to be somebody else. A movie star is somebody who pretends that somebody else is them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/an-actor-is-someone-who-pretends-to-be-somebody-else-a-movie-star-is/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [I was always a filmmaker before I was anything else. If I was always anything, I was a storyteller, and it never really made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/i-was-always-a-filmmaker-before-i-was-anything-else-if-i-was-always/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [When you read a history or biography you are entitled to imagine that it is as accurate as the authors can make it. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/when-you-read-a-history-or-biography-you-are-entitled-to-imagine-that/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) > [What’s the difference between and actor and a movie star. An actor is someone who pretends to be somebody else. A movie star is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/what-s-the-difference-between-and-actor-and-a-movie-star-an-actor-is/) [Nicholas Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) [Explore all 39 Nicholas Meyer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/) ## More Brave quotes > [In the current climate, things that are true, brave human stories become political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/in-the-current-climate-things-that-are-true-brave-human-stories/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [If You Love Someone, Be Brave Enough To Tell Them., Otherwise Be Brave Enough To Watch Them To Be Loved By Someone Else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bilal-zahoor/if-you-love-someone-be-brave-enough-to-tell-them-otherwise-be-brave/) [Bilal Zahoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bilal-zahoor/) > [Be convinced that to be happy means to be free and that to be free means to be brave. Therefore do not take lightly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thucydides/be-convinced-that-to-be-happy-means-to-be-free-and-that-to-be-free/) [Thucydides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thucydides/) > [It's always brave to be yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liu-yifei/it-s-always-brave-to-be-yourself/) [Liu Yifei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liu-yifei/) > [“Victory is for the fucking brave, not the timid and excuse-riddled weak.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zakk-wylde/victory-is-for-the-fucking-brave-not-the-timid-and-excuse-riddled-weak/) [Zakk Wylde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zakk-wylde/) > [I'm very proud of 'Every Girl's a Super Girl.' I want all girls to know that no matter what size, color, or shape, whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jojo-siwa/i-m-very-proud-of-every-girl-s-a-super-girl-i-want-all-girls-to-know/) [JoJo Siwa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jojo-siwa/) > [And I read the moral--A brave endeavour To do thy duty, whate'er its worth, Is better than life with love forever, And love is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-jeffrey-roche/and-i-read-the-moral-a-brave-endeavour-to-do-thy-duty-whate-er-its/) James Jeffrey Roche > [I admire machinery as much is any man, and am as thankful to it as any man can be for what it does for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-admire-machinery-as-much-is-any-man-and-am-as-thankful-to-it-as-any/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [You know what really made me sick? 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They can face anything, except reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mikes/the-british-are-brave-people-they-can-face-anything-except-reality/) [George Mikes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mikes/) [Browse all 3,314 Brave quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brave/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The naive thing I suppose is simply that we thought, in the words of Francis Fukuyama, that we had reached the end of history and we were entering a brave new world minus the Soviet Union where everything was going to be peaches and cream.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nicholas Meyer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that-we-thought-in-the-words-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Brave" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that-we-thought-in-the-words-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcb/nicholas-meyer-16558_brave_the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that_862838.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcb/nicholas-meyer-16558_brave_the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that_862838.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fcb/nicholas-meyer-16558_brave_the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that_862838.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The naive thing I suppose is simply that we thought, in the words of Francis Fukuyama, that we had reached…” — Nicholas Meyer", "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": "Nicholas Meyer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-meyer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The naive thing I suppose is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that-we-thought-in-the-words-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-meyer/the-naive-thing-i-suppose-is-simply-that-we-thought-in-the-words-of/#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 } } ] } ```