--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Man creates what he calls history as a…" description: "\"Man creates what he calls history as a screen to conceal the workings of the apocalypse from himself.\" — Northrop Frye" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73f/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-s_1031693.png" --- # Man creates what he calls history as a screen to conceal… ![“Man creates what he calls history as a screen to conceal the workings of the apocalypse from himself.” quote by Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73f/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-s_1031693.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73f/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-s_1031693.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73f/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-s_1031693.png) > “Man creates what he calls history as a screen to conceal the workings of the apocalypse from himself.” [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. History is a construct that hides humanity’s deeper, chaotic forces. **In simple terms:** History masks deeper truths. Key Takeaway Question the narratives we accept. Themes history perception mythmaking Mood analytical skeptical Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - academic lectures - critical essays - public debates Key Concepts literary theory apocalypse symbolism Questions to Reflect On - What truths might be hidden behind accepted histories? - How does myth shape our view of the past? A Different Perspective Historical narratives can also empower collective identity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apocalypse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apocalypse/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) ## Related quotes > [Modern man creates fancy cars while losing the sacredness of his feet and lungs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-ilg/modern-man-creates-fancy-cars-while-losing-the-sacredness-of-his-feet/) [Steve Ilg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-ilg/) > [“Man creates truths, believes in them and submits to them”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederico-rochaferreira/man-creates-truths-believes-in-them-and-submits-to-them/) [Frederico Rochaferreira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederico-rochaferreira/) > [Man is, above all, he who creates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/man-is-above-all-he-who-creates/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [Each man creates god in his own image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mordecai-richler/each-man-creates-god-in-his-own-image/) [Mordecai Richler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mordecai-richler/) > [A "critic" is a man who creates nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/a-critic-is-a-man-who-creates-nothing/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [The man who arrives at the doors of artistic creation with none of the madness of the Muses would be convinced that technical ability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-man-who-arrives-at-the-doors-of-artistic-creation-with-none-of/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“Man creates the link between Nature and Archetype.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mouni-sadhu/man-creates-the-link-between-nature-and-archetype/) Mouni Sadhu > [Each man creates a hole, big or small in this world which cannot be filled by anyone other than that..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/each-man-creates-a-hole-big-or-small-in-this-world-which-cannot-be/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [“And it is in his own image, let us remember, that Man creates God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-it-is-in-his-own-image-let-us-remember-that-man-creates-god/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“It is no blasphemy to say that every man creates the God creating him. We are facets of a work whose finished form we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-wiman/it-is-no-blasphemy-to-say-that-every-man-creates-the-god-creating-him/) [Christian Wiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-wiman/) > [Man never creates, he only recombines the lines and colors of his own existance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/man-never-creates-he-only-recombines-the-lines-and-colors-of-his-own/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [God creates the animals, man creates himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/god-creates-the-animals-man-creates-himself/) [Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) > [Literally, the Bible is a gigantic myth, a narrative extending over the whole of time from creation to apocalypse, unified by a body of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literally-the-bible-is-a-gigantic-myth-a-narrative-extending-over-the/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [I see a sequence of seven main phases: creation,revolution or exodus (Israel in Egypt), law, wisdom, prophecy, gospel, and apocalypse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/i-see-a-sequence-of-seven-main-phases-creation-revolution-or-exodus/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Literature is a human apocalypse, man's revelation to man, and criticism is not a body of adjudications, but the awareness of that revelation, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literature-is-a-human-apocalypse-man-s-revelation-to-man-and/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) ## More by Northrop Frye > [I soon realized that a student of English literature who does not know the Bible does not understand a good deal of what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/i-soon-realized-that-a-student-of-english-literature-who-does-not/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Our country has shown a lack of will to resist its own disintegration .. . Canada is practically the only country left in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/our-country-has-shown-a-lack-of-will-to-resist-its-own-disintegration/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [“The only thing that words can do with any real precision or accuracy is hang together. Accuracy of description in language is not possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/the-only-thing-that-words-can-do-with-any-real-precision-or-accuracy/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [The bedrock of doubt is the total nothingness of death. Death is a leveler, not because everybody dies, but because nobody understands what death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/the-bedrock-of-doubt-is-the-total-nothingness-of-death-death-is-a/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Even the human heart is slightly left of centre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/even-the-human-heart-is-slightly-left-of-centre/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Physics is an organized body of knowledge about nature, and a student of it says that he is learning physics, not nature. Art, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/physics-is-an-organized-body-of-knowledge-about-nature-and-a-student/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Literature as a whole is not an aggregate of exhibits with red and blue ribbons attached to them, like a cat-show, but the range…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literature-as-a-whole-is-not-an-aggregate-of-exhibits-with-red-and/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [One doesn't bother to believe the credible: the credible is believed already, by definition. There's no adventure of the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/one-doesn-t-bother-to-believe-the-credible-the-credible-is-believed/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Culture's essential service to a religion is to destroy intellectual idolatry, the recurrent tendency in religion to replace the object of its worship with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/culture-s-essential-service-to-a-religion-is-to-destroy-intellectual/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [“Tendintele autoritate ale conservatorismului trebuie corectate prin mituri ale libertatii, in vreme ce un simt conservator al ordinii trebuie sa tempereze tendintele liberalismului spre…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/tendintele-autoritate-ale-conservatorismului-trebuie-corectate-prin/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Literature is a human apocalypse, man's revelation to man, and criticism is not a body of adjudications, but the awareness of that revelation, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/literature-is-a-human-apocalypse-man-s-revelation-to-man-and/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [“The particular myth that's been organizing this talk, and in a way the whole series, is the story of the Tower of Babel in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/the-particular-myth-that-s-been-organizing-this-talk-and-in-a-way-the/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Every human society possesses a mythology which is inherited, transmitted and diversified by literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/every-human-society-possesses-a-mythology-which-is-inherited/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Science begins with the world we have to live in, accepting its data and trying to explain its laws. From there, it moves toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/science-begins-with-the-world-we-have-to-live-in-accepting-its-data/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [In the world of the imagination, anything goes that's imaginatively possible, but nothing really happens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/in-the-world-of-the-imagination-anything-goes-that-s-imaginatively/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) [Explore all 129 Northrop Frye quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) ## More Apocalypse quotes > [People always wonder when the world is going to end. I believe that the world will end when everyone stops loving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nichole-fickes/people-always-wonder-when-the-world-is-going-to-end-i-believe-that/) [Nichole Fickes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nichole-fickes/) > [A South Korean inventor has finally created the robot that mankind has been waiting for. Scientists who have been worried about the robot apocalypse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-pesca/a-south-korean-inventor-has-finally-created-the-robot-that-mankind/) [Mike Pesca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-pesca/) > [The end of the world begins the moment you die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/the-end-of-the-world-begins-the-moment-you-die/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [If it makes you feel any better, this isn't my first apocalypse. There is hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/if-it-makes-you-feel-any-better-this-isn-t-my-first-apocalypse-there/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [Funerals and weddings were commonplace, and nothing could have been so interesting to them as the coming of the end of the world ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-eggleston/funerals-and-weddings-were-commonplace-and-nothing-could-have-been-so/) [Edward Eggleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-eggleston/) > [“The world did not end with a bang, nor did it end with a whimper. It was more of a chomp. And a slurp.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-rudolph/the-world-did-not-end-with-a-bang-nor-did-it-end-with-a-whimper-it/) J. Rudolph > [Nuclear apocalypse-who do you need? Actors are probably not top of the list. What can I do for you? I can pretend to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-bale/nuclear-apocalypse-who-do-you-need-actors-are-probably-not-top-of-the/) [Christian Bale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-bale/) > [“It was a comfortable, familiar apocalypse,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-barnes/it-was-a-comfortable-familiar-apocalypse/) [Adrian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-barnes/) > [In the New Testament alone there are Gospels, acts, epistles, and an apocalypse. Gospels contain literary forms like miracles, parables, pronouncements, proverbs, farewell discourses,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-blomberg/in-the-new-testament-alone-there-are-gospels-acts-epistles-and-an/) [Craig Blomberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-blomberg/) > [The day came. The wrath descended. Sin, guilt, and retribution? The manic psychoses of those entities we referred to as states, institutions, systems -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/the-day-came-the-wrath-descended-sin-guilt-and-retribution-the-manic/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [“People have always been good at imagining the end of the world, which is much easier to picture than the strange sidelong paths of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/people-have-always-been-good-at-imagining-the-end-of-the-world-which/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [The awkward moment when you predict the end of the world and nothing happens :P](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-awkward-moment-when-you-predict-the-end-of-the-world-and-nothing/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I once fed a dog-fight operator to the dogs he had abused for so long, and do you want to know something? It felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cedric-nye/i-once-fed-a-dog-fight-operator-to-the-dogs-he-had-abused-for-so-long/) [Cedric Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cedric-nye/) > [“You and I are victims of the same disease. We're fighting the same war, just different battles in different theaters, and it's way too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/you-and-i-are-victims-of-the-same-disease-we-re-fighting-the-same-war/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [I've been around long enough now and have learned to be flexible enough to know that every movie isn't going to be Apocalypse Now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-fishburne/i-ve-been-around-long-enough-now-and-have-learned-to-be-flexible/) [Laurence Fishburne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-fishburne/) [Browse all 820 Apocalypse quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apocalypse/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Man creates what he calls history as a screen to conceal the workings of the apocalypse from himself.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Northrop Frye" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-screen-to-conceal-the-workings/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Apocalypse" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-screen-to-conceal-the-workings/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73f/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-s_1031693.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73f/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-s_1031693.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73f/northrop-frye-3483_apocalypse_man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-s_1031693.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Man creates what he calls history as a screen to conceal the workings of the apocalypse from himself.” — Northrop Frye", "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": "Northrop Frye", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Man creates what he calls history...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-screen-to-conceal-the-workings/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/man-creates-what-he-calls-history-as-a-screen-to-conceal-the-workings/#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 } } ] } ```