--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It occurred to me. . .that aberrance is a…" description: "\"“It occurred to me. . .that aberrance is a wholly human construct. There were no such things as monsters outside the human mind. We are vain and arroga..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61d/rick-yancey-831_human-mind_it-occurred-to-me-that-aberrance-is-a-wh_1962366.jpg" --- # It occurred to me. . .that aberrance is a wholly human… ![“It occurred to me. . .that aberrance is a wholly human construct. There were no such things as monsters outside the human mind. We are vain and arrogant, evolution's highest achievement and most dismal failure, prisoners of our self-awareness and the illusion that we stand in the center, that…” quote by Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61d/rick-yancey-831_human-mind_it-occurred-to-me-that-aberrance-is-a-wh_1962366.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61d/rick-yancey-831_human-mind_it-occurred-to-me-that-aberrance-is-a-wh_1962366.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61d/rick-yancey-831_human-mind_it-occurred-to-me-that-aberrance-is-a-wh_1962366.jpg) > ““It occurred to me. . .that aberrance is a wholly human construct. There were no such things as monsters outside the human mind. We are vain and arrogant, evolution's highest achievement and most dismal failure, prisoners of our self-awareness and the illusion that we stand in the center, that there is us and then there is everything else but us . But we do not stand apart from or above or in the middle of anything. There is nothing apart, nothing above, and the middle is everywhere - and nowhere. We are no more beautiful and essential or magnificent than an earthworm. In fact - and dare we go there, you and I? - you could say the worm is more beautiful, because it is innocent and we are not. The worm has no motive but to survive long enough to make baby worms. There is no betrayal, no cruelty, no envy, no lust, and no hatred in the worm's heart, and so who are the monsters and which species shall we call aberrant?”” [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Monsters are human constructs; all beings share the same indifferent existence. **In simple terms:** Monsters are imagined; all life is similar. Key Takeaway Recognize shared vulnerability and humility. Themes philosophy existentialism biology Mood contemplative somber Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - ethical debates - environmental policy - personal introspection Key Concepts human nature ego humility Questions to Reflect On - How does seeing ourselves as ordinary change behavior? - What responsibilities arise from shared existence? A Different Perspective The view may diminish moral responsibility for human actions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aberrance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aberrance-3247321/) [Aberrance Wholly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aberrance-wholly-3247322/) [Aberrant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aberrant-3247320/) [Human mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-mind/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Shall Aberrant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shall-aberrant-3247323/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Worm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worm/) ## Related quotes > [“Everything was askew—this whole time on earth, his time for being alive, was aberrant. Three”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/win-blevins/everything-was-askew-this-whole-time-on-earth-his-time-for-being/) [Win Blevins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/win-blevins/) > [Monks, nuns, long-term spinsters and bachelors and permanent homosexuals are all, in a reproductive sense, aberrant. Society has bred them, but they have failed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-morris/monks-nuns-long-term-spinsters-and-bachelors-and-permanent/) [Desmond Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-morris/) > [One who makes himself a worm cannot complain afterwards if people step on him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/one-who-makes-himself-a-worm-cannot-complain-afterwards-if-people/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) > [We are all worms. But I believe that I am a glow-worm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/we-are-all-worms-but-i-believe-that-i-am-a-glow-worm/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > ['The Lair of the White Worm' is quite a strange film. It's difficult to be good when you're saying lines that have been translated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-grant/the-lair-of-the-white-worm-is-quite-a-strange-film-it-s-difficult-to/) [Hugh Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-grant/) > [“That,” said Wednesday, driving off, “is the eternal folly of man. To be chasing after the sweet flesh, without realizing that it is simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/that-said-wednesday-driving-off-is-the-eternal-folly-of-man-to-be/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“We can shape-shift whenever we like." She made a face. "You mean all those hideous stories are true? Rats and bats and slimy worm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-feehan/we-can-shape-shift-whenever-we-like-she-made-a-face-you-mean-all/) [Christine Feehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-feehan/) > [The early bird might get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-early-bird-might-get-the-worm-but-the-second-mouse-gets-the-cheese/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It costs me never a stab nor squirm / To tread by chance upon a worm. / Aha, my little dear, / I say,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-parker/it-costs-me-never-a-stab-nor-squirm-to-tread-by-chance-upon-a-worm/) [Dorothy Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-parker/) > [God gives every bird a worm, but he does not throw it into the nest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-gives-every-bird-a-worm-but-he-does-not-throw-it-into-the-nest/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The early bird may get the worm, but its the second mouse that gets the cheese.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-paxman/the-early-bird-may-get-the-worm-but-its-the-second-mouse-that-gets/) [Jeremy Paxman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-paxman/) > [Back up everything! You are not invulnerable. Catastrophic data loss can happen to you - one worm or Trojan is all it takes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mitnick/back-up-everything-you-are-not-invulnerable-catastrophic-data-loss/) [Kevin Mitnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mitnick/) > [The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-early-bird-gets-the-worm-but-the-second-mouse-gets-the-cheese/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In neurotics, worm phobias are usually found as well as snake phobias.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-abraham/in-neurotics-worm-phobias-are-usually-found-as-well-as-snake-phobias/) [Karl Abraham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-abraham/) > [It has long been my desire to be a little worm in the fair apple of Progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherwood-anderson/it-has-long-been-my-desire-to-be-a-little-worm-in-the-fair-apple-of/) [Sherwood Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherwood-anderson/) ## More by Rick Yancey > [“Don't you get it yet? The minute we decide that one person doesn't matter anymore, they've won."..."Beneath a sky crowded with a billion stars.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/don-t-you-get-it-yet-the-minute-we-decide-that-one-person-doesn-t/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [The way we learn to write is the way we learn to talk: We listen to others and start mimicking speech, and that's how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/the-way-we-learn-to-write-is-the-way-we-learn-to-talk-we-listen-to/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [I have a very low tolerance for boredom and often think I would have missed out on books entirely if Id grown up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/i-have-a-very-low-tolerance-for-boredom-and-often-think-i-would-have/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [There are things that are too terrible to remember, and there are things that are almost too wonderful to recall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/there-are-things-that-are-too-terrible-to-remember-and-there-are/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [I've loved sci-fi and speculative fiction since I was a kid. It was inevitable I'd try my hand at it at some point.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/i-ve-loved-sci-fi-and-speculative-fiction-since-i-was-a-kid-it-was/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [“I can’t leave him. I made a promise.” I start to explain it, but I don’t even know how to begin. How do I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/i-can-t-leave-him-i-made-a-promise-i-start-to-explain-it-but-i-don-t/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [“That's my big problem. That's it! Before the Arrival,guys like Evan Walker never looked twice at me, much less shot wild game for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/that-s-my-big-problem-that-s-it-before-the-arrival-guys-like-evan/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [I'm one, too," he said. "What?" He spit a wad of blood and mucus into the dirt. "A virgin." What a shock. "What makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/i-m-one-too-he-said-what-he-spit-a-wad-of-blood-and-mucus-into-the/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [Good God, man, what is that smell?" He eyed with disgust the doctor's filthy cloak. "Life," answered the doctor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/good-god-man-what-is-that-smell-he-eyed-with-disgust-the-doctor-s/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [“He drops into the room, landing on the balls of his feet like a cat. I'm in his arms in the time it takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/he-drops-into-the-room-landing-on-the-balls-of-his-feet-like-a-cat-i/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [“All things do happen for a reason... . Is this not the foundation of our faith? You are here-all of us-because we are but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/all-things-do-happen-for-a-reason-is-this-not-the-foundation-of-our/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [“Her raised his face to the weeping sky, closed his dark eyes, and sighed deeply, a smile playing on his sensuous lips. "The bloody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/her-raised-his-face-to-the-weeping-sky-closed-his-dark-eyes-and/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [To hold on, you have to find something you’re willing to die for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/to-hold-on-you-have-to-find-something-you-re-willing-to-die-for/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [I brought Sammy inside and put him to bed. Said his prayer with him. “‘Now I lay me down to sleep…’” To me, just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/i-brought-sammy-inside-and-put-him-to-bed-said-his-prayer-with-him/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) > [A moment comes in war when the last line must be crossed. The line that separates what you hold dear from what total war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/a-moment-comes-in-war-when-the-last-line-must-be-crossed-the-line/) [Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) [Explore all 342 Rick Yancey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/) ## More Human mind quotes > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [Dogma is a powerful way of closing human mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-marley/dogma-is-a-powerful-way-of-closing-human-mind/) [Peter Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-marley/) > [“The more that the human mind is enlightened, the more desirous it becomes of farther acquisitions in knowledge. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-stewart/the-more-that-the-human-mind-is-enlightened-the-more-desirous-it/) [Alexander Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-stewart/) > [“But I tell you, Winston, that reality is not external. Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else. Whatever the Party holds to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/but-i-tell-you-winston-that-reality-is-not-external-reality-exists-in/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [ It is certain that every class is interested in \[educational\] establishments which give to the human mind its highest improvements, and to every Country… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/it-is-certain-that-every-class-is-interested-in-educational/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [Just take one thing out and the whole palace, the whole edifice of the human mind collapses. Take effort out of it and desiring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/just-take-one-thing-out-and-the-whole-palace-the-whole-edifice-of-the/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [Freedom is the very essence of our economy and society. Without freedom the human mind is prevented from unleashing its creative force. But what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-merkel/freedom-is-the-very-essence-of-our-economy-and-society-without/) [Angela Merkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-merkel/) > [Charity is the filthiest invention of the human mind: first you steal what belongs to everyone; then you use the law and various other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u-g-krishnamurti/charity-is-the-filthiest-invention-of-the-human-mind-first-you-steal/) [U.G. Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/u-g-krishnamurti/) > [“artificial intelligence is forcing human endeavor away from simple, algorithmic and repetitive tasks towards solving problems and incubating new ideas. It is the human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gyan-nagpal/artificial-intelligence-is-forcing-human-endeavor-away-from-simple/) [Gyan Nagpal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gyan-nagpal/) > [“There are very few intellectual elites and those who think they are, are merely not and those who are not shows us the intellectual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santosh-kalwar/there-are-very-few-intellectual-elites-and-those-who-think-they-are/) [Santosh Kalwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santosh-kalwar/) > [“Story is one of the foundation stones of the human mind along with rhythm and chant. If a collection of facts lacks a narrative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-vehafric/story-is-one-of-the-foundation-stones-of-the-human-mind-along-with/) [Frank Vehafric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-vehafric/) > [“A sense of security, a feeling that a truce was established between the present hour and the irresistible, disastrous future imparted to me a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-shelley/a-sense-of-security-a-feeling-that-a-truce-was-established-between/) [Mary Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-shelley/) > [What makes us human is not our mind but our heart, not our ability to think but our ability to love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-makes-us-human-is-not-our-mind-but-our-heart-not-our-ability-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [This is one of the glories of man, the inventiveness of the human mind and the human spirit: whenever life doesn't seem to give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorraine-hansberry/this-is-one-of-the-glories-of-man-the-inventiveness-of-the-human-mind/) [Lorraine Hansberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorraine-hansberry/) [Browse all 1,417 Human mind quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-mind/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It occurred to me. . .that aberrance is a wholly human construct. 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