--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In the best stories, people are morally…" description: "\"In the best stories, people are morally complex; they are flawed. We read them because the world is flawed, and we want to see it truthfully represente..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b93/russell-smith-9877_bad_in-the-best-stories-people-are-morally-c_1460502.jpg" --- # In the best stories, people are morally complex; they are… ![“In the best stories, people are morally complex; they are flawed. We read them because the world is flawed, and we want to see it truthfully represented. And because it can be thrilling to be shocked and upset, and even to feel, for chilling moments, what it's like to be a bad person.” quote by Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b93/russell-smith-9877_bad_in-the-best-stories-people-are-morally-c_1460502.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b93/russell-smith-9877_bad_in-the-best-stories-people-are-morally-c_1460502.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b93/russell-smith-9877_bad_in-the-best-stories-people-are-morally-c_1460502.jpg) > “In the best stories, people are morally complex; they are flawed. We read them because the world is flawed, and we want to see it truthfully represented. And because it can be thrilling to be shocked and upset, and even to feel, for chilling moments, what it's like to be a bad person.” [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights that moral ambiguity in characters mirrors real-world complexity, making stories compelling and emotionally resonant. **In simple terms:** Flawed characters reflect a flawed world, creating engaging narratives. Key Takeaway Embrace complexity in storytelling. Themes morality character storytelling empathy Mood thoughtful intrigued Type analytical reflective When to use this quote - reading fiction - writing - film analysis - discussing ethics Key Concepts human nature ethical ambiguity psychology Questions to Reflect On - How does moral ambiguity affect your connection to a story? - What does it reveal about societal values? A Different Perspective Complexity can alienate audiences seeking clear heroes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad/) [Bad person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-person/) [Because](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/because/) [Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best/) [Chilling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chilling/) [Complex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complex/) [Even](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/even/) [Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel/) [Flawed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flawed/) [Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Morally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morally/) [Morally Complex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morally-complex-5274816/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Morally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-morally-684186/) [Person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/person/) [Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read/) [See](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/see/) [Shocked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shocked/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Stories People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-people/) [Them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/them/) [Thrilling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thrilling/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Truthfully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truthfully/) [Upset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/upset/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [World Flawed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-flawed-1304791/) ## Related quotes > [I think that running empires as a way of ordering the world is a flawed model.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/i-think-that-running-empires-as-a-way-of-ordering-the-world-is-a/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [I'm like everyone else in this stupid, bloody, amazing world. 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Our interest in it is not merely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-adler/the-conception-of-worth-that-each-person-is-an-end-per-se-is-not-a/) [Felix Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-adler/) > [If I have a mission in life, it is to convince people that everyone is morally motivated - everyone except for psychopaths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-haidt/if-i-have-a-mission-in-life-it-is-to-convince-people-that-everyone-is/) [Jonathan Haidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-haidt/) > [“But I feel like letting other people be good for me--after all, I'm just an unhappy little girl and even if I'm extremely intelligent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-barbery/but-i-feel-like-letting-other-people-be-good-for-me-after-all-i-m/) [Muriel Barbery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-barbery/) ## More by Russell Smith > [If you tell your husband or boyfriend for his whole life that he needn't worry about his clothes, that he couldn't possibly understand them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/if-you-tell-your-husband-or-boyfriend-for-his-whole-life-that-he/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [Canadian writers don't live in gated mansions; you can just talk to them when you see them lining up at the Second Cup.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/canadian-writers-don-t-live-in-gated-mansions-you-can-just-talk-to/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [I was given a thick paperback copy of the 'Guinness Book of Records' when I was 11 years old, and I read it gluttonously,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/i-was-given-a-thick-paperback-copy-of-the-guinness-book-of-records/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [I would rather be nuts than unattractive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/i-would-rather-be-nuts-than-unattractive/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [What I would love to see is art that explicitly addresses not personal intimacies but anonymous intimacies: the vast collections of facts about you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/what-i-would-love-to-see-is-art-that-explicitly-addresses-not/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [Indeed, the whole point of the man bun, I have surmised, is to assert a high proficiency at yoga. 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And snobbery, it goes without saying, is unacceptable in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/increasingly-to-dismiss-any-popular-artistic-style-is-seen-as-the/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [What I don't understand is why men have decided that they like wearing hats indoors. It makes no sense to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/what-i-don-t-understand-is-why-men-have-decided-that-they-like/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [I am indeed completely nuts, but that doesn't mean I don't care about how I look. 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We simply cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/one-of-the-qualities-essential-to-writing-exciting-stories-whether/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [I have never, ever, not once, met a writer who said he or she would never read a mystery or a story set in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/i-have-never-ever-not-once-met-a-writer-who-said-he-or-she-would/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) [Explore all 69 Russell Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) ## More Bad quotes > [If I am going to be phased out by whatever powers, then I want people to know that it is not because I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parvathy/if-i-am-going-to-be-phased-out-by-whatever-powers-then-i-want-people/) [Parvathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parvathy/) > [Sometimes I'm in a bad mood, sometimes I'm in a good mood. 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So I feel bad about spending excess amount of money on things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/my-conscience-is-really-active-so-i-feel-bad-about-spending-excess/) [Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/) [Browse all 7,973 Bad quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In the best stories, people are morally complex; they are flawed. We read them because the world is flawed, and we want to see it truthfully represented. 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