--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I do think that there is such a thing as…" description: "\"I do think that there is such a thing as human nature, and that the things that we have in common are perhaps greater than the things that divide us.\" ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/salman-rushdie-153_common_i-do-think-that-there-is-such-a-thing-as_2442945.jpg" --- # I do think that there is such a thing as human nature, and… ![“I do think that there is such a thing as human nature, and that the things that we have in common are perhaps greater than the things that divide us.” quote by Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/salman-rushdie-153_common_i-do-think-that-there-is-such-a-thing-as_2442945.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/salman-rushdie-153_common_i-do-think-that-there-is-such-a-thing-as_2442945.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/salman-rushdie-153_common_i-do-think-that-there-is-such-a-thing-as_2442945.jpg) > “I do think that there is such a thing as human nature, and that the things that we have in common are perhaps greater than the things that divide us.” [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human nature unites us more than it divides, emphasizing shared traits over differences. **In simple terms:** Common humanity outweighs division. Key Takeaway Recognize shared traits. Themes humanity unity commonality Mood thoughtful optimistic Type reflective inspirational When to use this quote - political discourse - community building - conflict resolution Key Concepts philosophy psychology sociology Questions to Reflect On - How can we foster unity despite differences? - What shared values can we emphasize? A Different Perspective May overlook individual differences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Greater things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greater-things/) [Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human/) [Human nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-nature/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [We don't need to talk about the things that divide us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslyn-lewis/we-don-t-need-to-talk-about-the-things-that-divide-us/) [Leslyn Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslyn-lewis/) > [When you strip away all the little things that divide us, it's important to remember how tied we are](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/when-you-strip-away-all-the-little-things-that-divide-us-it-s/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [“Don’t let the little things divide you when your agreement on the big things should bind you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/don-t-let-the-little-things-divide-you-when-your-agreement-on-the-big/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [The stupidity of militarized fences between two worlds is a metaphor for all the things that divide us as human beings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-alberto-urrea/the-stupidity-of-militarized-fences-between-two-worlds-is-a-metaphor/) [Luis Alberto Urrea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-alberto-urrea/) > [So unless we come together as a people and stop our foolish beefing among each other, sit down like intelligent men and women and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-farrakhan/so-unless-we-come-together-as-a-people-and-stop-our-foolish-beefing/) [Louis Farrakhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-farrakhan/) > [The Things That Divide Us Are Stronger Than The Things That Unite Us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-hickman/the-things-that-divide-us-are-stronger-than-the-things-that-unite-us/) [Jonathan Hickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-hickman/) > [It's easy to focus on the things that divide us. Sometimes too easy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-miller/it-s-easy-to-focus-on-the-things-that-divide-us-sometimes-too-easy/) [Dan Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-miller/) > [When your goal is to bring together the country in a substantive way to say that we're united by values and more - that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-gerson/when-your-goal-is-to-bring-together-the-country-in-a-substantive-way/) [Michael Gerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-gerson/) > [We came to America, either ourselves or in the persons of our ancestors, to better the ideals of men, to make them see finer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woodrow-wilson/we-came-to-america-either-ourselves-or-in-the-persons-of-our/) [Woodrow Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woodrow-wilson/) > [We are not going to dwell on those things that divide us. We are going to rejoice in those things that keep us together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/we-are-not-going-to-dwell-on-those-things-that-divide-us-we-are-going/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [Our common humanity is more important than all the things that divide us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mairead-corrigan/our-common-humanity-is-more-important-than-all-the-things-that-divide/) [Mairead Corrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mairead-corrigan/) > [In ordinary life, we are not aware of the unity of all things, but divide the world into separate objects and events. This division…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fritjof-capra/in-ordinary-life-we-are-not-aware-of-the-unity-of-all-things-but/) [Fritjof Capra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fritjof-capra/) > [While we celebrate our diversity, what surprises me time and time again as I travel around the constituency is that we are far more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-cox/while-we-celebrate-our-diversity-what-surprises-me-time-and-time/) [Jo Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-cox/) > [I believe in only one thing and that thing is human liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/i-believe-in-only-one-thing-and-that-thing-is-human-liberty/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [The image is one thing and the human being is another...it's very hard to live up to an image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvis-presley/the-image-is-one-thing-and-the-human-being-is-another-it-s-very-hard/) [Elvis Presley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvis-presley/) ## More by Salman Rushdie > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [It's a terrible thing that your life turns into a good story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/it-s-a-terrible-thing-that-your-life-turns-into-a-good-story/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [Sometimes by a woodland stream he watched the water rush over the pebbled bed, its tiny modulations of bounce and flow. A woman's body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/sometimes-by-a-woodland-stream-he-watched-the-water-rush-over-the/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I want to write novels. I want to write stories. I want to do the stuff that I became a writer to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-want-to-write-novels-i-want-to-write-stories-i-want-to-do-the-stuff/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [If you want to be a serious writer, then you have to write what there is to write about. If you're going to pull…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-you-want-to-be-a-serious-writer-then-you-have-to-write-what-there/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Después de exigir mi marcha, ya no posees jurisdicción en lo concerniente a mi salud.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/despu-s-de-exigir-mi-marcha-ya-no-posees-jurisdicci-n-en-lo/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [If there is a choice between absolute safety and freedom, then freedom must always prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-there-is-a-choice-between-absolute-safety-and-freedom-then-freedom/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I'm not a prophet, but I always thought it was natural for dictatorships to fall. I remember in 1989, two months before the fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-not-a-prophet-but-i-always-thought-it-was-natural-for/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I'd wanted to create a storm so that I could become more famous and richer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-d-wanted-to-create-a-storm-so-that-i-could-become-more-famous-and/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [Who what am I? My answer: I am the sum total of everything that went before me, of all I have been seen done,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/who-what-am-i-my-answer-i-am-the-sum-total-of-everything-that-went/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“...proving once again that there was no escape from recurrence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/proving-once-again-that-there-was-no-escape-from-recurrence/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“information, in a stream-of-consciousness soliloquy that revealed the extent to which he had internalised the adversarial fragmentation of American culture and made it a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/information-in-a-stream-of-consciousness-soliloquy-that-revealed-the/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [A little bit of one story joins onto an idea from another, and hey presto, . . . not old tales but new ones.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/a-little-bit-of-one-story-joins-onto-an-idea-from-another-and-hey/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I'm a novelist. Fortunately I don't have to rule the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-a-novelist-fortunately-i-don-t-have-to-rule-the-world/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [The First Amendment defends all forms of speech including hate speech, which is why groups like Ku Klux Klan are allowed to utter their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/the-first-amendment-defends-all-forms-of-speech-including-hate-speech/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) [Explore all 1,087 Salman Rushdie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) ## More Common quotes > [I'm Fine!, the most common LIE in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-m-fine-the-most-common-lie-in-the-world/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) > [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/) [Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/) > [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [Our times demand the declaration of the world's resources as the common heritage of all people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/our-times-demand-the-declaration-of-the-world-s-resources-as-the/) [Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/) > [ Neither Italian fascism nor German national "socialism" have anything in common with such a \[Soviet socialistic\] society, primarily because private ownership of factories, plants,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/neither-italian-fascism-nor-german-national-socialism-have-anything/) [Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/) > [When you have a cavity in your tooth and you let it get worse, eventually you have to get a root canal. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-newton-john/when-you-have-a-cavity-in-your-tooth-and-you-let-it-get-worse/) [Olivia Newton-John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-newton-john/) > [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [Common sense is nothing more than a deposit of prejudices laid down in the mind before you reach eighteen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/common-sense-is-nothing-more-than-a-deposit-of-prejudices-laid-down/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [We can find common qualities and common values that have made Britain the country it is. 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