--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Max always mumbles; not in a shy way, but…" description: "\"“Max always mumbles; not in a shy way, but rather as if he's telling you what it will cost to take out your worst enemy, or how much you'd have to pay ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/scarlett-thomas-8232_character_max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but_1975266.jpg" --- # Max always mumbles; not in a shy way, but rather as if… ![“Max always mumbles; not in a shy way, but rather as if he's telling you what it will cost to take out your worst enemy, or how much you'd have to pay to rig a horse race.” quote by Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/scarlett-thomas-8232_character_max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but_1975266.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/scarlett-thomas-8232_character_max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but_1975266.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/scarlett-thomas-8232_character_max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but_1975266.jpg) > ““Max always mumbles; not in a shy way, but rather as if he's telling you what it will cost to take out your worst enemy, or how much you'd have to pay to rig a horse race.”” [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes a character who speaks in cryptic, cost‑focused terms, implying a cynical view of communication. **In simple terms:** He speaks in cost terms. Key Takeaway Beware cynical communication. Themes communication cynicism character analysis Mood analytical critical Type literary psychological When to use this quote - reading - writing - negotiations - personal interactions Key Concepts literary criticism psychology Questions to Reflect On - What does cost‑focused speech reveal? - How can you foster clearer dialogue? A Different Perspective Might overgeneralize a single trait. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Description](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/description/) [Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man/) [Max Mumbles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/max-mumbles-3340065/) [Mumble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mumble/) [Mumbles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mumbles-486392/) [Mumbles Shy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mumbles-shy-3340066/) [Speaking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speaking/) [Telling Cost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telling-cost-3340067/) [Way Telling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-telling-248795/) [Worst enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worst-enemy/) ## Related quotes > [“Yeah god speaks to me sometimes... mostly he mumbles. I'm not sure he knows who I am.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-safronoff/yeah-god-speaks-to-me-sometimes-mostly-he-mumbles-i-m-not-sure-he/) [Aaron Safronoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-safronoff/) > [“Complexity mumbles. Simplicity speaks”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-agon/complexity-mumbles-simplicity-speaks/) [Ted Agon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-agon/) > [“You want me?" "Every bit of you," he mumbles.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-kenneally/you-want-me-every-bit-of-you-he-mumbles/) [Miranda Kenneally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-kenneally/) > [“I shouldn’t be doing this,” he mumbles. “But I’m no angel and you are so beautiful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivian-arend/i-shouldn-t-be-doing-this-he-mumbles-but-i-m-no-angel-and-you-are-so/) [Vivian Arend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivian-arend/) > [Sometimes I turn the TV just below where you can hear it and write down what I think they might be saying by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-berman/sometimes-i-turn-the-tv-just-below-where-you-can-hear-it-and-write/) [David Berman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-berman/) > [I watch and listen to movies today and am shocked by the way actors deliver their lines. Everybody mumbles now and I don't understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-o-hara/i-watch-and-listen-to-movies-today-and-am-shocked-by-the-way-actors/) [Maureen O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-o-hara/) > [I am just a poor boy, though my story's seldom told, and I have squandered my resistance, for a pocket full of mumbles, such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/i-am-just-a-poor-boy-though-my-story-s-seldom-told-and-i-have/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [“Oops, the moth woman mumbles”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/oops-the-moth-woman-mumbles/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [Scarcely two hundred years back can Fame recollect articulately at all; and there she but maunders and mumbles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/scarcely-two-hundred-years-back-can-fame-recollect-articulately-at/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Mumbles and the Gower have the most beautiful beaches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-page/mumbles-and-the-gower-have-the-most-beautiful-beaches/) [Joanna Page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-page/) > [When I was doing my A-levels, I'd spend Friday nights in Mumbles, a village by the beach that's popular with surfers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-page/when-i-was-doing-my-a-levels-i-d-spend-friday-nights-in-mumbles-a/) [Joanna Page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-page/) > [“Ouch,' she mumbles. 'Somebody's superglued my joints.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-hall/ouch-she-mumbles-somebody-s-superglued-my-joints/) [Steven Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-hall/) > [“He mumbles in his sleep, "Don't touch me. No more. Only Ana.:”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-l-james/he-mumbles-in-his-sleep-don-t-touch-me-no-more-only-ana/) [E.L. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-l-james/) > [I would make a genuinely terrible guide. I can't remember things. I would get half way through telling a story or explaining something and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/i-would-make-a-genuinely-terrible-guide-i-can-t-remember-things-i/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [If we accept being talked to any kind of a way, then we are telling ourselves we are not quite worth the best. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/if-we-accept-being-talked-to-any-kind-of-a-way-then-we-are-telling/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) ## More by Scarlett Thomas > [“Someone who has the delusion Glass, is made of, does not literally believe herself to be made of glass but rather feels fragile and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/someone-who-has-the-delusion-glass-is-made-of-does-not-literally/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [“Child, all books are magic. Just think,' he said, 'about what books make people do. People go to war on the basis of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/child-all-books-are-magic-just-think-he-said-about-what-books-make/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [Living for ever would be like marrying yourself, with no possibility of a divorce.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/living-for-ever-would-be-like-marrying-yourself-with-no-possibility/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [But I quite like the way you can talk about science without necessarily using mathematics, but using metaphors instead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/but-i-quite-like-the-way-you-can-talk-about-science-without/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [“My mind now has a celebration party and a funeral going on in the same room.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/my-mind-now-has-a-celebration-party-and-a-funeral-going-on-in-the/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [You can't do science in a novel, but you can do philosophy. Or, if you're really lucky, you can manage to pose a question…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/you-can-t-do-science-in-a-novel-but-you-can-do-philosophy-or-if-you/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [“Even if you did drop into someone's consciousness, you'd have all their memories and desires and hang-ups right there in front of you. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/even-if-you-did-drop-into-someone-s-consciousness-you-d-have-all/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [I erased the thought from my mind, but I couldn't undo the fact that I'd had the thought in the first place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/i-erased-the-thought-from-my-mind-but-i-couldn-t-undo-the-fact-that-i/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [“They really do have nothing in common on paper, these people and him. But yet there are so many common reference points; even some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/they-really-do-have-nothing-in-common-on-paper-these-people-and-him/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [“Aquinas wondered what would happen if God wanted to achieve universal resurrection. In other words, bringing everybody who had ever lived back to life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/aquinas-wondered-what-would-happen-if-god-wanted-to-achieve-universal/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [“There's something romantic about it, of course, in the way only other people's lives can be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/there-s-something-romantic-about-it-of-course-in-the-way-only-other/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [Routine kills creative thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/routine-kills-creative-thought/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [You tell them what a happy ending consists of, which is always individual success. You tell them that nothing irrational exists in this world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/you-tell-them-what-a-happy-ending-consists-of-which-is-always/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [I hate stereotypes and I hate cliche.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/i-hate-stereotypes-and-i-hate-cliche/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [“Not all events are stories.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/not-all-events-are-stories/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) [Explore all 81 Scarlett Thomas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) ## More Character quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I'm often moved by the circumstances around some of my characters, but I don't think I've actually cried watching myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-winslet/i-m-often-moved-by-the-circumstances-around-some-of-my-characters-but/) [Kate Winslet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-winslet/) > [When you're on a daytime drama you get one page, you better damn well know your character. You better know what she would do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hudgins/when-you-re-on-a-daytime-drama-you-get-one-page-you-better-damn-well/) [David Hudgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hudgins/) > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-well-mannered-towards-those-whose-views-are-similar-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [In the fight between biology and morality, biology has commonly won in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semir-zeki/in-the-fight-between-biology-and-morality-biology-has-commonly-won-in/) [Semir Zeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semir-zeki/) > [Your looks don't make you pretty, it's the person inside who makes you pretty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-chan/your-looks-don-t-make-you-pretty-it-s-the-person-inside-who-makes-you/) [Aaron Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-chan/) > [I'm not a huge social media kind of guy, so I don't really know, I don't really ever get... at least in real life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-stroma/i-m-not-a-huge-social-media-kind-of-guy-so-i-don-t-really-know-i-don/) [Freddie Stroma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-stroma/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [Courage: the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/courage-the-most-important-of-all-the-virtues-because-without-courage/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) [Browse all 32,707 Character quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Max always mumbles; not in a shy way, but rather as if he's telling you what it will cost to take out your worst enemy, or how much you'd have to pay to rig a horse race.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Scarlett Thomas" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but-rather-as-if-he-s-telling-you/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Character" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but-rather-as-if-he-s-telling-you/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/scarlett-thomas-8232_character_max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but_1975266.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/scarlett-thomas-8232_character_max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but_1975266.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a6/scarlett-thomas-8232_character_max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but_1975266.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Max always mumbles; not in a shy way, but rather as if he's telling you what it will cost to take out your…” — Scarlett Thomas", "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": "Scarlett Thomas", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Max always mumbles; not in a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but-rather-as-if-he-s-telling-you/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/max-always-mumbles-not-in-a-shy-way-but-rather-as-if-he-s-telling-you/#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 } } ] } ```