--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I should acquaint the reader with the…" description: "\"“I should acquaint the reader with the basic principles of the mythology I adhered to then. I believed . . . that inanimate objects were no less fallib..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3d/stanis-aw-lem-7489_books_i-should-acquaint-the-reader-with-the-ba_3153534.jpg" --- # I should acquaint the reader with the basic principles of… ![“I should acquaint the reader with the basic principles of the mythology I adhered to then. I believed . . . that inanimate objects were no less fallible than people. They, too, could be forgetful. And, if you had enough patience, you could catch them by surprise.” quote by Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3d/stanis-aw-lem-7489_books_i-should-acquaint-the-reader-with-the-ba_3153534.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3d/stanis-aw-lem-7489_books_i-should-acquaint-the-reader-with-the-ba_3153534.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3d/stanis-aw-lem-7489_books_i-should-acquaint-the-reader-with-the-ba_3153534.jpg) > ““I should acquaint the reader with the basic principles of the mythology I adhered to then. I believed . . . that inanimate objects were no less fallible than people. They, too, could be forgetful. And, if you had enough patience, you could catch them by surprise.”” [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage humorously suggests that even inanimate objects can be fallible, and patience can reveal their hidden quirks. **In simple terms:** Things can be forgetful; patience uncovers surprises. Key Takeaway Be patient and test assumptions about objects. Themes humor philosophy patience Mood playful thoughtful Type literary satirical When to use this quote - product design - software testing - learning - creative problem solving Key Concepts fallibility surprise human‑object interaction Questions to Reflect On - How does attributing fallibility to objects change our interaction? - What patience strategies reveal hidden issues? A Different Perspective Assuming objects have agency may distract from practical solutions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Childhood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childhood/) [Myth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myth/) [Mythology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mythology/) ## Related quotes > [“If only one didn't know that at the secret heart of all such organizations, corporations and governments alike, it still came down to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/if-only-one-didn-t-know-that-at-the-secret-heart-of-all-such/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [Editors are extremely fallible people, all of them. Don't put too much trust in them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell-perkins/editors-are-extremely-fallible-people-all-of-them-don-t-put-too-much/) [Maxwell Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-perkins/) > [The public knows that human beings are fallible. Only people blinded by ideology fall into the trap of believing in their own infallibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/the-public-knows-that-human-beings-are-fallible-only-people-blinded/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [I recognize that I'm human, and the older I get, the more I realize how fallible I am, how fallible we all are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/i-recognize-that-i-m-human-and-the-older-i-get-the-more-i-realize-how/) [Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/) > [Published papers may omit important steps and the memory of men of science, even the greatest, is sadly fallible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-desmond-bernal/published-papers-may-omit-important-steps-and-the-memory-of-men-of/) [John Desmond Bernal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-desmond-bernal/) > [“Van, Van, we’re only simple, fallible mortals - we aren’t saints, we aren’t angels - we fall on our faces and make errors and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mercedes-lackey/van-van-we-re-only-simple-fallible-mortals-we-aren-t-saints-we-aren-t/) [Mercedes Lackey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mercedes-lackey/) > [“The need to impress is gradually replaced with the thrill of being embraced as a fallible human being.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-spiegelman/the-need-to-impress-is-gradually-replaced-with-the-thrill-of-being/) Erica Spiegelman > [A fallible being will fail somewhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/a-fallible-being-will-fail-somewhere/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [I've always very earnestly tried to do my best, so I just have to trust that and forgive myself for being fallible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-danes/i-ve-always-very-earnestly-tried-to-do-my-best-so-i-just-have-to/) [Claire Danes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-danes/) > [I love fallible characters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-jones/i-love-fallible-characters/) [Ruth Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-jones/) > [“The...act of surrender—or devotion, as the case may be—was, to him, a kind of lifeline for those who sought a quick answer and didn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashim-shanker/the-act-of-surrender-or-devotion-as-the-case-may-be-was-to-him-a-kind/) [Ashim Shanker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashim-shanker/) > [Tennessee Williams was so adept at portraying characters who are both fallible and vulnerable. Women were a huge influence in his life, his mother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-cattrall/tennessee-williams-was-so-adept-at-portraying-characters-who-are-both/) [Kim Cattrall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-cattrall/) > [Both men and women are fallible. The difference is, women know it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-bron/both-men-and-women-are-fallible-the-difference-is-women-know-it/) Eleanor Bron > [Pleasure is by no means an infallible critical guide, but it is the least fallible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/pleasure-is-by-no-means-an-infallible-critical-guide-but-it-is-the/) [W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/) > [It is true that from a behavioral economics perspective we are fallible, easily confused, not that smart, and often irrational. We are more like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-ariely/it-is-true-that-from-a-behavioral-economics-perspective-we-are/) [Dan Ariely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-ariely/) ## More by Stanisław Lem > [“We take off into the cosmos, ready for anything: for solitude, for hardship, for exhaustion, death. Modesty forbids us to say so, but there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/we-take-off-into-the-cosmos-ready-for-anything-for-solitude-for/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“It might hear us. But what's its name? We have named all the stars and all the planets, even though they might already have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/it-might-hear-us-but-what-s-its-name-we-have-named-all-the-stars-and/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“We came here as we truly are, and when the other side shows us that truth—the part of it we pass over in silence—we’re…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/we-came-here-as-we-truly-are-and-when-the-other-side-shows-us-that/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“It's true that even though I'm a world unto myself, I've just a speck of dust in the avalanche of events. But nothing will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/it-s-true-that-even-though-i-m-a-world-unto-myself-i-ve-just-a-speck/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“maybe he fought it off and forgot about it, and he wasn’t afraid, because he knew he’d never carry it out. Right, but now,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/maybe-he-fought-it-off-and-forgot-about-it-and-he-wasn-t-afraid/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“The human mind is only capable of absorbing a few things at a time. We see what is taking place in front of us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/the-human-mind-is-only-capable-of-absorbing-a-few-things-at-a-time-we/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“I don't think anything can behave as unintelligently as intelligence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/i-don-t-think-anything-can-behave-as-unintelligently-as-intelligence/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“Not that this deterred him and his friend Klapaucius from further experimentation, which showed that the extent of a dragon's existence depends mainly on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/not-that-this-deterred-him-and-his-friend-klapaucius-from-further/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“A man craves ultimate truths. Every mortal mind, I think, is that way. But what is ultimate truth? It's the end of the road,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/a-man-craves-ultimate-truths-every-mortal-mind-i-think-is-that-way/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“Was it possible for thought to exist without consciousness?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/was-it-possible-for-thought-to-exist-without-consciousness/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“Evolution is, as an engineer, an opportunist, not a perfectionist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/evolution-is-as-an-engineer-an-opportunist-not-a-perfectionist/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“I didn’t believe for a minute that this liquid colossus, which had brought about the death of hundreds of humans within itself, with which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/i-didn-t-believe-for-a-minute-that-this-liquid-colossus-which-had/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“Such labor follows in the steps of Freud, who has become the Ptolemy of psychology, for now, with him, anyone can explain human phenomena,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/such-labor-follows-in-the-steps-of-freud-who-has-become-the-ptolemy/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“One of the most incredible secrets of science fiction (although one not too closely guarded) is the fact that 99 percent of its authors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/one-of-the-most-incredible-secrets-of-science-fiction-although-one/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) > [“Ants that encounter in their path a dead philosopher may make good use of him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-lem/ants-that-encounter-in-their-path-a-dead-philosopher-may-make-good/) [Stanisław Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) [Explore all 77 Stanisław Lem quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-lem/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [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 have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I should acquaint the reader with the basic principles of the mythology I adhered to then. I believed . . . that inanimate objects were no less fallible than people. They, too, could be forgetful. 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