--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When it occurs to a man that nature does…" description: "\"When it occurs to a man that nature does not regard him as important, and that she feels she would not maim the universe by disposing of him, he at fir..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e6/stephen-crane-4187_bricks_when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does_693301.jpg" --- # When it occurs to a man that nature does not regard him as… ![“When it occurs to a man that nature does not regard him as important, and that she feels she would not maim the universe by disposing of him, he at first wishes to throw bricks at the temple, and he hates deeply the fact that there are no bricks and no temples.” quote by Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e6/stephen-crane-4187_bricks_when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does_693301.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e6/stephen-crane-4187_bricks_when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does_693301.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e6/stephen-crane-4187_bricks_when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does_693301.jpg) > “When it occurs to a man that nature does not regard him as important, and that she feels she would not maim the universe by disposing of him, he at first wishes to throw bricks at the temple, and he hates deeply the fact that there are no bricks and no temples.” [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When feeling insignificant, people may rebel against perceived meaninglessness, yet lack the tools to do so. **In simple terms:** Feeling small leads to rebellious anger. Key Takeaway Channel frustration into purposeful action. Themes existential rebellion meaninglessness Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - career disappointment - artistic frustration - social alienation - personal crisis Key Concepts philosophy psychology human condition Questions to Reflect On - What constructive outlet can replace destructive anger? - How can you find meaning without external validation? A Different Perspective Rebellion without direction can be self‑destructive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bricks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bricks/) [Bricks Temple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bricks-temple-5503960/) [Bricks Temples](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bricks-temples-5503959/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Environmental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environmental/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate/) [Hates Deeply](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hates-deeply-5503961/) [Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important/) [Man Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-nature/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Naturalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/naturalism/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Temple Hates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temple-hates-5503958/) [Temples](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temples/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) ## Related quotes > [“Nevertheless, he had, on a certain star-lit evening, said wonderingly and quite reverently: "Deh moon looks like hell, don't it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/nevertheless-he-had-on-a-certain-star-lit-evening-said-wonderingly/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [The depravity which sin has produced in human nature extends to the whole of it. There is no part of man's nature which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-denney/the-depravity-which-sin-has-produced-in-human-nature-extends-to-the/) [James Denney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-denney/) > [Once we begin to speak of men mixing their labour with the earth, we are in a whole world of new relations between man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/once-we-begin-to-speak-of-men-mixing-their-labour-with-the-earth-we/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [“There is nothing in man or nature that does not ask questions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-bill-pepper/there-is-nothing-in-man-or-nature-that-does-not-ask-questions/) [Curtis Bill Pepper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-bill-pepper/) > [If man can take care of man, nature can take care of the rest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-way-teale/if-man-can-take-care-of-man-nature-can-take-care-of-the-rest/) [Edwin Way Teale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-way-teale/) > [I love not man the less, but Nature more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/i-love-not-man-the-less-but-nature-more/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [Mountains and rivers are easy to move, but it's impossible to change a man's nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-xianliang/mountains-and-rivers-are-easy-to-move-but-it-s-impossible-to-change-a/) [Zhang Xianliang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhang-xianliang/) > [Man is by nature competitive, combative, ambitious, jealous, envious, and vengeful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-keith/man-is-by-nature-competitive-combative-ambitious-jealous-envious-and/) [Arthur Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-keith/) > [The new media are not bridges between man and nature; they are nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/the-new-media-are-not-bridges-between-man-and-nature-they-are-nature/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [More inhumanity (to man) has been done by man himself than any other of nature's causes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-von-pufendorf/more-inhumanity-to-man-has-been-done-by-man-himself-than-any-other-of/) [Samuel von Pufendorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-von-pufendorf/) > [“The state of civil society, which necessarily generates this aristocracy, is a state of nature; and much more truly so than a savage and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/the-state-of-civil-society-which-necessarily-generates-this/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [Man is nature as much as the trees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-kiley/man-is-nature-as-much-as-the-trees/) [Dan Kiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-kiley/) > [“According to Scripture, the trouble with man by nature is not that he is incomplete but that he is dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martyn-lloyd-jones/according-to-scripture-the-trouble-with-man-by-nature-is-not-that-he/) [Martyn Lloyd-Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martyn-lloyd-jones/) > [“such is their image of man’s nature: the battleground of a struggle between a corpse and a ghost,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/such-is-their-image-of-man-s-nature-the-battleground-of-a-struggle/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Those who made and endorsed our Constitution knew man's nature, and it is to their ideas, rather than to the temptations of utopia, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bork/those-who-made-and-endorsed-our-constitution-knew-man-s-nature-and-it/) [Robert Bork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bork/) ## More by Stephen Crane > [Doubtless there are other roads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/doubtless-there-are-other-roads/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [“She thinks my name is Freddie, you know, but of course it ain't. I always tell these people some name like that, because if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/she-thinks-my-name-is-freddie-you-know-but-of-course-it-ain-t-i/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [Every sin is a result of collaboration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/every-sin-is-a-result-of-collaboration/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [“He turned now with a lover's thirst to images of tranquil skies, fresh meadows, cool brooks— an existence of soft and eternal peace.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/he-turned-now-with-a-lover-s-thirst-to-images-of-tranquil-skies-fresh/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [“XXIV I saw a man pursuing the horizon; Round and round they sped. I was disturbed at this; I accosted the man. "It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/xxiv-i-saw-a-man-pursuing-the-horizon-round-and-round-they-sped-i-was/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [It was surprising that Nature had gone tranquilly on with her golden process in the midst of so much devilment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/it-was-surprising-that-nature-had-gone-tranquilly-on-with-her-golden/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [And it was as if fate had betrayed the soldier. In death it exposed to his enemies that poverty which in life he had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/and-it-was-as-if-fate-had-betrayed-the-soldier-in-death-it-exposed-to/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [“I stood upon a high place, And saw, below, many devils Running, leaping, and carousing in sin. One looked up, grinning, And said, "Comrade!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/i-stood-upon-a-high-place-and-saw-below-many-devils-running-leaping/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [A serious prophet upon predicting a flood should be the first man to climb a tree. This would demonstrate that he was indeed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/a-serious-prophet-upon-predicting-a-flood-should-be-the-first-man-to/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [“A single rifle flashed in a thicket before the regiment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/a-single-rifle-flashed-in-a-thicket-before-the-regiment/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [XXVIII "Truth," said a traveller, "Is a rock, a mighty fortress; "Often have I been to it, "Even to its highest tower, "From whence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/xxviii-truth-said-a-traveller-is-a-rock-a-mighty-fortress-often-have/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [“The lieutenant, returning from a tour after a bandage, produced from a hidden receptacle of his mind new and portentous oaths suited to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/the-lieutenant-returning-from-a-tour-after-a-bandage-produced-from-a/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [“Many a man ought to have a bath-tub larger than the boat which here rode upon the sea.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/many-a-man-ought-to-have-a-bath-tub-larger-than-the-boat-which-here/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [“Why—why—” stammered the youth struggling with his balking tongue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/why-why-stammered-the-youth-struggling-with-his-balking-tongue/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [“Eventually, his courage expended itself upon these objections. The debates drained him of his fire.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/eventually-his-courage-expended-itself-upon-these-objections-the/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) [Explore all 115 Stephen Crane quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) ## More Bricks quotes > [ Leave a cavity behind the \[wall\] facings, and on the inside build walls two feet thick, made of red dimension stone or burnt brick… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-vitruvius-pollio/leave-a-cavity-behind-the-wall-facings-and-on-the-inside-build-walls/) [Marcus Vitruvius Pollio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-vitruvius-pollio/) > [That city is well fortified which has a wall of men instead of brick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/that-city-is-well-fortified-which-has-a-wall-of-men-instead-of-brick/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [LEGO is universal. So many people enjoy it, from all different walks of life, all different ages, all different cultures. When I was in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-sawaya/lego-is-universal-so-many-people-enjoy-it-from-all-different-walks-of/) [Nathan Sawaya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-sawaya/) > [Even if you tried to extinguish your personality, what is left in the story will reflect it, perhaps by its negation. Our lives provide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandar-hemon/even-if-you-tried-to-extinguish-your-personality-what-is-left-in-the/) [Aleksandar Hemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandar-hemon/) > [I am the enfant terrible of literature and science. If I cannot, and I know I cannot, get the literary and scientific bigwigs to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/i-am-the-enfant-terrible-of-literature-and-science-if-i-cannot-and-i/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [The Brick House was one of the toughest joints I ever played in ... Guys would drink and fight one another like circle saws.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-armstrong/the-brick-house-was-one-of-the-toughest-joints-i-ever-played-in-guys/) [Louis Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-armstrong/) > [I am always really buzzed after each performance, and at around one in the morning, Ill hit a brick wall and need to sleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hattie-morahan/i-am-always-really-buzzed-after-each-performance-and-at-around-one-in/) [Hattie Morahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hattie-morahan/) > [“Savannah gray bricks”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-kay-andrews/savannah-gray-bricks/) [Mary Kay Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-kay-andrews/) > [I still have the desire to do the job of acting. It's just a matter of whether I'll be allowed to do the job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-coleman/i-still-have-the-desire-to-do-the-job-of-acting-it-s-just-a-matter-of/) [Gary Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-coleman/) > [Rebuilding a network is a slow, brick-by-brick process. It's not just creating a hit show - it's building shows to back up that hit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-moonves/rebuilding-a-network-is-a-slow-brick-by-brick-process-it-s-not-just/) [Leslie Moonves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-moonves/) > [Build your life brick upon brick, Live a life of truth, And you will look back on a life of truth. Live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ming-dao-deng/build-your-life-brick-upon-brick-live-a-life-of-truth-and-you-will/) [Ming-Dao Deng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ming-dao-deng/) > [You have those walls up all around you...Come a day you gonna want to tear them down brick by brick and gonna find that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-woodson/you-have-those-walls-up-all-around-you-come-a-day-you-gonna-want-to/) [Jacqueline Woodson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-woodson/) > [“As an employee, you’re not supposed to say the bricks come from modern day Iran or modern day Turkey. No, they come from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-a-hill-jr/as-an-employee-you-re-not-supposed-to-say-the-bricks-come-from-modern/) [David A. Hill Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-a-hill-jr/) > [“Two bricks, parallel and horizontal, equals an equal sign. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/two-bricks-parallel-and-horizontal-equals-an-equal-sign/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“Didn’t every new thing you did become a part of you, one of your bricks?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/didn-t-every-new-thing-you-did-become-a-part-of-you-one-of-your-bricks/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) [Browse all 587 Bricks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bricks/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When it occurs to a man that nature does not regard him as important, and that she feels she would not maim the universe by disposing of him, he at first wishes to throw bricks at the temple, and he hates deeply the fact that there are no bricks and no temples.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen Crane" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does-not-regard-him-as-important/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bricks" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does-not-regard-him-as-important/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e6/stephen-crane-4187_bricks_when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does_693301.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e6/stephen-crane-4187_bricks_when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does_693301.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e6/stephen-crane-4187_bricks_when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does_693301.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When it occurs to a man that nature does not regard him as important, and that she feels she would not maim…” — Stephen Crane", "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": "Stephen Crane", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When it occurs to a man...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does-not-regard-him-as-important/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/when-it-occurs-to-a-man-that-nature-does-not-regard-him-as-important/#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 } } ] } ```