--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The legends of fieldwork locate all…" description: "\"The legends of fieldwork locate all important sites deep in inaccessible jungles inhabited by fierce beasts and restless natives, and surrounded by mia..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78a/stephen-jay-gould-885_beast_the-legends-of-fieldwork-locate-all-impo_346657.jpg" --- # The legends of fieldwork locate all important sites deep… ![“The legends of fieldwork locate all important sites deep in inaccessible jungles inhabited by fierce beasts and restless natives, and surrounded by miasmas of putrefaction and swarms of tsetse flies.” quote by Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78a/stephen-jay-gould-885_beast_the-legends-of-fieldwork-locate-all-impo_346657.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78a/stephen-jay-gould-885_beast_the-legends-of-fieldwork-locate-all-impo_346657.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78a/stephen-jay-gould-885_beast_the-legends-of-fieldwork-locate-all-impo_346657.jpg) > “The legends of fieldwork locate all important sites deep in inaccessible jungles inhabited by fierce beasts and restless natives, and surrounded by miasmas of putrefaction and swarms of tsetse flies.” [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Fieldwork myths place important discoveries in dangerous, exotic locales, highlighting the romanticized view of scientific exploration. **In simple terms:** Explorers face danger and mystery. Key Takeaway Recognize the myth versus reality in scientific narratives. Themes exploration myth science danger adventure Mood inquisitive critical reflective Type historical scientific When to use this quote - archaeology - biological field studies - expedition planning - science communication Key Concepts romanticism colonial perspective epistemology Questions to Reflect On - Why do we glorify perilous fieldwork? - What are the real challenges scientists face? A Different Perspective Such dramatization can obscure everyday scientific work. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beast/) [Fieldwork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fieldwork/) [Jungle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jungle/) [Jungles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jungles/) [Legends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/legends/) [Restless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/restless/) ## Related quotes > [Jungles are inhabited by jackals and monkeys ; In caves rats take up residence: those who wash off inner impurities 5 tyms a day,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/jungles-are-inhabited-by-jackals-and-monkeys-in-caves-rats-take-up/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [There is no royal path to good writing; and such paths as exist do not lead through neat critical gardens, various as they are,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessamyn-west/there-is-no-royal-path-to-good-writing-and-such-paths-as-exist-do-not/) [Jessamyn West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessamyn-west/) > [But I went down to Venezuela and spend a few weeks going through jungles. It's fantastic looking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincente-minnelli/but-i-went-down-to-venezuela-and-spend-a-few-weeks-going-through/) [Vincente Minnelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincente-minnelli/) > [Wildlife is decreasing in the jungles, but it is increasing in the towns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/wildlife-is-decreasing-in-the-jungles-but-it-is-increasing-in-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [I was born in the jungles of Borneo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-golding/i-was-born-in-the-jungles-of-borneo/) [Henry Golding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-golding/) > [It's essential I look after myself, because of what I put my body through in stunts as an actor, and even more through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robson-green/it-s-essential-i-look-after-myself-because-of-what-i-put-my-body/) [Robson Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robson-green/) > [I don't like concrete jungles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/callan-mcauliffe/i-don-t-like-concrete-jungles/) [Callan McAuliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/callan-mcauliffe/) > [There is nothing - nothing - that beats being in the jungles. It's so easy to just sit and meditate there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raveena-tandon/there-is-nothing-nothing-that-beats-being-in-the-jungles-it-s-so-easy/) [Raveena Tandon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raveena-tandon/) > [“The world is a wide place where we stumble like children learning to walk. The world is a bright mosaic where we learn like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-woodman/the-world-is-a-wide-place-where-we-stumble-like-children-learning-to/) [Jay Woodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-woodman/) > [It was no ape, neither was it a man. It was some shambling horror spawned in the mysterious, nameless jungles of the south, where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-howard/it-was-no-ape-neither-was-it-a-man-it-was-some-shambling-horror/) [Robert E. 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An ethnography is a written description of a particular culture - the customs, beliefs, and behavior…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-harris/ethnography-literally-means-a-portrait-of-a-people-an-ethnography-is/) [Marvin Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-harris/) ## More by Stephen Jay Gould > [I strongly reject any conceptual scheme that places our options on a line, and holds that the only alternative to a pair of extreme…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/i-strongly-reject-any-conceptual-scheme-that-places-our-options-on-a/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [History employs evolution to structure biological events in time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/history-employs-evolution-to-structure-biological-events-in-time/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [In his anti-Darwinian book... (and eponymously named The Neck of the Giraffe ), Francis Hitching tells the story... "The need to survive by reaching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/in-his-anti-darwinian-book-and-eponymously-named-the-neck-of-the/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [... many folks take them seriously because they just 'know' that evolution can never be seen in the immediate here and now. In fact,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/many-folks-take-them-seriously-because-they-just-know-that-evolution/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [Charles Darwin viewed the fossil record more as an embarrassment than as an aid to his theory ...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/charles-darwin-viewed-the-fossil-record-more-as-an-embarrassment-than/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [Zoocentrism is the primary fallacy of human sociobiology, for this view of human behavior rests on the argument that if the actions of "lower"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/zoocentrism-is-the-primary-fallacy-of-human-sociobiology-for-this/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [The world, unfortunately, rarely matches our hopes and consistently refuses to behave in a reasonable manner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/the-world-unfortunately-rarely-matches-our-hopes-and-consistently/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [The true beauty of nature is her amplitude; she exists neither for nor because of us, and possesses a staying power that all our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/the-true-beauty-of-nature-is-her-amplitude-she-exists-neither-for-nor/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [With copious evidence ranging from Plato's haughtiness to Beethoven's tirades, we may conclude that the most brilliant people of history tend to be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/with-copious-evidence-ranging-from-plato-s-haughtiness-to-beethoven-s/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [When scientists need to explain difficult points of theory, illustration by hypothetical example - rather than by total abstraction - works well (perhaps indispensably)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/when-scientists-need-to-explain-difficult-points-of-theory/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [The truly awesome intellectuals in our history have not merely made discoveries; they have woven variegated, but firm, tapestries of comprehensive coverage. The tapestries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/the-truly-awesome-intellectuals-in-our-history-have-not-merely-made/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [I believe that we can still have a genre of scientific books suitable for and accessible alike to professionals and interested laypeople. The concepts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/i-believe-that-we-can-still-have-a-genre-of-scientific-books-suitable/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [Science simply cannot adjudicate the issue of God's possible superintendence of nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/science-simply-cannot-adjudicate-the-issue-of-god-s-possible/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [But if we laugh with derision, we will never understand. Human intellectual capacity has not altered for thousands of years so far as we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/but-if-we-laugh-with-derision-we-will-never-understand-human/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [We debase the richness of both nature and our own minds if we view the great pageant of our intellectual history as a compendium…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/we-debase-the-richness-of-both-nature-and-our-own-minds-if-we-view/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) [Explore all 341 Stephen Jay Gould quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) ## More Beast quotes > [We became Homo sapiens not that long ago, from the scientific perspective, and we've retained a lot of our beast nature. 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If he is eaten, he no longer functions as an instrument of labour, nor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/as-a-beast-of-toil-an-ox-is-fixed-capital-if-he-is-eaten-he-no-longer/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [« He squeezed his hands into fists. I picked up a grapefruit-sized rock and handed it to him. It went flying. Home run, Beast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/he-squeezed-his-hands-into-fists-i-picked-up-a-grapefruit-sized-rock/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [Was man made stupid to see his own stupidity? Is God by definition indifferent, beyond us all? Is the eternal truth man's fighting soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-eberhart/was-man-made-stupid-to-see-his-own-stupidity-is-god-by-definition/) [Richard Eberhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-eberhart/) > [When a man is treated like a beast, he says, 'After all, I'm human.' 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