--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Stephen had never seen a landscape so…" description: "\"“Stephen had never seen a landscape so calculated to reduce the onlooker to utter despair in an instant. “This is one of your kingdoms, I suppose, sir?..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e5/susanna-clarke-1559_stephen_stephen-had-never-seen-a-landscape-so-ca_1529764.jpg" --- # Stephen had never seen a landscape so calculated to reduce… ![“Stephen had never seen a landscape so calculated to reduce the onlooker to utter despair in an instant. “This is one of your kingdoms, I suppose, sir?” he said. “My kingdoms?” exclaimed the gentleman in surprize. “Oh, no! This is Scotland!” quote by Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e5/susanna-clarke-1559_stephen_stephen-had-never-seen-a-landscape-so-ca_1529764.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e5/susanna-clarke-1559_stephen_stephen-had-never-seen-a-landscape-so-ca_1529764.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e5/susanna-clarke-1559_stephen_stephen-had-never-seen-a-landscape-so-ca_1529764.jpg) > ““Stephen had never seen a landscape so calculated to reduce the onlooker to utter despair in an instant. “This is one of your kingdoms, I suppose, sir?” he said. “My kingdoms?” exclaimed the gentleman in surprize. “Oh, no! This is Scotland!”” [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A landscape so bleak it overwhelms the viewer, yet it is merely a part of Scotland. **In simple terms:** A place can feel oppressive yet be ordinary. Key Takeaway Recognize perspective in perception. Themes perception landscape identity Mood melancholic contemplative Type literary descriptive When to use this quote - travel - photography - urban planning - mental health Key Concepts romanticism fantasy Questions to Reflect On - How does environment shape mood? - When does awe become dread? A Different Perspective May romanticize despair. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Exclaimed Gentleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exclaimed-gentleman-5672969/) [Kingdoms Exclaimed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kingdoms-exclaimed-4404014/) [Kingdoms Suppose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kingdoms-suppose-4404015/) [Oh Scotland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oh-scotland-5672970/) [Stephen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stephen/) ## Related quotes > [When he awoke it was dawn. Or something like dawn. The light was watery, dim and incomparably sad. Vast, grey, gloomy hills rose up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/when-he-awoke-it-was-dawn-or-something-like-dawn-the-light-was-watery/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“Stephen began to dream again. This time he dreamt that hills walked and the sky wept. Trees came and spoke to him and told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/stephen-began-to-dream-again-this-time-he-dreamt-that-hills-walked/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [It would need someone very remarkable to recover your name, Stephen, someone of rare perspicacity, with extraordinary talents and incomparable nobility of character. Me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/it-would-need-someone-very-remarkable-to-recover-your-name-stephen/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“..(As to what they might be resting upon, Stephen was determined not to consider).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/as-to-what-they-might-be-resting-upon-stephen-was-determined-not-to/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“Leslie Stephen died in 1904. In that year his children retreated to Wales for a period and then travelled in Italy. Vanessa and Virginia…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-goldman/leslie-stephen-died-in-1904-in-that-year-his-children-retreated-to/) [Jane Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-goldman/) > [“He would have said Stephen was a sort of human tire iron;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-b-cooney/he-would-have-said-stephen-was-a-sort-of-human-tire-iron/) [Caroline B. Cooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-b-cooney/) > [Something like Stephen A. Smith - I love what he does. I'd love to do something like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saquon-barkley/something-like-stephen-a-smith-i-love-what-he-does-i-d-love-to-do/) [Saquon Barkley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saquon-barkley/) > [“Stephen is not a problem. He is a person. Invisibility is not a problem, it is a curse. Our mission is to help Stephen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-cremer/stephen-is-not-a-problem-he-is-a-person-invisibility-is-not-a-problem/) [Andrea Cremer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-cremer/) > [“Pain is the biggest power of love." That's what Wireman says.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/pain-is-the-biggest-power-of-love-that-s-what-wireman-says/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [There are many dimensions to Stephen A.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-a-smith/there-are-many-dimensions-to-stephen-a/) [Stephen A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-a-smith/) > [When Stephen was first diagnosed, we weren't actually going out together, but I was already falling in love with him. He had beautiful eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hawking/when-stephen-was-first-diagnosed-we-weren-t-actually-going-out/) [Jane Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hawking/) > [I admired Stephen Fleming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nasser-hussain/i-admired-stephen-fleming/) [Nasser Hussain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nasser-hussain/) > [“How terrifyingly efficient she sounds," said Stephen. "I think I should faint in her presence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-p-hartley/how-terrifyingly-efficient-she-sounds-said-stephen-i-think-i-should/) [L.P. Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-p-hartley/) > [ “\[Prison Break is\] one of the craziest, most unpredictable roller-coaster rides on TV today.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/prison-break-is-one-of-the-craziest-most-unpredictable-roller-coaster/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“George's hand lifted and fell away again. It seemed an insult to imply that anything so small as a touch could stop the raw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mette-ivie-harrison/george-s-hand-lifted-and-fell-away-again-it-seemed-an-insult-to-imply/) [Mette Ivie Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mette-ivie-harrison/) ## More by Susanna Clarke > [you must learn to live as I do - in the face of constant criticism, opposition and censure. That, sir, is the English way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/you-must-learn-to-live-as-i-do-in-the-face-of-constant-criticism/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“Can a magician kill a man by magic?” Lord Wellington asked Strange. Strange frowned. He seemed to dislike the question. “I suppose a magician…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/can-a-magician-kill-a-man-by-magic-lord-wellington-asked-strange/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [How is a magician to exist without books? Let someone explain that to me. It is like asking a politician to achieve high office…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/how-is-a-magician-to-exist-without-books-let-someone-explain-that-to/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“Mr Norrell was delighted. He did not believe that anyone had ever proposed such a piece of magic before and begged Sir Walter to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/mr-norrell-was-delighted-he-did-not-believe-that-anyone-had-ever/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“The House is valuable because it is the House. It is enough in and of Itself. It is not the means to an end.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/the-house-is-valuable-because-it-is-the-house-it-is-enough-in-and-of/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“...hatching his poems..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/hatching-his-poems/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“It was as if a door had opened somewhere. Or possibly a series of doors. There was a sensation as of a breeze blowing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/it-was-as-if-a-door-had-opened-somewhere-or-possibly-a-series-of/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“A gentleman in Mr Norell's position with a fine house and a large estate will always be of interest to his neighbors and, unless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/a-gentleman-in-mr-norell-s-position-with-a-fine-house-and-a-large/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“I have always heard that Italian women are rather fierce.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/i-have-always-heard-that-italian-women-are-rather-fierce/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“Long, long ago, (said the voice), five hundred years ago or more, on a winter's day at twilight, a young man entered the Church…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/long-long-ago-said-the-voice-five-hundred-years-ago-or-more-on-a/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [Well, I suppose one ought not to employ a magician and then complain that he does not behave like other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/well-i-suppose-one-ought-not-to-employ-a-magician-and-then-complain/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“Fairies do not make a strong distinction between the animate and the inanimate. They believe that stones, doors, trees, fire, clouds and so forth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/fairies-do-not-make-a-strong-distinction-between-the-animate-and-the/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [There is nothing in the world so easy to explain as failure - it is, after all, what everybody does all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/there-is-nothing-in-the-world-so-easy-to-explain-as-failure-it-is/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [How quickly was every bad thing discovered to be the fault of the previous administration (an evil set of men who wedded general stupidity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/how-quickly-was-every-bad-thing-discovered-to-be-the-fault-of-the/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) > [“Mr. Norrell gazed at Strange with an odd expression upon his face as though he would have been glad of a little conversation with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susanna-clarke/mr-norrell-gazed-at-strange-with-an-odd-expression-upon-his-face-as/) [Susanna Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) [Explore all 228 Susanna Clarke quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susanna-clarke/) ## More Stephen quotes > [“George's hand lifted and fell away again. It seemed an insult to imply that anything so small as a touch could stop the raw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mette-ivie-harrison/george-s-hand-lifted-and-fell-away-again-it-seemed-an-insult-to-imply/) [Mette Ivie Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mette-ivie-harrison/) > [ “\[Prison Break is\] one of the craziest, most unpredictable roller-coaster rides on TV today.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/prison-break-is-one-of-the-craziest-most-unpredictable-roller-coaster/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“How terrifyingly efficient she sounds," said Stephen. "I think I should faint in her presence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-p-hartley/how-terrifyingly-efficient-she-sounds-said-stephen-i-think-i-should/) [L.P. Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-p-hartley/) > [I admired Stephen Fleming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nasser-hussain/i-admired-stephen-fleming/) [Nasser Hussain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nasser-hussain/) > [When Stephen was first diagnosed, we weren't actually going out together, but I was already falling in love with him. He had beautiful eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hawking/when-stephen-was-first-diagnosed-we-weren-t-actually-going-out/) [Jane Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hawking/) > [There are many dimensions to Stephen A.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-a-smith/there-are-many-dimensions-to-stephen-a/) [Stephen A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-a-smith/) > [“Pain is the biggest power of love." That's what Wireman says.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/pain-is-the-biggest-power-of-love-that-s-what-wireman-says/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Stephen is not a problem. He is a person. Invisibility is not a problem, it is a curse. Our mission is to help Stephen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-cremer/stephen-is-not-a-problem-he-is-a-person-invisibility-is-not-a-problem/) [Andrea Cremer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-cremer/) > [Something like Stephen A. Smith - I love what he does. I'd love to do something like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saquon-barkley/something-like-stephen-a-smith-i-love-what-he-does-i-d-love-to-do/) [Saquon Barkley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saquon-barkley/) > [“He would have said Stephen was a sort of human tire iron;”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-b-cooney/he-would-have-said-stephen-was-a-sort-of-human-tire-iron/) [Caroline B. Cooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-b-cooney/) > [“Leslie Stephen died in 1904. In that year his children retreated to Wales for a period and then travelled in Italy. Vanessa and Virginia…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-goldman/leslie-stephen-died-in-1904-in-that-year-his-children-retreated-to/) [Jane Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-goldman/) > [“Stephen was alluring in that languid, stay-out-all-night kind of way: a musician with long, unkempt hair, a skinny smoker’s frame, and an encyclopedic knowledge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susannah-cahalan/stephen-was-alluring-in-that-languid-stay-out-all-night-kind-of-way-a/) [Susannah Cahalan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susannah-cahalan/) > [I'm a big Stephen King fan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-philbrick/i-m-a-big-stephen-king-fan/) [Nathaniel Philbrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-philbrick/) > [The goddess Physics was Stephen's idol. I was not jealous of her, but she did give me some cause for concern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hawking/the-goddess-physics-was-stephen-s-idol-i-was-not-jealous-of-her-but/) [Jane Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hawking/) > [“Stephen had been put to sleep in his usual room, far from children and noise, away in that corner of the house which looked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-o-brian/stephen-had-been-put-to-sleep-in-his-usual-room-far-from-children-and/) [Patrick O'Brian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-o-brian/) [Browse all 83 Stephen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stephen/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Stephen had never seen a landscape so calculated to reduce the onlooker to utter despair in an instant. “This is one of your kingdoms, I suppose, sir?” he said. “My kingdoms?” exclaimed the gentleman in surprize. “Oh, no! 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