--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Stories are the things people use to give…" description: "\"“Stories are the things people use to give the universe a shape...there is little difference between a folktale, a religous revelation, and a scientifi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6c/tad-williams-2777_folktale_stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-giv_1809133.png" --- # Stories are the things people use to give the universe a… ![“Stories are the things people use to give the universe a shape...there is little difference between a folktale, a religous revelation, and a scientific theor” quote by Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6c/tad-williams-2777_folktale_stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-giv_1809133.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6c/tad-williams-2777_folktale_stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-giv_1809133.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6c/tad-williams-2777_folktale_stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-giv_1809133.png) > ““Stories are the things people use to give the universe a shape...there is little difference between a folktale, a religous revelation, and a scientific theor”” [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories shape human understanding, blurring lines between myth, faith, and science. **In simple terms:** Stories give form to ideas. Key Takeaway Recognize narrative power. Themes storytelling perception knowledge culture Mood inquisitive thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - education - media - personal belief formation Key Concepts mythology religion science narrative theory Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate myth from fact? - What role do stories play in your worldview? A Different Perspective Stories can oversimplify complex truths. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Difference Folktale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difference-folktale-2099288/) [Folktale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folktale/) [Folktale Religous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folktale-religous-2099287/) [Stories Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-things-292433/) [Universe Shape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe-shape-2099289/) ## Related quotes > [After all, is it not the way we humans shape the universe, shape time itself? Do we not take the raw stuff of chaos…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/after-all-is-it-not-the-way-we-humans-shape-the-universe-shape-time/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [As a child, I was fortunate enough to be close to family members who were - and still are - great storytellers. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-l-martin/as-a-child-i-was-fortunate-enough-to-be-close-to-family-members-who/) [Jesse L. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-l-martin/) > [I've always been fascinated by the grassroots folktale level of a culture, and as a storyteller, I have to follow what seems to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-mckinley/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-the-grassroots-folktale-level-of-a/) [Robin McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-mckinley/) > [You can give me any of Shakespeare's plays and I'll tell you a parallel African folktale.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kani/you-can-give-me-any-of-shakespeare-s-plays-and-i-ll-tell-you-a/) [John Kani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kani/) > [The folktale is the primer of the picture-language of the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-folktale-is-the-primer-of-the-picture-language-of-the-soul/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [“What Can Be Learned From a Thief The saintly Rabi Zusya was originally a disciple of the tsaddik Rabbi Dov Baer of Mezritsh. Once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pinhas-sadeh/what-can-be-learned-from-a-thief-the-saintly-rabi-zusya-was/) [Pinhas Sadeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pinhas-sadeh/) > [“I love the way folktale and fantasy tap into the roots of story telling. The paradox, for me, is that by moving a story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-gavriel-kay/i-love-the-way-folktale-and-fantasy-tap-into-the-roots-of-story/) [Guy Gavriel Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-gavriel-kay/) > [The protagonist of folktale is always, and intensely, a young person moving through ordeals into adult life. . . . and this is why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-paton-walsh/the-protagonist-of-folktale-is-always-and-intensely-a-young-person/) [Jill Paton Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-paton-walsh/) > [“An important dimension of Tess of the d’Urbervilles is its debt to the oral tradition; to stories about wronged milkmaids, tales of superstition, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-harvey/an-important-dimension-of-tess-of-the-d-urbervilles-is-its-debt-to/) [Geoffrey Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-harvey/) > [“The folktale world is oriented positively toward its protagonist; a folktale is defined by the hero's triumph: magic weapons and helpers are, with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darko-suvin/the-folktale-world-is-oriented-positively-toward-its-protagonist-a/) [Darko Suvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darko-suvin/) > [“Little G loved stories about all things sacred laced with a bit of irreverence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michaelene-mcelroy/little-g-loved-stories-about-all-things-sacred-laced-with-a-bit-of/) [Michaelene McElroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michaelene-mcelroy/) > [I don't have to worry about writing jokes. I just tell stories about things that have happened to me. As long as I'm alive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-iglesias/i-don-t-have-to-worry-about-writing-jokes-i-just-tell-stories-about/) [Gabriel Iglesias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-iglesias/) > [“I never think of stories as made things; I think of them as found things. As if you pull them out of the ground,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-never-think-of-stories-as-made-things-i-think-of-them-as-found/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Happy stories are the things we tell to make ourselves feel better. But they are never true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anni-taylor/happy-stories-are-the-things-we-tell-to-make-ourselves-feel-better/) [Anni Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anni-taylor/) > [“I want people to tell their children terrible stories about the things we did for love”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-softer-world/i-want-people-to-tell-their-children-terrible-stories-about-the/) [A Softer World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-softer-world/) ## More by Tad Williams > [“That is what I hate about ruling and royalty, Simon. It is living, breathing people with whom a prince plays the games of statecraft.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/that-is-what-i-hate-about-ruling-and-royalty-simon-it-is-living/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“If we do not reach our hands will always be empty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/if-we-do-not-reach-our-hands-will-always-be-empty/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Im Schlamm fing es an, wie so vieles.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/im-schlamm-fing-es-an-wie-so-vieles/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“I'm tired of being lost and I'm tired of dying, so I'm going to try something different this time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/i-m-tired-of-being-lost-and-i-m-tired-of-dying-so-i-m-going-to-try/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“A piece of writing is a trap,” he said cheerily, “and the best kind. A book, you see, is the only kind of trap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/a-piece-of-writing-is-a-trap-he-said-cheerily-and-the-best-kind-a/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“He shouldn't have had to die." "Nobody should have to die," Miriamele said slowly. "Especially while they're still alive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/he-shouldn-t-have-had-to-die-nobody-should-have-to-die-miriamele-said/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Fear goes where it is invited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/fear-goes-where-it-is-invited/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Because love does not do sums, but instead make choices, and then gives its all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/because-love-does-not-do-sums-but-instead-make-choices-and-then-gives/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [So we face our final hours...and all that was once certain has become uncertain. Except for defeat. That, as always, is the end of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/so-we-face-our-final-hours-and-all-that-was-once-certain-has-become/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Go down." It seemed obvious. "You have to go down before you can come out - that's how these things always work.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/go-down-it-seemed-obvious-you-have-to-go-down-before-you-can-come-out/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“We call darkness our friend, but when the elders tell us stories of the Garden, they talk of the holy, unending light that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/we-call-darkness-our-friend-but-when-the-elders-tell-us-stories-of/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [Never trust people that like to call things by initials, that's my philosophy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/never-trust-people-that-like-to-call-things-by-initials-that-s-my/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [We tell lies when we are afraid... afraid of what we don't know, afraid of what others will think, afraid of what will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/we-tell-lies-when-we-are-afraid-afraid-of-what-we-don-t-know-afraid/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“How can you care for a rough man like me?' he asked me. 'How can you love a man who can bring you no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/how-can-you-care-for-a-rough-man-like-me-he-asked-me-how-can-you-love/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) > [“Piercing My Hearte there is A Golden Dagger; That is God Piercing God's Hearte there is a Golden Needle; That is me”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/piercing-my-hearte-there-is-a-golden-dagger-that-is-god-piercing-god/) [Tad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) [Explore all 143 Tad Williams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/) ## More Folktale quotes > [“The folktale world is oriented positively toward its protagonist; a folktale is defined by the hero's triumph: magic weapons and helpers are, with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darko-suvin/the-folktale-world-is-oriented-positively-toward-its-protagonist-a/) [Darko Suvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darko-suvin/) > [“An important dimension of Tess of the d’Urbervilles is its debt to the oral tradition; to stories about wronged milkmaids, tales of superstition, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-harvey/an-important-dimension-of-tess-of-the-d-urbervilles-is-its-debt-to/) [Geoffrey Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-harvey/) > [The protagonist of folktale is always, and intensely, a young person moving through ordeals into adult life. . . . and this is why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-paton-walsh/the-protagonist-of-folktale-is-always-and-intensely-a-young-person/) [Jill Paton Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-paton-walsh/) > [“I love the way folktale and fantasy tap into the roots of story telling. The paradox, for me, is that by moving a story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-gavriel-kay/i-love-the-way-folktale-and-fantasy-tap-into-the-roots-of-story/) [Guy Gavriel Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-gavriel-kay/) > [“What Can Be Learned From a Thief The saintly Rabi Zusya was originally a disciple of the tsaddik Rabbi Dov Baer of Mezritsh. Once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pinhas-sadeh/what-can-be-learned-from-a-thief-the-saintly-rabi-zusya-was/) [Pinhas Sadeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pinhas-sadeh/) > [The folktale is the primer of the picture-language of the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-folktale-is-the-primer-of-the-picture-language-of-the-soul/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [You can give me any of Shakespeare's plays and I'll tell you a parallel African folktale.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kani/you-can-give-me-any-of-shakespeare-s-plays-and-i-ll-tell-you-a/) [John Kani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kani/) > [I've always been fascinated by the grassroots folktale level of a culture, and as a storyteller, I have to follow what seems to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-mckinley/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-the-grassroots-folktale-level-of-a/) [Robin McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-mckinley/) > [As a child, I was fortunate enough to be close to family members who were - and still are - great storytellers. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-l-martin/as-a-child-i-was-fortunate-enough-to-be-close-to-family-members-who/) [Jesse L. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-l-martin/) [Browse all 10 Folktale quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folktale/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Stories are the things people use to give the universe a shape...there is little difference between a folktale, a religous revelation, and a scientific theor”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tad Williams" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-give-the-universe-a-shape-there/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Folktale" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-give-the-universe-a-shape-there/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6c/tad-williams-2777_folktale_stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-giv_1809133.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6c/tad-williams-2777_folktale_stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-giv_1809133.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a6c/tad-williams-2777_folktale_stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-giv_1809133.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Stories are the things people use to give the universe a shape...there is little difference between a…” — Tad Williams", "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": "Tad Williams", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tad-williams/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Stories are the things people use...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-give-the-universe-a-shape-there/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tad-williams/stories-are-the-things-people-use-to-give-the-universe-a-shape-there/#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 } } ] } ```