--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The mice think they are right, but my cat…" description: "\"The mice think they are right, but my cat eats them anyways. This is the point, reality is nothing, perception is everything.\" — Terry Goodkind" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a5/terry-goodkind-924_cat_the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat_3120782.jpg" --- # The mice think they are right, but my cat eats them… ![“The mice think they are right, but my cat eats them anyways. This is the point, reality is nothing, perception is everything.” quote by Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a5/terry-goodkind-924_cat_the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat_3120782.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a5/terry-goodkind-924_cat_the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat_3120782.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a5/terry-goodkind-924_cat_the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat_3120782.jpg) > “The mice think they are right, but my cat eats them anyways. This is the point, reality is nothing, perception is everything.” [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Highlights that reality is subjective, shaped by perception, while objective facts (the cat) dominate **In simple terms:** Perception shapes reality, but facts can override it Key Takeaway Recognize the power of perception but verify facts Themes subjectivity perception reality truth Mood thoughtful philosophical Type quote reflection insight When to use this quote - daily decision‑making - media consumption - conflict resolution Key Concepts philosophy cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance perception with objective truth? - When should you trust your senses over evidence? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on perception may ignore tangible evidence ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cat/) [Cat Eats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cat-eats-547103/) [Cats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cats/) [Mice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mice/) [Mice Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mice-think-3491293/) [Perception](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perception/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Reality Perception](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality-perception-374116/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“I pull lightly on its soft silky ears, smooth down its thick fur, and distract myself so thoroughly that it’s only after quite a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-henderson/i-pull-lightly-on-its-soft-silky-ears-smooth-down-its-thick-fur-and/) [Lauren Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-henderson/) > [“Books are written little by little...as the cat eats the fish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynda-k-scott/books-are-written-little-by-little-as-the-cat-eats-the-fish/) [Lynda K. Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynda-k-scott/) > [“He meant you no harm?" said Omoro. "He acted very friendly," said the old man, "but the cat always eats the mouse it plats…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-haley/he-meant-you-no-harm-said-omoro-he-acted-very-friendly-said-the-old/) [Alex Haley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-haley/) > [The clever cat eats cheese and breathes down rat holes with baited breath.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/the-clever-cat-eats-cheese-and-breathes-down-rat-holes-with-baited/) [W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/) > [People who live in North Korea, they die for food, but living in the free world, the cat even eats expensive sushi.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-hyeon-seo/people-who-live-in-north-korea-they-die-for-food-but-living-in-the/) [Lee Hyeon-seo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-hyeon-seo/) > [The cat with gloves catches no mice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/navjot-singh-sidhu/the-cat-with-gloves-catches-no-mice/) [Navjot Singh Sidhu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/navjot-singh-sidhu/) > [When the cats away, the mice will play!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-marley/when-the-cats-away-the-mice-will-play/) [Bob Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-marley/) > [Nothin' wrong with havin' a cat in the house. They can see what most people can't, like the folks in the Otherworld when they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/nothin-wrong-with-havin-a-cat-in-the-house-they-can-see-what-most/) [Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/) > [He was desperate to tell his news to some other cat; he almost felt that if a mouse crossed his path he would stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-hunter/he-was-desperate-to-tell-his-news-to-some-other-cat-he-almost-felt/) [Erin Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-hunter/) > [Reality is only in the perception of one's mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/reality-is-only-in-the-perception-of-one-s-mind/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We don't see where the wind comes form, we hear it.In a way we become aware of our own Surroundings.Perception becomes reality.reality becomes Perception.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerril-thomas-abraham/we-don-t-see-where-the-wind-comes-form-we-hear-it-in-a-way-we-become/) [Jerril Thomas Abraham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerril-thomas-abraham/) > [“There was reality, and then there was perception, and rarely the two shall meet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-clancy/there-was-reality-and-then-there-was-perception-and-rarely-the-two/) [Tom Clancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-clancy/) > [What is more important, the reality or the perception? I am perceived to be an important designer. It's enough for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oleg-cassini/what-is-more-important-the-reality-or-the-perception-i-am-perceived/) [Oleg Cassini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oleg-cassini/) > [“The world around you is a function of YOUR state of mind. It is YOUR reality. This is why each of us has our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolph-verspoor/the-world-around-you-is-a-function-of-your-state-of-mind-it-is-your/) [Rudolph Verspoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolph-verspoor/) > [There is no reality, only perception.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-mcgraw/there-is-no-reality-only-perception/) [Phil McGraw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-mcgraw/) ## More by Terry Goodkind > [Sometimes, it is necessary to step beyond what you have known and to reach for something more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/sometimes-it-is-necessary-to-step-beyond-what-you-have-known-and-to/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“It should hurt, shouldn’t it? Shouldn’t it hurt to be ripped in half? But it didn’t. It didn’t hurt the least little bit. Cold.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/it-should-hurt-shouldn-t-it-shouldn-t-it-hurt-to-be-ripped-in-half/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [Dancing with death meant being committed to killing, committed with your heart and soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/dancing-with-death-meant-being-committed-to-killing-committed-with/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [Only a fool walks into the future backwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/only-a-fool-walks-into-the-future-backwards/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“Sometimes it's more important to seize the chance and do what you can even knowing that it won't likely account for everything, that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/sometimes-it-s-more-important-to-seize-the-chance-and-do-what-you-can/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“While it was understandable to be afraid, and no one would expect you not to be, the worst thing you could do was to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/while-it-was-understandable-to-be-afraid-and-no-one-would-expect-you/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“Leadership is a nurturing of those under your command.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/leadership-is-a-nurturing-of-those-under-your-command/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“To question me once is a simple mistake, Lieutenant. Twice is treason. We execute traitors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/to-question-me-once-is-a-simple-mistake-lieutenant-twice-is-treason/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [Fate does not seek our consent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/fate-does-not-seek-our-consent/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [Wizard's Third Rule Passion rules reason, For better or for worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/wizard-s-third-rule-passion-rules-reason-for-better-or-for-worse/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“Nicci looked up at Kahlan. “Knives are not my talent.” “It’s not hard,” Kahlan said as she pressed the handle into Nicci’s hand. “When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/nicci-looked-up-at-kahlan-knives-are-not-my-talent-it-s-not-hard/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“This was why he couldn’t let Richard know it was the chimes themselves that were loose. Richard would not have accepted what Zedd intended,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/this-was-why-he-couldn-t-let-richard-know-it-was-the-chimes/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“price. There is no such thing as pure good or pure evil, least of all in people. In the best of us there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/price-there-is-no-such-thing-as-pure-good-or-pure-evil-least-of-all/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [The first step to believing something is true is wanting to believe it is true... or being afraid it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/the-first-step-to-believing-something-is-true-is-wanting-to-believe/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [...you'll find that being a friend is to like a person for who they are, even the parts you don't understand. You don't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/you-ll-find-that-being-a-friend-is-to-like-a-person-for-who-they-are/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) [Explore all 323 Terry Goodkind quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) ## More Cat quotes > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Okay, so I'll admit I'm curious. Big deal. We both know what that leads to. Dead cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/okay-so-i-ll-admit-i-m-curious-big-deal-we-both-know-what-that-leads/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [Most people are sensitized to animals through their cats and dogs, but for me it was a flounder. I used to go fishing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mathews/most-people-are-sensitized-to-animals-through-their-cats-and-dogs-but/) [Dan Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mathews/) > [One reason why my memory decays is that I have three cats, all so loving and insistent that they play cat's-cradle with every train…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-townsend-warner/one-reason-why-my-memory-decays-is-that-i-have-three-cats-all-so/) [Sylvia Townsend Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-townsend-warner/) > [It's an interesting fact that fewer than 17 % of Real cats end their lives with the same name they started with. Much family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/it-s-an-interesting-fact-that-fewer-than-17-of-real-cats-end-their/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [The dog is guided by kindly instinct to the man or woman whose heart is open to his advances. The cat often leaves the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-repplier/the-dog-is-guided-by-kindly-instinct-to-the-man-or-woman-whose-heart/) [Agnes Repplier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-repplier/) > [If you ask me to tell you anything about the nature of what lies beyond the phaneron… my answer is “How should I know?”……](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-gardner/if-you-ask-me-to-tell-you-anything-about-the-nature-of-what-lies/) [Martin Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-gardner/) > [Is man no more than this? Consider him well. Thou ow'st the worm no silk, the beast no hide, the sheep no wool, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/is-man-no-more-than-this-consider-him-well-thou-ow-st-the-worm-no/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [One cat just leads to another. The place is so damned big it doesn't really seem as though there were many cats until you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/one-cat-just-leads-to-another-the-place-is-so-damned-big-it-doesn-t/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [In the olden days in England, you could be hung for stealing a sheep or a loaf of bread. However, if a sheep stole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-harding/in-the-olden-days-in-england-you-could-be-hung-for-stealing-a-sheep/) [Mike Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-harding/) > [Kittens can happen to anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gallico/kittens-can-happen-to-anyone/) [Paul Gallico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gallico/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“All right, you deadly little ghostlings,” I muttered. “Mama says go back to bed! - Cat”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeaniene-frost/all-right-you-deadly-little-ghostlings-i-muttered-mama-says-go-back/) [Jeaniene Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeaniene-frost/) > [Man wishes woman to be peaceable, but in fact she is essentially warlike, like the cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/man-wishes-woman-to-be-peaceable-but-in-fact-she-is-essentially/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [There are videos I used to take at home, pretending to be a newscaster, interviewing the teapot or my house cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-wagner/there-are-videos-i-used-to-take-at-home-pretending-to-be-a-newscaster/) [Alex Wagner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-wagner/) [Browse all 2,996 Cat quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cat/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The mice think they are right, but my cat eats them anyways. This is the point, reality is nothing, perception is everything.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Terry Goodkind" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat-eats-them-anyways-this-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cat" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat-eats-them-anyways-this-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a5/terry-goodkind-924_cat_the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat_3120782.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a5/terry-goodkind-924_cat_the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat_3120782.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a5/terry-goodkind-924_cat_the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat_3120782.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The mice think they are right, but my cat eats them anyways. This is the point, reality is nothing…” — Terry Goodkind", "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": "Terry Goodkind", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The mice think they are right,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat-eats-them-anyways-this-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/the-mice-think-they-are-right-but-my-cat-eats-them-anyways-this-is/#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 } } ] } ```