--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...the social mould civilization fits us…" description: "\"...the social mould civilization fits us into have no more relation to our actual shapes than the conventional shapes of the constellations have to the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/018/thomas-hardy-410_all-alone_the-social-mould-civilization-fits-us-in_440700.jpg" --- # ...the social mould civilization fits us into have no more… ![“...the social mould civilization fits us into have no more relation to our actual shapes than the conventional shapes of the constellations have to the real star-patterns. I am called Mrs. Richard Phillotson, living a calm wedded life with my counterpart of that name. But I am not really Mrs…” quote by Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/018/thomas-hardy-410_all-alone_the-social-mould-civilization-fits-us-in_440700.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/018/thomas-hardy-410_all-alone_the-social-mould-civilization-fits-us-in_440700.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/018/thomas-hardy-410_all-alone_the-social-mould-civilization-fits-us-in_440700.jpg) > “...the social mould civilization fits us into have no more relation to our actual shapes than the conventional shapes of the constellations have to the real star-patterns. I am called Mrs. Richard Phillotson, living a calm wedded life with my counterpart of that name. But I am not really Mrs. Richard Phillotson, but a woman tossed about, all alone, with aberrant passions, and unaccountable antipathies...” [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator feels detached from societal molds, comparing personal identity to mismatched constellations, revealing inner conflict and alienation. **In simple terms:** Feeling out of place in society’s expectations. Key Takeaway Recognize and accept your unique identity. Themes identity alienation societal expectations self perception Mood melancholic introspective critical Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal crisis - social conformity - inner turmoil Key Concepts existentialism psychology social critique Questions to Reflect On - Do you feel constrained by social roles? - What shapes your authentic identity? A Different Perspective Societal roles may not reflect true self. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [All alone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/all-alone/) [Antipathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/antipathy/) [Calm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/calm/) [Civilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization/) [Constellations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constellations/) [Constellations Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constellations-real-262826/) [Counterparts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/counterparts/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Fit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fit/) [Mould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mould/) [Names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/names/) [Passion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) [Patterns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patterns/) [Phillotson Living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/phillotson-living-270427/) [Phillotson Woman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/phillotson-woman-270424/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) [Relation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relation/) [Shapes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shapes/) [Shapes Constellations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shapes-constellations-1743009/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Star Patterns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/star-patterns-270425/) [Stars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stars/) ## Related quotes > [“I have been thinking that the social moulds civilisation fits us into have no more relation to our actual shapes than the conventional shapes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/i-have-been-thinking-that-the-social-moulds-civilisation-fits-us-into/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“I have been thinking", she continued, still in the tone of one brimful of feeling, "that the social moulds civilization fits us into have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/i-have-been-thinking-she-continued-still-in-the-tone-of-one-brimful/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“the social moulds civilization fits us into have no more relation to our actual shapes than the conventional shapes of the constellations have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/the-social-moulds-civilization-fits-us-into-have-no-more-relation-to/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [In the movie, the stars above the ship bear no correspondence to any constellations in a real sky. Worse yet, while the heroine bobs...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-the-movie-the-stars-above-the-ship-bear-no-correspondence-to-any/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [If people tell you what you really don't want to hear what's unpleasant-there's an almost automatic reaction of antipathy. You have to train yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/if-people-tell-you-what-you-really-don-t-want-to-hear-what-s/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [ANTIPATHY, n. The sentiment inspired by one's friend's friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/antipathy-n-the-sentiment-inspired-by-one-s-friend-s-friend/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [“Our natures own predilections and antipathies alike strange. There are people from whom we secretly shrink, whom we would personally avoid, though reason confesses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/our-natures-own-predilections-and-antipathies-alike-strange-there-are/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [Theoretically, we Mennonites do not even know what we look like, since a focus on our personal appearance is vainglorious. Our antipathy to vainglory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhoda-janzen/theoretically-we-mennonites-do-not-even-know-what-we-look-like-since/) [Rhoda Janzen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhoda-janzen/) > [An aphorism is a mental exercise, psychical, logical, linguistic, spiritual, ritual, emotional and rational, it is a major conceptual and literary activity, a mixture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-brown/an-aphorism-is-a-mental-exercise-psychical-logical-linguistic/) [William C. 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An American's hatred for a fellow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-americans-are-poor-haters-in-international-affairs-because-of/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Dread is a sympathetic antipathy and an antipathetic sympathy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/dread-is-a-sympathetic-antipathy-and-an-antipathetic-sympathy/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [The double law of attraction and radiation or of sympathy and antipathy, of fixedness and movement, which is the principle of Creation, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-pike/the-double-law-of-attraction-and-radiation-or-of-sympathy-and/) [Albert Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-pike/) > [Above all things the mass-mind is most bitterly resentful of superiority. It will not tolerate the thought of an elite; and under a political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-j-nock/above-all-things-the-mass-mind-is-most-bitterly-resentful-of/) [Albert J. Nock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-j-nock/) > [I do not dislike the French from the vulgar antipathy between neighboring nations, but for their insolent and unfounded air of superiority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-walpole/i-do-not-dislike-the-french-from-the-vulgar-antipathy-between/) [Horace Walpole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-walpole/) > [The thing about youthful offenders is that no one seems to care about them. Most people don't like adolescents - even the good ones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayelet-waldman/the-thing-about-youthful-offenders-is-that-no-one-seems-to-care-about/) [Ayelet Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayelet-waldman/) ## More by Thomas Hardy > [“He grew away from old associations, and saw something new in life and humanity. 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The familiar surroundings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/meanwhile-the-trees-were-just-as-green-as-before-the-birds-sang-and/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [You ride well, but you don't kiss nicely at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/you-ride-well-but-you-don-t-kiss-nicely-at-all/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [You could sometimes see her twelfth year in her cheeks, or her ninth sparkling from her eyes; and even her fifth would flit over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/you-could-sometimes-see-her-twelfth-year-in-her-cheeks-or-her-ninth/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“It was mid-May time, bringing with it weather not, perhaps, quite so blooming as that assumed to be natural to the month by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/it-was-mid-may-time-bringing-with-it-weather-not-perhaps-quite-so/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [If Galileo had said in verse that the world moved, the inquisition might have let him alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/if-galileo-had-said-in-verse-that-the-world-moved-the-inquisition/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [Some folk want their luck buttered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/some-folk-want-their-luck-buttered/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [Measurement of life should be proportioned rather to the intensity of the experience than to its actual length.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/measurement-of-life-should-be-proportioned-rather-to-the-intensity-of/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“I was court-martialed in my absence, and sentenced to death in my absence, so I said they could shoot me in my absence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/i-was-court-martialed-in-my-absence-and-sentenced-to-death-in-my/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“It being the first time in his life that he had touched female fingers under water, Dick duly registered the sensation as rather a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/it-being-the-first-time-in-his-life-that-he-had-touched-female/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“As soon as she could discern the outline of the house, it had all its old effect upon Tess's imagination. Part of her body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/as-soon-as-she-could-discern-the-outline-of-the-house-it-had-all-its/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [ The perfect woman, you see \[is\] a working-woman; not an idler; not a fine lady; but one who \[uses\] her hands and her head… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/the-perfect-woman-you-see-is-a-working-woman-not-an-idler-not-a-fine/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“The Sinister Spirit sneered: 'It had to be!' And again the Spirit of Pity whispered, 'Why?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/the-sinister-spirit-sneered-it-had-to-be-and-again-the-spirit-of-pity/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [“Justice” was done, and the President of the Immortals (in Aeschylean phrase) had ended his sport with Tess.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/justice-was-done-and-the-president-of-the-immortals-in-aeschylean/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) [Explore all 561 Thomas Hardy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) ## More All alone quotes > [I'm stranded all alone in the gas station of love, and I have to use the self service pump.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-stranded-all-alone-in-the-gas-station-of-love-and-i-have-to-use/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Memory. All alone in the moonlight I can smile at the old days I was beautiful then.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-nunn/memory-all-alone-in-the-moonlight-i-can-smile-at-the-old-days-i-was/) [Trevor Nunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-nunn/) > [You staying home all alone on New Year's Eve? Unthinkable. Take my advice the countdown should be shared with someone, or it's just another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-staying-home-all-alone-on-new-year-s-eve-unthinkable-take-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In Prison Wearily, drearily, Half the day long, Flap the great banners High over the stone; Strangely and eerily Sounds the wind's song, Bending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-morris/in-prison-wearily-drearily-half-the-day-long-flap-the-great-banners/) [William Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-morris/) > [Those struggling with life-threatening thoughts do not feel connected to others. They feel all alone- even alone in the midst of a crowd.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-hunt/those-struggling-with-life-threatening-thoughts-do-not-feel-connected/) [June Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-hunt/) > [Who will cry for the little boy, lost and all alone? Who will cry for the little boy, abandoned without his own? Who will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antwone-fisher/who-will-cry-for-the-little-boy-lost-and-all-alone-who-will-cry-for/) [Antwone Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antwone-fisher/) > [There's much more. There's all that goes beyond – all ... that is Elsewhere – and all that goes back, and back, and back.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/there-s-much-more-there-s-all-that-goes-beyond-all-that-is-elsewhere/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [I crawled back into myself all alone, just delighted to observe that I was even more miserable than before, because I had brought a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-ferdinand-celine/i-crawled-back-into-myself-all-alone-just-delighted-to-observe-that-i/) [Louis-Ferdinand Celine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-ferdinand-celine/) > [His thumb went back and forth over the satin, as if he were rubbing her hip as he had when they’d been together, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-ward/his-thumb-went-back-and-forth-over-the-satin-as-if-he-were-rubbing/) [J.R. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-ward/) > [Doubt is a central factor all the time. There's always the doubt: What the hell am I doing out here in the middle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-welliver/doubt-is-a-central-factor-all-the-time-there-s-always-the-doubt-what/) [Neil Welliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-welliver/) > [The stories never said why she was wicked. It was enough to be an old woman, enough to be all alone, enough to look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-stories-never-said-why-she-was-wicked-it-was-enough-to-be-an-old/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [And I have the others in me. Even when I’m far away from them, I am forced to live with them. Even when I’m…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/and-i-have-the-others-in-me-even-when-i-m-far-away-from-them-i-am/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [Me and my shadow Strolling down the avenue Oh, me and my shadow Not a soul to tell our troubles to And when it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-rose/me-and-my-shadow-strolling-down-the-avenue-oh-me-and-my-shadow-not-a/) [Billy Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-rose/) > [I think every family has that moment when the parents realize they need help and think, Oh my gosh. We cannot do this all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nia-long/i-think-every-family-has-that-moment-when-the-parents-realize-they/) [Nia Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nia-long/) > [Everyone, at some point in their lives, wakes up in the middle of the night with the feeling that they are all alone in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-at-some-point-in-their-lives-wakes-up-in-the-middle-of-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 214 All alone quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/all-alone/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "...the social mould civilization fits us into have no more relation to our actual shapes than the conventional shapes of the constellations have to the real star-patterns. I am called Mrs. Richard Phillotson, living a calm wedded life with my counterpart of that name. 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