--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A refusal of nature as a model is a…" description: "\"A refusal of nature as a model is a tradition that goes right back to Oscar Wilde.\" — Todd Haynes" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/149/todd-haynes-2626_models_a-refusal-of-nature-as-a-model-is-a-trad_538499.jpg" --- # A refusal of nature as a model is a tradition that goes… ![“A refusal of nature as a model is a tradition that goes right back to Oscar Wilde.” quote by Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/149/todd-haynes-2626_models_a-refusal-of-nature-as-a-model-is-a-trad_538499.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/149/todd-haynes-2626_models_a-refusal-of-nature-as-a-model-is-a-trad_538499.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/149/todd-haynes-2626_models_a-refusal-of-nature-as-a-model-is-a-trad_538499.jpg) > “A refusal of nature as a model is a tradition that goes right back to Oscar Wilde.” [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rejecting nature as a model continues a long tradition dating back to Oscar Wilde’s critique of conventional standards. **In simple terms:** Ignoring nature as a guide is an old tradition. Key Takeaway Question the relevance of natural models. Themes philosophy art tradition critique Mood analytical critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - design education - art criticism - environmental policy debates Key Concepts aesthetics cultural history environmental ethics Questions to Reflect On - What does “nature” represent in your field? - When is it useful to break from natural models? A Different Perspective Nature can offer valuable insights despite critiques. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Oscars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oscars/) [Tradition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tradition/) ## Related quotes > [If every witty thing that's said was true, Oscar Wilde, the world would worship You!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-r-burch/if-every-witty-thing-that-s-said-was-true-oscar-wilde-the-world-would/) [Michael R. Burch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-r-burch/) > [Reading the very best writers—let us say Homer, Dante, Shakespeare, Tolstoy—is not going to make us better citizens. Art is perfectly useless, according to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-bloom/reading-the-very-best-writers-let-us-say-homer-dante-shakespeare/) [Harold Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-bloom/) > [I am an unspeakable of the Oscar Wilde sort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-am-an-unspeakable-of-the-oscar-wilde-sort/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There is no such thing as a heterosexual male, only men who haven't met Oscar Wilde yet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/there-is-no-such-thing-as-a-heterosexual-male-only-men-who-haven-t/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [When I was young, we thought that Oscar Wilde was a great nobleman who had thrown his life away for love. Nothing could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/when-i-was-young-we-thought-that-oscar-wilde-was-a-great-nobleman-who/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [As Oscar Wilde should have said, when bad ideas have nowhere else to go, they emigrate to America and become university courses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-raphael/as-oscar-wilde-should-have-said-when-bad-ideas-have-nowhere-else-to/) [Frederic Raphael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-raphael/) > [Oscar Wilde always makes me smile - with respect and admiration. His short stories prove that it is possible to be both sarcastic, even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/oscar-wilde-always-makes-me-smile-with-respect-and-admiration-his/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [You know what Oscar Wilde said, ma'am? He said, "nothing that is worth knowing can be taught". Nothing personal, ma'am... Carry on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-schulz/you-know-what-oscar-wilde-said-ma-am-he-said-nothing-that-is-worth/) [Charles M. Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-schulz/) > [Oscar Wilde was suing the Marquis of Queensbury in 1895 for libel accusing Wilde of homosexuality Counsel: Have you ever adored a young man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/oscar-wilde-was-suing-the-marquis-of-queensbury-in-1895-for-libel/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The Chinese general Sun Tzu said that all war was based on deception. Oscar Wilde said the same thing of romance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-tempest/the-chinese-general-sun-tzu-said-that-all-war-was-based-on-deception/) [Marco Tempest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-tempest/) > [Oscar Wilde once said that to live is the rarest thing in the world, because most people just exist, and that's all. I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/oscar-wilde-once-said-that-to-live-is-the-rarest-thing-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think Oscar Wilde wrote a poem about a robin who loved a white rose. He loved it so much that he pierced his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pickford/i-think-oscar-wilde-wrote-a-poem-about-a-robin-who-loved-a-white-rose/) [Mary Pickford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pickford/) > [Oscar Wilde said that sunsets were not valued because we could not pay for sunsets. But Oscar Wilde was wrong; we can pay for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/oscar-wilde-said-that-sunsets-were-not-valued-because-we-could-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Oscar Wilde said that the gods punish us in two ways: first, they don't give us what we want, then, they do. He forgot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perry-brass/oscar-wilde-said-that-the-gods-punish-us-in-two-ways-first-they-don-t/) [Perry Brass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perry-brass/) > [Reported as Oscar Wilde's last words on his death bed... This wallpaper is killing me. One of us has to go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/reported-as-oscar-wilde-s-last-words-on-his-death-bed-this-wallpaper/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Todd Haynes > [I had really loving parents and a happy childhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/i-had-really-loving-parents-and-a-happy-childhood/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [I don't know if I ever entertained an academic career, nor did I ever think I'd become a feature film-maker in the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/i-don-t-know-if-i-ever-entertained-an-academic-career-nor-did-i-ever/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [Feminist theory has left an indelible mark on my own critical—and creative—thinking . . . For me, everything I questioned about what it meant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/feminist-theory-has-left-an-indelible-mark-on-my-own-critical-and/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [I don't think there's any more synesthetic medium than film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/i-don-t-think-there-s-any-more-synesthetic-medium-than-film/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [I'm used to always having struggles getting finances together and keeping precarious budgets alive in the independent film world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/i-m-used-to-always-having-struggles-getting-finances-together-and/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [It's funny: I don't feel like I have any particular privileged feeling for the Fifties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/it-s-funny-i-don-t-feel-like-i-have-any-particular-privileged-feeling/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [I'm drawn to female characters; not all of them are strong characters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/i-m-drawn-to-female-characters-not-all-of-them-are-strong-characters/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [Looking at photographs of New York in 1952, you find a powerfully pre-Eisenhower era - sagging, tired, distressed - and the palette is slightly dissonant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/looking-at-photographs-of-new-york-in-1952-you-find-a-powerfully-pre/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [I think many of the ideas that opened up in the '60s got implemented in the '70s and that certain minority voices that were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/i-think-many-of-the-ideas-that-opened-up-in-the-60s-got-implemented/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > ['Evil Urges' has some stuff in it that's unbelievable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/evil-urges-has-some-stuff-in-it-that-s-unbelievable/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [Films like 'The Godfather,' 'Chinatown' and 'The Exorcist' brought a realism and currency and understatement to their genres that we wanted for 'Mildred Pierce.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/films-like-the-godfather-chinatown-and-the-exorcist-brought-a-realism/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [There were interesting ways that queerness could hide out and get played out pre-Stonewall. It is part of a vast history that is getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/there-were-interesting-ways-that-queerness-could-hide-out-and-get/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [It's very funny because every time I make a movie, and I've heard this re-echoed by other filmmakers and actors I have worked with,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/it-s-very-funny-because-every-time-i-make-a-movie-and-i-ve-heard-this/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [What was so interesting about the glam era was that it was about bisexuality and breaking down the boundaries between gays and straights, breaking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/what-was-so-interesting-about-the-glam-era-was-that-it-was-about/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [My films have often looked at the whole dilemma of identity as a straitjacket for people, for societies, for cultures, for historical moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/my-films-have-often-looked-at-the-whole-dilemma-of-identity-as-a/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) [Explore all 157 Todd Haynes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) ## More Models quotes > [I would tell kids not be like me, but to try and be better than me. 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Bachelier's model had failed to consider that stock prices cannot fall below zero.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-poundstone/samuelson-spotted-a-mistake-in-bacheliers-work-bachelier-s-model-had/) [William Poundstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-poundstone/) > [If lawyers are disbarred and clergymen defrocked, doesn't it follow that electricians can be delighted, musicians denoted, cowboys deranged, models deposed, tree surgeons debarked,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/if-lawyers-are-disbarred-and-clergymen-defrocked-doesn-t-it-follow/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [I suppose he'll just have to do," she amended. "You'll have to suffer in silence with your male model...I feel for you." 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