--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The fictionally correct have all the…" description: "\"The fictionally correct have all the answers, and that's what's wrong with them. They're artistic technocrats. There's no dilemma so knotty, no questio..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/walter-kirn-2189_adjustment_the-fictionally-correct-have-all-the-ans_2014754.png" --- # The fictionally correct have all the answers, and that's… ![“The fictionally correct have all the answers, and that's what's wrong with them. They're artistic technocrats. There's no dilemma so knotty, no question so baffling, that it can't be smoothly neutralized by dialing up the right attitude adjustment. Poor old Hemingway. If only he'd known.” quote by Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/walter-kirn-2189_adjustment_the-fictionally-correct-have-all-the-ans_2014754.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/walter-kirn-2189_adjustment_the-fictionally-correct-have-all-the-ans_2014754.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/323/walter-kirn-2189_adjustment_the-fictionally-correct-have-all-the-ans_2014754.png) > “The fictionally correct have all the answers, and that's what's wrong with them. They're artistic technocrats. There's no dilemma so knotty, no question so baffling, that it can't be smoothly neutralized by dialing up the right attitude adjustment. Poor old Hemingway. If only he'd known.” [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Overreliance on rational solutions creates a false sense of control, ignoring the value of uncertainty and human nuance. **In simple terms:** Rational fixes ignore real complexity. Key Takeaway Balance logic with humility. Themes logic control uncertainty Mood critical skeptical Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - business strategy - creative writing - policy making Key Concepts technocracy artistic freedom Questions to Reflect On - When does a rational approach fail? - How can we honor ambiguity? A Different Perspective Not all problems can be solved by attitude alone. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artistic/) [Attitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitude/) [Attitude adjustment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitude-adjustment/) [Dilemma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dilemma/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [I think it's much more interesting to live not knowing than to have answers that might be wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/feynman/i-think-it-s-much-more-interesting-to-live-not-knowing-than-to-have/) Feynman > [For peer review, replication, and objectivity to make any headway on the continuum, for science to find the right answers to anything, there have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-hill/for-peer-review-replication-and-objectivity-to-make-any-headway-on/) [Kyle Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-hill/) > [There are no right answers to wrong questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/there-are-no-right-answers-to-wrong-questions/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“When you could dissect something and find all the answers, you could find all the wrong ones”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/when-you-could-dissect-something-and-find-all-the-answers-you-could/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [They say the world has become too complex for simple answers. They are wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/they-say-the-world-has-become-too-complex-for-simple-answers-they-are/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [“He had a suspicion of plausible answers; they were so often wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/he-had-a-suspicion-of-plausible-answers-they-were-so-often-wrong/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [We do things much the same way as we did 50, 60 or even 70 years ago. The answers may not be wrong, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-sorrell/we-do-things-much-the-same-way-as-we-did-50-60-or-even-70-years-ago/) [Martin Sorrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-sorrell/) > [“As in arithmetic-there is only one right answer to a sum, and all other answers are wrong; but some answers are much nearer being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/as-in-arithmetic-there-is-only-one-right-answer-to-a-sum-and-all/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [A lot of you need an attitude adjustment.. Being kind won't kill you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-lot-of-you-need-an-attitude-adjustment-being-kind-won-t-kill-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Fear is just excitement in need of an attitude adjustment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/fear-is-just-excitement-in-need-of-an-attitude-adjustment/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Pity Matt didn’t help him through a window instead of over a sofa,” she grumbled. “He needs an attitude adjustment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-palmer/pity-matt-didn-t-help-him-through-a-window-instead-of-over-a-sofa-she/) [Diana Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-palmer/) > [The great benefit of science is that it can contribute tremendously to the alleviation of suffering at the physical level, but it is only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/the-great-benefit-of-science-is-that-it-can-contribute-tremendously/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [When anger and sadness are your two main emotions for the past few weeks...You know it's about time to make an attitude adjustment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-anger-and-sadness-are-your-two-main-emotions-for-the-past-few/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If u can't find the brighter side of life ,then polish the darker side. Attitude of adjustment is the only instrument to live a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/if-u-can-t-find-the-brighter-side-of-life-then-polish-the-darker-side/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [Here is a mental treatment guaranteed to cure every ill that flesh is heir to: sit for half an hour every night and mentally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-fillmore/here-is-a-mental-treatment-guaranteed-to-cure-every-ill-that-flesh-is/) [Charles Fillmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-fillmore/) ## More by Walter Kirn > [Everyone loves a witch hunt as long as it's someone else's witch being hunted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/everyone-loves-a-witch-hunt-as-long-as-it-s-someone-else-s-witch/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [“I just wasn't ready for his stories. They'd breed with the others I'd heard and hatch new monsters, because there was no such thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/i-just-wasn-t-ready-for-his-stories-they-d-breed-with-the-others-i-d/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [It's no accident that most self-help groups use 'anonymous' in their names; to Americans, the first step toward redemption is a ritual wiping out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/it-s-no-accident-that-most-self-help-groups-use-anonymous-in-their/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [“For time to pass it would have to go somewhere, and where would that be? Time sits. We move, it sits. Sometimes it trembles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/for-time-to-pass-it-would-have-to-go-somewhere-and-where-would-that/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [Once you realize just the sort of glut of books that exists out there, it does become incumbent on you not to add to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/once-you-realize-just-the-sort-of-glut-of-books-that-exists-out-there/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [There are two sides to me. One is the writer. That's a savage person who looks at everything as a story and, you know,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/there-are-two-sides-to-me-one-is-the-writer-that-s-a-savage-person/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [I remember the first time I went to Italy when I was eighteen, I was in Florence and there were all these eighteen, nineteen,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/i-remember-the-first-time-i-went-to-italy-when-i-was-eighteen-i-was/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [Quiet cunning bested boastful brawn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/quiet-cunning-bested-boastful-brawn/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [The idea that Americans favor politicians who either remind them of themselves or can imagine what their selves are like because they too have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/the-idea-that-americans-favor-politicians-who-either-remind-them-of/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [“Our habit of wishing backward from what is to what might have been is the soft but persistent tapping that cracks the crystal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/our-habit-of-wishing-backward-from-what-is-to-what-might-have-been-is/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [Memo to extreme partisans: If you can't bring yourselves to love your enemies, can you at least learn to hate your friends?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/memo-to-extreme-partisans-if-you-can-t-bring-yourselves-to-love-your/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [People can be so neglectful of each other and of their own heritage - then death intrudes. Conversations we wish that we'd had earlier…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/people-can-be-so-neglectful-of-each-other-and-of-their-own-heritage/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [I'd assumed that a deal was a deal when Princeton admitted me, but I was wrong. The price of getting in - to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/i-d-assumed-that-a-deal-was-a-deal-when-princeton-admitted-me-but-i/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [The reason that last-ditch political maneuvering has become business as usual in Washington is that the actors involved are drunk on blame and are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/the-reason-that-last-ditch-political-maneuvering-has-become-business/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [“Meanness on request isn't meanness at all, but kindness carried too far.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/meanness-on-request-isn-t-meanness-at-all-but-kindness-carried-too-far/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) [Explore all 177 Walter Kirn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) ## More Adjustment quotes > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The human body has been designed to resist an infinite number of changes and attacks brought about by its environment. The secret of good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-johnson/the-human-body-has-been-designed-to-resist-an-infinite-number-of/) Harry Johnson > [The chances are that you have already come to believe that happiness is unattainable. But men have attained it. And they have attained it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/the-chances-are-that-you-have-already-come-to-believe-that-happiness/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [The biggest adjustment from the minors was learning to spend $45 in meal money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-van-slyke/the-biggest-adjustment-from-the-minors-was-learning-to-spend-45-in/) [Andy Van Slyke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-van-slyke/) > [Memory, with its fugitive adjustments, is the merciful veil to the grim enactments of the first law. It hides the anguish in the human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-aumonier/memory-with-its-fugitive-adjustments-is-the-merciful-veil-to-the-grim/) [Stacy Aumonier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-aumonier/) > [Success comes from repeated efforts day in and day out. You learn from your mistakes, make adjustments and continue pressing forward until you achieve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zig-ziglar/success-comes-from-repeated-efforts-day-in-and-day-out-you-learn-from/) [Zig Ziglar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zig-ziglar/) > [If your plan isn't working, adjust your plan. Never give up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-martin/if-your-plan-isn-t-working-adjust-your-plan-never-give-up/) Matt Martin > [I think I'm constantly in a state of adjustment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patti-smith/i-think-i-m-constantly-in-a-state-of-adjustment/) [Patti Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patti-smith/) > [The terror of the atom age is not the violence of the new power but the speed of man's adjustment to it, the speed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/the-terror-of-the-atom-age-is-not-the-violence-of-the-new-power-but/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [I'm intrigued by films that have a singular vision behind them. A lot of studio movies have ten writers by the time they're done.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-gugino/i-m-intrigued-by-films-that-have-a-singular-vision-behind-them-a-lot/) [Carla Gugino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-gugino/) > [“It is not even governed by ‘nature’. It is simply a natural adjustment! ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/it-is-not-even-governed-by-nature-it-is-simply-a-natural-adjustment/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) > [Time management is probably the biggest thing I've had to learn to deal with being on the PGA Tour, whether it be media or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rickie-fowler/time-management-is-probably-the-biggest-thing-i-ve-had-to-learn-to/) [Rickie Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rickie-fowler/) > [Game management, game decisions, adjustments, seeing things during games - it's all important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-belichick/game-management-game-decisions-adjustments-seeing-things-during-games/) [Bill Belichick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-belichick/) > [Instead of imposing your will on every situation...focus on including everyone else, and just that little adjustment of attitude gives you the space to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wynton-marsalis/instead-of-imposing-your-will-on-every-situation-focus-on-including/) [Wynton Marsalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wynton-marsalis/) > [A lot of people just thought I'd be a .260 hitter all my life. I was kind of like, 'Let me make some adjustments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-francoeur/a-lot-of-people-just-thought-i-d-be-a-260-hitter-all-my-life-i-was/) [Jeff Francoeur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-francoeur/) Browse all 391 Adjustment quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The fictionally correct have all the answers, and that's what's wrong with them. They're artistic technocrats. There's no dilemma so knotty, no question so baffling, that it can't be smoothly neutralized by dialing up the right attitude adjustment. Poor old Hemingway. 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