Stress sure and keep about light.
No, I'm sure about that.The Man from Earth · 2007 — Chapter 9 of 18 · 3'21" · C1
John's Caveman Claim Under Fire, Explained: So much for
The group presses a man who calls himself a Cro-Magnon on illness, scars, and lab tests; the argument is less about proof than about whether a story that offends common sense can be allowed to stand. One line cuts to the chase: "I don't wanna prove it."
What happens
In a room, a group of academics questions a man who says he is a Cro-Magnon. They ask about illnesses, scars, and whether he will submit to lab tests; he resists proof, while the others debate evidence, common sense, and the myth of the all-knowing immortal.
Listen for
lie on the couchat face valueleery ofWalls have ears
00:00 / 03:21Space play · ← → lines · R repeat
Now
Tap a line to replay it
Phrase of the scene
So much for
that grand idea is finished
Once endless study still falls behind, the line dismisses the all-knowing immortal as a failed idea.
So much for the idea that a longer meeting fixes a bad plan.
Also in this scene
- lie on the couch
lie on a therapist's couch
- at face value
accept what is stated before testing it
- leery of
wary of something and slow to trust it
- Walls have ears
someone unseen may be listening
- not as crazy as
not as mad as you believe I am
Everything marked in this scene
31 notes across 78 lines
assigned the group an official name them means the Cro-Magnons, not the listeners
When the Cro-Magnon was first identified, when anthropology gave them a name, I had mine.time clause: The when-clauses time the naming; the point is that the name was already his.
When the Cro-Magnon was first identified, when anthropology gave them a name, I had mine.still have something left to tell
I'm sure you must have more to say.to the same extent as ordinary people
Sure, as much as anyone.recovered from an illness the fevers passed; this is not emotional recovery
Last few hundred years, I've gotten over typhoid, yellow fever,accept what is stated before testing it
Someone asks the room to park its disbelief and follow the scar claim for a while.
Please, let's take John's story at face value and explore it from that perspective.not odder than the other claims the rest means his other claims, not the other people
If he doesn't scar, it's no stranger than the rest.a mock-cozy way to name one's job not a real neighbor; the tests are being softened
John, would you please stop by my lab, suffer a few tests from your friendly neighborhood biologist.put up with a short battery of tests suffer is ironic endurance, not a disaster
John, would you please stop by my lab, suffer a few tests from your friendly neighborhood biologist.work someone out completely scientific scrutiny, not emotional understanding
Afraid I might go in and stay for a thousand years while cigarette smoking men try to figure me out.Glide a light y between me and out.
Afraid I might go in and stay for a thousand years while cigarette smoking men try to figure me out.want to — Fine among friends; skip it in formal writing.
I don't wanna prove it.a wildly exaggerated tale yarn means a tall tale, not thread
So you're telling us this, the yarn of the century, And you don't care if we believe it or not?appositive: The comma phrase renames this as a gigantic tall tale.
So you're telling us this, the yarn of the century, And you don't care if we believe it or not?it was wrong to expect that
I guess I shouldn't have expected you to.comparison clause: The as-clause sets the standard as his madness, not the listener's.
You're not as crazy as you think I am.stay polite despite disbelief
I think we should remain courteous to someone who we've known and trusted, Edith.mocking people without showing it
Are you laughing at us inside?clash with ordinary reason
What you're saying - it offends common sense.how nature actually behaves
So does relativity, quantum mechanics- That's the way nature works.so inversion: So does borrows offends common sense and applies it to relativity.
So does relativity, quantum mechanics- That's the way nature works.unreal conditional: Past lived marks a hypothetical life; wouldn't says maturity still fails.
If you lived as long as John did, you still wouldn't grow up.Let the t in wouldn't fade before grow.
If you lived as long as John did, you still wouldn't grow up.you all, informally — Use it with peers, not with seniors.
Come on, guys. Take it easy.outdated; no longer current
I got my biology degree at Oxford in 1840, So I'm a little behind the times.Tap the t in little instead of biting it.
I got my biology degree at Oxford in 1840, So I'm a little behind the times.stay level with new developments
The same in other areas- I can't keep up with the new stuff that comes along.that grand idea is finished
Once endless study still falls behind, the line dismisses the all-knowing immortal as a failed idea.
So much for the myth of the super-wise, all-knowing immortal.Stress much and let for drop away.
So much for the myth of the super-wise, all-knowing immortal.understand and grant that point
I see your point, John.John's Caveman Claim Under Fire, explained
What's really going on
Under the surface, the scene is not only about whether an impossible story is true. It is about what a group does with a friend who will not play by the rules of evidence. The lab offer sounds friendly—"suffer a few tests from your friendly neighborhood biologist"—but it would turn a person into a specimen. The line "I don't wanna prove it" refuses that exchange: belief cannot be demanded or manufactured. The others split between curiosity, irritation, and the wish to remain courteous. When someone says the story "offends common sense," the answer is that relativity and quantum mechanics do too; the real question is how far common sense can stretch before trust breaks.
Theme
PhilosophyA friendly gathering turns into a debate about evidence, common sense, and whether an all-knowing immortal could exist.
TrustThe group weighs affection and courtesy against suspicion when a trusted friend refuses to prove his story.
Listen for
- sure about — Stress sure and keep about light.
- me out — Glide a light y between me and out.
- wouldn't grow — Let the t in wouldn't fade before grow.
- a little behind — Tap the t in little instead of biting it.
When the Cro-Magnon was first identified, when anthropology gave them a name, I had mine.The line ties the speaker's own label to the moment anthropologists identified and named the Cro-Magnon: the label and his self-understanding arrived together.
Afraid I might go in and stay for a thousand years while cigarette smoking men try to figure me out.The line jokes that a lab visit could become a thousand-year captivity, with cigarette-smoking men trying to figure him out.
So you're telling us this, the yarn of the century, And you don't care if we believe it or not?The question challenges the story as the yarn of the century and points out that he seems indifferent to whether anyone believes it.
You're not as crazy as you think I am.It is a teasing comeback: the other person is not as crazy as they believe the speaker to be.
If you lived as long as John did, you still wouldn't grow up.A jab at someone's immaturity: even living as long as the man under questioning would not make that person grow up.
So much for the myth of the super-wise, all-knowing immortal.The line dismisses the myth of a super-wise, all-knowing immortal: even a very old man cannot keep up with every field.
Questions about this scene
Why does the group want him to take medical tests?
Because tests are offered as a way to prove his claim; one line says medical tests might be a way of proving what he says.
Why is he leery of labs?
The line about going in and staying for a thousand years while cigarette smoking men try to figure him out gives the reason: a lab visit could mean long captivity and scrutiny.
What does "yarn of the century" mean here?
It means an extraordinary, almost unbelievable story—the kind that could define a century. The question calls it a huge story and notes that the teller seems not to care whether they believe it.
Does he want to prove his story?
No. The refusal to prove it rejects the demand for proof, and the line about being leery of labs also shows reluctance when tests are suggested.
Why does someone say the story offends common sense?
Because it clashes with what they think nature allows: a man who does not scar and says he has lived for centuries. The reply cites relativity and quantum mechanics as ideas that also defy common sense.
The Man from Earth · 18 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 10I never saidJohn Says He Is Only Old
Chapter 1itchy feetJohn Gets Itchy Feet
Chapter 2itchy feetJohn Oldman's Farewell Toast
Chapter 3pan outJohn's Caveman Hypothetical
Chapter 4a day overNot a Day Over 900
Chapter 5just happenedI Just Happened, Not a Mission
Chapter 6You can't go home againJohn's Farewell Talk
Chapter 7almost wish it were trueNever Told the Buddha
Chapter 8no way to disproveNo Way to Disprove John's Story
Watching · Chapter 9So much forJohn's Caveman Claim Under Fire
Chapter 10I never saidJohn Says He Is Only Old
Chapter 11survivor's guiltJohn on Dying and Survivor's Guilt
Chapter 12on the ropesWill's Wife Just Died
Chapter 13a touch of senilityJohn Recalls Losing a Man in Brussels
Chapter 14no need of that hypothesisPressing John About the Bible
Chapter 15have something in mindJohn Implies He Was Jesus
Chapter 16the jury is still outSo You Were Jesus
Chapter 17If I said noJohn Won't Confirm He Was Jesus
Chapter 18chasing our tailsJohn's Story Is Called a HoaxChapter 9 of 18 · about 33 min to go