As flies to wanton boys are we to the gods

They kill us for their sport

—Shakespeare, King Lear

Self-determination does not follow from complexity. Difficulty in calculating the orbit of the fly does not prove capriciousness, though it may make it impossible to prove anything else. The problems imposed by the complexity of a subject matter must be dealt with as they arise. Apparently hopeless cases often become manageable in time.

—Skinner, Science and Human Behavior

The panther was all right.

—Kafka, “A Hunger Artist”