Just like all great stories, our fears focus our attention on a question that is as important in life as it is in literature: What will happen next?
Karen Thompson WalkerRead
A good story, just like a good sentence, does more than one job at once. That's what literature is: a story that does more than tell a story, a story that manages to reflect in some way the multilayered texture of life itself.
Interpretation
What this quote means
A good story conveys deeper meanings and reflects the complexities of life.
In this quote, Karen Thompson Walker emphasizes that literature serves a dual purpose: to entertain and to provide insight into the multifaceted nature of human existence. She suggests that the richness of a good story lies not only in its narrative but also in its ability to mirror the experiences and emotions of life, suggesting that stories can resonate with the reader on multiple levels.
Themes
StoryLiteratureLifeMeaningReflection
In practice
Example use cases
In a book club discussion, this quote can be used to reflect on why certain stories resonate with readers.
More from Karen Thompson Walker
All quotes →Similar quotes
I talk about life, and I make universal music with an American style - and that's what I do.
NasRead
I wanted to use what I was, to be what I was born to be - not to have a 'career', but to be that straightforward obvious unmistakable animal, a writer.
Cynthia OzickRead
Honest songs aren`t written for money.
Pete SeegerRead
Some of the songs come so fully, it's like they are pre-packaged. There have been a couple that came in the middle of the night. And I thought, jeez, I'll never forget that. And went back to sleep, and it was gone. You'll hear something years later that another songwriter that you respect writes, and you go, jeez, I think that was the remnants of that song that got sent to me.
John PrineRead
Why are all the artists so dead-set on distorting? It seems to be a reaction against photography, but I'm not sure.
Marcel DuchampRead
I don't care if people think I am an overactor, as long as they enjoy what I do. People who think that would call Van Gogh an overpainter.
Jim CarreyRead