--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The longer I am a writer--so long now…" description: "\"“The longer I am a writer--so long now that my writing finger is periodically numb--the better I understand what writing is; what its function is; what..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b09/alice-walker-347_human-animal_the-longer-i-am-a-writer-so-long-now-tha_507571.jpg" --- # The longer I am a writer--so long now that my writing… ![“The longer I am a writer--so long now that my writing finger is periodically numb--the better I understand what writing is; what its function is; what it is supposed to do. I learn that the writer's pen is a microphone held up to the mouths of ancestors and even stones of long ago. That once given…” quote by Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b09/alice-walker-347_human-animal_the-longer-i-am-a-writer-so-long-now-tha_507571.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b09/alice-walker-347_human-animal_the-longer-i-am-a-writer-so-long-now-tha_507571.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b09/alice-walker-347_human-animal_the-longer-i-am-a-writer-so-long-now-tha_507571.jpg) > ““The longer I am a writer--so long now that my writing finger is periodically numb--the better I understand what writing is; what its function is; what it is supposed to do. I learn that the writer's pen is a microphone held up to the mouths of ancestors and even stones of long ago. That once given permission by the writer--a fool, and so why should one fear?--horses, dogs, rivers, and, yes, chickens can step forward and expound on their lives. The magic of this is not so much in the power of the microphone as in the ability of the nonhuman object or animal to BE and the human animal to PERCEIVE ITS BEING.”” [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing is a conduit that lets voices of the past—human and nonhuman—speak, inviting us to perceive their existence. **In simple terms:** Writing lets old and nonhuman voices be heard. Key Takeaway Listen to all voices through your words. Themes creativity voice history perception nonhuman connection Mood reflective thoughtful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - storytelling - environmental advocacy - cultural preservation - artistic expression Key Concepts narrative theory ecocriticism anthropocentrism Questions to Reflect On - What stories can nonhuman entities tell? - How does hearing the past change present actions? A Different Perspective Not all audiences accept nonhuman perspectives; risk of misinterpretation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Long ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-ago/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“remember, you were a writer before you ever put pen to paper. just because you were not writing externally. does not mean you were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nayyirah-waheed/remember-you-were-a-writer-before-you-ever-put-pen-to-paper-just/) [Nayyirah Waheed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nayyirah-waheed/) > [“Vision, emotion, sincerity, passion and creativity. Without these attributes a writer has only his pen with which to speak to his audience”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-knight-english-writer-copywriter-cynic/vision-emotion-sincerity-passion-and-creativity-without-these/) Bill Knight English Writer Copywriter Cynic > [“It was curious to me then, as now, the power of the performer over an audience when, in fact, the gift itself springs from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-mulgrew/it-was-curious-to-me-then-as-now-the-power-of-the-performer-over-an/) [Kate Mulgrew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-mulgrew/) > [A writer without a pen would be like a duck without water!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donovan/a-writer-without-a-pen-would-be-like-a-duck-without-water/) [Donovan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donovan/) > [“Writers have influenced thoughts, principals, viewpoints and experiences throughout history. A talented writer’s pen is anointed with magic!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-toni-graham/writers-have-influenced-thoughts-principals-viewpoints-and/) [C. Toni Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-toni-graham/) > [I'm a good scholar when it comes to reading but a blotting kind of writer when you give me a pen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-millington-synge/i-m-a-good-scholar-when-it-comes-to-reading-but-a-blotting-kind-of/) [John Millington Synge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-millington-synge/) > [“When people starts to enjoy a writer's pen, he becomes a legend even if his stories are neither long nor publicly surrounded by expectations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-saleh/when-people-starts-to-enjoy-a-writer-s-pen-he-becomes-a-legend-even/) A. Saleh > [“A writer's pen depreciates with every word that it writes. Whereas she appreciates with every word that she writes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/a-writer-s-pen-depreciates-with-every-word-that-it-writes-whereas-she/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [human animals and nonhuman animals can communicate quite well; if we are brought up around animals as children we take this for granted. By…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/human-animals-and-nonhuman-animals-can-communicate-quite-well-if-we/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [You must understand that when you are writing a novel you are not making anything up. It's all there and you just have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-harris/you-must-understand-that-when-you-are-writing-a-novel-you-are-not/) [Thomas Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-harris/) > [“Advice? Focus on the craft. Study the greats. Try and understand how and why they made the writing choices they did.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-stump/advice-focus-on-the-craft-study-the-greats-try-and-understand-how-and/) [Patrick Stump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-stump/) > [Understand that writing is like an athletic activity. To play tennis well, you expect to keep practicing, but for some reason with writing, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/understand-that-writing-is-like-an-athletic-activity-to-play-tennis/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [I love that "furious and gorgeous barrage." That helps me see the relation between the introduction and the book's final section, where writing about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-mullen/i-love-that-furious-and-gorgeous-barrage-that-helps-me-see-the/) [Laura Mullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-mullen/) > [My writing model is my mother, who is a writer as well. She always valued clarity and simplicity above all else. If someone doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/my-writing-model-is-my-mother-who-is-a-writer-as-well-she-always/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [I do believe that reading can help you understand what you're writing and see what others are doing. But sometimes the desire for more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/i-do-believe-that-reading-can-help-you-understand-what-you-re-writing/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) ## More by Alice Walker > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Just be what it is that you are, and that is just fine. You don't have to be what you're not in any way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/just-be-what-it-is-that-you-are-and-that-is-just-fine-you-don-t-have/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Remember this-- say it & know it is true: Alice loves me Alice loves me and I am not blamed for this. ... she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/remember-this-say-it-know-it-is-true-alice-loves-me-alice-loves-me/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Only the sky above us do we hold in common.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/only-the-sky-above-us-do-we-hold-in-common/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Why aren't you happy in America, if everyone there drives motorcars?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/why-aren-t-you-happy-in-america-if-everyone-there-drives-motorcars/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“She saw poetry where other writers merely saw failure to cope with English.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/she-saw-poetry-where-other-writers-merely-saw-failure-to-cope-with/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [My mother had handed down respect for the possibilities...and the will to grasp them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/my-mother-had-handed-down-respect-for-the-possibilities-and-the-will/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Helped are those who are content to be themselves; they will never lack mystery in their lives and the joys of self-discovery will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/helped-are-those-who-are-content-to-be-themselves-they-will-never/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“As others might prepare for an exam whose subject matter is unknown to them, so I must study, cram, for every conversation with my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/as-others-might-prepare-for-an-exam-whose-subject-matter-is-unknown/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [The original crime of niggers and lesbians is that they prefer themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-original-crime-of-niggers-and-lesbians-is-that-they-prefer/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [My mother was very strong. Once, she picked up a coconut and smashed it against my father's head. It taught me about women defending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/my-mother-was-very-strong-once-she-picked-up-a-coconut-and-smashed-it/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Many readers fail to realize this, but 'The Color Purple' is a theological text. It is about the reclamation of one's original God: the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/many-readers-fail-to-realize-this-but-the-color-purple-is-a/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [The good news may be that Nature is phasing out the white man, but the bad news is that's who She thinks we all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-good-news-may-be-that-nature-is-phasing-out-the-white-man-but-the/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Humans - whatever billions we are - we don't have the control. We are considered expendable, basically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/humans-whatever-billions-we-are-we-don-t-have-the-control-we-are/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [All my life I had to fight. I had to fight my daddy. I had to fight my uncles. I had to fight my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/all-my-life-i-had-to-fight-i-had-to-fight-my-daddy-i-had-to-fight-my/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) [Explore all 654 Alice Walker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) ## More Human animal quotes > [The human animal originally came from out-of-doors. When spring begins to move in his bones, he just must get out again. Moreover, as civilization,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/the-human-animal-originally-came-from-out-of-doors-when-spring-begins/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [There's a spiritual bond that connects all Souls: human, animal, and lower forms of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-klemp/there-s-a-spiritual-bond-that-connects-all-souls-human-animal-and/) [Harold Klemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-klemp/) > [ “The \[human\] animal cannot cope with \[dense confinement\]; indeed, it is programmed to resist it. It must resist it, in the interest of survival.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-livingston-from-rogue-primate-an-investigation-into-human-domestication/the-human-animal-cannot-cope-with-dense-confinement-indeed-it-is/) John Livingston, from "Rogue Primate: An Investigation Into Human Domestication > [Clothes don't make the man, but they make all of him except his hands and face during business hours, and that's a pretty considerable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-horace-lorimer/clothes-don-t-make-the-man-but-they-make-all-of-him-except-his-hands/) [George Horace Lorimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-horace-lorimer/) > [The human animal is adapted to, and apparently can thrive on, an extraordinary range of different diets, but the Western diet, however you define…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-human-animal-is-adapted-to-and-apparently-can-thrive-on-an/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [ The human animal, like others, is adapted to a certain amount of struggle for life \[and\] the mere absence of effort from his life… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/the-human-animal-like-others-is-adapted-to-a-certain-amount-of/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“The human animal needs meaning as well as food and air and sex and water. The sense that life is meaningless is at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-moss/the-human-animal-needs-meaning-as-well-as-food-and-air-and-sex-and/) [Robert Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-moss/) > [“Lurking behind this connecting silence is a brooding suspicion over the extent to which the perceptual user-preferences of the human animal limit and distort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-paterson/lurking-behind-this-connecting-silence-is-a-brooding-suspicion-over/) [Don Paterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-paterson/) > [Both human and animal emotions are slaves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/both-human-and-animal-emotions-are-slaves/) Mak\_786 > [“But since heaven has not seen fit to dower the human animal with an ability to understand cat language, I regret to say that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soseki-natsume/but-since-heaven-has-not-seen-fit-to-dower-the-human-animal-with-an/) [Sōseki Natsume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soseki-natsume/) > [History shows the power-grab in every religion once it gets organised. And then it's people making you do things that you don't agree with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margrethe-vestager/history-shows-the-power-grab-in-every-religion-once-it-gets-organised/) [Margrethe Vestager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margrethe-vestager/) > [“If there is anything unique about the human animal, it is that it has the ability to grow knowledge at an accelerating rate while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gray/if-there-is-anything-unique-about-the-human-animal-it-is-that-it-has/) [John Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gray/) > [I think I could turn and live with the animals, they are so placid and self contained; I stand and look at them long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-think-i-could-turn-and-live-with-the-animals-they-are-so-placid-and/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“Religion, with its metaphysical error of absolute guilt, dominated the broadest, the cosmic realm. From there, it infiltrated the subordinate realms of biological, social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/religion-with-its-metaphysical-error-of-absolute-guilt-dominated-the/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [The natural term of the affection of the human animal for its offspring is six years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-natural-term-of-the-affection-of-the-human-animal-for-its/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) Browse all 155 Human animal quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The longer I am a writer--so long now that my writing finger is periodically numb--the better I understand what writing is; what its function is; what it is supposed to do. I learn that the writer's pen is a microphone held up to the mouths of ancestors and even stones of long ago. 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