--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I must know, he thinks. It must be clear…" description: "\"I must know, he thinks. It must be clear to me. There is a world which is closed to him, a world of shadings, gradations, nuances, and subtleties. He i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b5/anais-nin-288_clear_i-must-know-he-thinks-it-must-be-clear-t_1033322.png" --- # I must know, he thinks. It must be clear to me. There is a… ![“I must know, he thinks. It must be clear to me. There is a world which is closed to him, a world of shadings, gradations, nuances, and subtleties. He is a genius and yet he is too explicit. June slips between his fingers. You cannot posses without loving.” quote by Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b5/anais-nin-288_clear_i-must-know-he-thinks-it-must-be-clear-t_1033322.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b5/anais-nin-288_clear_i-must-know-he-thinks-it-must-be-clear-t_1033322.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b5/anais-nin-288_clear_i-must-know-he-thinks-it-must-be-clear-t_1033322.png) > “I must know, he thinks. It must be clear to me. There is a world which is closed to him, a world of shadings, gradations, nuances, and subtleties. He is a genius and yet he is too explicit. June slips between his fingers. You cannot posses without loving.” [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The writer reflects on the paradox of desire: love requires possession, yet true love resists ownership. **In simple terms:** Love and possession conflict. Key Takeaway Embrace love without control. Themes love desire paradox possession Mood reflective introspective Type philosophical poetic When to use this quote - relationships - personal growth - creative work Key Concepts intimacy human connection Questions to Reflect On - Can love be truly free? - What does “possessing” love mean? A Different Perspective Possession can become controlling. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) [June](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/june/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [There is but a slight difference between the man who may be said to know nothing and him who thinks he knows everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-hubbel-chapin/there-is-but-a-slight-difference-between-the-man-who-may-be-said-to/) [Edwin Hubbel Chapin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-hubbel-chapin/) > [Three-fourths of the mistakes a man makes are made because he does not really know what he thinks he knows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-bryce/three-fourths-of-the-mistakes-a-man-makes-are-made-because-he-does-2/) [James Bryce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-bryce/) > [Put yourself in the other man's place and then you will know why he thinks certain things and does certain deeds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/put-yourself-in-the-other-man-s-place-and-then-you-will-know-why-he/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [ “The repeated lies become history, but they don't necessarily become the truth. The person we know at first, \[she thinks\] is not the one… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/the-repeated-lies-become-history-but-they-don-t-necessarily-become/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [“Know yourself, he thinks, as they sail past his house. And go in swinging.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/know-yourself-he-thinks-as-they-sail-past-his-house-and-go-in-swinging/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [All I want kids to know is that I see them for who they are and not who everyone thinks they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-reynolds/all-i-want-kids-to-know-is-that-i-see-them-for-who-they-are-and-not/) [Jason Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-reynolds/) > [Never let anyone know what you're thinking - always know what the other thinks of you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-david-roberts/never-let-anyone-know-what-you-re-thinking-always-know-what-the-other/) [Gregory David Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-david-roberts/) > [“Honesty is a fine foundation from which to build upon; for if one was to really know what another thinks and how they feel…they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-aldana/honesty-is-a-fine-foundation-from-which-to-build-upon-for-if-one-was/) [Jeremy Aldana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-aldana/) > [Surprising, I know. Everyone thinks I'm older.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/surprising-i-know-everyone-thinks-i-m-older/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [“Know that most everyone thinks that what they did, and what they are doing, is much more important than it really is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/know-that-most-everyone-thinks-that-what-they-did-and-what-they-are/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [“He thinks I might leave if I know him. He thinks that I might leave if he’s himself. Oh, this man is so complicated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-l-james/he-thinks-i-might-leave-if-i-know-him-he-thinks-that-i-might-leave-if/) [E.L. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-l-james/) > [I'm one of those people who doesn't really know what he thinks until he writes it down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-m-one-of-those-people-who-doesn-t-really-know-what-he-thinks-until/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [When you love someone as a friend let him know before he thinks it is something more](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lockedupoet/when-you-love-someone-as-a-friend-let-him-know-before-he-thinks-it-is/) Lockedupoet > [The person we know at first, she thinks, is not the one we know at last.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/the-person-we-know-at-first-she-thinks-is-not-the-one-we-know-at-last/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [The person who says he knows what he thinks but cannot express it usually does not know what he thinks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-person-who-says-he-knows-what-he-thinks-but-cannot-express-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anais Nin > [I wanted to remember in order to be able to return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-wanted-to-remember-in-order-to-be-able-to-return/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [“…For love it is never the same. What goes on inside is never the same just like this music which changes every instant. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/for-love-it-is-never-the-same-what-goes-on-inside-is-never-the-same/) [Anaïs Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Jazz is the music of the body. The breath comes through brass. It is the body's breath, and the strings' wails and moans are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/jazz-is-the-music-of-the-body-the-breath-comes-through-brass-it-is/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [I have so strong a sense of creation, of tomorrow, that I cannot get drunk, knowing I will be less alive, less well, less…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-have-so-strong-a-sense-of-creation-of-tomorrow-that-i-cannot-get/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [We don't have a language for the senses. Feelings are images, sensations are like musical sounds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/we-don-t-have-a-language-for-the-senses-feelings-are-images/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Strange, isn't it, that no chemical will give a human being the iridescence that illusions have given them? Give me your hat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/strange-isn-t-it-that-no-chemical-will-give-a-human-being-the/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [The personal, if it is deep enough, becomes universal, mythical, symbolic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/the-personal-if-it-is-deep-enough-becomes-universal-mythical-symbolic/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Introspection is a devouring monster. You have to feed it with much material, much experience, many people, many places, many loves, many creations, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/introspection-is-a-devouring-monster-you-have-to-feed-it-with-much/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [In each studio there is a human being dressed in the full regalia of his myth fearing to expore a vulnerable opening, spreading not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/in-each-studio-there-is-a-human-being-dressed-in-the-full-regalia-of/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [I don't mind working, holding my ground intellectually, artistically; but as a woman, oh, God, as a woman I want to be dominated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-don-t-mind-working-holding-my-ground-intellectually-artistically/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [“Laughter and tears are not separate experiences, with intervals of rest: they rush out together and it is like walking with a sword between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/laughter-and-tears-are-not-separate-experiences-with-intervals-of/) [Anaïs Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [The basis of insincerity is the idealized image we hold of ourselves and wish to impose on others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/the-basis-of-insincerity-is-the-idealized-image-we-hold-of-ourselves/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [I write emotional algebra.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-write-emotional-algebra/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [The role of the writer is not to say what we can all say, but what we are unable to say. Most of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/the-role-of-the-writer-is-not-to-say-what-we-can-all-say-but-what-we/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [I say quotations are literary. They are good only when dealing with ideas, not with experience. Experience should be pure, unique.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-say-quotations-are-literary-they-are-good-only-when-dealing-with/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) [Explore all 715 Anais Nin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) ## More Clear quotes > [Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/self-respect-and-a-clear-conscience-are-powerful-components-of/) [Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/) > [When I came to Chelsea, it was clear that, like many other players, I would first be loaned out. So I went to Belgium…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thorgan-hazard/when-i-came-to-chelsea-it-was-clear-that-like-many-other-players-i/) [Thorgan Hazard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thorgan-hazard/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. 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Hitting your kid is really the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-thing-about-hitting-kids-is-think-about-if-you-were-doing-the/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [Clear moments are so short. There is much more darkness. More ocean than terra firma. More shadow than form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-zagajewski/clear-moments-are-so-short-there-is-much-more-darkness-more-ocean/) [Adam Zagajewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-zagajewski/) > [I try to listen to all music with an open head, a clear head, try not to say just because I don't know it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ghostface-killah/i-try-to-listen-to-all-music-with-an-open-head-a-clear-head-try-not/) [Ghostface Killah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ghostface-killah/) > [God's Word does provide life lessons to teach us how to live. And it gives us beautiful poetry that gives voice to our human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rothschild/god-s-word-does-provide-life-lessons-to-teach-us-how-to-live-and-it/) [Jennifer Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rothschild/) > [ We have no clear ideas of the agency of \[demonic\] spirits, nor is it necessary. The Scripture says little to satisfy our curiosity; but… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-newton/we-have-no-clear-ideas-of-the-agency-of-demonic-spirits-nor-is-it/) [John Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-newton/) > [I've always made it clear that I do not believe that global government is either necessary or feasible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-strong/i-ve-always-made-it-clear-that-i-do-not-believe-that-global/) [Maurice Strong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-strong/) > [The moment it begins to question itself, the mind becomes so clear that it starts working with itself rather than with the body's identification.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byron-katie/the-moment-it-begins-to-question-itself-the-mind-becomes-so-clear/) [Byron Katie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byron-katie/) > [Alec Wilkinson is a spare, clear, and lucid writer who works in stylistic simplicity with material that is not simple at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-matthiessen/alec-wilkinson-is-a-spare-clear-and-lucid-writer-who-works-in/) [Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/) > [ I can't imagine that I would be asked that by the president-elect \[Donald Trump\], or then-president \[Barack Obama\]. But it's - I'm very clear.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mattis/i-can-t-imagine-that-i-would-be-asked-that-by-the-president-elect/) [James Mattis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mattis/) Browse all 7,410 Clear quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I must know, he thinks. It must be clear to me. There is a world which is closed to him, a world of shadings, gradations, nuances, and subtleties. He is a genius and yet he is too explicit. June slips between his fingers. 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