--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The world knew you before you knew the…" description: "\"The world knew you before you knew the world.\" — Annie Dillard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/annie-dillard-509_funny_the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-w_1479167.jpg" --- # The world knew you before you knew the world. ![“The world knew you before you knew the world.” quote by Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/annie-dillard-509_funny_the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-w_1479167.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/annie-dillard-509_funny_the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-w_1479167.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/annie-dillard-509_funny_the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-w_1479167.jpg) > “The world knew you before you knew the world.” [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self-awareness follows external discovery; the world shapes us before we understand it. **In simple terms:** World shapes self before self knows. Key Takeaway Seek experiences to know yourself. Themes self-discovery experience awareness Mood contemplative thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - travel - education - career choices - personal growth Key Concepts existentialism phenomenology Questions to Reflect On - How does the world define you? - When do you feel self-aware? A Different Perspective Experience can be overwhelming. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“He sat at his television and thought he knew the world. The skies were purple in the daytime and red at night. The grass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-b-watson/he-sat-at-his-television-and-thought-he-knew-the-world-the-skies-were/) [M.B. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-b-watson/) > [For much of my life, the Navy was the only world I knew. It is still the world I know best and love most.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/for-much-of-my-life-the-navy-was-the-only-world-i-knew-it-is-still/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [“He knew what she knew – that the world they lived in most days was an illusion of safety, that the real world, without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rene-porter/he-knew-what-she-knew-that-the-world-they-lived-in-most-days-was-an/) Reneé Porter > [Everybody in the world knew who I was before I knew who I was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-fox/everybody-in-the-world-knew-who-i-was-before-i-knew-who-i-was/) [Michael J. Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-fox/) > [“The more I came to know of the world, the more I knew I knew it not.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avi/the-more-i-came-to-know-of-the-world-the-more-i-knew-i-knew-it-not/) [Avi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avi/) > [Everybody in the world knew I was before I knew who I was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-fox/everybody-in-the-world-knew-i-was-before-i-knew-who-i-was/) [Michael J. Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-fox/) > [It would be a better world if everyone in it knew all the truth about everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/it-would-be-a-better-world-if-everyone-in-it-knew-all-the-truth-about/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [“He knew her, and she knew him. He had no idea if the images he saw came from past or future, or both, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-marston/he-knew-her-and-she-knew-him-he-had-no-idea-if-the-images-he-saw-came/) [Ann Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-marston/) > [“The men who knew that he knew what he knew had found him”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-buchan/the-men-who-knew-that-he-knew-what-he-knew-had-found-him/) [John Buchan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-buchan/) > [“I knew... I knew I was in love with you that moment I picked up the knife to kill Amarantha”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/i-knew-i-knew-i-was-in-love-with-you-that-moment-i-picked-up-the/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [“Nothing was resolved but I knew I would never see the world the same again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-roth/nothing-was-resolved-but-i-knew-i-would-never-see-the-world-the-same/) Tammy Roth > [“Now he realized that somehow those who had served in France and elsewhere knew a world that couldn’t be shared. How could he tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-todd/now-he-realized-that-somehow-those-who-had-served-in-france-and/) [Charles Todd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-todd/) > [“I knew clearly that I could not rebuild my life or put it back together in any way. I had no idea what might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-knew-clearly-that-i-could-not-rebuild-my-life-or-put-it-back/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [I grew up in a small town in India, but through books I knew the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-nair/i-grew-up-in-a-small-town-in-india-but-through-books-i-knew-the-world/) [Mira Nair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-nair/) > [“...those days were the only time in my life when I knew why I was in the world. It was the only time I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/those-days-were-the-only-time-in-my-life-when-i-knew-why-i-was-in-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Annie Dillard > [Like everyone in his right mind, I feared Santa Claus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/like-everyone-in-his-right-mind-i-feared-santa-claus/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“This is a spendthrift economy; though nothing is lost, all is spent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/this-is-a-spendthrift-economy-though-nothing-is-lost-all-is-spent/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [The creatures I seek do not want to be seen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-creatures-i-seek-do-not-want-to-be-seen/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [Nothing moves a woman so deeply as the boyhood of the man she loves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/nothing-moves-a-woman-so-deeply-as-the-boyhood-of-the-man-she-loves/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [We live in all we seek. The hidden shows up in too-plain sight. It lives captive on the face of the obvious - the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/we-live-in-all-we-seek-the-hidden-shows-up-in-too-plain-sight-it/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“...The mockingbird took a single step into the air and dropped. His wings were still folded against his sides as though he were singing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-mockingbird-took-a-single-step-into-the-air-and-dropped-his-wings/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“Father had stretched out his long legs and was tilting back in his chair. Mother sat with her knees crossed, in blue slacks, smoking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/father-had-stretched-out-his-long-legs-and-was-tilting-back-in-his/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [I am a frayed and nibbled survivor in a fallen world, and I am getting along. I am aging and eaten and have done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-am-a-frayed-and-nibbled-survivor-in-a-fallen-world-and-i-am-getting/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [It should surprise no one that the life of the writer - such as it is - is colorless to the point of sensory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-should-surprise-no-one-that-the-life-of-the-writer-such-as-it-is/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [It is madness to wear ladies' straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-is-madness-to-wear-ladies-straw-hats-and-velvet-hats-to-church-we/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [The sense impressions of one-celled animals are not edited for the brain. This is philosophically interesting in a rather mournful way, since it means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-sense-impressions-of-one-celled-animals-are-not-edited-for-the/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“What can we make of the inexpressible joy of children? It is a kind of gratitude, I think—the gratitude of the ten-year-old who wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/what-can-we-make-of-the-inexpressible-joy-of-children-it-is-a-kind-of/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“If we were to judge nature by its common sense or likelihood, we wouldn't believe the world existed. In nature, improbabilities are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/if-we-were-to-judge-nature-by-its-common-sense-or-likelihood-we/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [For writing a first draft requires from the writer a peculiar internal state which ordinary life does not induce. ... how to set yourself spinning?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/for-writing-a-first-draft-requires-from-the-writer-a-peculiar/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [I am a fugitive and a vagabond, a sojourner seeking signs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-am-a-fugitive-and-a-vagabond-a-sojourner-seeking-signs/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) [Explore all 509 Annie Dillard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) ## More Funny quotes > [You cant be controlling in improv.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-walsh/you-cant-be-controlling-in-improv/) [Matt Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-walsh/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [It's a hard thing to describe. It's just this sense that you got something to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/it-s-a-hard-thing-to-describe-it-s-just-this-sense-that-you-got/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [God reveals Himself through surprises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/god-reveals-himself-through-surprises/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [Sometimes I look at my awesome twitter followers & think to myself, What the hell would I do without them :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/sometimes-i-look-at-my-awesome-twitter-followers-think-to-myself-what/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [The happy have whole days,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colley-cibber/the-happy-have-whole-days/) [Colley Cibber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colley-cibber/) > [Congratulations to Facebook on going public with all my private information...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/congratulations-to-facebook-on-going-public-with-all-my-private/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Why are things as they are and not otherwise?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johannes-kepler/why-are-things-as-they-are-and-not-otherwise/) [Johannes Kepler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johannes-kepler/) > [I've been funny my whole life. This is a gift God gave me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-morgan/i-ve-been-funny-my-whole-life-this-is-a-gift-god-gave-me/) [Tracy Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-morgan/) > [Penis goes in , sperms cums out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/penis-goes-in-sperms-cums-out/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [If you were to send a werewolf to the moon, would he be a werewolf permanently?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-schaal/if-you-were-to-send-a-werewolf-to-the-moon-would-he-be-a-werewolf/) [Kristen Schaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-schaal/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) Pancho Barnes > [If you can connect people, you can create the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-heiferman/if-you-can-connect-people-you-can-create-the-future/) [Scott Heiferman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-heiferman/) > [Don't think OF the market. Think AS the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-fishman/don-t-think-of-the-market-think-as-the-market/) Michael Fishman [Browse all 39,858 Funny quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The world knew you before you knew the world.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Annie Dillard" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-world/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Funny" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-world/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/annie-dillard-509_funny_the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-w_1479167.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/annie-dillard-509_funny_the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-w_1479167.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14c/annie-dillard-509_funny_the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-w_1479167.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The world knew you before you knew the world.” — Annie Dillard", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Annie Dillard", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The world knew you before you...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-world/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-world-knew-you-before-you-knew-the-world/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```