---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The truth is that, just as in the other…"
description: "\"“The truth is that, just as in the other imitative arts one imitation is always of one thing, so in poetry the story, as an imitation of action, must r..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ba/aristotle-78_art_the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-i_456256.png"
---

#  The truth is that, just as in the other imitative arts one…

![“The truth is that, just as in the other imitative arts one imitation is always of one thing, so in poetry the story, as an imitation of action, must represent one action, a complete whole, with its several incidents so closely connected that the transposal or withdrawal of any one of them will…” quote by Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ba/aristotle-78_art_the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-i_456256.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ba/aristotle-78_art_the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-i_456256.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ba/aristotle-78_art_the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-i_456256.png)

> ““The truth is that, just as in the other imitative arts one imitation is always of one thing, so in poetry the story, as an imitation of action, must represent one action, a complete whole, with its several incidents so closely connected that the transposal or withdrawal of any one of them will disjoin and dislocate the whole. For that which makes no perceptible difference by its presence or absence is no real part of the whole.””

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A poem must depict a single, complete action; any extraneous part disrupts the unity of the work.

**In simple terms:** Poetry needs one clear, whole story.

Key Takeaway

Focus on a unified narrative.

Themes

structure unity artistic integrity drama

Mood

analytical thoughtful

Type

philosophical educational

When to use this quote

- playwriting
- novel writing
- film scripting

Key Concepts

theatrical form literary analysis

Questions to Reflect On

- Can a story succeed with multiple intertwined actions?
- What defines the essential core of a narrative?

A Different Perspective

Strict unity may stifle experimental or fragmented storytelling.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Arts Imitation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arts-imitation-3972489/) [Imitation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imitation/) [Imitative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imitative-276918/) [Imitative Arts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imitative-arts-3972491/) [Plot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plot/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Story Imitation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story-imitation-3972490/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [In our fine arts, not imitation, but creation is the aim... The details, the prose of nature, he should omit, and give us only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/in-our-fine-arts-not-imitation-but-creation-is-the-aim-the-details/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [“Imitation and custom are the spring of almost all human action. The cause of it is that men fight shy of all and any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/imitation-and-custom-are-the-spring-of-almost-all-human-action-the/)

[Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/)

> [“Imitation and custom are the spring of almost all human action. The cause of it is that men fight shy of all and any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/imitation-and-custom-are-the-spring-of-almost-all-human-action-the-2/)

[Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/)

> [“..if I dont do something on the grand scale, it is that my genius is altogether imitative, and that I have nor recently encountered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/if-i-dont-do-something-on-the-grand-scale-it-is-that-my-genius-is/)

[Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/)

> [People are imitative and imitation is bound to be unintelligent. They want to do exactly the things which others are doing. That destroys their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-are-imitative-and-imitation-is-bound-to-be-unintelligent-they/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [For imitation is natural to man from his infancy. Man differs from other animals particularly in this, that he is imitative, and acquires his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/for-imitation-is-natural-to-man-from-his-infancy-man-differs-from/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [We were all imitative. We all wandered in after Miss Edna St. Vincent Millay. We were all being dashing and gallant, declaring we weren't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-parker/we-were-all-imitative-we-all-wandered-in-after-miss-edna-st-vincent/)

[Dorothy Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-parker/)

> [Man is an imitative creature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-schiller/man-is-an-imitative-creature/)

[Friedrich Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-schiller/)

> [Imagination is imitative-the real innovation lies in criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/imagination-is-imitative-the-real-innovation-lies-in-criticism/)

[Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/)

> [Being abroad makes you conscious of the whole imitative side of human behavior. The ape in man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/being-abroad-makes-you-conscious-of-the-whole-imitative-side-of-human/)

[Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/)

> [“Yet far too many people set out to produce something that, if they were really honest with themselves, is only marginally better or different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-holiday/yet-far-too-many-people-set-out-to-produce-something-that-if-they/)

[Ryan Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-holiday/)

> [The invention of photography destroyed the canons of representational, imitative art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laszlo-moholy-nagy/the-invention-of-photography-destroyed-the-canons-of-representational/)

[Laszlo Moholy-Nagy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laszlo-moholy-nagy/)

> [I began composing works which were imitative of the music I was being told about. I was also very interested in translating the music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-flynt/i-began-composing-works-which-were-imitative-of-the-music-i-was-being/)

[Henry Flynt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-flynt/)

> [But what is drama? Broadly speaking, it is whatever by imitative action rouses interest or gives pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-what-is-drama-broadly-speaking-it-is-whatever-by-imitative-action/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I remember when first, Stripes, and then Animal House came out - which I was really proud of, even though it was kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-reitman/i-remember-when-first-stripes-and-then-animal-house-came-out-which-i/)

[Ivan Reitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-reitman/)

## More by Aristotle

> [The knowledge of the soul admittedly contributes greatly to the advance of truth in general, and, above all, to our understanding of Nature, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-knowledge-of-the-soul-admittedly-contributes-greatly-to-the/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [Young men have strong passions and tend to gratify them indiscriminately. Of the bodily desires, it is the sexual by which they are most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/young-men-have-strong-passions-and-tend-to-gratify-them/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [The body is at its best between the ages of thirty and thirty-five; the mind is at its best about the age of forty-nine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-body-is-at-its-best-between-the-ages-of-thirty-and-thirty-five/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [The ensouled is distinguished from the unsouled by its being alive. Now since being alive is spoken of in many ways, even if only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-ensouled-is-distinguished-from-the-unsouled-by-its-being-alive/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [Although it may be difficult in theory to know what is just and equal, the practical difficulty of inducing those to forbear who can,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/although-it-may-be-difficult-in-theory-to-know-what-is-just-and-equal/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [The true forms of government, therefore, are those in which the one, or the few, or the many, govern with a view to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-true-forms-of-government-therefore-are-those-in-which-the-one-or/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [All men by nature desire to know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/all-men-by-nature-desire-to-know/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [All persons ought to endeavor to follow what is right, and not what is established.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/all-persons-ought-to-endeavor-to-follow-what-is-right-and-not-what-is/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [Give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. Give a man a poisoned fish, you feed him for the rest of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/give-a-man-a-fish-you-feed-him-for-a-day-give-a-man-a-poisoned-fish/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [The man who confers a favour would rather not be repaid in the same coin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-man-who-confers-a-favour-would-rather-not-be-repaid-in-the-same/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [The mother of revolution and crime is poverty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-mother-of-revolution-and-crime-is-poverty/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [Obstinate people can be divided into the opinionated, the ignorant, and the boorish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/obstinate-people-can-be-divided-into-the-opinionated-the-ignorant-and/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [Happiness does not consist in pastimes and amusements but in virtuous activities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/happiness-does-not-consist-in-pastimes-and-amusements-but-in-virtuous/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [To learn is a natural pleasure, not confined to philosophers, but common to all men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/to-learn-is-a-natural-pleasure-not-confined-to-philosophers-but/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [Every virtue is a mean between two extremes, each of which is a vice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/every-virtue-is-a-mean-between-two-extremes-each-of-which-is-a-vice/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

[Explore all 1,545 Aristotle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

## More Art quotes

> [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/)

[Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/)

> [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/)

[Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/)

> [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/)

[Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/)

> [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/)

[Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/)

> [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/)

[Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/)

> [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/)

[Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/)

> [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/)

[Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/)

> [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/)

[Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/)

> [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/)

[Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/)

> [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/)

[Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/)

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

> [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/)

[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/)

> [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/)

[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/)

> [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/)

[Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/)

[Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“The truth is that, just as in the other imitative arts one imitation is always of one thing, so in poetry the story, as an imitation of action, must represent one action, a complete whole, with its several incidents so closely connected that the transposal or withdrawal of any one of them will disjoin and dislocate the whole. For that which makes no perceptible difference by its presence or absence is no real part of the whole.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Aristotle"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-imitative-arts-one-imitation/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Art"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-imitative-arts-one-imitation/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ba/aristotle-78_art_the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-i_456256.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ba/aristotle-78_art_the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-i_456256.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ba/aristotle-78_art_the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-i_456256.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The truth is that, just as in the other imitative arts one imitation is always of one thing, so in poetry…” — Aristotle",
                "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": "Aristotle",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“The truth is that, just as...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-imitative-arts-one-imitation/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-truth-is-that-just-as-in-the-other-imitative-arts-one-imitation/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
