--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: With any work worth its salt, you have to…" description: "\"With any work worth its salt, you have to trust the author enough to take its measure. And if you apply too many preconceptions, you are not taking its..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/art-spiegelman-14058_books_with-any-work-worth-its-salt-you-have-to_889177.jpg" --- # With any work worth its salt, you have to trust the author… ![“With any work worth its salt, you have to trust the author enough to take its measure. And if you apply too many preconceptions, you are not taking its measure.” quote by Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/art-spiegelman-14058_books_with-any-work-worth-its-salt-you-have-to_889177.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/art-spiegelman-14058_books_with-any-work-worth-its-salt-you-have-to_889177.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d35/art-spiegelman-14058_books_with-any-work-worth-its-salt-you-have-to_889177.jpg) > “With any work worth its salt, you have to trust the author enough to take its measure. And if you apply too many preconceptions, you are not taking its measure.” [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. To evaluate a work, trust its creator’s intent and avoid imposing excessive preconceptions that distort its true measure. **In simple terms:** Judge works by trusting the creator, not bias. Key Takeaway Assess without bias. Themes critical thinking trust interpretation Mood analytical thoughtful Type critical reflective When to use this quote - reading a reviewing - art analysis - creative collaboration Key Concepts literary criticism authorial intent Questions to Reflect On - What assumptions do you bring to new works? - How can you balance trust and critical analysis? A Different Perspective Preconceptions can blind you to a work’s value. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Preconceptions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preconceptions/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) ## Related quotes > [“Your readers do.” His fingers yanked through his thick beard in a combing manner. 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Wiersbe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-w-wiersbe/) > [Make every occasion a great occasion, for you can never tell who may be taking your measure for a higher place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orison-swett-marden/make-every-occasion-a-great-occasion-for-you-can-never-tell-who-may/) [Orison Swett Marden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orison-swett-marden/) > [It's completely different, for instance, to report on poor farmers in Africa than it is to report on, say, poor African-Americans. The familiarity of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-finnegan/it-s-completely-different-for-instance-to-report-on-poor-farmers-in/) [William Finnegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-finnegan/) > [Soon the child’s clear eye is clouded over by ideas and opinions, preconceptions, and abstractions. Simple free being becomes encrusted with the burdensome armor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-matthiessen/soon-the-child-s-clear-eye-is-clouded-over-by-ideas-and-opinions/) [Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/) > [A function of free speech under our system of government is to invite dispute. It may indeed best serve its high purpose when it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/a-function-of-free-speech-under-our-system-of-government-is-to-invite/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) > [Changing people's preconceptions is something you have to do in order to search for truth. Of course normally, that's not done because it also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiang-wen/changing-people-s-preconceptions-is-something-you-have-to-do-in-order/) [Jiang Wen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiang-wen/) > [At its best, travel should challenge our preconceptions and most cherished views, cause us to rethink our assumptions, shake us a bit, make us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-frommer/at-its-best-travel-should-challenge-our-preconceptions-and-most/) [Arthur Frommer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-frommer/) > [The scientific attitude of mind involves a sweeping away of all other desires in the interests of the desire to know-it involves suppression of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/the-scientific-attitude-of-mind-involves-a-sweeping-away-of-all-other/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“...you cannot enter into an investigation with a philosophy that dictates the outcome. Objectivity is paramount; this is the first principle of detective work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-cannot-enter-into-an-investigation-with-a-philosophy-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [SF has at least the advantage of not depending on preconceptions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sf-has-at-least-the-advantage-of-not-depending-on-preconceptions/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't have anything to say in any picture. My only interest in photography is to see what something looks like as a photograph.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-winogrand/i-don-t-have-anything-to-say-in-any-picture-my-only-interest-in/) [Garry Winogrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-winogrand/) > [More than anyone, I am aware of the preconceptions. I was a Spice Girl. I'm married to a footballer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-beckham/more-than-anyone-i-am-aware-of-the-preconceptions-i-was-a-spice-girl/) [Victoria Beckham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-beckham/) ## More by Art Spiegelman > [The book has very specific qualities. Let's say in 2300 they discover the physical book, after having lived with the digital book for several…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/the-book-has-very-specific-qualities-let-s-say-in-2300-they-discover/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [Comics seem to be cooking these days. It's like being a rock star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/comics-seem-to-be-cooking-these-days-it-s-like-being-a-rock-star/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [In 1908, you could easily earn $20 to $200 as a cartoonist. What's amazing is that it's still true!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/in-1908-you-could-easily-earn-20-to-200-as-a-cartoonist-what-s/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [I wanted to create comics as soon as a I learned humans were behind them, that they were not natural phenomena like trees and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/i-wanted-to-create-comics-as-soon-as-a-i-learned-humans-were-behind/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [What we're losing culturally the fastest, aside from natural resources and oil and the idea of democracy and social justice, is the ability to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/what-we-re-losing-culturally-the-fastest-aside-from-natural-resources/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [I would say that, in the future, the book will be reserved for things that function best as a book. So, if I need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/i-would-say-that-in-the-future-the-book-will-be-reserved-for-things/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [Sometimes I'm drawing onto a computer directly, sometimes I'm drawing on paper , so I can't really talk about drafts. It's just like having…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/sometimes-i-m-drawing-onto-a-computer-directly-sometimes-i-m-drawing/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [I think as soon as I figured out - and this must have been incredibly young - that comic books were made by humans,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/i-think-as-soon-as-i-figured-out-and-this-must-have-been-incredibly/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [“I'm not talking about YOUR book now, but look at how many books have already been written about the Holocaust. What's the point? People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/i-m-not-talking-about-your-book-now-but-look-at-how-many-books-have/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [No matter what I accomplish, it doesn't seem like much compared to surviving Auschwitz.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/no-matter-what-i-accomplish-it-doesn-t-seem-like-much-compared-to/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [I'm supposed to be making comics, so I had to do it the best way I knew how, which is what those guys at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/i-m-supposed-to-be-making-comics-so-i-had-to-do-it-the-best-way-i/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [I always had more allergies toward the superhero comics than the others. I thought those were aimed more toward the people who would beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/i-always-had-more-allergies-toward-the-superhero-comics-than-the/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [“Anja? What is to tell? Everywhere I look I'm seeing Anja... From my good eye, from my glass eye, if they're open or they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/anja-what-is-to-tell-everywhere-i-look-i-m-seeing-anja-from-my-good/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [“DOWN THESE MEAN STREETS A MIDGET MUST GO!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/down-these-mean-streets-a-midget-must-go/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) > [To die, it's easy. But you have to struggle for life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-spiegelman/to-die-it-s-easy-but-you-have-to-struggle-for-life/) [Art Spiegelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) [Explore all 47 Art Spiegelman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-spiegelman/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "With any work worth its salt, you have to trust the author enough to take its measure. 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