--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What I really wanted to know, though, was…" description: "\"What I really wanted to know, though, was what it was like to be a geisha? Where do you sleep? What do you eat? How do you have your hair done?\" — Arth..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/466/arthur-golden-1813_done_what-i-really-wanted-to-know-though-was_282862.png" --- # What I really wanted to know, though, was what it was like… ![“What I really wanted to know, though, was what it was like to be a geisha? Where do you sleep? What do you eat? How do you have your hair done?” quote by Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/466/arthur-golden-1813_done_what-i-really-wanted-to-know-though-was_282862.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/466/arthur-golden-1813_done_what-i-really-wanted-to-know-though-was_282862.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/466/arthur-golden-1813_done_what-i-really-wanted-to-know-though-was_282862.png) > “What I really wanted to know, though, was what it was like to be a geisha? Where do you sleep? What do you eat? How do you have your hair done?” [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote asks for intimate, everyday details of a geisha’s life, highlighting curiosity about hidden cultures. **In simple terms:** Curiosity about a geisha’s daily life. Key Takeaway Seek authentic sources to understand hidden cultures. Themes culture gender curiosity everyday life Mood inquisitive respectful Type exploratory educational When to use this quote - travel - cultural immersion - historical research - media portrayal Key Concepts anthropology social norms identity Questions to Reflect On - What aspects of geisha life are often misunderstood? - How can we respect cultural traditions while satisfying curiosity? A Different Perspective The quote reflects a surface-level fascination without acknowledging deeper societal constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Geisha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/geisha/) [Hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hair/) [Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sleep/) ## Related quotes > [I enjoy being an actress a lot, because I can feel different women's lives. I have the chance to feel like a geisha one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-ziyi/i-enjoy-being-an-actress-a-lot-because-i-can-feel-different-women-s/) [Zhang Ziyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhang-ziyi/) > [For myself I don't like the geisha look. It's like a mask.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-myself-i-don-t-like-the-geisha-look-it-s-like-a-mask/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ The flat shoe makes the woman equal of men. When they have high \[shoes\], they play a part like a geisha, and they can't… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-lagerfeld/the-flat-shoe-makes-the-woman-equal-of-men-when-they-have-high-shoes/) [Karl Lagerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-lagerfeld/) > [Singletons should not have to explain themselves all the time but should have an accepted status — like geisha girls do](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-fielding/singletons-should-not-have-to-explain-themselves-all-the-time-but/) [Helen Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-fielding/) > [“I'm not sure this will make sense to you but I felt as though I'd turned around to look in a different direction so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/i-m-not-sure-this-will-make-sense-to-you-but-i-felt-as-though-i-d-2/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [If you aren't the woman I think you are, then this isn't the world I thought it was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/if-you-aren-t-the-woman-i-think-you-are-then-this-isn-t-the-world-i/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [A tree may look as beautiful as ever; but when you notice the insects infesting it, and the tips of the branches that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/a-tree-may-look-as-beautiful-as-ever-but-when-you-notice-the-insects/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [It is confusing, because in this culture we really don't have anything that corresponds to geisha.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/it-is-confusing-because-in-this-culture-we-really-don-t-have-anything/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [Geisha because when I was living in Japan, I met a fellow whose mother was a geisha, and I thought that was kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/geisha-because-when-i-was-living-in-japan-i-met-a-fellow-whose-mother/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [I can see you have a great deal of water in your personality. Water never waits. It changes shape and flows around things, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/i-can-see-you-have-a-great-deal-of-water-in-your-personality-water/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [It was what we Japanese called the onion life, peeling away a layer at a time and crying all the while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/it-was-what-we-japanese-called-the-onion-life-peeling-away-a-layer-at/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [Adversity is like a strong wind. I don't mean just that it holds us back from places we might otherwise go. It also tears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/adversity-is-like-a-strong-wind-i-don-t-mean-just-that-it-holds-us/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“I knew even then that she was right. An en is a karmic bond lasting a lifetime. 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But she looks to me like a very clever girl, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/oh-i-m-sure-you-re-right-auntie-said-probably-she-s-just-as-you-say/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) ## More by Arthur Golden > [He was like a song I'd heard once in fragments but had been singing in my mind ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/he-was-like-a-song-i-d-heard-once-in-fragments-but-had-been-singing/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [Sometimes we get through adversity only by imagining what the world might be like if our dreams should ever come true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/sometimes-we-get-through-adversity-only-by-imagining-what-the-world/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [When we fight upstream against a rocky undercurrent, every foothold takes on a kind of urgency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/when-we-fight-upstream-against-a-rocky-undercurrent-every-foothold/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [Never give up; for even rivers someday wash dams away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/never-give-up-for-even-rivers-someday-wash-dams-away/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“Oh I'm sure you're right," Auntie said. 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When we walk along, we may crush a beetle or simply cause…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/we-human-beings-are-only-a-part-of-something-very-much-larger-when-we/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [If you aren't the woman I think you are, then this isn't the world I thought it was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/if-you-aren-t-the-woman-i-think-you-are-then-this-isn-t-the-world-i/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [You know, the men go to tea houses with the expectation that they will have a nice quiet evening and not read about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/you-know-the-men-go-to-tea-houses-with-the-expectation-that-they-will/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [Adversity is like a strong wind. I don't mean just that it holds us back from places we might otherwise go. It also tears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/adversity-is-like-a-strong-wind-i-don-t-mean-just-that-it-holds-us/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“Most nights I lay on my futon I was sick with anxiety, and felt a pit inside myself as big and empty as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/most-nights-i-lay-on-my-futon-i-was-sick-with-anxiety-and-felt-a-pit/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [Of course, a sign doesn't mean anything unless you know how to interpret it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/of-course-a-sign-doesn-t-mean-anything-unless-you-know-how-to/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“I knew even then that she was right. An en is a karmic bond lasting a lifetime. 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Sometimes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-dutta/failures-happen-you-can-t-cry-over-them-you-just-take-it-in-your/) [Divya Dutta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-dutta/) > [If the members of parliament no longer consider themselves mandatories of the taxpayers but deputies of those receiving salaries, wages, subsidies, doles, and other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/if-the-members-of-parliament-no-longer-consider-themselves/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/) [Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. 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