--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One has a sort of spiritual obligation to…" description: "\"One has a sort of spiritual obligation to go back to the source material of the literature, to make contact with one of the seminal plays of the modern..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e56/arthur-penn-42269_actor_one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-t_2355863.png" --- # One has a sort of spiritual obligation to go back to the… ![“One has a sort of spiritual obligation to go back to the source material of the literature, to make contact with one of the seminal plays of the modern theater.” quote by Arthur Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e56/arthur-penn-42269_actor_one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-t_2355863.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e56/arthur-penn-42269_actor_one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-t_2355863.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e56/arthur-penn-42269_actor_one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-t_2355863.png) > “One has a sort of spiritual obligation to go back to the source material of the literature, to make contact with one of the seminal plays of the modern theater.” [Arthur Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-penn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artists should study foundational works to deepen understanding and inform their own creations. **In simple terms:** Learn from classics to enrich your art. Key Takeaway Study originals to inspire original work. Themes education artistic integrity literature Mood inquisitive analytical Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - theatre workshops - creative writing courses - film studies - literary analysis Key Concepts intertextuality creative lineage Questions to Reflect On - How to balance homage and originality? - What defines a “source material” today? A Different Perspective Risk of imitation over innovation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Obligation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obligation/) [Plays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plays/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Spiritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual/) [Theater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theater/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) ## Related quotes > [Words are the raw material out of which literature is crafted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-prose/words-are-the-raw-material-out-of-which-literature-is-crafted/) [Francine Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-prose/) > [Tardiness in literature can make me nervous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manuel-puig/tardiness-in-literature-can-make-me-nervous/) [Manuel Puig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manuel-puig/) > [A responsibility of literature is to make people awake, present, alive. If the writer wanders, then the reader, too, will wander.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-goldberg/a-responsibility-of-literature-is-to-make-people-awake-present-alive/) [Natalie Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-goldberg/) > [“Literature is integrated, and I'm not just talking about color or race. I'm talking about the power of literature to make us recognize -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-ellison/literature-is-integrated-and-i-m-not-just-talking-about-color-or-race/) [Ralph Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-ellison/) > [It's a real skill to take a piece of literature and make it in cinema. It's quite a different form, and I think I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-ramsay/it-s-a-real-skill-to-take-a-piece-of-literature-and-make-it-in-cinema/) [Lynne Ramsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-ramsay/) > [Through reading literature we can make ghosts speak to us, and we can speak back to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-greenblatt/through-reading-literature-we-can-make-ghosts-speak-to-us-and-we-can/) [Stephen Greenblatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-greenblatt/) > [The most common mistake students of literature make is to go straight for what the poem or novel says, setting aside the way that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/the-most-common-mistake-students-of-literature-make-is-to-go-straight/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [Literature has low enough standards. But we can avoid writing the worst literature if we make ourselves ask ourselves, every two or three sentences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-bly/literature-has-low-enough-standards-but-we-can-avoid-writing-the/) [Carol Bly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-bly/) > [The gamble of literature is that I make the best work I can; the most truthful, the most representative of how I see things.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/the-gamble-of-literature-is-that-i-make-the-best-work-i-can-the-most/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Boyfriends and literature: How can you make a life out of those two things? 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I would do choruses, I would do musicals, whatever it was. And then, as a teenager,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matisyahu/as-a-kid-i-was-really-into-performing-i-would-do-choruses-i-would-do/) [Matisyahu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matisyahu/) > [My first plays were amazingly bad, but I had a teacher who thought I had promise, and he kept working with me. I finally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-henry-hwang/my-first-plays-were-amazingly-bad-but-i-had-a-teacher-who-thought-i/) [David Henry Hwang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-henry-hwang/) ## More by Arthur Penn > [Tap into what you don't want to say. Tap into that secret place, despite the agony, despite the personal pain, over and above the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-penn/tap-into-what-you-don-t-want-to-say-tap-into-that-secret-place/) [Arthur Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-penn/) > [A lot of directors in television have come up through the technical ranks. They have all the technical skills in the world. They're not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-penn/a-lot-of-directors-in-television-have-come-up-through-the-technical/) [Arthur Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-penn/) > [I believe that a large part of the training in the regional theaters is in imitation of the British style of acting. The British…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-penn/i-believe-that-a-large-part-of-the-training-in-the-regional-theaters/) [Arthur Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-penn/) > [I think there's a quality of passion to the American actor. 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You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [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/) > [I once told someone I could act. They totally bought it. 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Whether you're a child mucking around with your friends or a grown up being paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-hewson/actors-don-t-hate-acting-most-people-don-t-hate-acting-whether-you-re/) [Liv Hewson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-hewson/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [I never planned to do female roles. It just happened. I was typecast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divine/i-never-planned-to-do-female-roles-it-just-happened-i-was-typecast/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divine/) > [Once I committed to acting, this has been it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-hudson/once-i-committed-to-acting-this-has-been-it/) [Ernie Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-hudson/) [Browse all 21,590 Actor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "One has a sort of spiritual obligation to go back to the source material of the literature, to make contact with one of the seminal plays of the modern theater.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Arthur Penn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-penn/one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-to-go-back-to-the-source/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Actor" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-penn/one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-to-go-back-to-the-source/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e56/arthur-penn-42269_actor_one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-t_2355863.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e56/arthur-penn-42269_actor_one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-t_2355863.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e56/arthur-penn-42269_actor_one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-t_2355863.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“One has a sort of spiritual obligation to go back to the source material of the literature, to make contact…” — Arthur Penn", "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": "Arthur Penn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-penn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "One has a sort of spiritual...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-penn/one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-to-go-back-to-the-source/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-penn/one-has-a-sort-of-spiritual-obligation-to-go-back-to-the-source/#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 } } ] } ```