--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I look around and see that many — not…" description: "\"“I look around and see that many — not all, but many — problems we've got could be solved if our culture simply fostered the habit of reading . Reading..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/camilo-gomes-jr-24361_books_i-look-around-and-see-that-many-not-all_1116009.jpg" --- # I look around and see that many — not all, but many… ![“I look around and see that many — not all, but many — problems we've got could be solved if our culture simply fostered the habit of reading . Reading books of science, philosophy, history. Reading literature of quality, the sort that touches us because of a more profound reason, such as, for…” quote by Camilo Gomes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/camilo-gomes-jr-24361_books_i-look-around-and-see-that-many-not-all_1116009.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/camilo-gomes-jr-24361_books_i-look-around-and-see-that-many-not-all_1116009.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/camilo-gomes-jr-24361_books_i-look-around-and-see-that-many-not-all_1116009.jpg) > ““I look around and see that many — not all, but many — problems we've got could be solved if our culture simply fostered the habit of reading . Reading books of science, philosophy, history. Reading literature of quality, the sort that touches us because of a more profound reason, such as, for instance, because it's got something to say beyond all the futilities and trifles of life, even while depicting the ordinary in life, at the same time that it says it with style, in a unique, admirable manner. An original one. We are not a county of readers, notwithstanding. We are the country of football turned into a cult, of guile being ranked high as a cardinal virtue, of Carnival made for exportation. A country where there are more letters in political party acronyms than in all many of our politicians have written in a lifetime. A country where ethics has become a joke theme. Where democracy is but a ridiculous puppet theatre. Yes, I look around and see that many problems could be solved if we had the habit of reading. But I am not even sure whether there is someone reading these words.”” [Camilo Gomes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilo-gomes-jr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author argues that many societal issues could be solved if reading were culturally valued, contrasting this with superficial pursuits and political emptiness. **In simple terms:** Reading could fix many problems. Key Takeaway Promote a reading culture. Themes education culture politics media literature Mood critical concerned Type analytical social When to use this quote - schools - public policy - media literacy - community programs Key Concepts critical thinking civic engagement Questions to Reflect On - What barriers prevent widespread reading? - How can reading be made appealing? A Different Perspective Reading alone won’t solve all issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Country Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country-ethics-2995957/) [Habit Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habit-reading-522503/) [Habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) [Ignorance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Political party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-party/) [Politicians Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politicians-written-2995955/) [Readers Notwithstanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/readers-notwithstanding-2995956/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-books/) [Reading literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-literature/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Peace may be negotiated by politicians, but it is something written in hearts and minds not on pieces of paper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuel-jal/peace-may-be-negotiated-by-politicians-but-it-is-something-written-in/) [Emmanuel Jal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuel-jal/) > [“Reading literature is a way of reaching back to something bigger and older and different. It can give you the feeling that you belong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-lesser/reading-literature-is-a-way-of-reaching-back-to-something-bigger-and/) [Wendy Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-lesser/) > [There is more treasure in books than in all the pirates' loot on Treasure Island...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/there-is-more-treasure-in-books-than-in-all-the-pirates-loot-on-2/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Because most of the girls were still in mourning and all of them had lost their textbooks, even pencils and pens, Shaukat Ali began…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mortenson/because-most-of-the-girls-were-still-in-mourning-and-all-of-them-had/) [Greg Mortenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mortenson/) > [ I wasn't reading it \[the Bible\] as literature. I was reading it as literature, and as history, and as a moral guide, and as… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-plotz/i-wasn-t-reading-it-the-bible-as-literature-i-was-reading-it-as/) [David Plotz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-plotz/) > [I had many moments of disappointment, despondency, and exhaustion, but I always found that by reading the literature and showing up at my lab…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-kandel/i-had-many-moments-of-disappointment-despondency-and-exhaustion-but-i/) [Eric Kandel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-kandel/) > [“Reading literature makes us better people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-murphy-paul/reading-literature-makes-us-better-people/) [Annie Murphy Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-murphy-paul/) > [Reading literature remains a civilising activity, no matter that it's literature in which people do and say abominable things and the author curses like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/reading-literature-remains-a-civilising-activity-no-matter-that-it-s/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [“You always know more than you think you know without being aware of it. 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For literature to happen, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/literary-texts-do-not-exist-on-bookshelves-they-are-processes-of/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [You become a reader by reading the literature, not by reading the handbooks about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aidan-chambers/you-become-a-reader-by-reading-the-literature-not-by-reading-the/) [Aidan Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aidan-chambers/) > [“Their management and regulation of our lives spans the total spectrum of American experience, from their obtuse Imperial Measurement System, to their irregularity-strangled English…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoltan-istvan/their-management-and-regulation-of-our-lives-spans-the-total-spectrum/) [Zoltan Istvan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoltan-istvan/) > [I started reading literature at 17 or 18, and I felt this extra beat to life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-ford/i-started-reading-literature-at-17-or-18-and-i-felt-this-extra-beat/) [Richard Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-ford/) > [“So I recommend reading literature, such as the inspiring biography of Anwar Sadat, In Search of Identity, and seeing movies like Chariots of Fire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-covey/so-i-recommend-reading-literature-such-as-the-inspiring-biography-of/) [Stephen R. Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-covey/) ## More by Camilo Gomes Jr > [“Real life doesn't grant us many of the more than useful possibilities people can come out with in fiction.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camilo-gomes-jr/real-life-doesn-t-grant-us-many-of-the-more-than-useful-possibilities/) [Camilo Gomes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilo-gomes-jr/) > [“The point is: have you ever noticed how we crush a cockroach without further worry and feel no remorse in spite of being in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camilo-gomes-jr/the-point-is-have-you-ever-noticed-how-we-crush-a-cockroach-without/) [Camilo Gomes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilo-gomes-jr/) > [“Eu chorei para valer, sem tentar bancar o durão, segurando aquelas folhas que se molhavam com minhas lágrimas, as letras ficando borradas. Palavras que…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camilo-gomes-jr/eu-chorei-para-valer-sem-tentar-bancar-o-dur-o-segurando-aquelas/) [Camilo Gomes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilo-gomes-jr/) > [“Reading is accumulating knowledge. But not only that. Reading offers us every day what religion promises us for a posthumous and improbable future: the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camilo-gomes-jr/reading-is-accumulating-knowledge-but-not-only-that-reading-offers-us/) [Camilo Gomes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilo-gomes-jr/) > [“A vida real não nos concede muitas possibilidades mais do que úteis que as pessoas podem ter na ficção.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camilo-gomes-jr/a-vida-real-n-o-nos-concede-muitas-possibilidades-mais-do-que-teis/) [Camilo Gomes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilo-gomes-jr/) > [“NOTHING MAKES SENSE. Do not look for any sense in things. It is not there. It is you who ascribe it to what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camilo-gomes-jr/nothing-makes-sense-do-not-look-for-any-sense-in-things-it-is-not/) [Camilo Gomes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilo-gomes-jr/) > [“Ask yourself your own questions and go after what might answer them. Before life, you must maintain a philosophical and scientific stance. Always.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camilo-gomes-jr/ask-yourself-your-own-questions-and-go-after-what-might-answer-them/) [Camilo Gomes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilo-gomes-jr/) > [“Quando a gente se apaixona é assim: sempre para vida toda. Até a próxima paixão.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camilo-gomes-jr/quando-a-gente-se-apaixona-assim-sempre-para-vida-toda-at-a-pr-xima/) [Camilo Gomes Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilo-gomes-jr/) [Explore all 9 Camilo Gomes Jr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilo-gomes-jr/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "“I look around and see that many — not all, but many — problems we've got could be solved if our culture simply fostered the habit of reading . Reading books of science, philosophy, history. 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