--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They looked at each other like a pair of…" description: "\"They looked at each other like a pair of parentheses.\" — Daniel Handler" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5c/daniel-handler-1043_looked_they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of_3082562.jpg" --- # They looked at each other like a pair of parentheses. ![“They looked at each other like a pair of parentheses.” quote by Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5c/daniel-handler-1043_looked_they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of_3082562.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5c/daniel-handler-1043_looked_they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of_3082562.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5c/daniel-handler-1043_looked_they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of_3082562.jpg) > “They looked at each other like a pair of parentheses.” [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Their interaction is likened to matching brackets, suggesting a close, interdependent relationship **In simple terms:** They are like matching brackets, tightly linked Key Takeaway Recognize how relationships reflect each other's shape Themes relationships interdependence literary metaphor Mood playful thoughtful Type literary observational When to use this quote - friendship - family ties - collaborative projects - conflict resolution Key Concepts symbolic pairing character dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How does this metaphor help you view your own relationships? - When might this comparison be misleading? A Different Perspective The metaphor may oversimplify complex human dynamics ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [“On the way home, I saw a fist fight between an adverb and a pair of parentheses. I kept on walking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-james-west/on-the-way-home-i-saw-a-fist-fight-between-an-adverb-and-a-pair-of/) [Peter James West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-james-west/) > [I believe friends enclose us, like a pair of parentheses. Each one knows us differently, each sustains us in a different way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-kephart/i-believe-friends-enclose-us-like-a-pair-of-parentheses-each-one/) [Beth Kephart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-kephart/) > [I wasn’t sure what expression I was expecting her to wear when she saw that it was me. I’d braced myself for disgust or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-stiefvater/i-wasn-t-sure-what-expression-i-was-expecting-her-to-wear-when-she/) [Maggie Stiefvater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-stiefvater/) > [I did have someone tell me that I looked like Conan O'Brien. I was like, 'What?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-edgerton/i-did-have-someone-tell-me-that-i-looked-like-conan-o-brien-i-was/) [Joel Edgerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-edgerton/) > [I was one of those kids who found it difficult to eat anything that looked like an animal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-mckee/i-was-one-of-those-kids-who-found-it-difficult-to-eat-anything-that/) [Gina McKee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-mckee/) > [“She looked like a dead Teletubby.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babe-walker/she-looked-like-a-dead-teletubby/) [Babe Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babe-walker/) > [He looked at me like I was beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/he-looked-at-me-like-i-was-beautiful/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“I thought you looked like a man with a bridge on fire, she said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gay/i-thought-you-looked-like-a-man-with-a-bridge-on-fire-she-said/) [William Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gay/) > [“I wish I knew what I looked like in other peoples eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rukhsar-din/i-wish-i-knew-what-i-looked-like-in-other-peoples-eyes/) Rukhsar Din > [Once I Had No Idea How God Looked-Like But Now I See My God In You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-i-had-no-idea-how-god-looked-like-but-now-i-see-my-god-in-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Who looked like a girlfriend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-killers/who-looked-like-a-girlfriend/) [The Killers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-killers/) > [From 30 feet away she looked like a lot of class. From 10 feet away she looked like something made up to be seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/from-30-feet-away-she-looked-like-a-lot-of-class-from-10-feet-away/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [It didn't matter what you looked like. It was how you carried yourself, how you saw yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-westerfeld/it-didn-t-matter-what-you-looked-like-it-was-how-you-carried-yourself/) [Scott Westerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-westerfeld/) > [“he looked like something more than human, or something less.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-lee/he-looked-like-something-more-than-human-or-something-less/) [Edward Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-lee/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## More by Daniel Handler > [We laughed the rest of the way, because the point of this story is, it is not the cookies. It is the love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/we-laughed-the-rest-of-the-way-because-the-point-of-this-story-is-it/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I started making plans, thinking we would get that far.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-started-making-plans-thinking-we-would-get-that-far/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I can't imagine why you would want to take your child to see what the career of a writer is like, because it mostly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-can-t-imagine-why-you-would-want-to-take-your-child-to-see-what-the/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [“All the deaths are dead for nothing but you're not dead at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/all-the-deaths-are-dead-for-nothing-but-you-re-not-dead-at-all/) [daniel handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [“I love you so soundly and I will do anything to drag you forward.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-love-you-so-soundly-and-i-will-do-anything-to-drag-you-forward/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I’d ruin any day, all my days, for those long nights with you, and I did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-d-ruin-any-day-all-my-days-for-those-long-nights-with-you-and-i-did/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [Chestnuts in stuffing tastes like someone chewed up a tree branch and then French-kissed it into your mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/chestnuts-in-stuffing-tastes-like-someone-chewed-up-a-tree-branch-and/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [Lemony Snicket. Now, I'm told - the books, of course, starting from the very first one, became hugely popular, selling millions and millions. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/lemony-snicket-now-i-m-told-the-books-of-course-starting-from-the/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [“The matches were a little 'he loves me, he loves me not,' but then I saw right on the box that I had twenty-four,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-matches-were-a-little-he-loves-me-he-loves-me-not-but-then-i-saw/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I didn't like books where people played on a sports team and won a bunch of games, or went to summer camp and had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-didn-t-like-books-where-people-played-on-a-sports-team-and-won-a/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [I love no one but you, I have discovered, but you are far away and I am here alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-love-no-one-but-you-i-have-discovered-but-you-are-far-away-and-i-am/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [The Basic Eight and Watch Your Mouth both have first-person voices, and I ended up investigating those voices and investing so much in them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-basic-eight-and-watch-your-mouth-both-have-first-person-voices/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [The Long Goodbye' is one book I like to read over and over again, and it was an enormous inspiration for 'All The Wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-long-goodbye-is-one-book-i-like-to-read-over-and-over-again-and/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [The whole thing of what I’ve been trying,” you said, “is that you’re different, and you keep asking about the other girls, but what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-whole-thing-of-what-i-ve-been-trying-you-said-is-that-you-re/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [ I wrote a comedy, which hopefully \[Rick director\] Curtiss Clayton will bring to the screen, that I thought was the antithesis of all my… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-wrote-a-comedy-which-hopefully-rick-director-curtiss-clayton-will/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) [Explore all 295 Daniel Handler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) ## More Looked quotes > [I think cricket is there in Usain Bolt's blood. Since I got to watch from close quarters, it was amazing to see him run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh/i-think-cricket-is-there-in-usain-bolt-s-blood-since-i-got-to-watch/) [Harbhajan Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh/) > [My dad's quite a conservative person, and he brought me up to be very questioning of the commercial world. He looked down on pop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-and-the-diamonds/my-dad-s-quite-a-conservative-person-and-he-brought-me-up-to-be-very/) [Marina and the Diamonds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-and-the-diamonds/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [It was the way she felt when she looked at the stars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-stiefvater/it-was-the-way-she-felt-when-she-looked-at-the-stars/) [Maggie Stiefvater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-stiefvater/) > [I have photographs taken of me at the time I was addicted, and thought I looked good. I see them today and realize my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirstie-alley/i-have-photographs-taken-of-me-at-the-time-i-was-addicted-and-thought/) [Kirstie Alley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirstie-alley/) > [This is way more hlpuefl than anything else I've looked at.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bardo/this-is-way-more-hlpuefl-than-anything-else-i-ve-looked-at/) Bardo > [“We looked at each other. At that moment, I was also a hundred percent sure that Van Dieren and I were thinking the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-koch/we-looked-at-each-other-at-that-moment-i-was-also-a-hundred-percent/) [Herman Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-koch/) > [People used to say my son looked like a Mexican Biggie. And when he was first born, memories of Biggie... you know, we didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faith-evans/people-used-to-say-my-son-looked-like-a-mexican-biggie-and-when-he/) [Faith Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faith-evans/) > [It looked incredibly credible!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-horlick/it-looked-incredibly-credible/) Nicola Horlick > [A lot of times, my work is looked at very much on the surface. It's very easy to just want to put something in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-koons/a-lot-of-times-my-work-is-looked-at-very-much-on-the-surface-it-s/) [Jeff Koons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-koons/) > [“he looked at me with such vehemence that I felt like a blip, a fart, in the course of his life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-easton-ellis/he-looked-at-me-with-such-vehemence-that-i-felt-like-a-blip-a-fart-in/) [Bret Easton Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-easton-ellis/) > [When I looked in your eyes, I didn't see you. I saw my today, tomorrow, and the rest of my future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pacifiersucker/when-i-looked-in-your-eyes-i-didn-t-see-you-i-saw-my-today-tomorrow/) Pacifiersucker > [“he looked like something more than human, or something less.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-lee/he-looked-like-something-more-than-human-or-something-less/) [Edward Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-lee/) > [“You saw someone who reminded you of you, and then you looked for the reasons why you liked him. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/you-saw-someone-who-reminded-you-of-you-and-then-you-looked-for-the/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [I just looked at my most recent ex and just thought: Did I really like THAT !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-just-looked-at-my-most-recent-ex-and-just-thought-did-i-really-like/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) Browse all 1,213 Looked quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "They looked at each other like a pair of parentheses.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Daniel Handler" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of-parentheses/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Looked" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of-parentheses/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5c/daniel-handler-1043_looked_they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of_3082562.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5c/daniel-handler-1043_looked_they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of_3082562.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5c/daniel-handler-1043_looked_they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of_3082562.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“They looked at each other like a pair of parentheses.” — Daniel Handler", "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": "Daniel Handler", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "They looked at each other like...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of-parentheses/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/they-looked-at-each-other-like-a-pair-of-parentheses/#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 } } ] } ```