--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm interested is the oblique as a…" description: "\"I'm interested is the oblique as a concept deeply connected to human lived experience, not separate from it. I was listening to an interview with film ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/dawn-lundy-martin-32648_film_i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-conce_302745.jpg" --- # I'm interested is the oblique as a concept deeply… ![“I'm interested is the oblique as a concept deeply connected to human lived experience, not separate from it. I was listening to an interview with film director Stephen Frears on NPR the other day and he said, "People's lives are never what you think they are," or something like that. Human lives…” quote by Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/dawn-lundy-martin-32648_film_i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-conce_302745.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/dawn-lundy-martin-32648_film_i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-conce_302745.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/dawn-lundy-martin-32648_film_i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-conce_302745.jpg) > “I'm interested is the oblique as a concept deeply connected to human lived experience, not separate from it. I was listening to an interview with film director Stephen Frears on NPR the other day and he said, "People's lives are never what you think they are," or something like that. Human lives are oblique. It makes sense to me that attending to them in language is as well.” [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human experience is indirect and complex; language should reflect that messiness rather than simplify it. **In simple terms:** Life is messy; language should capture that. Key Takeaway Embrace complexity in storytelling. Themes complexity obliqueness human experience language artistic truth Mood introspective thoughtful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing - teaching - public speaking - media analysis Key Concepts philosophy literature film studies psychology Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance nuance with accessibility? - What does “oblique” mean in your own life? A Different Perspective Obliqueness can alienate audiences seeking clarity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Oblique](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oblique/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“Life’s easy. It’s living it that’s difficult.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-sasso/life-s-easy-it-s-living-it-that-s-difficult/) Mike Sasso > [It was always a false assumption that white American writers cannot write novels about race unless they're approaching it from a very oblique angle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-row/it-was-always-a-false-assumption-that-white-american-writers-cannot/) [Jess Row](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-row/) > [The only thing that makes a book YA is that it is about teenagers, and it is written in a very conventional, non-artsy, non-pretentious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-that-it-is-about-teenagers-and/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [All that a city will ever allow you is an angle on it, an oblique, indirect sample of what it contains, or what passes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-conrad/all-that-a-city-will-ever-allow-you-is-an-angle-on-it-an-oblique/) Peter Conrad > [An oblique angle,” Jack said, and his bout of jealousy was quickly replaced with glee. “Ha! I told you I would work that in!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-hocking/an-oblique-angle-jack-said-and-his-bout-of-jealousy-was-quickly/) [Amanda Hocking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-hocking/) > [My best-known book remains 'Henry and Clara,' a novel about the couple who were with the Lincolns at Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mallon/my-best-known-book-remains-henry-and-clara-a-novel-about-the-couple/) [Thomas Mallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mallon/) > [I'm fond of implied narratives, oblique angles, and leaving a little room for the viewer to finish a picture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-carter/i-m-fond-of-implied-narratives-oblique-angles-and-leaving-a-little/) [Keith Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-carter/) > [There's always the pressure on the director of how to transition from one scene to another, especially when it can really be oblique on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-graves/there-s-always-the-pressure-on-the-director-of-how-to-transition-from/) [Alex Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-graves/) > [Our relations to each other are oblique and casual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/our-relations-to-each-other-are-oblique-and-casual/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“Personal life, expression, knowledge, and history advance obliquely, and not directly, toward ends or toward concepts. That which is sought too deliberately is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/personal-life-expression-knowledge-and-history-advance-obliquely-and/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [I'm an oblique guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-penn/i-m-an-oblique-guy/) [Michael Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-penn/) > [I am oblique; I think that has to do with my own nature. I like trying to do things which work on many levels,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-j-pakula/i-am-oblique-i-think-that-has-to-do-with-my-own-nature-i-like-trying/) [Alan J. Pakula](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-j-pakula/) > [Scott Bradfield writes weird, oblique, unsettling stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-giles/scott-bradfield-writes-weird-oblique-unsettling-stuff/) [Jeff Giles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-giles/) > [“Men can labor to make sense out of single steps toward the goal without ever pausing to reflect that the goal itself is ludicrous.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/men-can-labor-to-make-sense-out-of-single-steps-toward-the-goal/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [There comes a time when you're losing a fight that it just doesn't make sense to keep on fighting. It's not that you're being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-paul-curtis/there-comes-a-time-when-you-re-losing-a-fight-that-it-just-doesn-t/) [Christopher Paul Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-paul-curtis/) ## More by Dawn Lundy Martin > [I often feel trapped. I often feel like I'm trying to escape some trap, be it a way of thinking, a compulsion, or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-often-feel-trapped-i-often-feel-like-i-m-trying-to-escape-some-trap/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [ “\[I wanted silence in the flowers, not to not say, but to not have the impulse of saying.\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-wanted-silence-in-the-flowers-not-to-not-say-but-to-not-have-the/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [I think the occupation of my poetry is akin to this desire to be many things at once - things that sometimes conflict. Regarding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-think-the-occupation-of-my-poetry-is-akin-to-this-desire-to-be-many/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [With my students I give them lots and lots of guided writing. Part of it is as simple as writing a lot but not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/with-my-students-i-give-them-lots-and-lots-of-guided-writing-part-of/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [The precise laziness is akin to letting your eyes blur or glimpsing what's at the corners in peripheral vision. Or those moments when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/the-precise-laziness-is-akin-to-letting-your-eyes-blur-or-glimpsing/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [At the Third Wave Foundation, we were asking questions like, "How can we get more voters registered who support our issues?" or "How do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/at-the-third-wave-foundation-we-were-asking-questions-like-how-can-we/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [I once asked Myung Mi Kim where gender is located in her work, and she said simply, "it's everywhere," resisting the notion that gender…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-once-asked-myung-mi-kim-where-gender-is-located-in-her-work-and-she/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [My goals as an artist have nothing to do with speaking to an audience. I love to have a good time, but when it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/my-goals-as-an-artist-have-nothing-to-do-with-speaking-to-an-audience/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [I reach readers rather unintentionally, I think, and those readers likely connect with the slant, the off-kilter, the part of the road you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-reach-readers-rather-unintentionally-i-think-and-those-readers/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [Can poetry be a form of social change? I don't know the answer to that. I do think art can have a social impact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/can-poetry-be-a-form-of-social-change-i-don-t-know-the-answer-to-that/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [When I am writing poetry, I try to make my mind go a little lazy, to not think too much, as a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/when-i-am-writing-poetry-i-try-to-make-my-mind-go-a-little-lazy-to/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [I've long been a fan of Adrian Piper's work. I find her performance pieces moving in their willingness to lean toward the absurd. Yet,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-ve-long-been-a-fan-of-adrian-piper-s-work-i-find-her-performance/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [When my work does speak to audiences, when it creates audiences around it, I feel a little less crazy because what that means is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/when-my-work-does-speak-to-audiences-when-it-creates-audiences-around/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [For me, a lot of Discipline was very personal writing, like writing through and working out being inside this gendered body and also the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/for-me-a-lot-of-discipline-was-very-personal-writing-like-writing/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) [Explore all 15 Dawn Lundy Martin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) ## More Film quotes > [You have to have a great director to make a great movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thelma-schoonmaker/you-have-to-have-a-great-director-to-make-a-great-movie/) [Thelma Schoonmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thelma-schoonmaker/) > [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [There has got to be a way for me to have a role on TV or in film that is just as normal as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adeel-akhtar/there-has-got-to-be-a-way-for-me-to-have-a-role-on-tv-or-in-film-that/) [Adeel Akhtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adeel-akhtar/) > [ Brad \[Dourif\] would tell himself that he was not intentionally trying to mimic Jack Nicholson in any way. I think that actually bothers him… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kirschner/brad-dourif-would-tell-himself-that-he-was-not-intentionally-trying/) [David Kirschner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kirschner/) > [My only close-to-game-plan is to follow good writing. If the writing is in TV or if it's in theater or in film, that's it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-driver/my-only-close-to-game-plan-is-to-follow-good-writing-if-the-writing/) [Adam Driver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-driver/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [Making movies seemed so impossible as far as getting my ideas funded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boots-riley/making-movies-seemed-so-impossible-as-far-as-getting-my-ideas-funded/) [Boots Riley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boots-riley/) > [Movies have power. Power to impact society and the choices we make. I want to entertain, but I also want to say something to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-prince-bythewood/movies-have-power-power-to-impact-society-and-the-choices-we-make-i/) [Gina Prince-Bythewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-prince-bythewood/) > [I'm a big fan of all the Boston guys that are acting - Matt Damon , Ben Affleck, Mark Wahlberg - they made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-wormald/i-m-a-big-fan-of-all-the-boston-guys-that-are-acting-matt-damon-ben/) [Kenny Wormald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-wormald/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [I love film people and actors and I am in the right world because I am one of those people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-love-film-people-and-actors-and-i-am-in-the-right-world-because-i/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [I'd love to work in the States; I'd love to work anywhere where you get a good script and a good part to play.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-carmichael/i-d-love-to-work-in-the-states-i-d-love-to-work-anywhere-where-you/) [Laura Carmichael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-carmichael/) > [I started out dancing on a reality TV show, but always with the intention of making my way over to film. I transitioned into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-hough/i-started-out-dancing-on-a-reality-tv-show-but-always-with-the/) [Julianne Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-hough/) > [Pakistan now is like a horror film franchise. You know, it's 'Friday the 13th, Episode 63: The Terrorist from Pakistan.' And each time we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/pakistan-now-is-like-a-horror-film-franchise-you-know-it-s-friday-the/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) [Browse all 32,254 Film quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm interested is the oblique as a concept deeply connected to human lived experience, not separate from it. I was listening to an interview with film director Stephen Frears on NPR the other day and he said, \"People's lives are never what you think they are,\" or something like that. Human lives are oblique. It makes sense to me that attending to them in language is as well.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dawn Lundy Martin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-concept-deeply-connected-to-human/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Film" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-concept-deeply-connected-to-human/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/dawn-lundy-martin-32648_film_i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-conce_302745.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/dawn-lundy-martin-32648_film_i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-conce_302745.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/dawn-lundy-martin-32648_film_i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-conce_302745.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I'm interested is the oblique as a concept deeply connected to human lived experience, not separate from it…” — Dawn Lundy Martin", "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": "Dawn Lundy Martin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I'm interested is the oblique as...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-concept-deeply-connected-to-human/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-concept-deeply-connected-to-human/#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 } } ] } ```