--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When a child grows old enough to know…" description: "\"“When a child grows old enough to know J.R.R. Tolkien was just staring at a typewriter, the truth can be a wounding exposé.”\" — Dennis Cooper" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/dennis-cooper-32504_children_when-a-child-grows-old-enough-to-know-j_1853228.jpg" --- # When a child grows old enough to know J.R.R. Tolkien was… ![“When a child grows old enough to know J.R.R. Tolkien was just staring at a typewriter, the truth can be a wounding exposé.” quote by Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/dennis-cooper-32504_children_when-a-child-grows-old-enough-to-know-j_1853228.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/dennis-cooper-32504_children_when-a-child-grows-old-enough-to-know-j_1853228.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/dennis-cooper-32504_children_when-a-child-grows-old-enough-to-know-j_1853228.jpg) > ““When a child grows old enough to know J.R.R. Tolkien was just staring at a typewriter, the truth can be a wounding exposé.”” [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Realizing a famous author's humanity can shatter idealized images, revealing their vulnerability. **In simple terms:** Seeing authors as people can be painful. Key Takeaway Accept the humanity behind fame. Themes reality vulnerability illusion Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - reading classic literature - studying author biographies - creative writing workshops Key Concepts humanization celebrity truth Questions to Reflect On - How does knowing an author's flaws affect your reading? - Can vulnerability inspire your own creativity? A Different Perspective Idealization may hinder appreciation of work. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [“When I say "narrative", I do not mean simply the plot, I mean considerably more. Plots and their shapes--the bare outlines of stories--were something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-wynne-jones/when-i-say-narrative-i-do-not-mean-simply-the-plot-i-mean/) [Diana Wynne Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-wynne-jones/) > [It is false zeal to keep truth while wounding charity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-false-zeal-to-keep-truth-while-wounding-charity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I admire Tolkien greatly. His books had enormous influence on me. And the trope that he sort of established—the idea of the Dark Lord…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/i-admire-tolkien-greatly-his-books-had-enormous-influence-on-me-and/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [“Tolkien’s Dwarves were stout, taciturn, vaguely magical characters who spent a lot of time in the dark hammering out beautiful things, e.g. Rings of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-stephenson/tolkien-s-dwarves-were-stout-taciturn-vaguely-magical-characters-who/) [Neal Stephenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-stephenson/) > [“I met a lot of things on the way that astonished me. Tom Bombadil I knew already; but I had never been to Bree.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tolkien/i-met-a-lot-of-things-on-the-way-that-astonished-me-tom-bombadil-i/) Tolkien > [I wasn't into Tolkien at school really. But the story is timeless, the themes that it touches on are contained in cultures all around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-boyd/i-wasn-t-into-tolkien-at-school-really-but-the-story-is-timeless-the/) [Billy Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-boyd/) > [The book of 'The Hobbit' was given to me to read by a friend of my mother when I was about 12 years old:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conan-stevens/the-book-of-the-hobbit-was-given-to-me-to-read-by-a-friend-of-my/) [Conan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conan-stevens/) > [I read all of the books by Tolkien, including 'The Hobbit,' when I was in my twenties, and his deep love of nature and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-shore/i-read-all-of-the-books-by-tolkien-including-the-hobbit-when-i-was-in/) [Howard Shore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-shore/) > [“When my father was a young man, during the years of the First World War and long before there was any inkling of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien/when-my-father-was-a-young-man-during-the-years-of-the-first-world/) [J.R.R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien/) > [My parents read to me a lot as a kid, and I started writing very early, probably spurred on by Aesop's fables. Then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-vandermeer/my-parents-read-to-me-a-lot-as-a-kid-and-i-started-writing-very-early/) [Jeff VanderMeer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-vandermeer/) > [I grew up reading Tolkien, and I love him. But I love him in the way that you love that rambly old grandfather. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/i-grew-up-reading-tolkien-and-i-love-him-but-i-love-him-in-the-way/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“The Gospel is the ultimate fairy-story, Tolkien concludes, because it contains "the greatest and most complete conceivable eucatastrophe… There is no tale ever told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-c-wood/the-gospel-is-the-ultimate-fairy-story-tolkien-concludes-because-it/) [Ralph C. Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-c-wood/) > [I was a massive Tolkien fan. 'The Hobbit' was... my favorite book as a little girl, and the Silvan Elves were my favorite characters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evangeline-lilly/i-was-a-massive-tolkien-fan-the-hobbit-was-my-favorite-book-as-a/) [Evangeline Lilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evangeline-lilly/) > [Tolkien is as good as Dickens at sketching a scene.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mckellen/tolkien-is-as-good-as-dickens-at-sketching-a-scene/) [Ian Mckellen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mckellen/) > [If you read 'Lord of the Rings' and dismiss it as a lie because it has orcs and elves, you're missing the whole point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-tennapel/if-you-read-lord-of-the-rings-and-dismiss-it-as-a-lie-because-it-has/) [Doug TenNapel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-tennapel/) ## More by Dennis Cooper > [Why is it I feel a new nostalgia for the era of the guillotine?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/why-is-it-i-feel-a-new-nostalgia-for-the-era-of-the-guillotine/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [A lot of writers do think of their characters as living beings. I know that's the way people think. That's why I try to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/a-lot-of-writers-do-think-of-their-characters-as-living-beings-i-know/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [“Emotional. Out of his mind grateful. Anything goes. I love you, I love you, I love you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/emotional-out-of-his-mind-grateful-anything-goes-i-love-you-i-love/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [Before I decided to concentrate on writing, I drew pictures and painted, and made Super 8 experimental movies. I was the singer in three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/before-i-decided-to-concentrate-on-writing-i-drew-pictures-and/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [Cult writer. It's a weird term because it's complimentary but condescending at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/cult-writer-it-s-a-weird-term-because-it-s-complimentary-but/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [I think pornography is a very rich medium, and I've studied it closely and learned quite a lot as a writer from it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/i-think-pornography-is-a-very-rich-medium-and-i-ve-studied-it-closely/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [My novels tend to take a long time to become exactly what they're going to be. They're fluid messes until I've done a ton…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/my-novels-tend-to-take-a-long-time-to-become-exactly-what-they-re/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [I was thinking a lot about music, about how music is mixed and how everything is happening at the same time; it just amounts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/i-was-thinking-a-lot-about-music-about-how-music-is-mixed-and-how/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [“I'm a talentless but popular young singer and I have the feeling someone is watching me. I use the term loosely because I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/i-m-a-talentless-but-popular-young-singer-and-i-have-the-feeling/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [“But here I am blocking the view of this simple scene, like a director who accidentally walks in front of his own projector, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/but-here-i-am-blocking-the-view-of-this-simple-scene-like-a-director/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [When I read Spencer Madsen’s poetry, I not only feel awe because he’s so good, one of the best, but I also think about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/when-i-read-spencer-madsen-s-poetry-i-not-only-feel-awe-because-he-s/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [Dan thought of love as defined by books, cobwebbed and hidden from view by the past. Too bad a love like that didn't actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/dan-thought-of-love-as-defined-by-books-cobwebbed-and-hidden-from/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [“When I started writing I was a sick teenaged fuck inside who partly thought I was the new Marquis de Sade, a body doomed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/when-i-started-writing-i-was-a-sick-teenaged-fuck-inside-who-partly/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) > [I want to love someone so selflessly that he would never even think about going away. I suppose that's what most people want. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-cooper/i-want-to-love-someone-so-selflessly-that-he-would-never-even-think/) [Dennis Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) [Explore all 15 Dennis Cooper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-cooper/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [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/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [A lesser complaint: hair extensions. There are moments on 'All My Children' when half the women actors, young and old, seem to be afflicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/a-lesser-complaint-hair-extensions-there-are-moments-on-all-my/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? Your childhood is always ending and your adult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-espach/children-s-lives-are-always-beginning-and-adults-lives-are-always/) [Alison Espach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-espach/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) [Browse all 62,396 Children quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When a child grows old enough to know J.R.R. 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