--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sometimes I have the feeling that we're…" description: "\"“Sometimes I have the feeling that we're in one room with two opposite doors and each of us holds the handle of one door, one of us flicks an eyelash a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/edmund-white-2376_kafka_sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re_906147.png" --- # Sometimes I have the feeling that we're in one room with… ![“Sometimes I have the feeling that we're in one room with two opposite doors and each of us holds the handle of one door, one of us flicks an eyelash and the other is already behind his door, and now the first one has but to utter a word ad immediately the second one has closed his door behind him…” quote by Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/edmund-white-2376_kafka_sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re_906147.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/edmund-white-2376_kafka_sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re_906147.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/edmund-white-2376_kafka_sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re_906147.png) > ““Sometimes I have the feeling that we're in one room with two opposite doors and each of us holds the handle of one door, one of us flicks an eyelash and the other is already behind his door, and now the first one has but to utter a word ad immediately the second one has closed his door behind him and can no longer be seen. He's sure to open the door again for it's a room which perhaps one cannot leave. If only the first one were not precisely like the second, if he were calm, if he would only pretend not to look at the other, if he slowly set the room in order as though it were a room like any other; but instead he does exactly the same as the other at his door, sometimes even both are behind the doors and the the beautiful room is empty." Franz Kafka (in a letter to Milena Jesenska)”” [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Two individuals act as mirrors, each reacting instantly to the other's move, creating a perpetual cycle of pursuit and retreat in a confined space. **In simple terms:** People mirror each other's actions, leading to endless chase. Key Takeaway Recognize patterns, break the cycle. Themes identity interaction perception escape mirroring Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - relationships - conflict resolution - self-awareness - communication - artistic expression Key Concepts Existentialism psychology social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How do you become the observer rather than the participant? - What breaks the endless loop of mirrored behavior? A Different Perspective If both parties act identically, true connection may never form. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/franz-kafka/) [Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kafka/) [Kafka Letter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kafka-letter-908211/) [Opposite Doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposite-doors-1287660/) [Room Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/room-like-267803/) [Room Opposite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/room-opposite-1287659/) ## Related quotes > [“Sometimes I have the feeling that we're in one room with two opposite doors and each of us holds the handle of one door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re-in-one-room-with-two-opposite/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [My own interest in Kafka's letter came about when I was writing an article on Peter Ginz, the boy novelist held in Terezin, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-cartwright/my-own-interest-in-kafka-s-letter-came-about-when-i-was-writing-an/) [Justin Cartwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-cartwright/) > [In view of the fact that I surround myself with numbskulls now, I shall die among numbskulls, and on my deathbed shall be surrounded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-highsmith/in-view-of-the-fact-that-i-surround-myself-with-numbskulls-now-i/) [Patricia Highsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-highsmith/) > [“In an enchanting encounter with the myriad books that I met in a cosy book shop today, I couldn't help but get bedazzled with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avijeet-das/in-an-enchanting-encounter-with-the-myriad-books-that-i-met-in-a-cosy/) [Avijeet Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avijeet-das/) > [When I wrote 'Your Republic Is Calling You,' it was Franz Kafka's writing that I had most in mind, and James Joyce's 'Ulysses.' Entirely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-young-ha/when-i-wrote-your-republic-is-calling-you-it-was-franz-kafka-s/) [Kim Young-ha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-young-ha/) > [“The gray tomcat with the white priest’s collar enjoyed sharpening his claws on Franz Kafka’s Investigations of a Dog, a fable that analyzes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-george/the-gray-tomcat-with-the-white-priest-s-collar-enjoyed-sharpening-his/) [Nina George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-george/) > [“I dreamt that Earth was finished. And the only human being to contemplate the end was Franz Kafka. In heaven, the Titans were fighting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-bola-o/i-dreamt-that-earth-was-finished-and-the-only-human-being-to/) [Roberto Bolaño](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-bola-o/) > [“What have I in common with Jews? I have hardly anything in common with myself. —Franz Kafka Medicine,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddhartha-mukherjee/what-have-i-in-common-with-jews-i-have-hardly-anything-in-common-with/) [Siddhartha Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddhartha-mukherjee/) > [ When I was quite young I came across a collection of \[Franz\] Kafka stories and read "The Judgment." I was just floored by that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-greenblatt/when-i-was-quite-young-i-came-across-a-collection-of-franz-kafka/) [Stephen Greenblatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-greenblatt/) > [I was warped early by Ray Bradbury and Edgar Allan Poe. I was very fond of Franz Kafka.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-was-warped-early-by-ray-bradbury-and-edgar-allan-poe-i-was-very/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Passionless is vulgar ("Metier: Why I Don't Write Like Franz Kafka")”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-wilson/passionless-is-vulgar-metier-why-i-don-t-write-like-franz-kafka/) [William S. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-wilson/) > [“Very often the test of one's allegiance to a cause or to a people is precisely the willingness to stay the course when things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/very-often-the-test-of-one-s-allegiance-to-a-cause-or-to-a-people-is/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Franz Kafka is dead. He died in a tree from which he wouldn't come down. "Come down!" they cried to him. "Come down! Come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/franz-kafka-is-dead-he-died-in-a-tree-from-which-he-wouldn-t-come/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [ In Guinea I could read \[Franz\] Kafka. I re-discover in him my own discomfort. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/in-guinea-i-could-read-franz-kafka-i-re-discover-in-him-my-own/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“Don't bend; don't water it down; don't try to make it logical; don't edit your own soul according to the fashion. Rather, follow your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ljs-2-motivate/don-t-bend-don-t-water-it-down-don-t-try-to-make-it-logical-don-t-3/) [LJS 2 Motivate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ljs-2-motivate/) ## More by Edmund White > [The talk shows in the States want celebrities, not authors. In France, it is different; writers are called upon to comment on everything. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/the-talk-shows-in-the-states-want-celebrities-not-authors-in-france/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Just like Barack Obama, my views on gay marriage have evolved, and now I am a reluctant groom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/just-like-barack-obama-my-views-on-gay-marriage-have-evolved-and-now/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [In 'A Boy's Own Story' and 'Jack Holmes and His Friend,' my idea was to take someone totally different from my real self and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/in-a-boy-s-own-story-and-jack-holmes-and-his-friend-my-idea-was-to/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Everyone seems agreed that writing about sex is perilous, partly because it threatens to swamp highly individualised characters in a generic, featureless activity (much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/everyone-seems-agreed-that-writing-about-sex-is-perilous-partly/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > ['The Sound of Things Falling' may be a page turner, but it's also a deep meditation on fate and death. Even in translation, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/the-sound-of-things-falling-may-be-a-page-turner-but-it-s-also-a-deep/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [If you're a beach person or a golfer, Key West is not for you. Most of the sand has been imported, and the water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/if-you-re-a-beach-person-or-a-golfer-key-west-is-not-for-you-most-of/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [First, I was opposed to gay marriage because it seemed like one more way that gays were wanting to assimilate. When I realized the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/first-i-was-opposed-to-gay-marriage-because-it-seemed-like-one-more/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [From my mother I learned just how violent and unquenchable a woman's loneliness can be. She had been sheltered excessively by her husband and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/from-my-mother-i-learned-just-how-violent-and-unquenchable-a-woman-s/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [From an early age, I had the idea that writing was truth-telling. It's on the record. Everybody can see it. Maybe it goes back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/from-an-early-age-i-had-the-idea-that-writing-was-truth-telling-it-s/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Since, in the best Southern tradition, I was named Edmund Valentine White III, sometimes when people look up my books on Amazon they find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/since-in-the-best-southern-tradition-i-was-named-edmund-valentine/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [When I was young, I despised old people. I was provincial and narrow-minded. It's the reason I stayed stupid so long. If you only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/when-i-was-young-i-despised-old-people-i-was-provincial-and-narrow/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Key West is the place where your sickly house plant back in New York grows to 10 ft. It's also the place where an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/key-west-is-the-place-where-your-sickly-house-plant-back-in-new-york/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [“In the past, when gays were very flamboyant as drag queens or as leather queens or whatever, that just amused people. And most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/in-the-past-when-gays-were-very-flamboyant-as-drag-queens-or-as/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [When a woman falls in love with me, I feel guilty. I am convinced that it's pure obstinacy that keeps me from reciprocating her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/when-a-woman-falls-in-love-with-me-i-feel-guilty-i-am-convinced-that/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [While writing 'City Boy,' I relied mainly on my own memories. In particular, I was able to describe the effect of gay liberation on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/while-writing-city-boy-i-relied-mainly-on-my-own-memories-in/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) [Explore all 166 Edmund White quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) ## More Kafka quotes > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [I think Kafka was right when he said that for a modern, secular, nonreligious man, state bureaucracy is the only remaining contact with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavoj-i-ek/i-think-kafka-was-right-when-he-said-that-for-a-modern-secular/) [Slavoj Žižek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavoj-i-ek/) > [I don't want to turn 50 and say, 'Gosh, I wish I'd lived in that part of the world for a time. I wish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-trotter/i-don-t-want-to-turn-50-and-say-gosh-i-wish-i-d-lived-in-that-part-of/) [Charlie Trotter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-trotter/) > [“INTERVIEWER Why don’t you write tragedy? BARTHELME I’m fated to deal in mixtures, slumgullions, which preclude tragedy, which require a pure line. It’s a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-barthelme/interviewer-why-don-t-you-write-tragedy-barthelme-i-m-fated-to-deal/) [Donald Barthelme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-barthelme/) > [“Svako živi iza rešetaka koje nosi sa sobom. Zato se sada tako mnogo piše o životinjama. To je izraz čežnje za slobodnim, prirodnim životom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustav-janouch/svako-ivi-iza-re-etaka-koje-nosi-sa-sobom-zato-se-sada-tako-mnogo-pi/) [Gustav Janouch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustav-janouch/) > [“Kafka’s The Castle came to mind, a book I had not read but that fell into that category of literature that culture reads on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-mcguinness/kafka-s-the-castle-came-to-mind-a-book-i-had-not-read-but-that-fell/) [Patrick McGuinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-mcguinness/) > [My own interest in Kafka's letter came about when I was writing an article on Peter Ginz, the boy novelist held in Terezin, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-cartwright/my-own-interest-in-kafka-s-letter-came-about-when-i-was-writing-an/) [Justin Cartwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-cartwright/) > [Since adolescence I've had a passion for Romantic Fantastique literature, which continued with Expressionism and culminated with the genius of Kafka. It's that German…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dumitru-tepeneag/since-adolescence-i-ve-had-a-passion-for-romantic-fantastique/) [Dumitru Tepeneag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dumitru-tepeneag/) > [“The world is a metaphor, Kafka Tamura.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-world-is-a-metaphor-kafka-tamura/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“No writer in our time has been more isolated than Kafka, and yet few have achieved communication as well as he did.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugenio-montale/no-writer-in-our-time-has-been-more-isolated-than-kafka-and-yet-few/) [Eugenio Montale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugenio-montale/) > [I learned my realism from guys like Kafka.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-coover/i-learned-my-realism-from-guys-like-kafka/) [Robert Coover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-coover/) > [“But sleep? On a night like this? What an idea! Just think of how many thoughts a blanket smothers while one lies alone in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/but-sleep-on-a-night-like-this-what-an-idea-just-think-of-how-many/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [“Kafka noted in a letter to his friend Oskar Pollak that “some books seem like a key to unfamiliar rooms in one’s own castle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mikics/kafka-noted-in-a-letter-to-his-friend-oskar-pollak-that-some-books/) [David Mikics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mikics/) > [“Herr Kafka, essen Sie keine Eier." (As one and only piece of dialog K recalls from his meeting with Rudolf Steiner - "Mr. Kafka…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/herr-kafka-essen-sie-keine-eier-as-one-and-only-piece-of-dialog-k/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [ I knew Richard E. Grant, and I went to him and said "Would you like to \[play Kafka in the film\]?" and he said… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-capaldi/i-knew-richard-e-grant-and-i-went-to-him-and-said-would-you-like-to/) [Peter Capaldi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-capaldi/) [Browse all 175 Kafka quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kafka/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Sometimes I have the feeling that we're in one room with two opposite doors and each of us holds the handle of one door, one of us flicks an eyelash and the other is already behind his door, and now the first one has but to utter a word ad immediately the second one has closed his door behind him and can no longer be seen. He's sure to open the door again for it's a room which perhaps one cannot leave. If only the first one were not precisely like the second, if he were calm, if he would only pretend not to look at the other, if he slowly set the room in order as though it were a room like any other; but instead he does exactly the same as the other at his door, sometimes even both are behind the doors and the the beautiful room is empty.\" Franz Kafka (in a letter to Milena Jesenska)”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Edmund White" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re-in-one-room-with-two-opposite-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Kafka" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re-in-one-room-with-two-opposite-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/edmund-white-2376_kafka_sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re_906147.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/edmund-white-2376_kafka_sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re_906147.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/664/edmund-white-2376_kafka_sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re_906147.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Sometimes I have the feeling that we're in one room with two opposite doors and each of us holds the handle…” — Edmund White", "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": "Edmund White", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Sometimes I have the feeling that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re-in-one-room-with-two-opposite-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/sometimes-i-have-the-feeling-that-we-re-in-one-room-with-two-opposite-2/#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 } } ] } ```