--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I know playwrights who like to kid…" description: "\"I know playwrights who like to kid themselves into saying that their characters are so well formed that they just take over. They determine the structu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5db/edward-albee-1684_actor_i-know-playwrights-who-like-to-kid-thems_99742.png" --- # I know playwrights who like to kid themselves into saying… ![“I know playwrights who like to kid themselves into saying that their characters are so well formed that they just take over. They determine the structure of the play. By which is meant, I suspect, only that the unconscious mind has done its work so thoroughly that the play just has to be filtered…” quote by Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5db/edward-albee-1684_actor_i-know-playwrights-who-like-to-kid-thems_99742.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5db/edward-albee-1684_actor_i-know-playwrights-who-like-to-kid-thems_99742.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5db/edward-albee-1684_actor_i-know-playwrights-who-like-to-kid-thems_99742.png) > “I know playwrights who like to kid themselves into saying that their characters are so well formed that they just take over. They determine the structure of the play. By which is meant, I suspect, only that the unconscious mind has done its work so thoroughly that the play just has to be filtered through the conscious mind. But there's work to be done - and discovery to be made.” [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Playwrights often attribute a play’s structure to the unconscious, but conscious effort is still required to shape and refine the material. **In simple terms:** Unconscious ideas need conscious editing. Key Takeaway Both unconscious inspiration and conscious work shape art. Themes creativity psychology writing process artistic discovery Mood introspective analytical Type creative insight process commentary When to use this quote - drafting a screenplay - brainstorming a novel outline Key Concepts cognitive theory creative process Practical Applications - allow free writing then edit deliberately - use reflective pauses to uncover hidden patterns Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance intuition with technique? - What methods help you surface unconscious material? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on the unconscious may excuse lack of disciplined craftsmanship. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Conscious mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious-mind/) [Discovery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovery/) [Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kids/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Playwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playwright/) [Playwrights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playwrights/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Structure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/structure/) [Unconscious mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unconscious-mind/) [Work to be done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-to-be-done/) ## Related quotes > [I know too many playwrights, or would-be playwrights, or would-have-been playwrights, that are around my age, who were bitter or have gone to something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-tipton/i-know-too-many-playwrights-or-would-be-playwrights-or-would-have/) [Jennifer Tipton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-tipton/) > [Playwrights are like men who have been dining for a month in an Indian restaurant. After eating curry night after night, they deny the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-ustinov/playwrights-are-like-men-who-have-been-dining-for-a-month-in-an/) [Peter Ustinov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-ustinov/) > ['American Playhouse' is very supportive of writers. That's really why writers like to write for 'American Playhouse' for very little money. They care about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-mcnally/american-playhouse-is-very-supportive-of-writers-that-s-really-why/) [Terrence McNally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrence-mcnally/) > [I am pleased and reassured by the fact that a lot of younger playwrights seem to pay me some attention and gain some nourishment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/i-am-pleased-and-reassured-by-the-fact-that-a-lot-of-younger/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [There are a number of contemporary playwrights whom I admire enormously, but that's not at all the same thing as being influenced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/there-are-a-number-of-contemporary-playwrights-whom-i-admire/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [A rather ugly thing starts happening: the playwright finds himself knocked down for works that quite often are just as good or better than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/a-rather-ugly-thing-starts-happening-the-playwright-finds-himself/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [A lot of American playwrights seem to have a career as a playwright. 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Arts Garage has created…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israel-horovitz/lou-tyrrell-has-created-a-theatre-that-is-a-safe-haven-for/) [Israel Horovitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israel-horovitz/) ## More by Edward Albee > [School curricula that ignore the arts produce highly educated Barbarians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/school-curricula-that-ignore-the-arts-produce-highly-educated/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [When a critic sets himself up as an arbiter of morality, a judge of the matter and not the manner of a work, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/when-a-critic-sets-himself-up-as-an-arbiter-of-morality-a-judge-of/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [When people don't like the way a play ends, they're likely to blame the play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/when-people-don-t-like-the-way-a-play-ends-they-re-likely-to-blame/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [In a democracy you cannot stop public access to that art that will most misinform the people. 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A good deal of this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/the-greatest-problem-with-irish-wolfhounds-though-is-that-they-don-t/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [Dashed hopes and good intentions. Good, better, best, bested.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/dashed-hopes-and-good-intentions-good-better-best-bested/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [Writing has got to be an act of discovery…I write to find out what I'm thinking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/writing-has-got-to-be-an-act-of-discovery-i-write-to-find-out-what-i/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [I'm back in fashion again for a while now. But I imagine that three or four years from now I'll be out again. 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