--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As a novelist, you write about social…" description: "\"As a novelist, you write about social mores, but not everything can be explained.\" — Elif Batuman" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/elif-batuman-2172_about_as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mor_787181.png" --- # As a novelist, you write about social mores, but not… ![“As a novelist, you write about social mores, but not everything can be explained.” quote by Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/elif-batuman-2172_about_as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mor_787181.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/elif-batuman-2172_about_as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mor_787181.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/elif-batuman-2172_about_as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mor_787181.png) > “As a novelist, you write about social mores, but not everything can be explained.” [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writers capture society’s norms but must leave some mysteries untouched. **In simple terms:** Writers describe society but can’t explain everything. Key Takeaway Embrace ambiguity in storytelling. Themes writing society mystery Mood thoughtful curious Type literary reflective When to use this quote - Literary analysis - creative workshops - teaching writing Key Concepts Narrative limits interpretation Questions to Reflect On - How do you decide what to leave unexplained? - What value does mystery add to a story? A Different Perspective Not all aspects of culture can be fully articulated. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Novelist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novelist/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I'm not sure if you can strive your way into a career as a novelist. You have to write books; there are no short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-kushner/i-m-not-sure-if-you-can-strive-your-way-into-a-career-as-a-novelist/) [Rachel Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-kushner/) > [I'm a novelist, so I can't write about ideas unless they're attached to people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/i-m-a-novelist-so-i-can-t-write-about-ideas-unless-they-re-attached/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [I'm a very old-fashioned novelist. I write 19th-century novels, where a lot of rules apply.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/i-m-a-very-old-fashioned-novelist-i-write-19th-century-novels-where-a/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [I myself get nervous when I write something on social media. I make sure I don't write anything wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/disha-patani/i-myself-get-nervous-when-i-write-something-on-social-media-i-make/) [Disha Patani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/disha-patani/) > [I cannot say that I write with any social objective. One writes because one loves writing, really.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/i-cannot-say-that-i-write-with-any-social-objective-one-writes/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [I try not to go too crazy with what people write on social media, it's about trying to do my best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-almiron/i-try-not-to-go-too-crazy-with-what-people-write-on-social-media-it-s/) [Miguel Almiron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-almiron/) > [I do want to write about social/cultural/historical context. I'm interested in relationships, in character, but within a specific social context. Which is kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-spiotta/i-do-want-to-write-about-social-cultural-historical-context-i-m/) [Dana Spiotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-spiotta/) > [Social mores change all the time. In the mid-1970s, it would've been astonishing, say, to see two men holding hands in the streets. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/social-mores-change-all-the-time-in-the-mid-1970s-it-would-ve-been/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [You do realise modern social mores exist for a reason?" "I was hungry, allowances should be made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-carriger/you-do-realise-modern-social-mores-exist-for-a-reason-i-was-hungry/) [Gail Carriger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-carriger/) > [How powerful social mores are! Only a spider's web lies across the volcano, yet it refrains from erupting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/how-powerful-social-mores-are-only-a-spider-s-web-lies-across-the/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [Social mores change with time, like fashion - who knows where it might all end up? I especially like the idea that waste, impoliteness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-fforde/social-mores-change-with-time-like-fashion-who-knows-where-it-might/) [Jasper Fforde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-fforde/) > [Our social mores no longer conform to a world where nice girls wear skirts that don't cling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-binkley/our-social-mores-no-longer-conform-to-a-world-where-nice-girls-wear/) [Christina Binkley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-binkley/) > [“I think that if Mozart were alive today and decided to become a novelist, he would write humorous fantasy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-p-ryan/i-think-that-if-mozart-were-alive-today-and-decided-to-become-a/) Frank P. Ryan > [I think of myself as a songwriter, a weaver of story and imagination in a way that a novelist might write a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pj-harvey/i-think-of-myself-as-a-songwriter-a-weaver-of-story-and-imagination/) [PJ Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pj-harvey/) > [I think if I was interested in writing on my own, I would be a novelist - then you could write about yourself, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zal-batmanglij/i-think-if-i-was-interested-in-writing-on-my-own-i-would-be-a/) [Zal Batmanglij](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zal-batmanglij/) ## More by Elif Batuman > [My parents were born into a secular country. They met in Turkey's top medical school, moved to America in the nineteen-seventies, and became researchers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/my-parents-were-born-into-a-secular-country-they-met-in-turkey-s-top/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“I leafed through the phrase book. If a Martian read it, the Martian would probably decide to avoid Hungary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-leafed-through-the-phrase-book-if-a-martian-read-it-the-martian/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [You can't invent something you have no epistemological access to. In a way, it's all recombination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/you-can-t-invent-something-you-have-no-epistemological-access-to-in-a/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [Poetry is another space, like love, where we extend that extra credit to the writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/poetry-is-another-space-like-love-where-we-extend-that-extra-credit/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“Svetlana said that she identified with that Madonna more than with any other woman in any other painting. She kept asking me what painting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/svetlana-said-that-she-identified-with-that-madonna-more-than-with/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [One of the most painful parts of a breakup is having the feeling that your life is a story, and then the other person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/one-of-the-most-painful-parts-of-a-breakup-is-having-the-feeling-that/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“Dracula visited the Wolf Department at the Zoological Gardens. "These wolves seem upset at something," he observed. The next morning the cage was all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/dracula-visited-the-wolf-department-at-the-zoological-gardens-these/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [I like to think that I know a lot of words, but I definitely don't know all of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-like-to-think-that-i-know-a-lot-of-words-but-i-definitely-don-t/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“I don't know if I ended up siding with the academics just because I happened to end up in graduate school, or if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-don-t-know-if-i-ended-up-siding-with-the-academics-just-because-i/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [People don't become writers because they love having spontaneous, real-world interactions with living people as bodies with clothes in time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/people-don-t-become-writers-because-they-love-having-spontaneous-real/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“Each work of criticism is supposed to build on the body of work, to increase the total sum of human understanding. It's not like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/each-work-of-criticism-is-supposed-to-build-on-the-body-of-work-to/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [Humor is really important to me. All my favorite writers are writers I consider to be funny, including Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, even though that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/humor-is-really-important-to-me-all-my-favorite-writers-are-writers-i/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [Every time a meteor comes close to the earth, we all think about the end of the world - but our internal soundtrack doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/every-time-a-meteor-comes-close-to-the-earth-we-all-think-about-the/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [I felt grateful to Ataturk that my parents were so well educated, that they weren't held back by superstition or religion, that they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-felt-grateful-to-ataturk-that-my-parents-were-so-well-educated-that/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [“For a moment it felt like we weren’t in the Danube at all but in the river of time, and everyone was at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/for-a-moment-it-felt-like-we-weren-t-in-the-danube-at-all-but-in-the/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) [Explore all 182 Elif Batuman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) ## More About quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. 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That means I write about guys - so far. I'm interested in the people closest to them, the people they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-kearns-goodwin/i-write-about-presidents-that-means-i-write-about-guys-so-far-i-m/) [Doris Kearns Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-kearns-goodwin/) > [That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jai-white/that-s-something-a-lot-of-folks-don-t-know-about-me-i-m-pretty-darn/) [Michael Jai White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jai-white/) > [I learned a lot about myself at Oakmont.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-lowry/i-learned-a-lot-about-myself-at-oakmont/) [Shane Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-lowry/) > [I don't think about the press or the crowds or the other leaders of the race. The focus is only on myself. As soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magdalena-neuner/i-don-t-think-about-the-press-or-the-crowds-or-the-other-leaders-of/) [Magdalena Neuner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magdalena-neuner/) > [Sport is not just about entertainment. It is equally about winning and losing, pooling and galvanising the energy of the youth, upgrading people's physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-ambani/sport-is-not-just-about-entertainment-it-is-equally-about-winning-and/) [Nita Ambani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-ambani/) > [One of the ways that I discovered my confidence and my ability to overpower is becoming a mother. Suddenly, my world wasn't about myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lights/one-of-the-ways-that-i-discovered-my-confidence-and-my-ability-to/) [Lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lights/) > [I didn't want to do 'Fashion Police' because I thought, 'This is stupid, this is beneath me, who wants to talk about fashion?' It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/i-didn-t-want-to-do-fashion-police-because-i-thought-this-is-stupid/) [Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/) > [I just worried about my weight. Worried about my appearance and thought I wan't pretty enough to be a pop star. It was very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-durham/i-just-worried-about-my-weight-worried-about-my-appearance-and/) [Judith Durham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-durham/) > [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/) [Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/) > [There are a lot of kids out there copying and distributing movies - not because they care about seeing the movies or sharing them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/there-are-a-lot-of-kids-out-there-copying-and-distributing-movies-not/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [I have no physical genius about me. I can't dribble a ball and run at the same time, I can't do lay-ups - I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-mullins/i-have-no-physical-genius-about-me-i-can-t-dribble-a-ball-and-run-at/) [Rich Mullins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-mullins/) Browse all 26,122 About quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As a novelist, you write about social mores, but not everything can be explained.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elif Batuman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mores-but-not-everything-can-be/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "About" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mores-but-not-everything-can-be/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/elif-batuman-2172_about_as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mor_787181.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/elif-batuman-2172_about_as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mor_787181.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/elif-batuman-2172_about_as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mor_787181.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As a novelist, you write about social mores, but not everything can be explained.” — Elif Batuman", "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": "Elif Batuman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "As a novelist, you write about...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mores-but-not-everything-can-be/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mores-but-not-everything-can-be/#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 } } ] } ```