--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first time I read Isaac Babel was in…" description: "\"“The first time I read Isaac Babel was in a college creative writing class. The instructor was a sympathetic Jewish novelist with a Jesus-like beard, a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/elif-batuman-2172_babel_the-first-time-i-read-isaac-babel-was-in_1560483.jpg" --- # The first time I read Isaac Babel was in a college… ![“The first time I read Isaac Babel was in a college creative writing class. The instructor was a sympathetic Jewish novelist with a Jesus-like beard, an affinity for Russian literature, and a melancholy sense of humor, such that one afternoon he even “realized” the truth of human mortality, right…” quote by Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/elif-batuman-2172_babel_the-first-time-i-read-isaac-babel-was-in_1560483.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/elif-batuman-2172_babel_the-first-time-i-read-isaac-babel-was-in_1560483.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/elif-batuman-2172_babel_the-first-time-i-read-isaac-babel-was-in_1560483.jpg) > ““The first time I read Isaac Babel was in a college creative writing class. The instructor was a sympathetic Jewish novelist with a Jesus-like beard, an affinity for Russian literature, and a melancholy sense of humor, such that one afternoon he even “realized” the truth of human mortality, right there in the classroom. He pointed at each of us around the seminar table: “You’re going to die. And you’re going to die. And you’re going to die.” I still remember the expression on the face of one of my classmates, a genial scion of the Kennedy family who always wrote the same story, about a busy corporate lawyer who neglected his wife. The expression was confused.”” [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. A professor used stark reminders of mortality to provoke deep reflection, highlighting how confronting death can sharpen focus on life's meaning. **In simple terms:** Facing death can sharpen life's focus. Key Takeaway Embrace mortality to clarify priorities. Themes mortality reflection teaching humor Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - classroom discussions - creative writing - personal growth - therapy Key Concepts existentialism psychology pedagogy Questions to Reflect On - How does mortality awareness affect your choices? - Can fear be transformed into purpose? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on death may cause anxiety. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Babel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/babel/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Creative writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative-writing/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [First time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-time/) [Going Die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/going-die/) [Isaac Babel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/isaac-babel-4277826/) [Kennedy family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kennedy-family/) [Mortality Right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mortality-right-5852837/) [Russian literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/russian-literature/) [Sense of humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-of-humor/) [Sympathetic Jewish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sympathetic-jewish-5852838/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I'm a big fan of the Russians: Isaac Babel is just an exquisite line-to-line stylist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/i-m-a-big-fan-of-the-russians-isaac-babel-is-just-an-exquisite-line/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [The book that made me decide to go into Russian literature was 'Anna Karenina,' which I first read in high school. The thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/the-book-that-made-me-decide-to-go-into-russian-literature-was-anna/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [There's definitely a culture of Russian literature in Turkey. And in the U.S. too, to an extent - especially Dostoevsky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/there-s-definitely-a-culture-of-russian-literature-in-turkey-and-in/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [I've developed this love of trashy Russian literature. There's a women's detective series that I was obsessed with for a while, written by Aleksandra…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-ve-developed-this-love-of-trashy-russian-literature-there-s-a-women/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [Russian literature got me interested in what literature means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/russian-literature-got-me-interested-in-what-literature-means/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [I look at it like this: that if Shakespeare were alive today, he would have written two or three plays about the Kennedy family,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-lowe/i-look-at-it-like-this-that-if-shakespeare-were-alive-today-he-would/) [Rob Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-lowe/) > [“You can also go to prison for up to six months for the unauthorized use of the character or the name Woodsy Owl for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-duane/you-can-also-go-to-prison-for-up-to-six-months-for-the-unauthorized/) [James Duane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-duane/) > [I didn't marry into the Kennedy family, I married Anthony Radziwill. I'm proud of him and his family, the Radziwills. They exist, they're real,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carole-radziwill/i-didn-t-marry-into-the-kennedy-family-i-married-anthony-radziwill-i/) [Carole Radziwill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carole-radziwill/) > [“For better than thirty years, as a working historian, I have written on leaders I knew, such as Lyndon Johnson, and interviewed intimates of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-kearns-goodwin/for-better-than-thirty-years-as-a-working-historian-i-have-written-on/) [Doris Kearns Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-kearns-goodwin/) > [People always ask what's it like to grow up as a Kennedy. It's a family. It's big, it's large, it's amazing. You've got strong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-kennedy-iii/people-always-ask-what-s-it-like-to-grow-up-as-a-kennedy-it-s-a/) [Joe Kennedy III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-kennedy-iii/) > [The Kennedy assassination is one of the ghostliest parts of our history. The Kennedy family - that's our royalty. It's fascinating and tragic and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-belzer/the-kennedy-assassination-is-one-of-the-ghostliest-parts-of-our/) [Richard Belzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-belzer/) > [Within twenty years, he was the world's biggest movie star, the husband of Maria Shriver, and an emerging Republican leader who was part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-schwarzenegger/within-twenty-years-he-was-the-world-s-biggest-movie-star-the-husband/) [Arnold Schwarzenegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-schwarzenegger/) > [“It is pardonable for children to yell that they believe in fairies, but it is somehow sinister when the piping note shifts from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-is-pardonable-for-children-to-yell-that-they-believe-in-fairies/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“What's to rationalize? You mean you shouldn't pray if you haven't got your s--t together? This is another fairly common misconception of faith, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-randy-taraborrelli/what-s-to-rationalize-you-mean-you-shouldn-t-pray-if-you-haven-t-got/) [J. Randy Taraborrelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-randy-taraborrelli/) > [I think that things like curses or whatever - those labels - come from belief systems, universal belief systems. So when you get a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariel-hemingway/i-think-that-things-like-curses-or-whatever-those-labels-come-from/) [Mariel Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariel-hemingway/) ## 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 Babel quotes > [How will the Tower of Babel be undone? How will we understand each other in Heaven? Will we all speak English or Dutch or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-kreeft/how-will-the-tower-of-babel-be-undone-how-will-we-understand-each/) [Peter Kreeft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-kreeft/) > [“Our modern era embodies both the Tower of Babel and Pentecost simultaneously. Like Babel, globalization and technological advancement have created linguistic and cultural fragmentation……](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paule-patterson/our-modern-era-embodies-both-the-tower-of-babel-and-pentecost/) [Paule Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paule-patterson/) > [“An attempt to wrest from God the prerogatives of absolute freedom and infinity leads to the inversion of Pentecost and what is in effect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-e-gunton/an-attempt-to-wrest-from-god-the-prerogatives-of-absolute-freedom-and/) [Colin E. Gunton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-e-gunton/) > [The students often like to talk about movies that they feel are Orientalist like 300 or Babel. They talk a lot about the possibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammad-marandi/the-students-often-like-to-talk-about-movies-that-they-feel-are/) [Mohammad Marandi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammad-marandi/) > [I firmly believe this ... that without His concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better, than the builders of Babel:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/i-firmly-believe-this-that-without-his-concurring-aid-we-shall/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“The particular myth that's been organizing this talk, and in a way the whole series, is the story of the Tower of Babel in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/the-particular-myth-that-s-been-organizing-this-talk-and-in-a-way-the/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > ["I refuse to prove that I exist" says God, "for proof denies faith, and without faith, I am nothing." "Oh," says man, "but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/i-refuse-to-prove-that-i-exist-says-god-for-proof-denies-faith-and/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [As a system of philosophy it is not like the Tower of Babel, so daring its high aim as to seek a shelter against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-sedgwick/as-a-system-of-philosophy-it-is-not-like-the-tower-of-babel-so-daring/) [Adam Sedgwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-sedgwick/) > [ What \[Franz\] Kafka says about the Tower of Babel: In the beginning there were actually many languages, and then as a punishment God gave… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/what-franz-kafka-says-about-the-tower-of-babel-in-the-beginning-there/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“The Babel fish is small, yellow and leech-like, and probably the oddest thing in the Universe. It feeds on brainwave energy received not from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-babel-fish-is-small-yellow-and-leech-like-and-probably-the-oddest/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > ['Babel' is about the point of view of others. It literally includes points of views as experienced from the other side. It is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/babel-is-about-the-point-of-view-of-others-it-literally-includes/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [“In those days the world teemed, the people multiplied, the world bellowed like a wild bull, and the great god was aroused by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-those-days-the-world-teemed-the-people-multiplied-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Literatura e un Turn Babel de hartie;fiecare carte o treapta,fiecare biblioteca un etaj.Numai ca literatura are o tinta mai modesta,dar si mai dificila:sa ajunga…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-plesu/literatura-e-un-turn-babel-de-hartie-fiecare-carte-o-treapta-fiecare/) [Andrei Pleşu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrei-plesu/) > [“Transhumanism encapsulates a long-lived error among the headliners of science: in a world without a destination, we cannot even break ground on our Tower…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/transhumanism-encapsulates-a-long-lived-error-among-the-headliners-of/) [Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/) > [But all this language gotten, and augmented by Adam and his posterity, was again lost at the tower of Babel , when by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/but-all-this-language-gotten-and-augmented-by-adam-and-his-posterity/) [Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/) [Browse all 60 Babel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/babel/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The first time I read Isaac Babel was in a college creative writing class. 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