--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Just as there exists in writing a literal…" description: "\"Just as there exists in writing a literal truth and a poetic truth, there also exists in a human being a literal anatomy and a poetic anatomy. One, you..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d9/elizabeth-gilbert-131_anatomy_just-as-there-exists-in-writing-a-litera_1470046.jpg" --- # Just as there exists in writing a literal truth and a… ![“Just as there exists in writing a literal truth and a poetic truth, there also exists in a human being a literal anatomy and a poetic anatomy. One, you can see; one, you cannot. One is made of bones and teeth and flesh; the other is made of energy and memory and faith. But they are both equally…” quote by Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d9/elizabeth-gilbert-131_anatomy_just-as-there-exists-in-writing-a-litera_1470046.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d9/elizabeth-gilbert-131_anatomy_just-as-there-exists-in-writing-a-litera_1470046.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d9/elizabeth-gilbert-131_anatomy_just-as-there-exists-in-writing-a-litera_1470046.jpg) > “Just as there exists in writing a literal truth and a poetic truth, there also exists in a human being a literal anatomy and a poetic anatomy. One, you can see; one, you cannot. One is made of bones and teeth and flesh; the other is made of energy and memory and faith. But they are both equally true.” [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human beings have both physical bodies and intangible inner selves; both are real and essential. **In simple terms:** People have a physical and a spiritual side. Key Takeaway Recognize and nurture both body and spirit. Themes identity duality self truth spirituality Mood reflective inspirational thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal growth - therapy - creative work - relationships - healthcare Key Concepts anatomy energy memory faith poetry Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance caring for your body and your inner self? - What practices help you honor your poetic anatomy? A Different Perspective Physical health alone cannot fulfill emotional or spiritual needs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anatomy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anatomy/) [Anatomy Bones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anatomy-bones-5331706/) [Anatomy Poetic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anatomy-poetic-5331704/) [Bones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bones/) [Energy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/energy/) [Flesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flesh/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Literal Anatomy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literal-anatomy-5331703/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Poetic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetic/) [Poetic Anatomy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetic-anatomy-5331705/) [Poetic Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetic-truth-1253220/) [Teeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teeth/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“He said, "Just as there exists in writing a literal truth and a poetic truth, there also exists in a human being a literal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/he-said-just-as-there-exists-in-writing-a-literal-truth-and-a-poetic/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [Have not all poetic truths been already stated? The essence of a poetic truth is that no statement of it can be final.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bowen/have-not-all-poetic-truths-been-already-stated-the-essence-of-a/) [Elizabeth Bowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bowen/) > [“This observation, understanding, and appreciation, when combined with the excellence of poetic expression, produce the best poetry, steeped in poetic truth and served with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alok-mishra/this-observation-understanding-and-appreciation-when-combined-with/) [Alok Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alok-mishra/) > [I'm hunting for the truth. It might be a kind of poetic truth, and not just a factual one, because behind everything that happens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-m-hunting-for-the-truth-it-might-be-a-kind-of-poetic-truth-and-not/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [There is nothing more poetic than the truth. He who does not see poetry in it will always be a poor versifier outside of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/multatuli/there-is-nothing-more-poetic-than-the-truth-he-who-does-not-see/) [Multatuli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/multatuli/) > [Poetry; a criticism of life under the conditions fixed for such a criticism by the laws of poetic truth and poetic beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-arnold/poetry-a-criticism-of-life-under-the-conditions-fixed-for-such-a/) [Matthew Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-arnold/) > [“You adulterate the truth as you write. There isn't any pretense that you try to arrive at the literal truth. And the only consolation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-g-sebald-2/you-adulterate-the-truth-as-you-write-there-isn-t-any-pretense-that/) [W.G. Sebald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-g-sebald-2/) > [We all think we’re going to be great and we feel a little bit robbed when our expectations aren’t met. But sometimes our expectations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shonda-rhimes/we-all-think-we-re-going-to-be-great-and-we-feel-a-little-bit-robbed/) [Shonda Rhimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shonda-rhimes/) > [Bird taxonomy is a difficult field because of the severe anatomical constraints imposed by flight. There are only so many ways to design a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-diamond/bird-taxonomy-is-a-difficult-field-because-of-the-severe-anatomical/) [Jared Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-diamond/) > [I profess to learn and to teach anatomy not from books but from dissections, not from the tenets of Philosophers but from the fabric…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-harvey/i-profess-to-learn-and-to-teach-anatomy-not-from-books-but-from/) [William Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-harvey/) > [“The pen is an extension of my anatomy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/the-pen-is-an-extension-of-my-anatomy/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [“I feel your body, your sick and scared body. And I feel how it must be different from how it was, and how it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-montross/i-feel-your-body-your-sick-and-scared-body-and-i-feel-how-it-must-be/) [Christine Montross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-montross/) > [Dark influences from the American past congregate among us still. If we are a democracy, what are we to make of the palpable elements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-bloom/dark-influences-from-the-american-past-congregate-among-us-still-if/) [Harold Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-bloom/) > [Descriptive anatomy is to physiology what geography is to history, and just as it is not enough to know the typography of a country…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-bernard/descriptive-anatomy-is-to-physiology-what-geography-is-to-history-and/) [Claude Bernard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-bernard/) > [Anatomy is destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/anatomy-is-destiny/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) ## More by Elizabeth Gilbert > [That's your friend. My husband is my best friend. He's not the mirror that holds up my flaws. He's just the guy who's like,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/that-s-your-friend-my-husband-is-my-best-friend-he-s-not-the-mirror/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“Not to mention that I have finally arrived at that age where a woman starts to question whether the wisest way to get over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/not-to-mention-that-i-have-finally-arrived-at-that-age-where-a-woman/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“The Buddha taught that all human suffering is rooted in desire. Don't we all know this to be true? 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I had a sudden horrifying image of the woman I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/both-the-five-year-olds-looked-at-me-with-bewilderment-and-a-bit-of/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“Clearing out all your misery gets you out of the way. You cease being an obstacle, not only to yourself but to anyone else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/clearing-out-all-your-misery-gets-you-out-of-the-way-you-cease-being/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [The ingredients of both darkness and light are equally present in all of us,...The madness of this planet is largely a result of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/the-ingredients-of-both-darkness-and-light-are-equally-present-in-all/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [I was full of a hot, powerful sadness and would have loved to burst into the comfort of tears, but tried hard not to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-was-full-of-a-hot-powerful-sadness-and-would-have-loved-to-burst/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“I live in nature where everything is connected, circular. 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If we are a democracy, what are we to make of the palpable elements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-bloom/dark-influences-from-the-american-past-congregate-among-us-still-if/) [Harold Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-bloom/) > [“I feel your body, your sick and scared body. And I feel how it must be different from how it was, and how it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-montross/i-feel-your-body-your-sick-and-scared-body-and-i-feel-how-it-must-be/) [Christine Montross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-montross/) > [“The pen is an extension of my anatomy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/the-pen-is-an-extension-of-my-anatomy/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [I profess to learn and to teach anatomy not from books but from dissections, not from the tenets of Philosophers but from the fabric…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-harvey/i-profess-to-learn-and-to-teach-anatomy-not-from-books-but-from/) [William Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-harvey/) > [Bird taxonomy is a difficult field because of the severe anatomical constraints imposed by flight. There are only so many ways to design a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-diamond/bird-taxonomy-is-a-difficult-field-because-of-the-severe-anatomical/) [Jared Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-diamond/) > [We all think we’re going to be great and we feel a little bit robbed when our expectations aren’t met. But sometimes our expectations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shonda-rhimes/we-all-think-we-re-going-to-be-great-and-we-feel-a-little-bit-robbed/) [Shonda Rhimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shonda-rhimes/) > [Ultimately, the problem is that sex is perceived as a personal, intimate thing, not in the realm of science. But that's not true. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-roach/ultimately-the-problem-is-that-sex-is-perceived-as-a-personal/) [Mary Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-roach/) > [Grammar is to a writer what anatomy is to a sculptor, or the scales to a musician. 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Chute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-j-chute/) > [The whole aim of comparative anatomy is to discover what structures are homologous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/libbie-hyman/the-whole-aim-of-comparative-anatomy-is-to-discover-what-structures/) [Libbie Hyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/libbie-hyman/) > [I am sincerely trying now to create a dance technique based entirely upon corrective exercises, created with a knowledge of human anatomy; a technique…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-horton/i-am-sincerely-trying-now-to-create-a-dance-technique-based-entirely/) [Lester Horton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-horton/) > [My philosophy is this: Do not tamper with the anatomy of a woman's body; do not camouflage it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oleg-cassini/my-philosophy-is-this-do-not-tamper-with-the-anatomy-of-a-woman-s/) [Oleg Cassini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oleg-cassini/) > [My fundamental premise about the brain is that its workings - what we sometimes call "mind" - are a consequence of its anatomy and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/my-fundamental-premise-about-the-brain-is-that-its-workings-what-we-2/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [In my experience of these things, parties which shout about dirty tricks and the like tend to do so because they fear a direct…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-mandelson/in-my-experience-of-these-things-parties-which-shout-about-dirty/) [Peter Mandelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-mandelson/) [Browse all 273 Anatomy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anatomy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Just as there exists in writing a literal truth and a poetic truth, there also exists in a human being a literal anatomy and a poetic anatomy. 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