--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm not one of those James Joyce…" description: "\"I'm not one of those James Joyce intellectuals who can stand back and look at the whole edifice... It was a slow process for me to just crawl out of it..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76c/frank-mccourt-2576_edifice_i-m-not-one-of-those-james-joyce-intelle_13029.jpg" --- # I'm not one of those James Joyce intellectuals who can… ![“I'm not one of those James Joyce intellectuals who can stand back and look at the whole edifice... It was a slow process for me to just crawl out of it, like a snake leaving his skin behind.” quote by Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76c/frank-mccourt-2576_edifice_i-m-not-one-of-those-james-joyce-intelle_13029.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76c/frank-mccourt-2576_edifice_i-m-not-one-of-those-james-joyce-intelle_13029.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76c/frank-mccourt-2576_edifice_i-m-not-one-of-those-james-joyce-intelle_13029.jpg) > “I'm not one of those James Joyce intellectuals who can stand back and look at the whole edifice... It was a slow process for me to just crawl out of it, like a snake leaving his skin behind.” [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker describes a gradual shedding of an overbearing intellectual identity, likening it to a snake molting its skin. **In simple terms:** Leaving behind a restrictive self‑image. Key Takeaway Personal evolution requires shedding old skins. Themes identity growth self‑transformation intellectual humility rebirth Mood reflective hopeful Type personal anecdote metaphorical observation When to use this quote - overcoming academic pretension - transitioning to a new career - recovering from imposter syndrome Key Concepts self‑concept mental freedom creative renewal Practical Applications - writing memoirs - coaching others through identity shifts Questions to Reflect On - What parts of your identity feel like a skin you need to shed? - How does letting go of intellectual pretensions open new possibilities? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process/) [Slow Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slow-process/) [Snake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snake/) ## Related quotes > [James Joyce actually is rewarding you in all of these incredible ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-andrews/james-joyce-actually-is-rewarding-you-in-all-of-these-incredible-ways/) [Jesse Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-andrews/) > [The other book that I worry no one reads anymore is James Joyce's Ulysses. It's not easy, but every page is wonderful and repays…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/the-other-book-that-i-worry-no-one-reads-anymore-is-james-joyce-s/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Write about winter in the summer. Describe Norway as Ibsen did, from a desk in Italy; describe Dublin as James Joyce did, from a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/write-about-winter-in-the-summer-describe-norway-as-ibsen-did-from-a/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [To live with the work and the letters of James Joyce was an enormous privilege and a daunting education. Yes, I came to admire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/to-live-with-the-work-and-the-letters-of-james-joyce-was-an-enormous/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [“James Joyce seemed like the most arrogant man who ever lived, had both his eyes wide open and great faculty of speech, but what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/james-joyce-seemed-like-the-most-arrogant-man-who-ever-lived-had-both/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [ I think \[James\] Joyce sometimes enjoyed misleading his readers. He said to me that history was like that parlor game where someone whispers something… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-beach/i-think-james-joyce-sometimes-enjoyed-misleading-his-readers-he-said/) Sylvia Beach > [I'm a postmodern commentator, and so, in a cheeky parallel to James Joyce or James Kelman, I get to places, verbally, that are a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sid-waddell/i-m-a-postmodern-commentator-and-so-in-a-cheeky-parallel-to-james/) [Sid Waddell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sid-waddell/) > [Mr. James Joyce is a great man who is entirely without taste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/mr-james-joyce-is-a-great-man-who-is-entirely-without-taste/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [If you word-spot James Joyce, you'll miss the entire experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maryanne-wolf/if-you-word-spot-james-joyce-you-ll-miss-the-entire-experience/) [Maryanne Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maryanne-wolf/) > [In translation studies we talk about domestication - translation styles that make something familiar - or estrangement - translation styles that make something radically…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-colla/in-translation-studies-we-talk-about-domestication-translation-styles/) [Elliott Colla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-colla/) > [James Joyce is right about history being a nightmare-- but it may be that nightmare from which no one can awaken. People are trapped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-baldwin/james-joyce-is-right-about-history-being-a-nightmare-but-it-may-be/) [James A. Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-baldwin/) > [ James Joyce is a cul-de-sac. \[Ulysses is\] ... an example how literature branched out and went into, lost itself in nowhere, no man's land. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/james-joyce-is-a-cul-de-sac-ulysses-is-an-example-how-literature/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [“James Joyce married a woman named Nora Barnacle. She once said to him, ‘Why don’t you write books people can read?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lloyd/james-joyce-married-a-woman-named-nora-barnacle-she-once-said-to-him/) [John Lloyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lloyd/) > [If you ever want to understand multitasking in prose, James Joyce is your man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-delaney/if-you-ever-want-to-understand-multitasking-in-prose-james-joyce-is/) [Frank Delaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-delaney/) > [“You are born, you die, and the rest is just marking time” (James Joyce).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hendrik-groen/you-are-born-you-die-and-the-rest-is-just-marking-time-james-joyce/) [Hendrik Groen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hendrik-groen/) ## More by Frank McCourt > [I admire certain priests and nuns who go off on their own and do God's work on their own, who help in the ghettos,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go-off-on-their-own-and-do-god/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [When I act tough they listen politely till the spasm passes. They know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/when-i-act-tough-they-listen-politely-till-the-spasm-passes-they-know/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Just luxuriate in a certain memory, and the details will come. It's like a magnet attracting steel filings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/just-luxuriate-in-a-certain-memory-and-the-details-will-come-it-s/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Sing your song. Dance your dance. Tell your tale.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/sing-your-song-dance-your-dance-tell-your-tale/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [They all went into the bar business. Which was a mistake, because they began to sip at the merchandise and it set them back,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/they-all-went-into-the-bar-business-which-was-a-mistake-because-they/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [My childhood here... was very limited. So it was a long, long time before I actually went out to Brooklyn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/my-childhood-here-was-very-limited-so-it-was-a-long-long-time-before/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [We never really had any kind of a Christmas. This is one part where my memory fails me completely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/we-never-really-had-any-kind-of-a-christmas-this-is-one-part-where-my/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [A lot of people say writers start losing their powers after 60 or 65. But I look at the best-seller list and see a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/a-lot-of-people-say-writers-start-losing-their-powers-after-60-or-65/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [“When the dark clouds flutter like bats in my head I wish I could open a window and release them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/when-the-dark-clouds-flutter-like-bats-in-my-head-i-wish-i-could-open/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Shakespeare is like mashed potatoes, you can never get enough of him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/shakespeare-is-like-mashed-potatoes-you-can-never-get-enough-of-him/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I just have to proceed as usual. No matter what happens, nothing helps with the writing of the next book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-just-have-to-proceed-as-usual-no-matter-what-happens-nothing-helps/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Worse than the ordinary, miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/worse-than-the-ordinary-miserable-childhood-is-the-miserable-irish/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [It's not enough to be American. You always have to be something else, Irish-American, German-American, and you'd wonder how they'd get along if someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/it-s-not-enough-to-be-american-you-always-have-to-be-something-else/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I had to get rid of any idea of hell or any idea of the afterlife. That's what held me, kept me down. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-had-to-get-rid-of-any-idea-of-hell-or-any-idea-of-the-afterlife/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [“On the Left side of the blackboard I print a capital F on the right side another capital F. I draw an arrow from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/on-the-left-side-of-the-blackboard-i-print-a-capital-f-on-the-right/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) [Explore all 159 Frank McCourt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) ## More Edifice quotes > [The highest perfection of politeness is only a beautiful edifice, built, from the base to the dome, of ungraceful and gilded forms of charitable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-highest-perfection-of-politeness-is-only-a-beautiful-edifice/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Just take one thing out and the whole palace, the whole edifice of the human mind collapses. Take effort out of it and desiring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/just-take-one-thing-out-and-the-whole-palace-the-whole-edifice-of-the/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [The common man, finding himself in a world so excellent, technically and socially, believes it has been produced by nature, and never thinks of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/the-common-man-finding-himself-in-a-world-so-excellent-technically/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [The walls of that grand edifice called a good character have to be worked at during life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/the-walls-of-that-grand-edifice-called-a-good-character-have-to-be/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [God grant that by my persevering labours I may bring a little stone to the frail and ill-assured edifice of our knowledge of those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-pasteur/god-grant-that-by-my-persevering-labours-i-may-bring-a-little-stone/) [Louis Pasteur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-pasteur/) > [The court is like a palace built of marble; I mean that it is made up of very hard but very polished people. \[Fr.,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/the-court-is-like-a-palace-built-of-marble-i-mean-that-it-is-made-up/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [With my work, I try to delve into the several layers that compose the edifice of history, to take the shadows cast by this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vhils/with-my-work-i-try-to-delve-into-the-several-layers-that-compose-the/) Vhils > [Meaning is a shaky edifice we build out of scraps, dogmas, childhood injuries, newspaper articles, chance remarks, old fillms, small victories, people hated, people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/meaning-is-a-shaky-edifice-we-build-out-of-scraps-dogmas-childhood/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [There is so much history of this racist violence that simply to bring one person to justice is not going to disturb the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-davis/there-is-so-much-history-of-this-racist-violence-that-simply-to-bring/) [Angela Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-davis/) > [Dubai was a property bubble. Plain and simple. Go to Dubai and see what happened. It was... what I call it the 'Edifice complex'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-chanos/dubai-was-a-property-bubble-plain-and-simple-go-to-dubai-and-see-what/) [James Chanos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-chanos/) > [...just as the edifice of all the virtues strives upward toward perfect prayer so will all these virtues be neither sturdy nor enduring unless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cassian/just-as-the-edifice-of-all-the-virtues-strives-upward-toward-perfect/) [John Cassian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cassian/) > [The church has been brought into the same value system as the world: fame, success, materialism and celebrity. We watch the leading churches and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-colson/the-church-has-been-brought-into-the-same-value-system-as-the-world/) [Charles Colson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-colson/) > [And it does no harm to repeat, as often as you can, 'Without me the literary industry would not exist: the publishers, the agents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/and-it-does-no-harm-to-repeat-as-often-as-you-can-without-me-the/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [It is a useless life that is not consecrated to a great ideal. It is like a stone wasted on the field without becoming…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-rizal/it-is-a-useless-life-that-is-not-consecrated-to-a-great-ideal-it-is/) [Jose Rizal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-rizal/) > [I would suggest the taxation of all property equally, whether church or corporation, exempting only the last resting place of the dead and possibly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ulysses-s-grant/i-would-suggest-the-taxation-of-all-property-equally-whether-church-2/) [Ulysses S. Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ulysses-s-grant/) Browse all 126 Edifice quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm not one of those James Joyce intellectuals who can stand back and look at the whole edifice... 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