---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Reading is entering into the…"
description: "\"Reading is entering into the consciousness of another human being.\" — Gary Shteyngart"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/gary-shteyngart-2177_consciousness_reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousne_282915.png"
---

#  Reading is entering into the consciousness of another…

![“Reading is entering into the consciousness of another human being.” quote by Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/gary-shteyngart-2177_consciousness_reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousne_282915.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/gary-shteyngart-2177_consciousness_reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousne_282915.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/gary-shteyngart-2177_consciousness_reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousne_282915.png)

> “Reading is entering into the consciousness of another human being.”

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Understanding another's mind expands empathy and perspective.

**In simple terms:** Reading lets you see through others' eyes.

Key Takeaway

Read to broaden empathy.

Themes

empathy literature human connection

Mood

reflective thoughtful

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- education
- therapy
- cross‑cultural dialogue
- personal growth

Key Concepts

narrative perspective psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- Whose consciousness do you seek to understand?
- How does reading change your view of others?

A Different Perspective

May not capture full lived experience.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/) [Consciousness Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness-human-719030/) [Entering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entering/) [Entering Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entering-consciousness-2739006/) [Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading Entering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-entering-2739005/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/)

## Related quotes

> [“Reading is an act of contemplation, perhaps the only act in which we allow ourselves to merge with the consciousness of another human being.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-l-ulin/reading-is-an-act-of-contemplation-perhaps-the-only-act-in-which-we/)

[David L. Ulin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-l-ulin/)

> [“Human beings possess the gift of personal freedom and liberty of the mind. We each possess the sovereignty over the body and mind to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kilroy-j-oldster/human-beings-possess-the-gift-of-personal-freedom-and-liberty-of-the/)

[Kilroy J. Oldster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kilroy-j-oldster/)

> [Neither physical science nor psychology can ever 'explain' human consciousness. To me then, human consciousness lies outside science, and it is here that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nevill-francis-mott/neither-physical-science-nor-psychology-can-ever-explain-human/)

[Nevill Francis Mott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nevill-francis-mott/)

> [I hope we have learned throughout centuries of revolution and reaction that it's really a shift in consciousness that we need. And I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-lesser/i-hope-we-have-learned-throughout-centuries-of-revolution-and/)

[Elizabeth Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-lesser/)

> [Every human being has consciousness, but not every human being has the same amount. The potential for each one of us human beings is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lynch/every-human-being-has-consciousness-but-not-every-human-being-has-the/)

[David Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lynch/)

> [But it has, in addition, an even more precious quality - a consciousness of the human intelligence, the human spirit and that man is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-mclaren/but-it-has-in-addition-an-even-more-precious-quality-a-consciousness/)

[Norman McLaren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-mclaren/)

> [“Although we are moving in the right direction, one wonders how long it will take humanity to attain a consciousness of ourselves as human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sakyo-komatsu/although-we-are-moving-in-the-right-direction-one-wonders-how-long-it/)

[Sakyo Komatsu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sakyo-komatsu/)

> [If anyone can show me one example in the history of the world of a single spiritual person who has been able to show…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-minchin/if-anyone-can-show-me-one-example-in-the-history-of-the-world-of-a/)

[Tim Minchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-minchin/)

> [“Evolution, life, physis, appear here as enveloping with regard to ‘consciousness’ of human knowledge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/evolution-life-physis-appear-here-as-enveloping-with-regard-to/)

[Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/)

> [“are not truly real in the consciousness of human experience until they are unraveled and correlated, until their relevant facts actually become meaning through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/urantia-foundation/are-not-truly-real-in-the-consciousness-of-human-experience-until/)

[Urantia Foundation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/urantia-foundation/)

> [When physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, contribute to the detection of concrete human woes and to the development of plans for remedying them and relieving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/when-physics-chemistry-biology-medicine-contribute-to-the-detection/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [If there is something I am arguing, it is a critique of science. Science has consistently denied the existence of consciousness other than human.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/if-there-is-something-i-am-arguing-it-is-a-critique-of-science/)

[Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/)

> [“My experience showed me that the death of the body and the brain are not the end of consciousness, that human experience continues beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eben-alexander/my-experience-showed-me-that-the-death-of-the-body-and-the-brain-are/)

[Eben Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eben-alexander/)

> [“through the miracle of consciousness, the human psyche provides the mirror in which Nature sees herself reflected.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-stevens/through-the-miracle-of-consciousness-the-human-psyche-provides-the/)

[Anthony Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-stevens/)

> [“Sight isolates, sound incorporates. Whereas sight situates the observer outside what he views, at a distance, sound pours into the hearer. Vision dissects, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-j-ong/sight-isolates-sound-incorporates-whereas-sight-situates-the-observer/)

[Walter J. Ong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-j-ong/)

## More by Gary Shteyngart

> [“These are all good things, I said. But no one knows where your country is or who you are. You don't have a familiar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/these-are-all-good-things-i-said-but-no-one-knows-where-your-country/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [Italy has sun and tomatoes, and Russia just has real problems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/italy-has-sun-and-tomatoes-and-russia-just-has-real-problems/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [Don't be pretentious is my first advice to young writers. This is the big problem - just because you're getting an MFA doesn't mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/don-t-be-pretentious-is-my-first-advice-to-young-writers-this-is-the/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [I read real books. On paper. You know, those printed books? I feel like this is the last thing I do to support my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/i-read-real-books-on-paper-you-know-those-printed-books-i-feel-like/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [Russia tried to introduce beer as kind of the new vodka - and it's working with younger people in major cities - but you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/russia-tried-to-introduce-beer-as-kind-of-the-new-vodka-and-it-s/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [“There's something outrageously simple about extending yourself toward a goal the way a plant seeks the sun's rays or a gopher the crunch of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/there-s-something-outrageously-simple-about-extending-yourself-toward/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [Silence has been destroyed, but also the idea that it's important to learn how another person thinks, to enter the mind of another person.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/silence-has-been-destroyed-but-also-the-idea-that-it-s-important-to/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [“This red-fading-into-brown defines Queens for me; it is quiet and melancholy and postsuccessful, vaguely British in its disposition.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/this-red-fading-into-brown-defines-queens-for-me-it-is-quiet-and/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [If I still lived in Russia, I'd be dead... or a really effective oligarch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/if-i-still-lived-in-russia-i-d-be-dead-or-a-really-effective-oligarch/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [“The fact that my sexual awakening peripherally involves Steve Guttenberg I have gradually accepted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/the-fact-that-my-sexual-awakening-peripherally-involves-steve/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [“The simple trill of her laugh has not declined over the years; if anything it's been buffeted by her endless sorrows and disappointments.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/the-simple-trill-of-her-laugh-has-not-declined-over-the-years-if/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [“We know summer is the height of of being alive. We don't believe in God or the prospect of an afterlife mostly, so we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/we-know-summer-is-the-height-of-of-being-alive-we-don-t-believe-in/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [“The novel was set in an unspecified near future, because setting a novel in the present in a time of unprecedented technological and social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/the-novel-was-set-in-an-unspecified-near-future-because-setting-a/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [One should learn from a book. Books have a lot to teach us. They have a lot of empathy to impart to us, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/one-should-learn-from-a-book-books-have-a-lot-to-teach-us-they-have-a/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [I always think that good writers should be growing up on the brink of death - it really lets them see mortality very clearly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/i-always-think-that-good-writers-should-be-growing-up-on-the-brink-of/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

[Explore all 179 Gary Shteyngart quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

## More Consciousness quotes

> [“You're never alone if you're with your soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-armond-powell/you-re-never-alone-if-you-re-with-your-soul/)

[Gerard Armond Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-armond-powell/)

> [“I now argue that entry into Upper Palaeolithic caves was probably seen as virtually indistinguishable from entry into the mental vortex that leads to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-david-lewis-williams/i-now-argue-that-entry-into-upper-palaeolithic-caves-was-probably/)

[James David Lewis-Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-david-lewis-williams/)

> [How wonderful it would be to scatter words as they rise to consciousness, to let them lie where they fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-scott/how-wonderful-it-would-be-to-scatter-words-as-they-rise-to/)

[Joanna Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-scott/)

> [“People and situations always show us what we need to see and learn about ourselves, and when we take responsibility for our own feelings,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-mada-dalian/people-and-situations-always-show-us-what-we-need-to-see-and-learn/)

[Eliza Mada Dalian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliza-mada-dalian/)

> [With the realization of God comes all power. If the little wave knew that behind it is the great ocean, it could say, "I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/with-the-realization-of-god-comes-all-power-if-the-little-wave-knew/)

[Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/)

> [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/)

[Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/)

> [It is proposed that a form of free dialogue may well be one of the most effective ways of investigating the crisis which faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bohm/it-is-proposed-that-a-form-of-free-dialogue-may-well-be-one-of-the/)

[David Bohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bohm/)

> [“Entropy is the normal state of consciousness—a condition that is neither useful nor enjoyable. To avoid this condition, people are naturally eager to fill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/entropy-is-the-normal-state-of-consciousness-a-condition-that-is/)

[Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/)

> [The purpose is to be in gratitude forever. Live with applied consciousness, prosperity will break through the walls, flood you with it. You do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/the-purpose-is-to-be-in-gratitude-forever-live-with-applied/)

[Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/)

> [“No one has any right to tell you that the way you perceive yourself is wrong. Because by doing so, they also discourage the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/no-one-has-any-right-to-tell-you-that-the-way-you-perceive-yourself/)

[Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/)

> [A language possesses utility only insofar as it can construct conventional boundaries. A language of no boundaries is no language at all, and thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-wilber/a-language-possesses-utility-only-insofar-as-it-can-construct/)

[Ken Wilber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-wilber/)

> [So many people are passive participants in their very short time of having a consciousness, and those who aren't inspire me. Like Malala Yousafzai…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-gelulla/so-many-people-are-passive-participants-in-their-very-short-time-of/)

[Dylan Gelulla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-gelulla/)

> [Floating in and out of consciousness...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/floating-in-and-out-of-consciousness/)

[Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/)

> [“The vision teller tells the vision to unguarded minds' of prey. The programmed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-f-hodge/the-vision-teller-tells-the-vision-to-unguarded-minds-of-prey-the/)

[T.F. Hodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-f-hodge/)

> [Human freedom involves our capacity to pause between the stimulus and response and, in that pause, to choose the one response toward which we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rollo-may/human-freedom-involves-our-capacity-to-pause-between-the-stimulus-and/)

[Rollo May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rollo-may/)

[Browse all 6,062 Consciousness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Reading is entering into the consciousness of another human being.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Gary Shteyngart"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousness-of-another-human-being/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Consciousness"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousness-of-another-human-being/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/gary-shteyngart-2177_consciousness_reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousne_282915.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/gary-shteyngart-2177_consciousness_reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousne_282915.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dc/gary-shteyngart-2177_consciousness_reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousne_282915.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Reading is entering into the consciousness of another human being.” — Gary Shteyngart",
                "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": "Gary Shteyngart",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Reading is entering into the consciousness...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousness-of-another-human-being/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/reading-is-entering-into-the-consciousness-of-another-human-being/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
