--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And as if by magic - and it may have been…" description: "\"“And as if by magic - and it may have been magic, for I believe America is the land of magic, and that we, we now past Americans, were once the magical..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edb/gene-wolfe-2530_america_and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been_2449003.jpg" --- # And as if by magic - and it may have been magic, for I… ![“And as if by magic - and it may have been magic, for I believe America is the land of magic, and that we, we now past Americans, were once the magical people of it, waiting now to stand to some unguessable generation of the future as the nameless pre-Mycenaean tribes did to the Greeks, ready, at a…” quote by Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edb/gene-wolfe-2530_america_and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been_2449003.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edb/gene-wolfe-2530_america_and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been_2449003.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edb/gene-wolfe-2530_america_and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been_2449003.jpg) > ““And as if by magic - and it may have been magic, for I believe America is the land of magic, and that we, we now past Americans, were once the magical people of it, waiting now to stand to some unguessable generation of the future as the nameless pre-Mycenaean tribes did to the Greeks, ready, at a word, each of us now, to flit piping through groves ungrown, our women ready to haunt as laminoe the rose-red ruins of Chicago and Indianapolis when they are little more than earthen mounds, when the heads of the trees are higher than the hundred-and-twenty-fifth floor - it seemed to me that I found myself in bed again, the old house swaying in silence as though it were moored to the universe by only the thread of smoke from the stove.”” [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage evokes a surreal, mythic vision of America as a magical, timeless place where past and future intertwine, blurring reality and imagination. **In simple terms:** America is seen as a magical, timeless landscape. Key Takeaway Embrace wonder in everyday surroundings. Themes mythic place time memory imagery Mood reflective evocative Type literary poetic philosophical When to use this quote - walking through cities - reflecting on history - creative writing - urban exploration Key Concepts magical realism historical myth urban decay Questions to Reflect On - How does myth shape your view of modern places? - What personal moments feel magical? A Different Perspective The dense, poetic language may obscure clear meaning for some readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Americans Magical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/americans-magical-553561/) [Chicago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chicago/) [Greeks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greeks/) [Indianapolis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indianapolis/) [Land Magic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/land-magic-553565/) [Magic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic/) [Magic Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magic-past-553562/) [Magical People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magical-people-553564/) [Old house](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-house/) [Past Americans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-americans-553563/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [We wander through old streets, and pause before the age stricken houses; and, strange to say, the magic past lights them up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-king/we-wander-through-old-streets-and-pause-before-the-age-stricken/) [Grace King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-king/) > [In the past, Americans have brought forth their best in times of crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/in-the-past-americans-have-brought-forth-their-best-in-times-of-crisis/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [We in ancient countries have our past- we obsess over the past. They, the Americans, have a dream: they feel nostalgia about the promise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we-obsess-over-the-past-they/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [Knowing things is magical, if other people don't know them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/knowing-things-is-magical-if-other-people-don-t-know-them/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [There are some magical people in this world; they have the power to touch lives in unique ways. That's why I just wanted you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-some-magical-people-in-this-world-they-have-the-power-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The theater troubled her. It had a magic of its own, one that didn’t belong to her, one that wasn’t in her control. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-theater-troubled-her-it-had-a-magic-of-its-own-one-that-didn-t/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [You can't share your magic with everyone. Your job is to live within your magic. And if other magical people find you, then let's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/you-can-t-share-your-magic-with-everyone-your-job-is-to-live-within/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [There are those rare people who function like human magnets, who are individually so attractive – or repellent, depending on the situation – that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-wallace/there-are-those-rare-people-who-function-like-human-magnets-who-are/) [Daniel Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-wallace/) > [I'm not from Indianapolis, but I like living in Indianapolis. If I were to explain it, I'd tell someone to imagine a city that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-m-not-from-indianapolis-but-i-like-living-in-indianapolis-if-i-were/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [World War II made war reputable because it was a just war. I wouldn't have missed it for anything. You know how many other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/world-war-ii-made-war-reputable-because-it-was-a-just-war-i-wouldn-t/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Nothing compares to the Indianapolis 500.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-andretti/nothing-compares-to-the-indianapolis-500/) [Mario Andretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-andretti/) > [I've written about Powers Hapgood. He was a Harvard graduate, son of a wealthy family who owned a cannery out there. After leaving Harvard,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/i-ve-written-about-powers-hapgood-he-was-a-harvard-graduate-son-of-a/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [I wouldn't want to play LSU right now even if I were the Indianapolis Colts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-corso/i-wouldn-t-want-to-play-lsu-right-now-even-if-i-were-the-indianapolis/) [Lee Corso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-corso/) > [It was kind of a beautiful day, finally real summer in Indianapolis, warm and humid - the kind of weather that reminds you after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/it-was-kind-of-a-beautiful-day-finally-real-summer-in-indianapolis/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [a TEN-YEAR-OLD lad in Indianapolis who was arrested for picking up coal along the side of railroad tracks is now in jail. If the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-jones/a-ten-year-old-lad-in-indianapolis-who-was-arrested-for-picking-up/) [Mother Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-jones/) ## More by Gene Wolfe > [Some writers say they cannot write in front of a window; many say they cannot function without almost perfect quiet. A writer with only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/some-writers-say-they-cannot-write-in-front-of-a-window-many-say-they/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [“Sometimes driven aground by the photon storms, by the swirling of the galaxies, clockwise and counterclockwise, ticking with light down the dark sea-corridors lined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/sometimes-driven-aground-by-the-photon-storms-by-the-swirling-of-the/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [Ambiguity is necessary in some of my stories, not in all. In those, it certainly contributes to the richness of the story. I doubt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/ambiguity-is-necessary-in-some-of-my-stories-not-in-all-in-those-it/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [“There are beings—and artifacts—against which we batter our intelligence raw, and in the end make peace with reality only by saying, “It was an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/there-are-beings-and-artifacts-against-which-we-batter-our/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [Science has so accustomed us to devising and accepting theories to account for the facts we observe, however fantastic, that our minds must begin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/science-has-so-accustomed-us-to-devising-and-accepting-theories-to/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [“The experienced feel love or desire, or both. The inexperienced are sick with a thousand feelings, most of them unformed: fearful that they may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/the-experienced-feel-love-or-desire-or-both-the-inexperienced-are/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [“For those who have never attended a science fiction convention, masquerades are features of most of the larger ones. Awards are presented for best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/for-those-who-have-never-attended-a-science-fiction-convention/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [“He had a wild yellow beard and long, tangled hair that stood out from his head in a way that made it seem too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/he-had-a-wild-yellow-beard-and-long-tangled-hair-that-stood-out-from/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [ ...in some situations winning consist\[s\] of disentangling oneself. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/in-some-situations-winning-consist-s-of-disentangling-oneself/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [“For after all, if the lives of most men are examined in detail, it will be found that they have been experts of immense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/for-after-all-if-the-lives-of-most-men-are-examined-in-detail-it-will/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [You never learn how to write a novel. You just learn how to write the novel that you're writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/you-never-learn-how-to-write-a-novel-you-just-learn-how-to-write-the/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [There is no magic. There is only knowledge, more or less hidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/there-is-no-magic-there-is-only-knowledge-more-or-less-hidden/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [“...the progress of science depends much less upon either theoretical considerations or systematic investigation than is commonly believed, but rather on the transmittal of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/the-progress-of-science-depends-much-less-upon-either-theoretical/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [“Whatever we may say, all of us suffer from disturbed sleep at times. Some in truth hardly sleep, though some who sleep copiously swear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/whatever-we-may-say-all-of-us-suffer-from-disturbed-sleep-at-times/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [“. . .Consciousness came and went. Consciousness went and came like the errant winds of spring, and I, who so often have had difficulty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/consciousness-came-and-went-consciousness-went-and-came-like-the/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) [Explore all 160 Gene Wolfe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“And as if by magic - and it may have been magic, for I believe America is the land of magic, and that we, we now past Americans, were once the magical people of it, waiting now to stand to some unguessable generation of the future as the nameless pre-Mycenaean tribes did to the Greeks, ready, at a word, each of us now, to flit piping through groves ungrown, our women ready to haunt as laminoe the rose-red ruins of Chicago and Indianapolis when they are little more than earthen mounds, when the heads of the trees are higher than the hundred-and-twenty-fifth floor - it seemed to me that I found myself in bed again, the old house swaying in silence as though it were moored to the universe by only the thread of smoke from the stove.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gene Wolfe" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been-magic-for-i-believe-america/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "America" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been-magic-for-i-believe-america/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edb/gene-wolfe-2530_america_and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been_2449003.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edb/gene-wolfe-2530_america_and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been_2449003.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/edb/gene-wolfe-2530_america_and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been_2449003.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“And as if by magic - and it may have been magic, for I believe America is the land of magic, and that we, we…” — Gene Wolfe", "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": "Gene Wolfe", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“And as if by magic -...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been-magic-for-i-believe-america/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been-magic-for-i-believe-america/#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 } } ] } ```