--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Cats can get by without names. We go by…" description: "\"“Cats can get by without names. We go by smell, shape, things of this nature. As long as we know these things, there’re no worries for us.”\" — Haruki M..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9f/haruki-murakami-21_cats_cats-can-get-by-without-names-we-go-by-s_2906468.jpg" --- # Cats can get by without names. We go by smell, shape… ![“Cats can get by without names. We go by smell, shape, things of this nature. As long as we know these things, there’re no worries for us.” quote by Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9f/haruki-murakami-21_cats_cats-can-get-by-without-names-we-go-by-s_2906468.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9f/haruki-murakami-21_cats_cats-can-get-by-without-names-we-go-by-s_2906468.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9f/haruki-murakami-21_cats_cats-can-get-by-without-names-we-go-by-s_2906468.jpg) > ““Cats can get by without names. We go by smell, shape, things of this nature. As long as we know these things, there’re no worries for us.”” [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Identity can be understood through innate senses rather than labels, reducing anxiety. **In simple terms:** We rely on senses, not names. Key Takeaway Trust instinct over labels. Themes identity simplicity comfort Mood reflective calm Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - social interaction - personal safety - self‑acceptance Key Concepts sensory perception existential freedom Questions to Reflect On - How do you navigate identity without names? - What comforts you in uncertainty? A Different Perspective Relying solely on senses may overlook important distinctions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cats/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Smell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smell/) ## Related quotes > [Cats must have three names-an everyday name, such as Peter; a more particular, dignified name, such as Quaxo, Bombalurina, or Jellylorum; and, thirdly, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/cats-must-have-three-names-an-everyday-name-such-as-peter-a-more/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Cats names are more for human benefit. They give one a certain degree more confidence that the animal belongs to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ayckbourn/cats-names-are-more-for-human-benefit-they-give-one-a-certain-degree/) [Alan Ayckbourn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ayckbourn/) > [You're not a kid anymore. You have the right to choose your own life. You can start again. If you want a cat, all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/you-re-not-a-kid-anymore-you-have-the-right-to-choose-your-own-life/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Well, look at it another way: why shouldn’t there be cats in a zoo?" I said. "They’re animals, too, right?" "Cats and dogs are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/well-look-at-it-another-way-why-shouldn-t-there-be-cats-in-a-zoo-i/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Even so, there were times I saw freshness and beauty. I could smell the air, and I really loved rock 'n' roll. Tears were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/even-so-there-were-times-i-saw-freshness-and-beauty-i-could-smell-the/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Sometimes when I'm with you, I remember things I lost when I was your age. Like I remember the sound of the rain and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/sometimes-when-i-m-with-you-i-remember-things-i-lost-when-i-was-your/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [I think memory is the most important asset of human beings. It's a kind of fuel; it burns and it warms you. My memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-think-memory-is-the-most-important-asset-of-human-beings-it-s-a/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [They say that a cat, if it falls from a window and hits its nose, can lose its sense of smell and then, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/they-say-that-a-cat-if-it-falls-from-a-window-and-hits-its-nose-can/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [It's an interesting fact that fewer than 17 % of Real cats end their lives with the same name they started with. Much family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/it-s-an-interesting-fact-that-fewer-than-17-of-real-cats-end-their/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [ If I do manage to come up with a scheme \[to naming\], however, I stick to it, which is why my cats are named… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-vernon/if-i-do-manage-to-come-up-with-a-scheme-to-naming-however-i-stick-to/) [Ursula Vernon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-vernon/) > [Books should confuse. Literature abhors the typical. Literature flows to the particular, the mundane, the greasiness of paper, the taste of warm beer, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/books-should-confuse-literature-abhors-the-typical-literature-flows/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [I have visited sweatshops, factories, and crowded slums. If I could not see it, I could smell it. The foundation of society is laid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/i-have-visited-sweatshops-factories-and-crowded-slums-if-i-could-not/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [I liked Cats as a kid, now its hard to say. I dont live in New York anymore so dont see so many.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-moennig/i-liked-cats-as-a-kid-now-its-hard-to-say-i-dont-live-in-new-york/) [Katherine Moennig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-moennig/) > [Okay, so I'll admit I'm curious. Big deal. We both know what that leads to. Dead cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/okay-so-i-ll-admit-i-m-curious-big-deal-we-both-know-what-that-leads/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) ## More by Haruki Murakami > [I always feel like I'm struggling to become someone else. Like I'm trying to find a new place, grab hold of a new life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-always-feel-like-i-m-struggling-to-become-someone-else-like-i-m/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [If writing novels is like planting a forest, then writing short stories is more like planting a garden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-writing-novels-is-like-planting-a-forest-then-writing-short/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“The sad truth is that what I could recall in five seconds all too soon needed ten, then thirty, thena full minute...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-sad-truth-is-that-what-i-could-recall-in-five-seconds-all-too/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Intelligent teenage girls were often instinctively theatrical, purposely eccentric, mouthing highly suggestive words to confuse people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/intelligent-teenage-girls-were-often-instinctively-theatrical/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Memory is like fiction; or else it's fiction that's like memory. This really came home to me once I started writing fiction, that memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/memory-is-like-fiction-or-else-it-s-fiction-that-s-like-memory-this/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [The most dangerous creature here would have to be me. So maybe I'm just scared of my own shadow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-most-dangerous-creature-here-would-have-to-be-me-so-maybe-i-m/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [If you listen to the radio for a whole hour there's maybe one decent song. The rest is mass-produced garbage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-you-listen-to-the-radio-for-a-whole-hour-there-s-maybe-one-decent/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“that one of our problems was our inability to recognize and accept our own deformities”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/that-one-of-our-problems-was-our-inability-to-recognize-and-accept/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“When I look back at myself at age twenty, what I remember most is being alone and lonely. I had no girlfriend to warm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-i-look-back-at-myself-at-age-twenty-what-i-remember-most-is/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“There's not a branch of publishing or broadcasting that doesn't depend in some way on advertising. It'd be like an aquarium without water. Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/there-s-not-a-branch-of-publishing-or-broadcasting-that-doesn-t/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“One by one, I'll face the tasks before me and complete them as best I can. Focusing on each stride forward, but at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-i-ll-face-the-tasks-before-me-and-complete-them-as-best-i/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Eleven o'clock had come and gone. I had to find a way to bring this conversation to a successful conclusion and get out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/eleven-o-clock-had-come-and-gone-i-had-to-find-a-way-to-bring-this/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Some people get a kick out of reading railway timetables and that's all they do all day. Some people make huge model boats out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/some-people-get-a-kick-out-of-reading-railway-timetables-and-that-s/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“When the time comes, everybody’s got to end up where they belong. Only me, I didn’t have a place to call my own. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-the-time-comes-everybody-s-got-to-end-up-where-they-belong-only/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“You let something out of the bag before yourself knew what it was all about”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/you-let-something-out-of-the-bag-before-yourself-knew-what-it-was-all/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) [Explore all 2,928 Haruki Murakami quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) ## More Cats quotes > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [Okay, so I'll admit I'm curious. Big deal. We both know what that leads to. Dead cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/okay-so-i-ll-admit-i-m-curious-big-deal-we-both-know-what-that-leads/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [I liked Cats as a kid, now its hard to say. I dont live in New York anymore so dont see so many.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-moennig/i-liked-cats-as-a-kid-now-its-hard-to-say-i-dont-live-in-new-york/) [Katherine Moennig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-moennig/) > [“The next day, Trixie pawed Maddie awake, patting her arm gently. “I’m up,” Maddie groaned, blinking sleep out of her eyes. “Mrrow.” Trixie peered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jinty-james/the-next-day-trixie-pawed-maddie-awake-patting-her-arm-gently-i-m-up/) Jinty James > [“So Nikki came aboard as Jaqueline's spare cat, presumably in case our prime cat, Eliza, goes on vacation, takes industrial action, or requests a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-s-wren/so-nikki-came-aboard-as-jaqueline-s-spare-cat-presumably-in-case-our/) Christopher S. Wren > [One reason why my memory decays is that I have three cats, all so loving and insistent that they play cat's-cradle with every train…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-townsend-warner/one-reason-why-my-memory-decays-is-that-i-have-three-cats-all-so/) [Sylvia Townsend Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-townsend-warner/) > [It's an interesting fact that fewer than 17 % of Real cats end their lives with the same name they started with. Much family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/it-s-an-interesting-fact-that-fewer-than-17-of-real-cats-end-their/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [The dog is guided by kindly instinct to the man or woman whose heart is open to his advances. The cat often leaves the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-repplier/the-dog-is-guided-by-kindly-instinct-to-the-man-or-woman-whose-heart/) [Agnes Repplier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-repplier/) > [When I see things through my eyes, I don't want to ever just be really negative towards someone's performance. There are many ways to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stone-cold-steve-austin/when-i-see-things-through-my-eyes-i-don-t-want-to-ever-just-be-really/) [Stone Cold Steve Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stone-cold-steve-austin/) > [One cat just leads to another. The place is so damned big it doesn't really seem as though there were many cats until you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/one-cat-just-leads-to-another-the-place-is-so-damned-big-it-doesn-t/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“In the morning, when she wishes me to wake, she crouches on my chest, and pats my face with her paw. Or, if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/in-the-morning-when-she-wishes-me-to-wake-she-crouches-on-my-chest/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [Kittens can happen to anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gallico/kittens-can-happen-to-anyone/) [Paul Gallico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gallico/) > [“Curiosity killed the cat, but not before teaching her that honey bees are not sweet, tweeting birds are slow to react, mice can serve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/curiosity-killed-the-cat-but-not-before-teaching-her-that-honey-bees/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [“Quin took on the air of someone who has just realized it's time for the yearly visit to the spinster great-aunt in a desperate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-fecteau/quin-took-on-the-air-of-someone-who-has-just-realized-it-s-time-for/) [Amy Fecteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-fecteau/) > [“Save for the ancient Egyptians, he found, virtually no one kept cats as pets until the latter part of the 1700s. The first people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-mcauliffe/save-for-the-ancient-egyptians-he-found-virtually-no-one-kept-cats-as/) [Kathleen McAuliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-mcauliffe/) [Browse all 3,253 Cats quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cats/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Cats can get by without names. We go by smell, shape, things of this nature. 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