--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But how to do feelings? All very well to…" description: "\"But how to do feelings? All very well to write \"She felt sad\", or describe what a sad person might do, but what of sadness itself, how was that put acr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/ian-mcewan-494_confusion_but-how-to-do-feelings-all-very-well-to_3048772.png" --- # But how to do feelings? All very well to write "She felt… ![“But how to do feelings? All very well to write "She felt sad", or describe what a sad person might do, but what of sadness itself, how was that put across so it could be felt in all its lowering immediacy? Even harder was the threat, or the confusion of feeling contradictory things.” quote by Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/ian-mcewan-494_confusion_but-how-to-do-feelings-all-very-well-to_3048772.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/ian-mcewan-494_confusion_but-how-to-do-feelings-all-very-well-to_3048772.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/577/ian-mcewan-494_confusion_but-how-to-do-feelings-all-very-well-to_3048772.png) > “But how to do feelings? All very well to write "She felt sad", or describe what a sad person might do, but what of sadness itself, how was that put across so it could be felt in all its lowering immediacy? Even harder was the threat, or the confusion of feeling contradictory things.” [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The writer struggles to convey raw emotions like sadness and confusion directly, beyond descriptive narration, seeking immediacy and authenticity. **In simple terms:** He finds it hard to write feelings so readers truly feel them. Key Takeaway Show, don’t just tell. Themes writing emotion authenticity literature Mood analytical inquisitive Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - fiction - personal essays - psychology Key Concepts novel writing creative workshops emotional expression Questions to Reflect On - How can writers evoke feeling without overt description? - What techniques create immersive emotional experiences? A Different Perspective Direct emotional description can feel forced. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Confusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confusion/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Immediacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immediacy/) [Sad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sad/) [Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness/) [Threat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threat/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [My boarding school experience was the only thing I had strong enough feelings to write about for hundreds and hundreds of pages. I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-sittenfeld/my-boarding-school-experience-was-the-only-thing-i-had-strong-enough/) [Curtis Sittenfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-sittenfeld/) > [“I think I may cool off in the water for a few minutes. 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No pondering! Just WRITE IT…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-rae/assignment-numero-otto-feel-your-feelings-write-down-the-first-thing/) [Kristin Rae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-rae/) > [“It was if happiness and sadness cannot be felt at exactly the same time. You can look forward, or you can look back, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-allan-rees/it-was-if-happiness-and-sadness-cannot-be-felt-at-exactly-the-same/) [Kent Allan Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-allan-rees/) > [“When her teacher asked her to explain the drawing, Twiss said to her happiness felt like freedom. Sadness felt like the opposite.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-rasmussen/when-her-teacher-asked-her-to-explain-the-drawing-twiss-said-to-her/) [Rebecca Rasmussen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-rasmussen/) > [“The yin to the yang of caring is that sadness is felt just that much more because that caring is so deep. But (and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-yin-to-the-yang-of-caring-is-that-sadness-is-felt-just-that-much/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“she also knew that the sadness she felt while pregnant, for strangers, for the entire world, did not feel like hormones so much as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-moriarty/she-also-knew-that-the-sadness-she-felt-while-pregnant-for-strangers/) [Laura Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-moriarty/) > [“When eating your emotions, just imagine. What would it be like if sadness felt as good as ice cream tasted?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cody-edward-lee-miller/when-eating-your-emotions-just-imagine-what-would-it-be-like-if/) [Cody Edward Lee Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cody-edward-lee-miller/) > [Being happy does indicate that there is sadness also felt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/innah-delos-angeles/being-happy-does-indicate-that-there-is-sadness-also-felt/) [Innah Delos Angeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/innah-delos-angeles/) > [“I felt sad for my "actual boss" who was too hard-pressed under his mom's weight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ankita-kapoor/i-felt-sad-for-my-actual-boss-who-was-too-hard-pressed-under-his-mom/) [Ankita Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ankita-kapoor/) > [“It was hard to stay angry when I felt so sad. I would rather have felt angry, but instead, all I could do was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-kadohata/it-was-hard-to-stay-angry-when-i-felt-so-sad-i-would-rather-have-felt/) [Cynthia Kadohata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-kadohata/) > [“When I turned back, he was already walking away. It was a brilliantly clear day, not a cloud in sight, and yet the sun…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-shirvington/when-i-turned-back-he-was-already-walking-away-it-was-a-brilliantly/) [Jessica Shirvington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-shirvington/) > [I waited for you last night, and I fell asleep with the phone in my palm. when I woke up the next morning, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryne-brooks/i-waited-for-you-last-night-and-i-fell-asleep-with-the-phone-in-my/) [Sheryne Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryne-brooks/) ## More by Ian Mcewan > [“As you will see, we do not believe that artists have an obligation to strike up attitudes to the war. Indeed, they are wise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/as-you-will-see-we-do-not-believe-that-artists-have-an-obligation-to/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [You could say that all novels are spy novels and all novelists are spy masters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/you-could-say-that-all-novels-are-spy-novels-and-all-novelists-are/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I've never had a moment's doubt. I love you. I believe in you completely. You are my dearest one. 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And but for the fact that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-did-not-kill-my-father-but-i-sometimes-felt-i-had-helped-him-on-his/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) [Explore all 496 Ian Mcewan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## More Confusion quotes > [The fog of illusion, the fog of confusion is hanging all over the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-morrison/the-fog-of-illusion-the-fog-of-confusion-is-hanging-all-over-the-world/) [Van Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-morrison/) > [I believe confusion is good. Worldwide market leaders gain when there is confusion in the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subhash-chandra/i-believe-confusion-is-good-worldwide-market-leaders-gain-when-there/) [Subhash Chandra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subhash-chandra/) > [Being actors we are dealing with the beauty and complexity of human confusion, no? 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A lot of different companies characterized as social networks have different goals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-zuckerberg/i-think-there-s-confusion-around-what-the-point-of-social-networks-is/) [Mark Zuckerberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-zuckerberg/) > [In history as it comes to be written, there is usually some Spirit of the Age which historians can define, but the shape of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-wood-krutch/in-history-as-it-comes-to-be-written-there-is-usually-some-spirit-of/) [Joseph Wood Krutch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-wood-krutch/) > [Establish an atmosphere that energizes you. Some creative people flourish in confusion; others need to be free from interruption. Many prepare themselves for work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-leland/establish-an-atmosphere-that-energizes-you-some-creative-people/) [Nita Leland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-leland/) > [Love is doing what will enthrall the beloved with the greatest and longest joy. What will enthrall the beloved this way is the glory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/love-is-doing-what-will-enthrall-the-beloved-with-the-greatest-and/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [Psychedelic drugs cause paranoia, confusion, and total loss of reality in politicians that have never taken them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-leary/psychedelic-drugs-cause-paranoia-confusion-and-total-loss-of-reality/) [Timothy Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-leary/) > [That feeling you get when you know you are forgetting something, but you don't know what.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/that-feeling-you-get-when-you-know-you-are-forgetting-something-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What are we doing here, that is the question. And we are blessed in this, that we happen to know the answer. 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