--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And in this self-expression I put all the…" description: "\"“And in this self-expression I put all the thoughts I had about her, I released the anger she made me feel, my amorous way of thinking about her, my de..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a1/italo-calvino-402_desire_and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-th_1713006.jpg" --- # And in this self-expression I put all the thoughts I had… ![“And in this self-expression I put all the thoughts I had about her, I released the anger she made me feel, my amorous way of thinking about her, my determination to exist for her, the desire for me to be me, and for her to be her, and the love for myself that I put in my love for her--all the…” quote by Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a1/italo-calvino-402_desire_and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-th_1713006.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a1/italo-calvino-402_desire_and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-th_1713006.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a1/italo-calvino-402_desire_and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-th_1713006.jpg) > ““And in this self-expression I put all the thoughts I had about her, I released the anger she made me feel, my amorous way of thinking about her, my determination to exist for her, the desire for me to be me, and for her to be her, and the love for myself that I put in my love for her--all the things that could be said only in that conch shell wound into a spiral.”” [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self‑expression releases emotions, defines identity, and intertwines love with personal growth. **In simple terms:** Expressing self frees emotions and shapes identity. Key Takeaway Write to discover yourself. Themes creativity identity emotion Mood introspective artistic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - journaling - artistic projects - therapy sessions Key Concepts self‑expression psychology Questions to Reflect On - What emotions surface when you write? - How does self‑expression affect relationships? A Different Perspective Self‑expression can expose vulnerability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Self expression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-expression/) [Way of thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-of-thinking/) ## Related quotes > [It's not easy to date when you're hefty. Besides I like feeling thin because it makes me feel amorous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patti-stanger/it-s-not-easy-to-date-when-you-re-hefty-besides-i-like-feeling-thin/) [Patti Stanger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patti-stanger/) > [“When the incessant desire for expression about any of the infinite subjects (including God and Guru) through any of the endless modes of expression…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dheeraj-tripathi/when-the-incessant-desire-for-expression-about-any-of-the-infinite/) Dheeraj Tripathi > [Neither can embellishments of language be found without arrangement and expression of thoughts, nor can thoughts be made to shine without the light of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/neither-can-embellishments-of-language-be-found-without-arrangement/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [Your life is an expression of all your thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/your-life-is-an-expression-of-all-your-thoughts/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [In brief, I spend half my time trying to learn the secrets of other writers - to apply them to the expression of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-ann-grau/in-brief-i-spend-half-my-time-trying-to-learn-the-secrets-of-other/) [Shirley Ann Grau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-ann-grau/) > [In the documentary space, the biggest and most obvious difference is that in those films you're not in it for a financial gain. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-smolyansky/in-the-documentary-space-the-biggest-and-most-obvious-difference-is/) [Julie Smolyansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-smolyansky/) > [By exposing the multiplicity, the facticity, the repetition and stereotype at the heart of every aesthetic gesture, photography deconstructs the possibility of differentiating between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-e-krauss/by-exposing-the-multiplicity-the-facticity-the-repetition-and/) [Rosalind E. Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-e-krauss/) > [“To the extent that self-expression does broadcast and reinforce a person's character, it clarifies a link between art, eccentricity, and mental illness. The more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-weaver-flaherty/to-the-extent-that-self-expression-does-broadcast-and-reinforce-a/) [Alice Weaver Flaherty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-weaver-flaherty/) > [“Mostly, we think that a self-expressive person is egotistical. That may be true but what about someone who refrains from expressing himself to protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/assegid-habtewold/mostly-we-think-that-a-self-expressive-person-is-egotistical-that-may/) [Assegid Habtewold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/assegid-habtewold/) > [There are probably seven persons, in all, who really like my work; and they are enough. I should write even if I were the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/there-are-probably-seven-persons-in-all-who-really-like-my-work-and/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [“It is essential to remember that each person is deserving of respect and understanding, regardless of disagreements. I have focused on creating an environment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melania-trump/it-is-essential-to-remember-that-each-person-is-deserving-of-respect/) [Melania Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melania-trump/) > [I hold a beast, an angel, and a madman in me, and my enquiry is as to their working, and my problem is their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/i-hold-a-beast-an-angel-and-a-madman-in-me-and-my-enquiry-is-as-to/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [“We keep waiting to be crowned, Waiting for the world to judge us worthy of offering our brightest, most empowered and beautiful stuff. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-nordby/we-keep-waiting-to-be-crowned-waiting-for-the-world-to-judge-us/) [Jacob Nordby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-nordby/) > [“What I would say is this: writing poems doesn't make you a poet. … It is only with poetry, for some reason, that everyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-wright/what-i-would-say-is-this-writing-poems-doesn-t-make-you-a-poet-it-is/) [Franz Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-wright/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) ## More by Italo Calvino > [“(one would say yes, if not every day, at least fairly regularly), whether only for yourself or also for others (often only for yourself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/one-would-say-yes-if-not-every-day-at-least-fairly-regularly-whether/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“The Great Khan tried to concentrate on the game: but now it was the game’s reason that eluded him. The end of every game…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/the-great-khan-tried-to-concentrate-on-the-game-but-now-it-was-the/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“Or else you can say, like the camel driver who took me there: "I arrived here in my first youth, one morning, many people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/or-else-you-can-say-like-the-camel-driver-who-took-me-there-i-arrived/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“The naked man had lost hope now; he would never be able to return to the earth's surface;he would never leave the bottom of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/the-naked-man-had-lost-hope-now-he-would-never-be-able-to-return-to/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“The art of writing tales consists in an ability to draw the rest of life from the little one has understood of it; but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/the-art-of-writing-tales-consists-in-an-ability-to-draw-the-rest-of/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“I ask you to come down to earth," said the Baron in a calm, rather faint voice, "and to take up the duties of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/i-ask-you-to-come-down-to-earth-said-the-baron-in-a-calm-rather-faint/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [The unconscious is the ocean of the unsayable, of what has been expelled from the land of language, removed as a result of ancient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/the-unconscious-is-the-ocean-of-the-unsayable-of-what-has-been/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“... KUBLAI: We have proved that if we were here, we would not be. POLO: And here, in fact, we are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/kublai-we-have-proved-that-if-we-were-here-we-would-not-be-polo-and/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“And yet, in Raissa, at every moment there is a child in a window who laughs seeing a dog that has jumped on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/and-yet-in-raissa-at-every-moment-there-is-a-child-in-a-window-who/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“Ludmilla, now you are being read. Your body is being subjected to a systematic reading, through channels of tactile information, visual, olfactory, and not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/ludmilla-now-you-are-being-read-your-body-is-being-subjected-to-a/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“Once the process of falsification is set in motion, it won't stop. We're in a country where everything that can be falsified has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/once-the-process-of-falsification-is-set-in-motion-it-won-t-stop-we/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“Your case gives me new hope," I said to him. "With me, more and more often I happen to pick up a novel that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/your-case-gives-me-new-hope-i-said-to-him-with-me-more-and-more-often/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [We could say, then, that man is an instrument the world employs to renew its own image constantly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/we-could-say-then-that-man-is-an-instrument-the-world-employs-to/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [“Perhaps it is this story that is a bridge over the void, and as it advances it flings forward news and sensations and emotions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/perhaps-it-is-this-story-that-is-a-bridge-over-the-void-and-as-it/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [Yet, even now, ever time (often) that I find that I don't understand something, then instinctively, I'm filled with the hope that perhaps this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/yet-even-now-ever-time-often-that-i-find-that-i-don-t-understand/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) [Explore all 468 Italo Calvino quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) ## More Desire quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) Ted Martinez > [Passion is what you need to be good, an unforgiving passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-easton/passion-is-what-you-need-to-be-good-an-unforgiving-passion/) [David Easton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-easton/) > [I want the municipality to be a helping hand to the man with a desire of sympathy, to help the fallen when it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burns/i-want-the-municipality-to-be-a-helping-hand-to-the-man-with-a-desire/) [John Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burns/) > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“THE ESSENCE OF YOUR DESIRE IS A FEELING”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-laporte/the-essence-of-your-desire-is-a-feeling/) [Danielle LaPorte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-laporte/) > [On the brink of being satiated, desire still appears infinite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rostand/on-the-brink-of-being-satiated-desire-still-appears-infinite/) [Jean Rostand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rostand/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [He caught her, she fell, he caught her in his arms, he held her tightly unconscious of what he was doing. He held her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/he-caught-her-she-fell-he-caught-her-in-his-arms-he-held-her-tightly/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“The deepest urge in human nature is the desire to be important.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/the-deepest-urge-in-human-nature-is-the-desire-to-be-important/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [In discovering books, you became free to explore the full range of human motives, desires, secrets, and lies. All my life, people have scolded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/in-discovering-books-you-became-free-to-explore-the-full-range-of/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) > [I have never been in, nor have I had any strong particular desire to be in, what is termed a costume drama, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/i-have-never-been-in-nor-have-i-had-any-strong-particular-desire-to/) [Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/) > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“from THE DEVIL YOU KNOW : She wanted him too. He could see it in the rapid rise of her breasts. He could smell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emery-lee/from-the-devil-you-know-she-wanted-him-too-he-could-see-it-in-the/) [Emery Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emery-lee/) [Browse all 15,155 Desire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“And in this self-expression I put all the thoughts I had about her, I released the anger she made me feel, my amorous way of thinking about her, my determination to exist for her, the desire for me to be me, and for her to be her, and the love for myself that I put in my love for her--all the things that could be said only in that conch shell wound into a spiral.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Italo Calvino" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-the-thoughts-i-had-about-her-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Desire" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-the-thoughts-i-had-about-her-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a1/italo-calvino-402_desire_and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-th_1713006.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a1/italo-calvino-402_desire_and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-th_1713006.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a1/italo-calvino-402_desire_and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-th_1713006.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“And in this self-expression I put all the thoughts I had about her, I released the anger she made me feel…” — Italo Calvino", "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": "Italo Calvino", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“And in this self-expression I put...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-the-thoughts-i-had-about-her-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/and-in-this-self-expression-i-put-all-the-thoughts-i-had-about-her-i/#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 } } ] } ```