--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: By their dependence on the spoken word…" description: "\"“By their dependence on the spoken word for information, people were drawn together into a tribal mesh . . . the spoken word is more emotionally laden ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/161/james-gleick-2623_collective-unconscio_by-their-dependence-on-the-spoken-word-f_2707823.jpg" --- # By their dependence on the spoken word for information… ![“By their dependence on the spoken word for information, people were drawn together into a tribal mesh . . . the spoken word is more emotionally laden than the written. . . . Audile-tactile tribal man partook of the collective unconscious, lived in a magical integral world patterned by myth and…” quote by James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/161/james-gleick-2623_collective-unconscio_by-their-dependence-on-the-spoken-word-f_2707823.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/161/james-gleick-2623_collective-unconscio_by-their-dependence-on-the-spoken-word-f_2707823.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/161/james-gleick-2623_collective-unconscio_by-their-dependence-on-the-spoken-word-f_2707823.jpg) > ““By their dependence on the spoken word for information, people were drawn together into a tribal mesh . . . the spoken word is more emotionally laden than the written. . . . Audile-tactile tribal man partook of the collective unconscious, lived in a magical integral world patterned by myth and ritual, its values divine.3”” [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human communication relies on spoken language, creating emotional bonds and shared myths that form a tribal-like community. **In simple terms:** Spoken words bind people emotionally and culturally. Key Takeaway Recognize the power of oral storytelling. Themes communication culture myth community emotion Mood reflective thoughtful analytical Type philosophical observational cultural When to use this quote - team meetings - public speaking - storytelling workshops - cultural ceremonies Key Concepts collective unconscious ritual mythology social bonding Questions to Reflect On - How does oral tradition shape group identity? - What are the limits of spoken versus written knowledge? A Different Perspective Oral communication can exclude those who rely on written forms. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Collective unconscious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collective-unconscious/) [Drawn together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drawn-together/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Spoken word](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spoken-word/) ## Related quotes > [For tribal man space was the uncontrollable mystery. 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Soule ## More by James Gleick > [When the Lilliputians first saw Gulliver's watch, that "wonderful kind of engine...a globe, half silver and half of some transparent metal," they identified it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gleick/when-the-lilliputians-first-saw-gulliver-s-watch-that-wonderful-kind/) [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) > [You know, entropy is associated thermodynamically, in systems involving heat, with disorder. And in an analogous way, information is associated with disorder, which seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gleick/you-know-entropy-is-associated-thermodynamically-in-systems-involving/) [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) > [“No one has even a definitive spelling for Cawdrey’s name (Cowdrey, Cawdry). But then, no one agreed on the spelling of most names: they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gleick/no-one-has-even-a-definitive-spelling-for-cawdrey-s-name-cowdrey/) [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) > [“Where, then, is any particular gene—say, the gene for long legs in humans? This is a little like asking where is Beethoven’s Piano Sonata…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gleick/where-then-is-any-particular-gene-say-the-gene-for-long-legs-in/) [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) > [Alphabetical order had to be invented to help people organize the first dictionaries. On the other hand, we may have reached a point where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gleick/alphabetical-order-had-to-be-invented-to-help-people-organize-the/) [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) > [As a technology, the book is like a hammer. That is to say, it is perfect: a tool ideally suited to its task. 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On the other hand, we communicate.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gleick/people-worry-about-twitter-twitter-is-banal-it-s-140-character/) [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) > [“The Difference Engine stands—for a replica works today, in the Science Museum in London—as a milestone of what could be achieved in precision engineering.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gleick/the-difference-engine-stands-for-a-replica-works-today-in-the-science/) [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) > [It is significant that one says book lover and music lover and art lover but not record lover or CD lover or, conversely, text…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gleick/it-is-significant-that-one-says-book-lover-and-music-lover-and-art/) [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) > [“quoting Tolstoy: “I know that most men, including those at ease with problems of the greatest complexity, can seldom accept even the simplest and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gleick/quoting-tolstoy-i-know-that-most-men-including-those-at-ease-with/) [James Gleick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) [Explore all 157 James Gleick quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gleick/) ## More Collective unconscious quotes > [I'm just trying to rid the world of all these fevered egos that are tainting our collective unconscious...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-m-just-trying-to-rid-the-world-of-all-these-fevered-egos-that-are/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [The writing is the springboard for your intuitive stuff and then you see, maybe a colour of what you want to achieve. 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Nikolic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevan-v-nikolic/) > [Some people talk about children wanting to be born as though somewhere out there in the collective unconscious there's a spirit, or a thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-marie-macdonald/some-people-talk-about-children-wanting-to-be-born-as-though/) [Ann-Marie MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-marie-macdonald/) > [The Internet has usurped the collective unconscious and access to cosmic consciousness has become difficult and almost primitive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-maron/the-internet-has-usurped-the-collective-unconscious-and-access-to/) [Marc Maron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-maron/) > [Jung even asserted that he would have no objection to regarding the psyche as a quality of matter and matter as a concrete aspect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-louise-von-franz/jung-even-asserted-that-he-would-have-no-objection-to-regarding-the/) [Marie-Louise von Franz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-louise-von-franz/) > [You have many years ahead of you to create the dreams that we can't even imagine dreaming. 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