--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The magical story is not a microscope but…" description: "\"The magical story is not a microscope but a mirror, not a drop of water but a well. It is not simply one thing or two, but a multitude. It is at once b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/223/jane-yolen-7302_accepting_the-magical-story-is-not-a-microscope-bu_1099982.jpg" --- # The magical story is not a microscope but a mirror, not a… ![“The magical story is not a microscope but a mirror, not a drop of water but a well. It is not simply one thing or two, but a multitude. It is at once both lucid and opaque, it accepts both dark and light, speaks to youth and old age.” quote by Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/223/jane-yolen-7302_accepting_the-magical-story-is-not-a-microscope-bu_1099982.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/223/jane-yolen-7302_accepting_the-magical-story-is-not-a-microscope-bu_1099982.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/223/jane-yolen-7302_accepting_the-magical-story-is-not-a-microscope-bu_1099982.jpg) > “The magical story is not a microscope but a mirror, not a drop of water but a well. It is not simply one thing or two, but a multitude. It is at once both lucid and opaque, it accepts both dark and light, speaks to youth and old age.” [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories reflect reality, showing both clarity and mystery, embracing all ages and emotions. **In simple terms:** Stories act like mirrors, showing many sides. Key Takeaway Embrace the full spectrum of experience. Themes creativity reflection duality age emotion Mood thoughtful inspirational Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - teaching children - writing workshops - therapy sessions - intergenerational dialogue Key Concepts narrative theory symbolism psychology Questions to Reflect On - How does a story serve as both mirror and window? - In what ways can darkness and light coexist in narrative? A Different Perspective May overlook the need for concrete facts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accepting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accepting/) [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) [Dark And Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark-and-light/) [Drop of water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drop-of-water/) [Fantasy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fantasy/) [Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light/) [Magical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magical/) [Magical Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magical-story-1656757/) [Microscopes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/microscopes/) [Mirrors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mirrors/) [Multitudes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/multitudes/) [Old age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-age/) [One thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/one-thing/) [Opaque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opaque/) [Speak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speak/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Story Microscope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story-microscope-2888564/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) [Youth and old age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth-and-old-age/) ## Related quotes > [“Dance as the narration of a magical story; that recites on lips, illuminates imaginations and embraces the most sacred depths of souls.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shah-asad-rizvi/dance-as-the-narration-of-a-magical-story-that-recites-on-lips/) [Shah Asad Rizvi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shah-asad-rizvi/) > [The complete life, the perfect pattern, includes old age as well as youth and maturity. The beauty of the morning and the radiance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/the-complete-life-the-perfect-pattern-includes-old-age-as-well-as/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [There has never been a time when you and I have not existed, nor will there be a time when we will cease to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhagavad-gita/there-has-never-been-a-time-when-you-and-i-have-not-existed-nor-will/) [Bhagavad Gita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhagavad-gita/) > [“She was at the age when she looked as much like an overgrown boy as a girl. And on that subject why was it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carson-mccullers/she-was-at-the-age-when-she-looked-as-much-like-an-overgrown-boy-as-a/) [Carson McCullers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carson-mccullers/) > [Don't let aging get you down. It's too hard to get back up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wagner/don-t-let-aging-get-you-down-it-s-too-hard-to-get-back-up/) [John Wagner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wagner/) > [“You want to leave the moat, to go back to the room; you’re already turning and trying to find the door, covered with fake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sasha-sokolov/you-want-to-leave-the-moat-to-go-back-to-the-room-you-re-already/) [Sasha Sokolov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sasha-sokolov/) > [“I am an anomaly - a woman alone, too young to be widowed and too old to be looking for a mate. I occupy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-gillard/i-am-an-anomaly-a-woman-alone-too-young-to-be-widowed-and-too-old-to/) [Linda Gillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-gillard/) > [For the complete life, the perfect pattern includes old age as well as youth and maturity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/for-the-complete-life-the-perfect-pattern-includes-old-age-as-well-as/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [You'll live to be a hundred if you give up all the things that make you want to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/you-ll-live-to-be-a-hundred-if-you-give-up-all-the-things-that-make/) [Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/) > [You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear; as young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-are-as-young-as-your-faith-as-old-as-your-doubt-as-young-as-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Just as the migratory and nest-building instincts of birds were never learnt or acquired individually, man brings with him at birth the ground-plan of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-stein/just-as-the-migratory-and-nest-building-instincts-of-birds-were-never/) [Murray Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-stein/) > [It's an epitome of life. The first half of it consists of the capacity to enjoy without the chance; the last half consists of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/it-s-an-epitome-of-life-the-first-half-of-it-consists-of-the-capacity/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [What makes old age so sad is, not that our joys, but that our hopes then cease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul/what-makes-old-age-so-sad-is-not-that-our-joys-but-that-our-hopes/) [Jean Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul/) > [Anyone who stops learning is old — whether this happens at twenty or at eighty. Anyone who keeps on learning not only remains young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/anyone-who-stops-learning-is-old-whether-this-happens-at-twenty-or-at/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-arens/anyone-who-keeps-learning-stays-young-the-greatest-thing-in-life-is/) [Moshe Arens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-arens/) ## More by Jane Yolen > [“You've got some power," Jakkin said. "One hug—and the lights go out!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/you-ve-got-some-power-jakkin-said-one-hug-and-the-lights-go-out/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [“Part of her revolted against the insanity of the rules. Part of her was grateful. In a world of chaos, any guidelines helped. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/part-of-her-revolted-against-the-insanity-of-the-rules-part-of-her/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [“Cinderella, until lately, has never been a passive dreamer waiting for rescue. The forerunners of the Ash-girl have all been hardy, active heroines who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/cinderella-until-lately-has-never-been-a-passive-dreamer-waiting-for/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Stories," he'd said, his voice low and almost husky, "we are made up of stories. And even the one's that seem the most like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/stories-he-d-said-his-voice-low-and-almost-husky-we-are-made-up-of/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Love the writing, love the writing, love the writing... the rest will follow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/love-the-writing-love-the-writing-love-the-writing-the-rest-will/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Just write. If you have to make a choice, if you say, 'Oh well, I'm going to put the writing away until my children…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/just-write-if-you-have-to-make-a-choice-if-you-say-oh-well-i-m-going/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [A child who can love the oddities of a fantasy book cannot possibly be xenophobic as an adult. What is a different color, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/a-child-who-can-love-the-oddities-of-a-fantasy-book-cannot-possibly/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [“1. Write every day 2. Write what interests you. 3. Write for the child inside of you. (Or the adult, if you are writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/1-write-every-day-2-write-what-interests-you-3-write-for-the-child/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [What is a vow... but the mouth repeating what the heart has already promised?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/what-is-a-vow-but-the-mouth-repeating-what-the-heart-has-already/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [A mist. A great mist. It covered the entire kingdom. And everyone in it - the good people and the not so good, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/a-mist-a-great-mist-it-covered-the-entire-kingdom-and-everyone-in-it/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Readers re-create any story to suit their own needs. They re-clothe the story in their own shirts. Put simply: just as we write the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/readers-re-create-any-story-to-suit-their-own-needs-they-re-clothe/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [We all have such stories. It is a brutal arithmetic. But I - I am alive. You are alive. As long as we breathe,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/we-all-have-such-stories-it-is-a-brutal-arithmetic-but-i-i-am-alive/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Ideas are the cheapest part of the writing. They are free. The hard part is what you do with ideas you've gathered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/ideas-are-the-cheapest-part-of-the-writing-they-are-free-the-hard/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [“As I thought about endings and – being a lover of fairy tales – I knew immediately that the deeply rooted last line in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/as-i-thought-about-endings-and-being-a-lover-of-fairy-tales-i-knew/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Get up from your desk and wander outside occasionally. To be a good writer one needs to be a good observer, and there isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/get-up-from-your-desk-and-wander-outside-occasionally-to-be-a-good/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) [Explore all 92 Jane Yolen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) ## More Accepting quotes > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [Laughing, laughing, laughing, laughing! It is the jester! A voice from the Void, to cheer poor Cicero! I accept your gift, dearest Night Mother.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/laughing-laughing-laughing-laughing-it-is-the-jester-a-voice-from-the/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [This duo inside of me causes the perfect opportunity to live and learn twice as fast as those who choose to accept simplicity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupac-shakur/this-duo-inside-of-me-causes-the-perfect-opportunity-to-live-and/) [Tupac Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupac-shakur/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [We only enter into the full life if our faith gives thanks. Because how else do we accept His free gift of salvation if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/we-only-enter-into-the-full-life-if-our-faith-gives-thanks-because/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [Don't be bitter. Everybody suffers. If you can accept your suffering then you will understand other people better. Be grateful for pain. Love life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/don-t-be-bitter-everybody-suffers-if-you-can-accept-your-suffering/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [It takes an unusually philosophic mind to accept that all one’s suffering might be to no end, really, in the larger scheme of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-takes-an-unusually-philosophic-mind-to-accept-that-all-one-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No nation being under another nation can accept gifts, and kick at the responsibility attached to those gifts, imposed by the conquering nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/no-nation-being-under-another-nation-can-accept-gifts-and-kick-at-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Even with clothing naked animals, there were people who wanted to send in money. A woman in Santa Barbara, California, sent a $40,000 check.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-abel/even-with-clothing-naked-animals-there-were-people-who-wanted-to-send/) [Alan Abel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-abel/) > [Society understands the architecture of academia and knows there are relevant qualifications in different fields, and the media accepts the idea of specialisations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-griffiths/society-understands-the-architecture-of-academia-and-knows-there-are/) [Jay Griffiths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-griffiths/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [Losing someone is easy, but accepting it is hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/losing-someone-is-easy-but-accepting-it-is-hard/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [… and so he tried to accept the ache in his heart as what Dr. Larch would call the common symptoms of normal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/and-so-he-tried-to-accept-the-ache-in-his-heart-as-what-dr-larch/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [I think what was special about 'Music by Prudence' was the classic story of the title subject's life path - from being an outcast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-think-what-was-special-about-music-by-prudence-was-the-classic/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [As my films are born at the moment when they are reflected into another person's mind and memories, there are no misconceptions. I totally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pirjo-honkasalo/as-my-films-are-born-at-the-moment-when-they-are-reflected-into/) [Pirjo Honkasalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pirjo-honkasalo/) [Browse all 6,788 Accepting quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accepting/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The magical story is not a microscope but a mirror, not a drop of water but a well. It is not simply one thing or two, but a multitude. 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