--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I like shape very much. A novel has to…" description: "\"I like shape very much. A novel has to have shape, and life doesn't have any.\" — Jean Rhys" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ef/jean-rhys-2447_books_i-like-shape-very-much-a-novel-has-to-ha_2700129.png" --- # I like shape very much. A novel has to have shape, and… ![“I like shape very much. A novel has to have shape, and life doesn't have any.” quote by Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ef/jean-rhys-2447_books_i-like-shape-very-much-a-novel-has-to-ha_2700129.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ef/jean-rhys-2447_books_i-like-shape-very-much-a-novel-has-to-ha_2700129.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ef/jean-rhys-2447_books_i-like-shape-very-much-a-novel-has-to-ha_2700129.png) > “I like shape very much. A novel has to have shape, and life doesn't have any.” [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She contrasts the structured shape of novels with life's lack of inherent form. **In simple terms:** Novels need shape; life lacks it. Key Takeaway Create structure where none exists. Themes literature philosophy existence Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - writing - teaching - personal development - storytelling Key Concepts narrative structure meaning-making Questions to Reflect On - How can you impose shape on chaotic situations? - What value does structure bring to meaning? A Different Perspective Life’s fluidity can inspire creative freedom. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [How you shape your attitude is not a small part of how you shape your life...it is the only part.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/how-you-shape-your-attitude-is-not-a-small-part-of-how-you-shape-your/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [To be a standard shape is not all in life. To know is also important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-aldiss/to-be-a-standard-shape-is-not-all-in-life-to-know-is-also-important/) [Brian Aldiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-aldiss/) > [Well what I will tell you is for this movie, I got into probably the best shape of my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tea-leoni/well-what-i-will-tell-you-is-for-this-movie-i-got-into-probably-the/) [Tea Leoni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tea-leoni/) > [Novels usually evolve out of 'character.' Characters generate stories, and the shape of a novel is entirely imagined but should have an aesthetic coherence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/novels-usually-evolve-out-of-character-characters-generate-stories/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [I always think I know the way a novel will go. I write maps on oversized art pads like the kind I carried around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianna-baggott/i-always-think-i-know-the-way-a-novel-will-go-i-write-maps-on/) [Julianna Baggott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianna-baggott/) > [I was very influenced by The Magic Mountain. It's a book that had a huge impact on me. I loved that as a shape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/i-was-very-influenced-by-the-magic-mountain-it-s-a-book-that-had-a/) [Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/) > [“The natural, proper, fitting shape of the novel might be that of a sack, a bag. A book holds words. Words hold things. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/the-natural-proper-fitting-shape-of-the-novel-might-be-that-of-a-sack/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [I've gone through some counterbalance putters in the past that I played in school, so I really like that shape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-hovland/i-ve-gone-through-some-counterbalance-putters-in-the-past-that-i/) [Viktor Hovland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-hovland/) > [Must a name mean something?" Alice asked doubtfully. Of course it must," Humpty Dumpty said with a short laugh; "my name means the shape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/must-a-name-mean-something-alice-asked-doubtfully-of-course-it-must/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [I like fashion. I like being in shape. 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What you fix your gaze on will ultimately begin to shape your life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-hise/what-we-consume-consumes-us-what-you-focus-on-shapes-you-what-you-fix/) [Pete Hise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-hise/) > [Shape your life the way you have always dreamt, work toward your success with your strength to reach your aim in life. Make it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemmy-nola/shape-your-life-the-way-you-have-always-dreamt-work-toward-your/) [Kemmy Nola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemmy-nola/) > [We are born into a particular place and time with a particular set of gifts and limitations. The challenge isn't to pluck the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justine-musk/we-are-born-into-a-particular-place-and-time-with-a-particular-set-of/) [Justine Musk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justine-musk/) ## More by Jean Rhys > [Of course she had some pathetic illusions about herself or she would not be able to go on living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/of-course-she-had-some-pathetic-illusions-about-herself-or-she-would/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [As soon as I turned the key I saw it hanging, the color of fire and sunset. the colour of flamboyant flowers. ‘If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/as-soon-as-i-turned-the-key-i-saw-it-hanging-the-color-of-fire-and/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [Human beings are struggling, and so they are egoists. But it's wrong to say that they are wholy cruel - it's a deformed view.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/human-beings-are-struggling-and-so-they-are-egoists-but-it-s-wrong-to/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [“THe room was large and low-ceilinged, the striped wallpaper faded to inoffensiveness. A huge dark wardrobe faced a huge dark bed. The rest of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/the-room-was-large-and-low-ceilinged-the-striped-wallpaper-faded-to/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [There is no doubt that running away on a fresh, blue morning can be exhilarating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/there-is-no-doubt-that-running-away-on-a-fresh-blue-morning-can-be/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [Blot out the moon, Pull down the stars. Love in the dark, for we're for the dark So soon, so soon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/blot-out-the-moon-pull-down-the-stars-love-in-the-dark-for-we-re-for/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [“But in the daytime it was all right. And when you'd had a drink you knew it was the best way to live in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/but-in-the-daytime-it-was-all-right-and-when-you-d-had-a-drink-you/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [She’ll have no lover, for I don’t want her and she’ll see no other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/she-ll-have-no-lover-for-i-don-t-want-her-and-she-ll-see-no-other/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [Everything tender and melancholy - as life is sometimes, just for one moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/everything-tender-and-melancholy-as-life-is-sometimes-just-for-one/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [“have spunks and do battle for yourself”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/have-spunks-and-do-battle-for-yourself/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [“You are walking along a road peacefully. You trip. You fall into blackness. That's the past - or perhaps the future. And you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/you-are-walking-along-a-road-peacefully-you-trip-you-fall-into/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [“She spent the foggy day in endless, aimless walking, for it seemed to her that if she moved quickly enough she would escape the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/she-spent-the-foggy-day-in-endless-aimless-walking-for-it-seemed-to/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [But they never last, the golden days. And it can be sad, the sun in the afternoon, can't it? Yes, it can be sad,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/but-they-never-last-the-golden-days-and-it-can-be-sad-the-sun-in-the/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [She could give herself up to the written word as naturally as a good dancer to music or a fine swimmer to water. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/she-could-give-herself-up-to-the-written-word-as-naturally-as-a-good/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) > [“There is no control over memory.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rhys/there-is-no-control-over-memory/) [Jean Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) [Explore all 165 Jean Rhys quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rhys/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. 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There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I like shape very much. 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