---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He felt himself in suspension between the…"
description: "\"He felt himself in suspension between the two worlds, the warm, neat civilization behind his back, the cool, dark mystery outside. We all write poems; ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b10/john-fowles-816_behinds_he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-th_768008.png"
---

#  He felt himself in suspension between the two worlds, the…

![“He felt himself in suspension between the two worlds, the warm, neat civilization behind his back, the cool, dark mystery outside. We all write poems; it is simply that poets are the ones who write in words.” quote by John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b10/john-fowles-816_behinds_he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-th_768008.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b10/john-fowles-816_behinds_he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-th_768008.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b10/john-fowles-816_behinds_he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-th_768008.png)

> “He felt himself in suspension between the two worlds, the warm, neat civilization behind his back, the cool, dark mystery outside. We all write poems; it is simply that poets are the ones who write in words.”

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The narrator feels caught between familiar civilization and unknown mystery, while emphasizing poetry as a unique human expression.

**In simple terms:** Caught between comfort and mystery; poets write with words.

Key Takeaway

Embrace uncertainty and value poetic insight.

Themes

conflict exploration artistry

Mood

contemplative melancholic

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- travel
- self discovery
- writing
- art appreciation

Key Concepts

existentialism creativity

Questions to Reflect On

- What does the 'two worlds' metaphor reveal about your life?
- How does poetry bridge the known and unknown?

A Different Perspective

Balancing comfort with curiosity can be unsettling.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Civilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization/) [Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) [Mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystery/) [Poems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poems/) [Poet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poet/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Poets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poets/) [Songwriting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/songwriting/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [We all write poems; it is simply that poets are the ones who write in words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/we-all-write-poems-it-is-simply-that-poets-are-the-ones-who-write-in/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [We all write poems; it is simply that the poets are the ones who write in words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/we-all-write-poems-it-is-simply-that-the-poets-are-the-ones-who-write/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“Hands fitted into each other’s, we would walk Pausing only for an expresso at Dario’s And a while to lean on the railing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ellsworth-from-the-serenity-of-selfism/hands-fitted-into-each-other-s-we-would-walk-pausing-only-for-an/)

David Ellsworth from The Serenity of Selfism

> [In very general terms 'Top Of The Lake' is about good and evil. It's a deep dark mystery. It also deals with lots of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wenham/in-very-general-terms-top-of-the-lake-is-about-good-and-evil-it-s-a/)

[David Wenham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wenham/)

> [Do you know my friend that each one of us is a dark mystery, a maze of conflicting passions and desire and aptitudes?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/do-you-know-my-friend-that-each-one-of-us-is-a-dark-mystery-a-maze-of/)

[Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/)

> [“FRANK ... so, many things happen in the 70s to transform the horror genre. Present end premodern fears mix, birthing scary movies which are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-masciandaro/frank-so-many-things-happen-in-the-70s-to-transform-the-horror-genre/)

Nicola Masciandaro

> [“At that stage of my youth, death remained as abstract a concept as non-Euclidean geometry or marriage. I didn't yet appreciate its terrible finality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-krakauer/at-that-stage-of-my-youth-death-remained-as-abstract-a-concept-as-non-2/)

[Jon Krakauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-krakauer/)

> [“thats why i'm staying here,"claire said."with you.tonight."shane took in a deep breath."clothes stay on." "mostly,"she agreed. "you know,your parents really are right about me."claire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-caine-feast-of-fools/thats-why-i-m-staying-here-claire-said-with-you-tonight-shane-took-in/)

Rachel Caine-Feast of Fools

> [Successful writers are not the ones who write the best sentences. They are the ones who keep writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-friedman/successful-writers-are-not-the-ones-who-write-the-best-sentences-they-2/)

[Bonnie Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-friedman/)

> [It's hard to say which of us is luckier, the ones who go through long periods when they can't write or the ones who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-mattison/it-s-hard-to-say-which-of-us-is-luckier-the-ones-who-go-through-long/)

[Alice Mattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-mattison/)

> [What really annoys me are the ones who write to say, I am doing your book for my final examinations and could you please…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-drabble/what-really-annoys-me-are-the-ones-who-write-to-say-i-am-doing-your/)

[Margaret Drabble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-drabble/)

> [Successful writers are not the ones who write the best sentences. They are the ones who keep writing. They are the ones who discover…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-friedman/successful-writers-are-not-the-ones-who-write-the-best-sentences-they/)

[Bonnie Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-friedman/)

> [I write because I have an innate need to. I write because I can't do normal work. I write because I want to read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/i-write-because-i-have-an-innate-need-to-i-write-because-i-can-t-do/)

[Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/)

> [It's the stories that make my heart beat faster ...those are the ones to write about](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-henry-hwang/it-s-the-stories-that-make-my-heart-beat-faster-those-are-the-ones-to/)

[David Henry Hwang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-henry-hwang/)

> [“How much this book of life changes, he thought. And we are not the ones to write the pages.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-benaron/how-much-this-book-of-life-changes-he-thought-and-we-are-not-the-ones/)

[Naomi Benaron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-benaron/)

## More by John Fowles

> [I am infinitely strange to myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-am-infinitely-strange-to-myself/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [I do not plan my fiction any more than I normally plan woodland walks; I follow the path that seems most promising at any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-do-not-plan-my-fiction-any-more-than-i-normally-plan-woodland-walks/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“The sky is absolutely empty. Beautifully pure and empty. As if the architects and builders would live in all the houses they built! Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-sky-is-absolutely-empty-beautifully-pure-and-empty-as-if-the/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“The evolution of human mentality has put us all in vitro now, behind the glass wall of our own ingenuity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-evolution-of-human-mentality-has-put-us-all-in-vitro-now-behind/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [Most marriages recognize this paradox: Passion destroys passion; we want what puts an end to wanting what we want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/most-marriages-recognize-this-paradox-passion-destroys-passion-we/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [That is the great distinction between the sexes. Men see objects, women see the relationships between objects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/that-is-the-great-distinction-between-the-sexes-men-see-objects-women/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [The craving to risk death is our last great perversion. We come from night, we go into night. Why live in night?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-craving-to-risk-death-is-our-last-great-perversion-we-come-from/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [There is only one good definition of God: the freedom that allows other freedoms to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/there-is-only-one-good-definition-of-god-the-freedom-that-allows/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [They looked down on her; and she looked up through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/they-looked-down-on-her-and-she-looked-up-through-them/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“Long afterwards I realized why some men, racing drivers and their like, become addicted to speed. There are those of us who never see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/long-afterwards-i-realized-why-some-men-racing-drivers-and-their-like/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [The best wines take the longest to mature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-best-wines-take-the-longest-to-mature/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [But however good you get at translating personality into line or paint it's no go if your personality isn't worth translating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/but-however-good-you-get-at-translating-personality-into-line-or/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“Liking other people is an illusion we have to cherish in ourselves if we are to live in society. It”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/liking-other-people-is-an-illusion-we-have-to-cherish-in-ourselves-if/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [Do you know that every great thing in the history of art and every beautiful thing in life is actually what you call nasty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/do-you-know-that-every-great-thing-in-the-history-of-art-and-every/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [“Yet this distance, all those abysses unbridged and then unbridgeable by radio, television, cheap travel and the rest, was not wholly bad. People knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/yet-this-distance-all-those-abysses-unbridged-and-then-unbridgeable/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

[Explore all 341 John Fowles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

## More Behinds quotes

> [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/)

[Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/)

> [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/)

[Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/)

> [Elections belong to the people. It's their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/elections-belong-to-the-people-it-s-their-decision-if-they-decide-to/)

[Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/)

> [Time is painted with a lock before, and bald behind, signifying thereby that we must take time by the forelock; for, when it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-swift/time-is-painted-with-a-lock-before-and-bald-behind-signifying-thereby/)

[Jonathan Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-swift/)

> [God hides Himself behind causes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-rollin/god-hides-himself-behind-causes/)

[Charles Rollin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-rollin/)

> [Home is behind, the world ahead, And there are many paths to tread Through shadows to the edge of night, Until the stars are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/home-is-behind-the-world-ahead-and-there-are-many-paths-to-tread/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Behind every word flows energy. If you use your words to gossip or babble about what you are going to do before you do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-choquette/behind-every-word-flows-energy-if-you-use-your-words-to-gossip-or/)

[Sonia Choquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-choquette/)

> [With the realization of God comes all power. If the little wave knew that behind it is the great ocean, it could say, "I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/with-the-realization-of-god-comes-all-power-if-the-little-wave-knew/)

[Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/)

> [Conservatism is not about leaving people behind. Conservatism is about empowering people to catch up, to give them the tools at their disposable that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/conservatism-is-not-about-leaving-people-behind-conservatism-is-about/)

[Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/)

> [And the seasons they go 'round and 'round And the painted ponies go up and down We're captive on the carousel of time We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/and-the-seasons-they-go-round-and-round-and-the-painted-ponies-go-up/)

[Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/)

> [It is worthwhile for anyone to have behind him a few generations of honest, hard-working ancestry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-worthwhile-for-anyone-to-have-behind-him-a-few-generations-of/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I'm really thankful to God, man. Like now, I'm really making a real comeback with my group. With or without a record, with or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ike-turner/i-m-really-thankful-to-god-man-like-now-i-m-really-making-a-real/)

[Ike Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ike-turner/)

> [Empires fall, ids explode, great symphonies are written, and behind all of it is a single instinct that demands satisfaction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherwin-b-nuland/empires-fall-ids-explode-great-symphonies-are-written-and-behind-all/)

[Sherwin B. Nuland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherwin-b-nuland/)

> [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/)

[Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/)

> [After a few mouthfuls of moon-flavored air, even the stubbornly drowsy can find themselves wide-eyed.. All the normal noises of life were gone, leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/after-a-few-mouthfuls-of-moon-flavored-air-even-the-stubbornly-drowsy/)

[N.D. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-d-wilson/)

Browse all 6,789 Behinds quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "He felt himself in suspension between the two worlds, the warm, neat civilization behind his back, the cool, dark mystery outside. We all write poems; it is simply that poets are the ones who write in words.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "John Fowles"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-the-two-worlds-the-warm-neat/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Behinds"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-the-two-worlds-the-warm-neat/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b10/john-fowles-816_behinds_he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-th_768008.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b10/john-fowles-816_behinds_he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-th_768008.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b10/john-fowles-816_behinds_he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-th_768008.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“He felt himself in suspension between the two worlds, the warm, neat civilization behind his back, the cool…” — John Fowles",
                "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": "John Fowles",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "He felt himself in suspension between...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-the-two-worlds-the-warm-neat/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/he-felt-himself-in-suspension-between-the-two-worlds-the-warm-neat/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
