--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The imagination demands that life be told…" description: "\"The imagination demands that life be told slant because of its need of distance.\" — John McGahern" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adf/john-mcgahern-11742_demand_the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-tol_205092.jpg" --- # The imagination demands that life be told slant because of… ![“The imagination demands that life be told slant because of its need of distance.” quote by John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adf/john-mcgahern-11742_demand_the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-tol_205092.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adf/john-mcgahern-11742_demand_the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-tol_205092.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adf/john-mcgahern-11742_demand_the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-tol_205092.jpg) > “The imagination demands that life be told slant because of its need of distance.” [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Imagination requires a detached, angled perspective to convey life's complexity. **In simple terms:** Imagination needs distance to tell life’s story. Key Takeaway Use indirect storytelling to reveal truth. Themes creativity perspective storytelling Mood reflective philosophical introspective Type analytical thoughtful poetic When to use this quote - writing - visual arts - teaching Key Concepts subjectivity narrative distance artistic truth Questions to Reflect On - How does distance affect your connection to a story? - When is a direct approach more effective? A Different Perspective May limit emotional immediacy, making narratives feel distant. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Demand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demand/) [Demands Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demands-life-522148/) [Distance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distance/) [Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination/) [Imagination Demands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination-demands-1097094/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-is/) [Life Told](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-told/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Slant Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slant-need-2131256/) [Told Slant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/told-slant-2131255/) ## Related quotes > [When the good pictures come, we hope they tell truths, but truths 'told slant,' just as Emily Dickinson commanded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-mann/when-the-good-pictures-come-we-hope-they-tell-truths-but-truths-told/) [Sally Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-mann/) > [Time is finite and the demands of the imagination and also the demands of the world are infinite, so sort of brokering some kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-barton/time-is-finite-and-the-demands-of-the-imagination-and-also-the/) [Emily Barton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-barton/) > [Doctor Who' is the best show to write for, because of the actors and the scale of imagination that it demands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/doctor-who-is-the-best-show-to-write-for-because-of-the-actors-and/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [If leadership requires a fired-up sense of purpose and imagination, it also demands a profound connection to the society to be led.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-takei/if-leadership-requires-a-fired-up-sense-of-purpose-and-imagination-it-2/) [George Takei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-takei/) > [“Imagination demands an image.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/imagination-demands-an-image/) [G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/) > [“The quotidian demands of life distract from this resonance of images and events, but some of us feel it always. And who among us,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/the-quotidian-demands-of-life-distract-from-this-resonance-of-images/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [One must be reasonable in one's demands on life. For myself, all that I ask is: (1) accurate information; (2) coherent knowledge; (3) deep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/one-must-be-reasonable-in-one-s-demands-on-life-for-myself-all-that-i/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [“Man always gets less than he demands from life; and so little do they demand, that the less than little they get cannot save…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/man-always-gets-less-than-he-demands-from-life-and-so-little-do-they/) [Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/) > [Keeping the daily demands of life in balance is one of the great tasks of mortality. There is no peace for those whose lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brent-l-top/keeping-the-daily-demands-of-life-in-balance-is-one-of-the-great/) [Brent L. Top](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brent-l-top/) > [Football demands that it's No. 1 in your life. As you get older, football becomes less of a priority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-bettis/football-demands-that-it-s-no-1-in-your-life-as-you-get-older/) [Jerome Bettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-bettis/) > [“Man always gets less than he demands from life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/man-always-gets-less-than-he-demands-from-life/) [Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/) > [I know that plans and reality may be two different things, but I think my demands on life are minimal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-dayan/i-know-that-plans-and-reality-may-be-two-different-things-but-i-think/) [Moshe Dayan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-dayan/) > [The mature person meets the demands of life, while the immature person demands that life meet her demands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-cloud/the-mature-person-meets-the-demands-of-life-while-the-immature-person/) [Henry Cloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-cloud/) > [I'm scared. Seeing my life being told in a movie. That is nerve-wracking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bauman/i-m-scared-seeing-my-life-being-told-in-a-movie-that-is-nerve-wracking/) [Jeff Bauman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bauman/) > [My war brought me many things; let yours bring you as much. Life is not to be told, call it as loud as you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/my-war-brought-me-many-things-let-yours-bring-you-as-much-life-is-not/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) ## More by John McGahern > [“They'd listen silenty, with grave faces: but once they'd turn to each other they'd smile cruelly. He couldn't have it both ways. He'd put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/they-d-listen-silenty-with-grave-faces-but-once-they-d-turn-to-each/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [“…But all life turns away from its own eventual hopelessness, leaving insomnia and its night to lovers and the dying.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/but-all-life-turns-away-from-its-own-eventual-hopelessness-leaving/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [Yes, but also one of the problems for a novelist in Ireland is the fact that there are no formal manners. I mean some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/yes-but-also-one-of-the-problems-for-a-novelist-in-ireland-is-the/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [My favorite optimist was an American who jumped off the Empire State Building, and as he passed the 42nd floor, the window washers heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/my-favorite-optimist-was-an-american-who-jumped-off-the-empire-state/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [“When a long abuse of power is corrected, it is generally replaced by an opposite violence. In the new dispensation all that was good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/when-a-long-abuse-of-power-is-corrected-it-is-generally-replaced-by/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [But that private world, once it's dramatised, doesn't live again until it finds a reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/but-that-private-world-once-it-s-dramatised-doesn-t-live-again-until/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [Yes, though I have nothing but gratitude for my upbringing in the church.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/yes-though-i-have-nothing-but-gratitude-for-my-upbringing-in-the/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [I'd much prefer to write more quickly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/i-d-much-prefer-to-write-more-quickly/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [“McGahern still lives on and works a farm in Leitrim, and friends say that even though he has held high profile academic posts round…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/mcgahern-still-lives-on-and-works-a-farm-in-leitrim-and-friends-say/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [Everything that we inherit, the rain, the skies, the speech, and anybody who works in the English language in Ireland knows that there's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/everything-that-we-inherit-the-rain-the-skies-the-speech-and-anybody/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [When I start to write, words have become physical presence. It was to see if I could bring that private world to life that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/when-i-start-to-write-words-have-become-physical-presence-it-was-to/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [Without the book business it would be difficult or impossible for true books to find their true readers and without that solitary (and potentially…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/without-the-book-business-it-would-be-difficult-or-impossible-for/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [I suppose . . . in writing you can't have regrets. I mean, you just get it down the way it was . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/i-suppose-in-writing-you-can-t-have-regrets-i-mean-you-just-get-it/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [“…only then did I wake out of the book.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/only-then-did-i-wake-out-of-the-book/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) > [Amongst Women concentrated on the family, and the new book concentrates on a small community. The dominant units in Irish society are the family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/amongst-women-concentrated-on-the-family-and-the-new-book/) [John McGahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) [Explore all 58 John McGahern quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/) ## More Demand quotes > [Our times demand the declaration of the world's resources as the common heritage of all people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/our-times-demand-the-declaration-of-the-world-s-resources-as-the/) [Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/) > [Parents who are stressed or disturbed will have more difficulty in meeting their children's needs. Parents who have little support--from friends, relatives, neighbors, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-kamerman/parents-who-are-stressed-or-disturbed-will-have-more-difficulty-in/) [Sheila Kamerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-kamerman/) > [If a person does not listen to the demands of their own spiritual and heart life and insists on a certain program, you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/if-a-person-does-not-listen-to-the-demands-of-their-own-spiritual-and/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [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/) > [My dogs can't do anything--and what a relief. I don't make any demands of them, and I don't try to shape them or their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-chua/my-dogs-can-t-do-anything-and-what-a-relief-i-don-t-make-any-demands/) [Amy Chua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-chua/) > [The trouble is. . .that everybody sneers at restrictions and demands freedom, till something annoying happens; then they demand angrily what has become of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/the-trouble-is-that-everybody-sneers-at-restrictions-and-demands/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [You be greater than your feelings. I don't demand this of you - life does. Otherwise you'll be washed away by feelings. You'll be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/you-be-greater-than-your-feelings-i-don-t-demand-this-of-you-life/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [Christianity does not oppose debauchery and uncontrollable passions and the like as much as it opposes... flat mediocrity, this nauseating atmosphere, this homey, civil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/christianity-does-not-oppose-debauchery-and-uncontrollable-passions/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [It is an interesting law of romance that a truly strong woman will choose a strong man who disagrees with her over a weak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/it-is-an-interesting-law-of-romance-that-a-truly-strong-woman-will/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [If we get better our customers will demand we get bigger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-truett-cathy/if-we-get-better-our-customers-will-demand-we-get-bigger/) [S. Truett Cathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-truett-cathy/) > [If our faith in God is not the veriest sham, it demands, and will produce, the abandonment sometimes, the subordination always, of external helps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-maclaren/if-our-faith-in-god-is-not-the-veriest-sham-it-demands-and-will/) [Alexander MacLaren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-maclaren/) > [Money should be ones demand and command one should not become slave of money..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/money-should-be-ones-demand-and-command-one-should-not-become-slave/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [There was no mistake in us making abortion legal and available on demand. That was what we call progress. Just like it was no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-ruffalo/there-was-no-mistake-in-us-making-abortion-legal-and-available-on/) [Mark Ruffalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-ruffalo/) > [Most enjoyable activities are not natural; they demand an effort that initially one is reluctant to make. But once the interaction starts to provide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/most-enjoyable-activities-are-not-natural-they-demand-an-effort-that/) [Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/) > [Azerbaijan unleashed the war, and was defeated in that war; Azerbaijan asked for truce (including from the Commander of Karabakh's forces) and later started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serzh-sargsyan/azerbaijan-unleashed-the-war-and-was-defeated-in-that-war-azerbaijan/) [Serzh Sargsyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serzh-sargsyan/) [Browse all 3,809 Demand quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demand/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The imagination demands that life be told slant because of its need of distance.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John McGahern" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-told-slant-because-of-its-need/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Demand" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-told-slant-because-of-its-need/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adf/john-mcgahern-11742_demand_the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-tol_205092.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adf/john-mcgahern-11742_demand_the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-tol_205092.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adf/john-mcgahern-11742_demand_the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-tol_205092.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The imagination demands that life be told slant because of its need of distance.” — John McGahern", "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 McGahern", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mcgahern/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The imagination demands that life be...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-told-slant-because-of-its-need/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mcgahern/the-imagination-demands-that-life-be-told-slant-because-of-its-need/#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 } } ] } ```