--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It would be difficult for a writer of…" description: "\"It would be difficult for a writer of realism to avoid suggesting a political/moral perspective in his or her fiction. \"Politics\" per se is absent from..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/joyce-carol-oates-344_absent_it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-re_2276603.jpg" --- # It would be difficult for a writer of realism to avoid… ![“It would be difficult for a writer of realism to avoid suggesting a political/moral perspective in his or her fiction. "Politics" per se is absent from my writing but there is usually a moral (if ironic) compass.” quote by Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/joyce-carol-oates-344_absent_it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-re_2276603.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/joyce-carol-oates-344_absent_it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-re_2276603.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/joyce-carol-oates-344_absent_it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-re_2276603.jpg) > “It would be difficult for a writer of realism to avoid suggesting a political/moral perspective in his or her fiction. "Politics" per se is absent from my writing but there is usually a moral (if ironic) compass.” [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Realist writers inevitably embed political or moral viewpoints, even when they claim neutrality. **In simple terms:** Realist fiction carries hidden values. Key Takeaway Recognize and critique underlying biases. Themes literature politics morality realism Mood reflective critical Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - literary criticism - creative writing workshops - reading groups Key Concepts authorial intent ethical framing Questions to Reflect On - How do you detect subtle moral cues in a story? - Can a writer truly be neutral? A Different Perspective Even claimed neutrality can influence readers' beliefs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absent/) [Compass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compass/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Fiction Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction-politics-4980339/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Ironic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ironic/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Perspective](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perspective/) [Perspective Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perspective-fiction-5297098/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Realism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realism/) [Suggesting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suggesting/) [Suggesting Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suggesting-political-5297099/) [Would be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would-be/) [Writer Realism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer-realism-5297097/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“If fiction and politics ever really do become interchangeable,I'm going to kill myself,because I won't know what else to do”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/if-fiction-and-politics-ever-really-do-become-interchangeable-i-m/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [In the world of fiction, politics usually appears considerably more exciting than it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-phillips/in-the-world-of-fiction-politics-usually-appears-considerably-more/) [Jess Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-phillips/) > ["Politics" per se is absent from my writing but there is usually a moral (if ironic) compass.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/politics-per-se-is-absent-from-my-writing-but-there-is-usually-a/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Republicans are suggesting that you take your retirement money and invest it in the stock market to take care of yourself but that leaves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-wasserman-schultz/republicans-are-suggesting-that-you-take-your-retirement-money-and/) [Debbie Wasserman Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-wasserman-schultz/) > [I'm not sure if Cupitt himself still uses this term, but it's useful in suggesting that, actually, there are more choices than the choice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-pattison/i-m-not-sure-if-cupitt-himself-still-uses-this-term-but-it-s-useful/) [George Pattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-pattison/) > [Partial legalization, as some are suggesting, is a dangerous path, and we need only look at France and Germany to see how unwise it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-lofgren/partial-legalization-as-some-are-suggesting-is-a-dangerous-path-and/) [Zoe Lofgren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-lofgren/) > [By its very looseness, by its way of evoking rather than defining, suggesting rather than saying, English is a magnificent vehicle for emotional poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-beerbohm/by-its-very-looseness-by-its-way-of-evoking-rather-than-defining/) [Max Beerbohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-beerbohm/) > [When you have a candidate like Donald Trump saying that Mexicans are rapists and drug dealers, and also doubling down and suggesting that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-wasserman-schultz/when-you-have-a-candidate-like-donald-trump-saying-that-mexicans-are/) [Debbie Wasserman Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-wasserman-schultz/) > [The argument goes that the pay gap only exists because of women's 'choices' of work type, hours, and child related career breaks, effectively making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-bates/the-argument-goes-that-the-pay-gap-only-exists-because-of-women-s/) [Laura Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-bates/) > [When Gingrich attacked CNN's John King for bringing up his alleged proposal of an open marriage to his second wife, Gingrich accused him of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dallek/when-gingrich-attacked-cnn-s-john-king-for-bringing-up-his-alleged/) [Robert Dallek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-dallek/) > [It seems like cloud cuckoo land. If anyone is suggesting that I would go to Parliament and suggest the abolition of the Pound Sterling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/it-seems-like-cloud-cuckoo-land-if-anyone-is-suggesting-that-i-would/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [Begbie offers an additional valuable contribution by rejecting the traditional emphasis on beauty, in its Platonic sense, and instead suggesting that beauty be reconceived…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-walford/begbie-offers-an-additional-valuable-contribution-by-rejecting-the/) [John Walford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-walford/) > [My single biggest financial concern is the loss of the dollar as the reserve currency. I can't imagine anything more disastrous to our country.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-zell/my-single-biggest-financial-concern-is-the-loss-of-the-dollar-as-the/) [Sam Zell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-zell/) > [years ago we would have been burned for this. Now what I am suggesting is that we've advanced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cleese/years-ago-we-would-have-been-burned-for-this-now-what-i-am-suggesting/) [John Cleese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cleese/) > [“Sometimes terror comes not from lighting a fuse but by merely suggesting the know how.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-ayden/sometimes-terror-comes-not-from-lighting-a-fuse-but-by-merely/) [Alice Ayden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-ayden/) ## More by Joyce Carol Oates > [“A woman who has lost her husband is invalid, thus an invalid. In”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/a-woman-who-has-lost-her-husband-is-invalid-thus-an-invalid-in/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Running! If there's any activity happier, more exhilarating, more nourishing to the imagination, I can't think of what it might be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/running-if-there-s-any-activity-happier-more-exhilarating-more/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [You need so much energy and encouragement to write that if someone says something negative, some of that energy goes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/you-need-so-much-energy-and-encouragement-to-write-that-if-someone/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [I learned long ago that being Lewis Carroll was infinitely more exciting than being Alice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/i-learned-long-ago-that-being-lewis-carroll-was-infinitely-more/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Paradox: how do we know what we have failed to see because we have no language to express it, thus we cannot know that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/paradox-how-do-we-know-what-we-have-failed-to-see-because-we-have-no/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [At all crucial moments in our lives we want to speak without knowing what to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/at-all-crucial-moments-in-our-lives-we-want-to-speak-without-knowing/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [A writer’s life is in his work, and that is the place to find him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/a-writer-s-life-is-in-his-work-and-that-is-the-place-to-find-him/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [The challenge is to resist circumstances. Any idiot can be happy in a happy place, but moral courage is required to be happy in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/the-challenge-is-to-resist-circumstances-any-idiot-can-be-happy-in-a/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [The first sentence cant be written until the final sentence is written.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/the-first-sentence-cant-be-written-until-the-final-sentence-is-written/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [“Did you know, Marianne: how by breaking the code that day, you broke it forever? For us all?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/did-you-know-marianne-how-by-breaking-the-code-that-day-you-broke-it/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > ['The Accursed' is very much a novel about social injustice as the consequence of the terrible, tragic division of classes - the exploitation not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/the-accursed-is-very-much-a-novel-about-social-injustice-as-the/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Keep a light, hopeful heart. But expect the worst.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/keep-a-light-hopeful-heart-but-expect-the-worst/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [And this is the forbidden truth, the unspeakable taboo - that evil is not always repellent but frequently attractive; that it has the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/and-this-is-the-forbidden-truth-the-unspeakable-taboo-that-evil-is/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [I don't think that writer's block exists really. I think that when you're trying to do something prematurely, it just won't come. Certain subjects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/i-don-t-think-that-writer-s-block-exists-really-i-think-that-when-you/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [... such speculation is like staring into the hot white sun. you know the sun is there but you can't see a thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/such-speculation-is-like-staring-into-the-hot-white-sun-you-know-the/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) [Explore all 658 Joyce Carol Oates quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) ## More Absent quotes > [Majority decisions tend to be made without engaging the systematic thought and critical thinking skills of the individuals in the group. Given the force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/majority-decisions-tend-to-be-made-without-engaging-the-systematic/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In a general way, the literature of the twentieth century is essentially psychological; and psychology consists of describing states of the soul by displaying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/in-a-general-way-the-literature-of-the-twentieth-century-is/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [Emma was a shocking driver, simultaneously sloppy and petrified, and for the first fifty miles had been absent-mindedly driving with her spectacles on top…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/emma-was-a-shocking-driver-simultaneously-sloppy-and-petrified-and/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [They are enthusiasts, devotees. Addicts. Something about the circus stirs their souls, and they ache for it when it is absent. They seek each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-morgenstern/they-are-enthusiasts-devotees-addicts-something-about-the-circus/) [Erin Morgenstern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-morgenstern/) > [The interesting thing about an absent father is, for a child, you don't know he's absent. You just think he's... tardy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-majors/the-interesting-thing-about-an-absent-father-is-for-a-child-you-don-t/) [Jonathan Majors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-majors/) > [For my own part, I would rather be in company with a dead man than with an absent one; for if the dead man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-my-own-part-i-would-rather-be-in-company-with-a-dead-man-than/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If measure and symmetry are absent from any composition in any degree, ruin awaits both the ingredients and the composition... Measure and symmetry are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/if-measure-and-symmetry-are-absent-from-any-composition-in-any-degree/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [“You may not appreciate the presence of good health, but you will definitely regret the absence of good health, because health is happiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/you-may-not-appreciate-the-presence-of-good-health-but-you-will/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [... if we are ashamed to imitate our Lord's sufferings, which He endured for us, and to suffer as He suffered, it is obvious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/symeon-the-new-theologian/if-we-are-ashamed-to-imitate-our-lord-s-sufferings-which-he-endured/) [Symeon the New Theologian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/symeon-the-new-theologian/) > [It's Simon, he's missing." Ahh." said Magnus delicately "Missing what exactly?" Missing!" Jace repeated "As in gone, absent, notable for his lack of presence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/it-s-simon-he-s-missing-ahh-said-magnus-delicately-missing-what/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Anger clearly has its proper place at work, which is neither wholly absent nor ever present. The manager who is an emotional blank is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-baggini/anger-clearly-has-its-proper-place-at-work-which-is-neither-wholly/) [Julian Baggini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-baggini/) > [They were not mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, they were absent in the Constitution and they were invisible in the new political democracy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/they-were-not-mentioned-in-the-declaration-of-independence-they-were/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Religion has always been a matter of community building; a matter of building precisely those relations of compassion, fellow feeling and - I dare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/religion-has-always-been-a-matter-of-community-building-a-matter-of/) [Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/) > [A FRIEND IS A PERSON . . . With whom you can be sincere. . . . To whom you never need to defend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-armand-montapert/a-friend-is-a-person-with-whom-you-can-be-sincere-to-whom-you-never/) [Alfred Armand Montapert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-armand-montapert/) > [The very serpents bite their tails; the bees forget to sting, For a language so celestial setteth up a wondering. And the touch of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathalia-crane/the-very-serpents-bite-their-tails-the-bees-forget-to-sting-for-a/) [Nathalia Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathalia-crane/) [Browse all 490 Absent quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absent/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It would be difficult for a writer of realism to avoid suggesting a political/moral perspective in his or her fiction. \"Politics\" per se is absent from my writing but there is usually a moral (if ironic) compass.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joyce Carol Oates" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-realism-to-avoid-suggesting-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Absent" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-realism-to-avoid-suggesting-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/joyce-carol-oates-344_absent_it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-re_2276603.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/joyce-carol-oates-344_absent_it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-re_2276603.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/joyce-carol-oates-344_absent_it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-re_2276603.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It would be difficult for a writer of realism to avoid suggesting a political/moral perspective in his or…” — Joyce Carol Oates", "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": "Joyce Carol Oates", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It would be difficult for a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-realism-to-avoid-suggesting-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/it-would-be-difficult-for-a-writer-of-realism-to-avoid-suggesting-a/#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 } } ] } ```