--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first writing of the human being was…" description: "\"The first writing of the human being was drawing, not writing.\" — Marjane Satrapi" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/marjane-satrapi-1702_drawing_the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was_362004.jpg" --- # The first writing of the human being was drawing, not… ![“The first writing of the human being was drawing, not writing.” quote by Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/marjane-satrapi-1702_drawing_the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was_362004.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/marjane-satrapi-1702_drawing_the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was_362004.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/marjane-satrapi-1702_drawing_the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was_362004.jpg) > “The first writing of the human being was drawing, not writing.” [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Early humans expressed ideas through visual marks before symbolic scripts emerged. **In simple terms:** Drawing came before writing. Key Takeaway Recognize visual communication’s roots. Themes history art communication Mood reflective inquisitive Type historical educational When to use this quote - education - museum curation - creative workshops Key Concepts cognitive evolution symbolism Questions to Reflect On - How do images shape thought differently than words? - What can modern media learn from ancient visual expression? A Different Perspective Visual symbols still lack precision of language. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Drawing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drawing/) [Drawing Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drawing-writing-1421167/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Human Drawing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-drawing-3322502/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-human-893430/) ## Related quotes > [I knew I wasn't that good a writer, and all I could remember was that I could draw. I'm better at drawing than I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-knew-i-wasn-t-that-good-a-writer-and-all-i-could-remember-was-that/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [I did the drawing and writing - for five years. I made a lot of short films the whole while and I made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrice-leconte/i-did-the-drawing-and-writing-for-five-years-i-made-a-lot-of-short/) [Patrice Leconte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrice-leconte/) > [ For me, the Bild-Dichtung \[image-poem\] is the ideal form, because the drawing process is constantly being interrupted or contrasted by the writing. And since… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-brus/for-me-the-bild-dichtung-image-poem-is-the-ideal-form-because-the/) [Gunter Brus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-brus/) > [I spent a lot of time being creative as a child - painting, drawing and writing poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bugzy-malone/i-spent-a-lot-of-time-being-creative-as-a-child-painting-drawing-and/) [Bugzy Malone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bugzy-malone/) > [I enjoy the drawing more than the writing, so I try to think of ideas that will allow me to develop the visual side…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-watterson/i-enjoy-the-drawing-more-than-the-writing-so-i-try-to-think-of-ideas/) [Bill Watterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-watterson/) > [I don't spend as much time drawing as I do writing and reading. That's the really work-intensive part. And by the time I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-beaton/i-don-t-spend-as-much-time-drawing-as-i-do-writing-and-reading-that-s/) [Kate Beaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-beaton/) > [The only thing worth writing about is the human heart in conflict with itself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/the-only-thing-worth-writing-about-is-the-human-heart-in-conflict/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [Isn’t every human being both a scientist and an artist; and in writing of human experience, isn’t there a good deal to be said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-agee/isn-t-every-human-being-both-a-scientist-and-an-artist-and-in-writing/) [James Agee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-agee/) > [“As often I have been a science fiction writer writing science fiction for the community of science fiction readers, I am also, for good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/as-often-i-have-been-a-science-fiction-writer-writing-science-fiction/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [The writers are writing human beings, and they're writing about the human condition and how difficult it is to function in that condition. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-dzundza/the-writers-are-writing-human-beings-and-they-re-writing-about-the/) [George Dzundza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-dzundza/) > [“The only reason I'm writing this down is to show how human reason, even very sharp and exact human reason, can get crazily confused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yevgeny-zamyatin/the-only-reason-i-m-writing-this-down-is-to-show-how-human-reason/) [Yevgeny Zamyatin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yevgeny-zamyatin/) > [I think that if you're writing about the human condition, my God, you've got to start at base: point zero, point one, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/i-think-that-if-you-re-writing-about-the-human-condition-my-god-you/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [There have been plenty of things that I've written that other people haven't cared about, but it hasn't stopped me from being a writer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-o-malley/there-have-been-plenty-of-things-that-i-ve-written-that-other-people/) [Mike O'Malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-o-malley/) > [Songwriting is writing about the human experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-childers/songwriting-is-writing-about-the-human-experience/) [Tyler Childers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-childers/) > [As soon as you start writing about how human beings interact with each other socially, you're into politics, aren't you?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-coe/as-soon-as-you-start-writing-about-how-human-beings-interact-with/) [Jonathan Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-coe/) ## More by Marjane Satrapi > [I became the voice of a generation in a very surprising way, because many Iranians recognize themselves in it. But that is not what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-became-the-voice-of-a-generation-in-a-very-surprising-way-because/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [With live-action I think we'd have lost the universal appeal of the Persepolis story. With live-action, it would have turned into a story of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/with-live-action-i-think-we-d-have-lost-the-universal-appeal-of-the/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I don't like the word 'autobiography.' I rather like the term 'autofiction.' The second you make a script out of the story of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-don-t-like-the-word-autobiography-i-rather-like-the-term/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I don't think that I have ever been rebellious. The thing is that I don't believe in people - what people tell me. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-don-t-think-that-i-have-ever-been-rebellious-the-thing-is-that-i/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [Drawing is the first language of the human being before writing. It's a transcription of how the human being sees reality, not reality itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/drawing-is-the-first-language-of-the-human-being-before-writing-it-s/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I was a westerner in Iran, an Iranian in the West. I had no identity. I didn't even know anymore why I was living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-was-a-westerner-in-iran-an-iranian-in-the-west-i-had-no-identity-i/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I'm not a politician. I don't know how to solve the problems of the world. But as an artist, I have one duty: to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-m-not-a-politician-i-don-t-know-how-to-solve-the-problems-of-the/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [A cat can never be well-trained because they're too independent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/a-cat-can-never-be-well-trained-because-they-re-too-independent/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [It's fear that makes us lose our conscience. It's also what transforms us into cowards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/it-s-fear-that-makes-us-lose-our-conscience-it-s-also-what-transforms/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I am absolutely not a feminist, I am against stupidity, and if it comes from males or females, it doesn't change anything. If it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-am-absolutely-not-a-feminist-i-am-against-stupidity-and-if-it-comes/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I was a child who had a life, who had hopes, and I wished that a bomb would not fall on my head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-was-a-child-who-had-a-life-who-had-hopes-and-i-wished-that-a-bomb/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [There are things that I love in Iranian cinema and things that I don't. In Iranian cinema, you have to use metaphor because you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/there-are-things-that-i-love-in-iranian-cinema-and-things-that-i-don/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I had learned that you should always shout louder than your aggressor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-had-learned-that-you-should-always-shout-louder-than-your-aggressor/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [In the West, people don't have any real problems. It's all based on bad conscience, a very Christian notion. I don't have any bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/in-the-west-people-don-t-have-any-real-problems-it-s-all-based-on-bad/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [When we're afraid, we lose all sense of analysis and reflection. Our fear paralyzes us. Besides, fear has always been the driving force behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/when-we-re-afraid-we-lose-all-sense-of-analysis-and-reflection-our/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) [Explore all 204 Marjane Satrapi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) ## More Drawing quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [My drawing not that goog but alwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slowly-fading/my-drawing-not-that-goog-but-alwell/) [Slowly\_fading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slowly-fading/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) > [It is the common defect of modern art study. Too many students do not know why they draw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-henri/it-is-the-common-defect-of-modern-art-study-too-many-students-do-not/) [Robert Henri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-henri/) > [God holds each of us by a string. When we sin, we cut the string. But God ties it up again, making a knot.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meister-eckhart/god-holds-each-of-us-by-a-string-when-we-sin-we-cut-the-string-but/) [Meister Eckhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meister-eckhart/) > [The big problem for comic art is you don't want to overwork it. If a drawing is overworked it isn't funny. It's the spontaneity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-sorel/the-big-problem-for-comic-art-is-you-don-t-want-to-overwork-it-if-a/) [Edward Sorel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-sorel/) > [Keep a bad drawing until by study you have found out why it is bad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-henri/keep-a-bad-drawing-until-by-study-you-have-found-out-why-it-is-bad/) [Robert Henri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-henri/) > [Cold calculation, random spots of color, mathematically exact construction (clearly shown or concealed), drawing that is now silent and now strident . . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giacomo-puccini/cold-calculation-random-spots-of-color-mathematically-exact/) [Giacomo Puccini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giacomo-puccini/) > [She spent hours drawing on her own, trying to perfect her craft. And when she got into music, she had that same diligence in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-joplin/she-spent-hours-drawing-on-her-own-trying-to-perfect-her-craft-and/) [Laura Joplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-joplin/) > [Being on a trapeze is like dreaming. I feel totally outside of myself when I'm flying. You know, designing shoes, my imagination is flying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-louboutin/being-on-a-trapeze-is-like-dreaming-i-feel-totally-outside-of-myself/) [Christian Louboutin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-louboutin/) > [By the time they were pulling into the parking lot of the A&P, the mood was fading, the moment gone. Amy could feel it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/by-the-time-they-were-pulling-into-the-parking-lot-of-the-a-p-the/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) > [In 'Gran Torino,' Eastwood moves towards the climax of the movie not by staging a shoot-out, but by putting his weapons to one side…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-korda/in-gran-torino-eastwood-moves-towards-the-climax-of-the-movie-not-by/) [Michael Korda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-korda/) > [You've seen the first issue and what happened in the last page. Some pretty awful stuff. I don't know why I seem to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/declan-shalvey/you-ve-seen-the-first-issue-and-what-happened-in-the-last-page-some/) [Declan Shalvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/declan-shalvey/) > [David Shrigley is somewhere between stand-up comedy and cave paintings. He does these brilliant esoteric, simple drawings - you might even say bad drawings.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-reid/david-shrigley-is-somewhere-between-stand-up-comedy-and-cave/) [Noah Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-reid/) [Browse all 2,299 Drawing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drawing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The first writing of the human being was drawing, not writing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Marjane Satrapi" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was-drawing-not-writing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Drawing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was-drawing-not-writing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/marjane-satrapi-1702_drawing_the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was_362004.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/marjane-satrapi-1702_drawing_the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was_362004.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/marjane-satrapi-1702_drawing_the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was_362004.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The first writing of the human being was drawing, not writing.” — Marjane Satrapi", "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": "Marjane Satrapi", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The first writing of the human...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was-drawing-not-writing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/the-first-writing-of-the-human-being-was-drawing-not-writing/#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 } } ] } ```