--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The way something looks or sounds is also…" description: "\"The way something looks or sounds is also what it means. Words as visual and aural phenomena, which mainly poets, not critics and prose writers, tend t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea6/masha-tupitsyn-22998_critics_the-way-something-looks-or-sounds-is-als_1869127.jpg" --- # The way something looks or sounds is also what it means… ![“The way something looks or sounds is also what it means. Words as visual and aural phenomena, which mainly poets, not critics and prose writers, tend to be obsessed with. I think maybe I'm more of a curator than I am a writer in the strict sense because I am interested in how everything on the…” quote by Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea6/masha-tupitsyn-22998_critics_the-way-something-looks-or-sounds-is-als_1869127.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea6/masha-tupitsyn-22998_critics_the-way-something-looks-or-sounds-is-als_1869127.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea6/masha-tupitsyn-22998_critics_the-way-something-looks-or-sounds-is-als_1869127.jpg) > “The way something looks or sounds is also what it means. Words as visual and aural phenomena, which mainly poets, not critics and prose writers, tend to be obsessed with. I think maybe I'm more of a curator than I am a writer in the strict sense because I am interested in how everything on the page, in a space, works together.” [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that words function as visual and auditory experiences, and that arranging them on a page creates a curated, spatial meaning. **In simple terms:** Words are seen and heard. Key Takeaway Treat writing as a visual and sound design. Themes poetics visuality sound curation spatial design Mood creative experimental Type theoretical innovative When to use this quote - book design - performance poetry - digital typography Key Concepts semiotics embodied cognition interdisciplinary art Questions to Reflect On - How does layout influence meaning? - Can sound be conveyed without audio? A Different Perspective Readers may miss auditory cues in silent reading. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Critics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critics/) [Critics Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critics-prose-2566648/) [Curator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curator/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Looks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looks/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Mean words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean-words/) [Means Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/means-words-2289676/) [Obsessed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obsessed/) [Pages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pages/) [Poet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poet/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prose/) [Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Strict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strict/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/together/) [Visuals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/visuals/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) [Words Visual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words-visual-2566647/) [Working together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working-together/) [Writers Tend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writers-tend-428246/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Silence is the element in which great things fashion themselves together ... 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Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-b-macaulay/) > [“Love shown for those we care about, means more than words can say.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-j-barrier/love-shown-for-those-we-care-about-means-more-than-words-can-say/) [Ellen J. Barrier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-j-barrier/) > [Your promise means more than the words you use to give it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-kaufman/your-promise-means-more-than-the-words-you-use-to-give-it/) [Ron Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-kaufman/) > [“The fact is that very few of us know what words mean; fewer still take the trouble to enquire. We calmly, we carelessly assume…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleister-crowley/the-fact-is-that-very-few-of-us-know-what-words-mean-fewer-still-take/) [Aleister Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleister-crowley/) > [“...they do quote me, that means that my words and my sentences get under their skins although they do no know it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/they-do-quote-me-that-means-that-my-words-and-my-sentences-get-under/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [For it was not so much that by means of words I came to a complete understanding of things, as that from things I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/for-it-was-not-so-much-that-by-means-of-words-i-came-to-a-complete/) [Plutarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plutarch/) > [“I love you in my very own way. Like a stone loves the mosses around it Like a sea loves the pebbles in it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arzum-uzun/i-love-you-in-my-very-own-way-like-a-stone-loves-the-mosses-around-it/) [Arzum Uzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arzum-uzun/) > [You will never understand how much you mean to me, because there is no amount of words that can begin to describe my feelings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/machamela/you-will-never-understand-how-much-you-mean-to-me-because-there-is-no/) [Machamela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/machamela/) > [Ok people so here it is. I like girls no I love girls. I admit it I like girls more than boys. Like come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fading-scars/ok-people-so-here-it-is-i-like-girls-no-i-love-girls-i-admit-it-i/) [Fading\_scars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fading-scars/) > [“You mean everything to me. You mean more to me than I have the words to explain. Is it normal? Who gives a damn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-banks/you-mean-everything-to-me-you-mean-more-to-me-than-i-have-the-words/) [Maya Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-banks/) > [“Mean words Once upon a time, I loved you But I will never I swear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arzum-uzun/mean-words-once-upon-a-time-i-loved-you-but-i-will-never-i-swear/) [Arzum Uzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arzum-uzun/) > [Who can calculate the wounds inflicted, their depth and pain, by harsh and mean words spoken in anger? How pitiful a sight is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/who-can-calculate-the-wounds-inflicted-their-depth-and-pain-by-harsh/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [You will never fully understand how much you mean to me, because there are no amount of words that can begin to describe my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-never-fully-understand-how-much-you-mean-to-me-because-there/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Masha Tupitsyn > [I was never really satisfied with writing only text or with the way my texts looked when they were published. Most online journals have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/i-was-never-really-satisfied-with-writing-only-text-or-with-the-way/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [True lovers are as rare as true rebels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/true-lovers-are-as-rare-as-true-rebels/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [Not only is true love rare and true rebellion rare, real love is itself a radical form of rebellion - engagement, thinking, and being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/not-only-is-true-love-rare-and-true-rebellion-rare-real-love-is/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [In the digital economy, everything is archived, catalogued, readily available, and yet nothing really endures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/in-the-digital-economy-everything-is-archived-catalogued-readily/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [Love has been the ontological pattern for me. And also the withholding pattern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/love-has-been-the-ontological-pattern-for-me-and-also-the-withholding/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [I still have faith in people. But that is getting increasingly harder to maintain. I just don't see many people today choosing love. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/i-still-have-faith-in-people-but-that-is-getting-increasingly-harder/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [Thinking through quotes, which to say scouring a range of texts for insight, is one way to outline the process of thinking/feeling through a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/thinking-through-quotes-which-to-say-scouring-a-range-of-texts-for/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [At any moment I could give up, but I haven't because love for me is an indispensable structure for being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/at-any-moment-i-could-give-up-but-i-haven-t-because-love-for-me-is-an/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [Quotes are like prompts. A way of searching, connecting the dots. Other people's thinking has always - both positively and negatively - jumpstarted my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/quotes-are-like-prompts-a-way-of-searching-connecting-the-dots-other/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [Quotes are like prompts. A way of searching, connecting the dots.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/quotes-are-like-prompts-a-way-of-searching-connecting-the-dots/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [For me, the eye and the word go together. Even when I was working in word documents, I was always obsessed with fonts, size,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/for-me-the-eye-and-the-word-go-together-even-when-i-was-working-in/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [The digital age is for me in many ways about temporal wounding. It's really messed up our ontological clocks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/the-digital-age-is-for-me-in-many-ways-about-temporal-wounding-it-s/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [I'm a discursive thinker, so quotation has played an active role in the structure and content of my books from the beginning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/i-m-a-discursive-thinker-so-quotation-has-played-an-active-role-in/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [The digital age is for me in many ways about temporal wounding. It's really messed up our ontological clocks. In the digital economy, everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/the-digital-age-is-for-me-in-many-ways-about-temporal-wounding-it-s-2/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) > [Having a love ethic, as opposed to simply being in love, or having a lover, means love is the way you actively choose to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-tupitsyn/having-a-love-ethic-as-opposed-to-simply-being-in-love-or-having-a/) [Masha Tupitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) [Explore all 26 Masha Tupitsyn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-tupitsyn/) ## More Critics quotes > [The worst advice? 'Don't listen to the critics.' I think that you really ought to listen to the critics, because sometimes they're telling you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-worst-advice-don-t-listen-to-the-critics-i-think-that-you-really/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Critics are biased, and so are readers. (Indeed, a critic is a bundle of biases held loosely together by a sense of taste.) But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-balliett/critics-are-biased-and-so-are-readers-indeed-a-critic-is-a-bundle-of/) [Whitney Balliett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-balliett/) > [I reject criticism because the last thing I wanted was to sit there and look at people talking. I think people are conditioned to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-tyrnauer/i-reject-criticism-because-the-last-thing-i-wanted-was-to-sit-there/) [Matt Tyrnauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-tyrnauer/) > [Popular culture as a whole is popular, but in today's fragmented market it's a jostle of competing unpopular popular cultures. As the critic Stanley…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/popular-culture-as-a-whole-is-popular-but-in-today-s-fragmented/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [There was a cultural war going on, the '60s was going on. All the film critics were square.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-waters/there-was-a-cultural-war-going-on-the-60s-was-going-on-all-the-film/) [John Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-waters/) > [Capitalists have done more good for society through their charitable giving, philanthropy and generosity than all their critics combined.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cook/capitalists-have-done-more-good-for-society-through-their-charitable/) [James Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cook/) > [I get that the media wants us to play theater critics and critique every other proposal. What I'm focusing on are my own policy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/i-get-that-the-media-wants-us-to-play-theater-critics-and-critique/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [The Yippies, their lifestyle is different from mine. But I consider Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman inspired critics of the kind of society that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-dellinger/the-yippies-their-lifestyle-is-different-from-mine-but-i-consider/) [David Dellinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-dellinger/) > [This one goes out to all my critics: don't you feel stupid? Look how I did it. Look how it came to pass when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicki-minaj/this-one-goes-out-to-all-my-critics-don-t-you-feel-stupid-look-how-i/) [Nicki Minaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicki-minaj/) > [There's a lot of stuff I want to do, just things that I want to explore that don't involve show business. I'm going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sheen/there-s-a-lot-of-stuff-i-want-to-do-just-things-that-i-want-to/) [Charlie Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sheen/) > [Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising which tempt you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/whatever-course-you-decide-upon-there-is-always-someone-to-tell-you/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Nearly all the writing of our time is likely to disappear in a hundred years. Certainly most readers - and nearly all critics -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-dirda/nearly-all-the-writing-of-our-time-is-likely-to-disappear-in-a/) [Michael Dirda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-dirda/) > [David Rockefeller is the most conspicuous representative today of the ruling class, a multinational fraternity of men who shape the global economy and manage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-moyers/david-rockefeller-is-the-most-conspicuous-representative-today-of-the/) [Bill Moyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-moyers/) > [The boundaries between contemporary art and cinema are so rigid. It's unbelievable. 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