--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This suspension of one's own reality…" description: "\"This suspension of one's own reality, this being entirely alone in a strange city (at times I wondered if I had lost the power of speech) is an enrichi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ff/may-sarton-897_cities_this-suspension-of-one-s-own-reality-thi_44951.jpg" --- # This suspension of one's own reality, this being entirely… ![“This suspension of one's own reality, this being entirely alone in a strange city (at times I wondered if I had lost the power of speech) is an enriching state for a writer. Then the written word ... takes on an intensity of its own. Nothing gets exteriorized or dissipated; all is concentrated…” quote by May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ff/may-sarton-897_cities_this-suspension-of-one-s-own-reality-thi_44951.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ff/may-sarton-897_cities_this-suspension-of-one-s-own-reality-thi_44951.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ff/may-sarton-897_cities_this-suspension-of-one-s-own-reality-thi_44951.jpg) > “This suspension of one's own reality, this being entirely alone in a strange city (at times I wondered if I had lost the power of speech) is an enriching state for a writer. Then the written word ... takes on an intensity of its own. Nothing gets exteriorized or dissipated; all is concentrated within.” [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Isolation in an unfamiliar environment forces a writer to internalize experience, sharpening perception and intensifying expression. **In simple terms:** Solitude sharpens creative focus. Key Takeaway Alone, the writer's inner world becomes vivid. Themes solitude creativity perception intensity self-reflection Mood contemplative intense lonely Type personal essay philosophical observation When to use this quote - writing in a new city - traveling alone - experiencing cultural dislocation - creative block - seeking inspiration Key Concepts concentration internalization language emotion Practical Applications - journal writing - fiction drafting Questions to Reflect On - How does physical isolation affect mental clarity? - What role does unfamiliarity play in artistic intensity? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Intensity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intensity/) [Power of speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power-of-speech/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Travel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/travel/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Written word](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written-word/) ## Related quotes > [The novel is the dream release, the suspension of reality that history needs to escape its own brutal confinements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/the-novel-is-the-dream-release-the-suspension-of-reality-that-history/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [Love is the suspension of reality in favor of the sublime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-fry/love-is-the-suspension-of-reality-in-favor-of-the-sublime/) [Jeffrey Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-fry/) > [ “\[...\] love is a do thing. It's an energy that has to be dissipated.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-goff/love-is-a-do-thing-it-s-an-energy-that-has-to-be-dissipated/) [Bob Goff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-goff/) > [“There was no longer a wellspring of tears or a firestorm of rage. The surge of feeling that enveloped Nathan James the last few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-x-wretlind/there-was-no-longer-a-wellspring-of-tears-or-a-firestorm-of-rage-the/) [Benjamin X. 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The only thing about a writer is that he has written, and not his so-called life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/kerouac-and-i-are-not-real-at-all-the-only-thing-about-a-writer-is/) [William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/) > [Sometimes what I'm looking for is the thing that will help renew people's interest in a writer that they may have written off as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/sometimes-what-i-m-looking-for-is-the-thing-that-will-help-renew/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [Every writer has written a spec. It's the first thing you write, and it basically stands as a means of, 'Here's an example of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-sheridan/every-writer-has-written-a-spec-it-s-the-first-thing-you-write-and-it/) [Taylor Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-sheridan/) > [A writer is someone who has written something today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-a-jance-2/a-writer-is-someone-who-has-written-something-today/) [J. A. Jance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-a-jance-2/) > [“When I was in high school, all my friends said they were going to be writers. And I thought, How come you get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-eisenberg/when-i-was-in-high-school-all-my-friends-said-they-were-going-to-be/) [Deborah Eisenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-eisenberg/) ## More by May Sarton > [“I felt pain like an assault, The old pain again When the world thrusts itself inside, When we have to take in the outside,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-felt-pain-like-an-assault-the-old-pain-again-when-the-world-thrusts/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Most people have to talk so they won't hear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/most-people-have-to-talk-so-they-won-t-hear/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [People who cannot feel punish those who do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/people-who-cannot-feel-punish-those-who-do/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [One must think like a hero to behave like a merely decent human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/one-must-think-like-a-hero-to-behave-like-a-merely-decent-human-being/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Real joy is becoming exceedingly rare among artists of any kind. 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It's easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/public-infrastructure-around-the-world-is-facing-unprecedented-stress/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [Surely, if Mother Nature had been consulted, she would never have consented to building a city in New Orleans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-zuckerman/surely-if-mother-nature-had-been-consulted-she-would-never-have/) [Mortimer Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-zuckerman/) > [Cities are 2% of the earth's crust, but they are 50% of the world's population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlo-ratti/cities-are-2-of-the-earth-s-crust-but-they-are-50-of-the-world-s/) [Carlo Ratti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlo-ratti/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [All Germany was in turmoil. Revolutionaries seized power in the cities of Munich, Hanover and Cologne. One regional German government after another was toppled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cross-giblin/all-germany-was-in-turmoil-revolutionaries-seized-power-in-the-cities/) James Cross Giblin > [Nice is a city of ghosts and specters, but I hope not to become one of them right away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-modiano/nice-is-a-city-of-ghosts-and-specters-but-i-hope-not-to-become-one-of/) [Patrick Modiano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-modiano/) > [I know of not one Republican candidate that would not appear publicly with Mitt Romney and I know many Democrats that don't even want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-sessions/i-know-of-not-one-republican-candidate-that-would-not-appear-publicly/) [Pete Sessions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-sessions/) > [ 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/) > [We will neglect our cities to our peril, for in neglecting them we neglect the nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/we-will-neglect-our-cities-to-our-peril-for-in-neglecting-them-we/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [I didn't know the city at all, but I was so happy to be in New York I cried. I was so excited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-gerwig/i-didn-t-know-the-city-at-all-but-i-was-so-happy-to-be-in-new-york-i/) [Greta Gerwig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-gerwig/) > [Outside of Paris, there is no hope for the cultured.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/outside-of-paris-there-is-no-hope-for-the-cultured/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [Dawn's faint breath breathes with your mouth at the ends of empty streets. Gray light your eyes, sweet drops of dawn on dark hills.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesare-pavese/dawn-s-faint-breath-breathes-with-your-mouth-at-the-ends-of-empty/) [Cesare Pavese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesare-pavese/) > [Vienna is a handsome, lively city, and pleases me exceedingly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-chopin/vienna-is-a-handsome-lively-city-and-pleases-me-exceedingly/) [Frederic Chopin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-chopin/) > [“We have grace of strength to work, to clear our cities of any dirt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/we-have-grace-of-strength-to-work-to-clear-our-cities-of-any-dirt/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [I was too tired to think. I merely felt the town as a unique unreality. What was it? I knew -- the moon's picture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-too-tired-to-think-i-merely-felt-the-town-as-a-unique-unreality/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 7,153 Cities quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "This suspension of one's own reality, this being entirely alone in a strange city (at times I wondered if I had lost the power of speech) is an enriching state for a writer. Then the written word ... takes on an intensity of its own. 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