--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I still think, most of the time, when…" description: "\"I still think, most of the time, when people called shows like 'The Sopranos' or 'Deadwood' 'art' that they were correct.\" — Michelle Dean" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5aa/michelle-dean-7717_art_i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-peop_306814.jpg" --- # I still think, most of the time, when people called shows… ![“I still think, most of the time, when people called shows like 'The Sopranos' or 'Deadwood' 'art' that they were correct.” quote by Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5aa/michelle-dean-7717_art_i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-peop_306814.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5aa/michelle-dean-7717_art_i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-peop_306814.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5aa/michelle-dean-7717_art_i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-peop_306814.jpg) > “I still think, most of the time, when people called shows like 'The Sopranos' or 'Deadwood' 'art' that they were correct.” [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critics labeling TV dramas as art reflects a shift in cultural valuation of narrative media. **In simple terms:** TV dramas are now seen as art. Key Takeaway Recognize artistic merit in TV. Themes culture media criticism television Mood contemplative critical Type analytical commentary When to use this quote - watching TV - writing reviews - teaching media studies Key Concepts Aesthetic theory cultural hierarchy Questions to Reflect On - What criteria make a TV show artistic? - Can popular media achieve high art status? A Different Perspective Some argue TV lacks the depth of traditional art forms. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Sopranos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sopranos/) [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Deathstroke,' in my view, is a family drama. It's like the 'Sopranos' with super villains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-priest/deathstroke-in-my-view-is-a-family-drama-it-s-like-the-sopranos-with/) [Christopher Priest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-priest/) > [I am box-set girl; I buy into those big American series like 'The Sopranos' and 'Heroes.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-winkleman/i-am-box-set-girl-i-buy-into-those-big-american-series-like-the/) [Claudia Winkleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-winkleman/) > [And then you have the classical ballerinas, they're like sopranos. Applied to the dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ninette-de-valois/and-then-you-have-the-classical-ballerinas-they-re-like-sopranos/) [Ninette de Valois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ninette-de-valois/) > [The government itself is running exactly like the Sopranos and they sit back and they make deals. And they say okay, 'I'm going do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clooney/the-government-itself-is-running-exactly-like-the-sopranos-and-they/) [George Clooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clooney/) > [The Sopranos,' for instance, is arguably the best cable show of all time. They could have made a movie, but that show ended so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-ferrara/the-sopranos-for-instance-is-arguably-the-best-cable-show-of-all-time/) [Jerry Ferrara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-ferrara/) > [Geometry is the art of correct reasoning from incorrectly drawn figures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-poincare/geometry-is-the-art-of-correct-reasoning-from-incorrectly-drawn/) [Henri Poincare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-poincare/) > [It's people politics, people dynamics that make a show really good, whether it's 'Desperate Housewives' or 'Lost' or 'The Sopranos.' It's the people we've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/it-s-people-politics-people-dynamics-that-make-a-show-really-good/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [HBO churn out some unbelievable stuff. They really got me with things like 'Band of Brothers.' But you can't beat 'The Sopranos.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lawrenson/hbo-churn-out-some-unbelievable-stuff-they-really-got-me-with-things/) [Mark Lawrenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lawrenson/) > [The first thing I went out for was 'The Sopranos' and I got it, so that's how it happened. I hate to say it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanessa-ferlito/the-first-thing-i-went-out-for-was-the-sopranos-and-i-got-it-so-that/) [Vanessa Ferlito](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanessa-ferlito/) > ['The Wire's definitely one of them. 'The Sopranos' is one of my all-time favorites. Those are two big ones for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-bass/the-wire-s-definitely-one-of-them-the-sopranos-is-one-of-my-all-time/) [Ben Bass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-bass/) > [I'm a really emotional cook. Not violent, but I don't like someone coming in while I'm cooking. I'm notorious for themed dinner parties. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelis/i-m-a-really-emotional-cook-not-violent-but-i-don-t-like-someone/) [Kelis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelis/) > [There was certainly less profanity in the Godfather than in the Sopranos. There was a kind of respect. It's not that I totally agreed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-aiello/there-was-certainly-less-profanity-in-the-godfather-than-in-the/) [Danny Aiello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-aiello/) > [Personally, I don't think we could do such a show if we didn't get along. The subtext of all this is that we're women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-davis/personally-i-don-t-think-we-could-do-such-a-show-if-we-didn-t-get/) [Kristin Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-davis/) > ['Heroes', 'Desperate Housewives', 'The Sopranos' - they're all very stylised. 'The Wire' is much more rooted in realism and honesty. In American television, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aidan-gillen/heroes-desperate-housewives-the-sopranos-they-re-all-very-stylised/) [Aidan Gillen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aidan-gillen/) > [I like to watch the Fox News Network. I like 'Nightline.' I like to watch 'The Sopranos,' of course. That is one of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-estrada/i-like-to-watch-the-fox-news-network-i-like-nightline-i-like-to-watch/) [Erik Estrada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-estrada/) ## More by Michelle Dean > [There is an unfortunate side effect of being a person of few words: Sometimes people will assume you are less intelligent than you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/there-is-an-unfortunate-side-effect-of-being-a-person-of-few-words/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [Poems are ideally suited, in some ways, to social media because they pack so much meaning into so little language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/poems-are-ideally-suited-in-some-ways-to-social-media-because-they/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [The diversity of perspective, the unwillingness to generalise - those are good traits in countries as they are in art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/the-diversity-of-perspective-the-unwillingness-to-generalise-those/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [When Paul Beatty's 'The Sellout' was first published in America in 2015, it was a small release. It got a rave review in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/when-paul-beatty-s-the-sellout-was-first-published-in-america-in-2015/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [Hollywood versions of watershed moments in American history are generally high-minded shlock. 'JFK,' 'The People vs. Larry Flynt,' even 'Lincoln': all of these boast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/hollywood-versions-of-watershed-moments-in-american-history-are/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [Saying that you spend Christmas alone is, to most middle-class Americans, akin to confessing a terminal illness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/saying-that-you-spend-christmas-alone-is-to-most-middle-class/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [There are many things to like about 'Mr. Robot,' the most ephemeral and yet memorable of them being the opening credits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/there-are-many-things-to-like-about-mr-robot-the-most-ephemeral-and/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [Bad criticism recites rote arguments. The shame of rote arguments isn't just that they're cliches, though they are, but that they tend to hide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/bad-criticism-recites-rote-arguments-the-shame-of-rote-arguments-isn/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [Research can be a boon to a novelist - there are more things in heaven and Earth than can be dreamt of in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/research-can-be-a-boon-to-a-novelist-there-are-more-things-in-heaven/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [In an age where television is viewed as the best medium to 'tell stories,' narrative often stands in for substance on would-be prestige shows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/in-an-age-where-television-is-viewed-as-the-best-medium-to-tell/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [Writing a novel about feminism can be a thankless task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/writing-a-novel-about-feminism-can-be-a-thankless-task/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [Feminists are disappointed in each other a lot, a natural side effect of being involved in a movement, which naturally implies that progress toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/feminists-are-disappointed-in-each-other-a-lot-a-natural-side-effect/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [Hillbilly stereotypes have always made it easier for middle-class whites to presume that racism is the exclusive province of 'that kind' of person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/hillbilly-stereotypes-have-always-made-it-easier-for-middle-class/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [Book awards - in America, at least - are not like the Oscars. Awards are not cumulative, and in the case of something like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/book-awards-in-america-at-least-are-not-like-the-oscars-awards-are/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) > [I tend to judge a piece of criticism by how smart I find the argument. This, I know,, is not how everyone does it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/i-tend-to-judge-a-piece-of-criticism-by-how-smart-i-find-the-argument/) [Michelle Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) [Explore all 88 Michelle Dean quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I still think, most of the time, when people called shows like 'The Sopranos' or 'Deadwood' 'art' that they were correct.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michelle Dean" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-people-called-shows-like-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-people-called-shows-like-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5aa/michelle-dean-7717_art_i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-peop_306814.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5aa/michelle-dean-7717_art_i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-peop_306814.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5aa/michelle-dean-7717_art_i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-peop_306814.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I still think, most of the time, when people called shows like 'The Sopranos' or 'Deadwood' 'art' that they…” — Michelle Dean", "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": "Michelle Dean", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dean/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I still think, most of the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-people-called-shows-like-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dean/i-still-think-most-of-the-time-when-people-called-shows-like-the/#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 } } ] } ```