--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I start with theory rather than people. I…" description: "\"I start with theory rather than people. I don't like novels which have no theoretical or philosophical underpinning. I hate the contemporary novel wher..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fa/neel-mukherjee-21550_books_i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i_1722320.jpg" --- # I start with theory rather than people. I don't like… ![“I start with theory rather than people. I don't like novels which have no theoretical or philosophical underpinning. I hate the contemporary novel where people just sit and talk to each other about their relationships.” quote by Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fa/neel-mukherjee-21550_books_i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i_1722320.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fa/neel-mukherjee-21550_books_i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i_1722320.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fa/neel-mukherjee-21550_books_i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i_1722320.jpg) > “I start with theory rather than people. I don't like novels which have no theoretical or philosophical underpinning. I hate the contemporary novel where people just sit and talk to each other about their relationships.” [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He prefers works grounded in theory over purely relational narratives. **In simple terms:** Values theoretical depth over casual dialogue. Key Takeaway Seek intellectual foundations in literature. Themes literature philosophy theory Mood thoughtful analytical Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - book clubs - academic courses - creative writing workshops Key Concepts Narrative structure existentialism Questions to Reflect On - What balance between theory and emotion enriches a novel? - How does philosophy shape character development? A Different Perspective Purely theoretical works may lack emotional resonance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate/) [Like Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-novels-482026/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Novel People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel-people-1350761/) [Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels/) [Novels Theoretical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novels-theoretical-1350760/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Relationships](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relationships/) [Sit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sit/) [Start](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/start/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“I have only met men like you in novels, men who lived their own idiosyncrasies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sachin-kundalkar/i-have-only-met-men-like-you-in-novels-men-who-lived-their-own/) [Sachin Kundalkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sachin-kundalkar/) > [That's what people expect: They don't want to read a slight novel. People don't want to waste their time on anything less than 'great.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-zhang/that-s-what-people-expect-they-don-t-want-to-read-a-slight-novel/) [Jenny Zhang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-zhang/) > [When you're my age and you see a story, you better go for it pretty quickly. I'd just like to get a few more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/when-you-re-my-age-and-you-see-a-story-you-better-go-for-it-pretty/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [I hope people will like my novels after I'm dead. And I hope my children think about me in good ways, by and large.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clyde-edgerton/i-hope-people-will-like-my-novels-after-i-m-dead-and-i-hope-my/) [Clyde Edgerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clyde-edgerton/) > [I would like my novels to be read the way I read the novels I love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/i-would-like-my-novels-to-be-read-the-way-i-read-the-novels-i-love/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [When I was writing 'The White Tiger' I lived in a building pretty much exactly like the one I described in this novel, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/when-i-was-writing-the-white-tiger-i-lived-in-a-building-pretty-much/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [I do see an interest in writing for Twitter. While publishers still do love the novel and people do still like to sink into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-davis/i-do-see-an-interest-in-writing-for-twitter-while-publishers-still-do/) [Lydia Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-davis/) > [What's the challenge in writing a novel that few people will read? I'm more than happy writing what I do and have no plans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/what-s-the-challenge-in-writing-a-novel-that-few-people-will-read-i-m/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [A novelist writes a novel, and people read it. But reading is a solitary act. While it may elicit a varied and personal response,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-wilson/a-novelist-writes-a-novel-and-people-read-it-but-reading-is-a/) [August Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-wilson/) > [Of course, in a novel, people's hearts break, and they die and that is the end of it; and in a story this is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-beecher-stowe/of-course-in-a-novel-people-s-hearts-break-and-they-die-and-that-is-2/) [Harriet Beecher Stowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-beecher-stowe/) > [Strangely enough, the first character in Fried Green Tomatoes was the cafe, and the town. I think a place can be as much a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-flagg/strangely-enough-the-first-character-in-fried-green-tomatoes-was-the/) [Fannie Flagg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-flagg/) > [Your life story is a novel; and people, though they love novels wound between two yellow paper covers, are oddly suspicious of those which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-dumas/your-life-story-is-a-novel-and-people-though-they-love-novels-wound/) [Alexandre Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-dumas/) > [“As far as I can tell, a young adult novel is a regular novel that people actually read.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/as-far-as-i-can-tell-a-young-adult-novel-is-a-regular-novel-that/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [History is a novel for which the people is the author.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/history-is-a-novel-for-which-the-people-is-the-author/) [Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/) > [I'm not sure that it's possible to write a novel about people who don't transgress or stumble, people who don't surprise themselves with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/i-m-not-sure-that-it-s-possible-to-write-a-novel-about-people-who-don/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) ## More by Neel Mukherjee > [Nostalgia is a particular affliction of immigrant fiction, and it's led to a kind of sclerosis of the form. I hate nostalgia, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/nostalgia-is-a-particular-affliction-of-immigrant-fiction-and-it-s/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [I'm much more attracted to the miscegenation of cultures than to harmony.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/i-m-much-more-attracted-to-the-miscegenation-of-cultures-than-to/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [In any restaurant, my eyes alight first, as if by an atavistic pull, on the meat dishes on the menu. In any dinner party…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/in-any-restaurant-my-eyes-alight-first-as-if-by-an-atavistic-pull-on/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [Given that all our lives rest on work that defines us, the business of labor, the wealth that work manifests itself to, I find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/given-that-all-our-lives-rest-on-work-that-defines-us-the-business-of/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [One writes what one can, or has to, write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/one-writes-what-one-can-or-has-to-write/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [Remember that what seems zeitgeisty today is the cause of tomorrow's bafflement or, worse, ridicule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/remember-that-what-seems-zeitgeisty-today-is-the-cause-of-tomorrow-s/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [It's always good to get good reviews. I read my reviews. There are a lot of writers who don't read their reviews at all.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/it-s-always-good-to-get-good-reviews-i-read-my-reviews-there-are-a/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [Innocence is a pretty dangerous thing, you know. Revisit Dostoevsky's 'The Idiot' or, for that matter, Greene's 'The Quiet American' to find out how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/innocence-is-a-pretty-dangerous-thing-you-know-revisit-dostoevsky-s/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [“Why did they all think alike? Typical bourgeois brainwashed homogeneity? How else could this unvarying calculus abouth the worth of one's own kind measured…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/why-did-they-all-think-alike-typical-bourgeois-brainwashed/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [Nostalgia can be extremely powerful in the right hands: think of the intense longing in the films Andrei Tarkovsky made after he left the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/nostalgia-can-be-extremely-powerful-in-the-right-hands-think-of-the/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [The bestseller charts, a sure indicator of public taste, tell us with relentless frequency that Marian Keyes or Jeffrey Archer is a better author,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/the-bestseller-charts-a-sure-indicator-of-public-taste-tell-us-with/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [When a book is going well, it tells you where to go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/when-a-book-is-going-well-it-tells-you-where-to-go/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [The freedom fighters in India's long struggle for independence from British rule, or members of the African National Congress, were once classed as terrorists.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/the-freedom-fighters-in-india-s-long-struggle-for-independence-from/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [I wouldn't call myself a 'literary critic,' just a book reviewer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/i-wouldn-t-call-myself-a-literary-critic-just-a-book-reviewer/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) > [Writing a book is as difficult or as easy as any other job. Everyone's job is difficult. So to fetishize difficulties in writing as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/writing-a-book-is-as-difficult-or-as-easy-as-any-other-job-everyone-s/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) [Explore all 29 Neel Mukherjee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I start with theory rather than people. I don't like novels which have no theoretical or philosophical underpinning. I hate the contemporary novel where people just sit and talk to each other about their relationships.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Neel Mukherjee" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i-don-t-like-novels-which-have/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i-don-t-like-novels-which-have/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fa/neel-mukherjee-21550_books_i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i_1722320.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fa/neel-mukherjee-21550_books_i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i_1722320.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9fa/neel-mukherjee-21550_books_i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i_1722320.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I start with theory rather than people. I don't like novels which have no theoretical or philosophical…” — Neel Mukherjee", "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": "Neel Mukherjee", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I start with theory rather than...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i-don-t-like-novels-which-have/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/i-start-with-theory-rather-than-people-i-don-t-like-novels-which-have/#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 } } ] } ```