--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Eroticism is first and foremost a thirst…" description: "\"Eroticism is first and foremost a thirst for otherness. And the supernatural is the supreme otherness. This is perhaps the most noble aim of poetry, to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b99/octavio-paz-1790_aim_eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst_2479870.jpg" --- # Eroticism is first and foremost a thirst for otherness… ![“Eroticism is first and foremost a thirst for otherness. And the supernatural is the supreme otherness. This is perhaps the most noble aim of poetry, to attach ourselves to the world around us, to turn desire into love, to embrace, finally what always evades us, what is beyond, but what is always…” quote by Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b99/octavio-paz-1790_aim_eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst_2479870.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b99/octavio-paz-1790_aim_eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst_2479870.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b99/octavio-paz-1790_aim_eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst_2479870.jpg) > “Eroticism is first and foremost a thirst for otherness. And the supernatural is the supreme otherness. This is perhaps the most noble aim of poetry, to attach ourselves to the world around us, to turn desire into love, to embrace, finally what always evades us, what is beyond, but what is always there – the unspoken, the spirit, the soul.” [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Poetry seeks the ultimate other, turning desire into love and connecting us to the unseen spirit. **In simple terms:** Poetry aims to unite desire with love and the unseen. Key Takeaway Seek depth beyond the surface. Themes desire spirituality poetry otherness Mood contemplative introspective Type philosophical artistic When to use this quote - creative writing - art criticism - personal reflection Key Concepts existentialism transcendence aesthetic theory Questions to Reflect On - How does longing shape artistic expression? - Can love replace desire for the unknown? A Different Perspective It may overlook concrete social issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aim/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Embrace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/embrace/) [Eroticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eroticism/) [Eroticism Foremost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eroticism-foremost-851862/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Noble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/noble/) [Otherness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/otherness/) [Otherness Supernatural](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/otherness-supernatural-851861/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) [Supreme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supreme/) [Supreme Otherness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supreme-otherness-851863/) [Thirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thirst/) [Turns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turns/) [Unspoken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unspoken/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [ “\[Eroticism is\] the poetry of the body, the testimony of the senses. Like a poem, it is not linear, it meanders and twists back… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/eroticism-is-the-poetry-of-the-body-the-testimony-of-the-senses-like/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [The beloved is already in our being, as thirst and "otherness." Being is eroticism. Inspiration is that strange voice that takes man out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/the-beloved-is-already-in-our-being-as-thirst-and-otherness-being-is/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [“Erotic pleasure, derived from the most intimate physical contact, thrives on the paradox that only by keeping alive the strangeness of that other person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siri-hustvedt/erotic-pleasure-derived-from-the-most-intimate-physical-contact/) [Siri Hustvedt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siri-hustvedt/) > [“I am a good lover, but that is not so difficult. It requires only that I pay attention, and watch and listen to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikki-sex/i-am-a-good-lover-but-that-is-not-so-difficult-it-requires-only-that/) [Nikki Sex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikki-sex/) > [“I rely on images of violence, which bring the shock of pain, to penetrate the barriers people erect and defend, not simple defenses; the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/i-rely-on-images-of-violence-which-bring-the-shock-of-pain-to/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) > [We should be telling girls what they already know but rarely see affirmed: that the lives they lead inside their own self-contained bodies; the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/we-should-be-telling-girls-what-they-already-know-but-rarely-see/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [American eroticism has always been of a different provenance and complexion than the European variety, an enjoyment both furtive and bland that is closer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-haskell/american-eroticism-has-always-been-of-a-different-provenance-and/) [Molly Haskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-haskell/) > [“I want eroticism mixed with love, and deep love one does not experience often.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-want-eroticism-mixed-with-love-and-deep-love-one-does-not/) [Anaïs Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [“How many rooms are there in the chambers of your heart? How many rooms full of memories can you describe like the one I’m…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valentine-bonnaire/how-many-rooms-are-there-in-the-chambers-of-your-heart-how-many-rooms/) [Valentine Bonnaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valentine-bonnaire/) > [“One second, he was in my mouth, my tongue flicking over the broad head of him; the next, his hands were on my waist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/one-second-he-was-in-my-mouth-my-tongue-flicking-over-the-broad-head/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [Appalling numbers of youth have been led into a cynical ultra-sophisticated attitude which regards drinking as a badge of social aptitude, which makes a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-parker-yockey/appalling-numbers-of-youth-have-been-led-into-a-cynical-ultra/) [Francis Parker Yockey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-parker-yockey/) > [“The things she could do with her mouth would blow any man off course.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiffany-reisz/the-things-she-could-do-with-her-mouth-would-blow-any-man-off-course/) [Tiffany Reisz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiffany-reisz/) > [Eroticism is one of the basic means of self-knowledge, as indispensable as poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/eroticism-is-one-of-the-basic-means-of-self-knowledge-as/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Martin, at my age, eroticism is reduced to enjoying caramel custard and looking at widows' necks.' - Senor Sempere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/martin-at-my-age-eroticism-is-reduced-to-enjoying-caramel-custard-and/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [“...unnskyld? Men opptar Fordervelsen hele sofaen?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-l-kielland/unnskyld-men-opptar-fordervelsen-hele-sofaen/) [Alexander L. Kielland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-l-kielland/) ## More by Octavio Paz > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [The religion of art, like the religion of politics, was born from the ruins of Christianity. Art inherited from the old religion the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/the-religion-of-art-like-the-religion-of-politics-was-born-from-the/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [I thought that the world was a vast system of signs, a conversation between giant beings. My actions, the cricket's saw, the star's blink,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/i-thought-that-the-world-was-a-vast-system-of-signs-a-conversation/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Changes are inseparable from democracy. To defend democracy is to defend the possibility of change; in turn, changes alone can strengthen democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/changes-are-inseparable-from-democracy-to-defend-democracy-is-to/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Grace is gratuitous; it is a gift.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/grace-is-gratuitous-it-is-a-gift/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Death is the mother of forms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/death-is-the-mother-of-forms/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [It is not proper to project our feelings onto things or to attribute our own sensations and passions to them. Can it also be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/it-is-not-proper-to-project-our-feelings-onto-things-or-to-attribute/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Without democracy freedom is a chimera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/without-democracy-freedom-is-a-chimera/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [“I went to the little window and inhaled the country air. One could hear the breathing of the night, feminine, enormous. ("The Blue Bouquet")”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/i-went-to-the-little-window-and-inhaled-the-country-air-one-could/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [A glass pitcher, a wicker basket, a tunic of coarse cloth. Their beauty is inseparable from their function. Handicrafts belong to a world existing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/a-glass-pitcher-a-wicker-basket-a-tunic-of-coarse-cloth-their-beauty/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [“Between going and staying the day wavers, in love with its own transparency. The circular afternoon is now a bay where the world in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/between-going-and-staying-the-day-wavers-in-love-with-its-own/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [“Two bodies face to face Are at times two waves And the night is an ocean. Two bodies face to face Are sometimes two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/two-bodies-face-to-face-are-at-times-two-waves-and-the-night-is-an/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Writers, you know, are the beggars of Western society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/writers-you-know-are-the-beggars-of-western-society/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [“Solitude is the profoundest fact of the human condition.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/solitude-is-the-profoundest-fact-of-the-human-condition/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [“...you are you and your body of steam, you and your face of night, you and your hair, unhurried lightning, you cross the street…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/you-are-you-and-your-body-of-steam-you-and-your-face-of-night-you-and/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) [Explore all 150 Octavio Paz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) ## More Aim quotes > [If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zig-ziglar/if-you-aim-at-nothing-you-will-hit-it-every-time/) [Zig Ziglar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zig-ziglar/) > [A good aim surveys the present state of experience of pupils, and forming a tentative plan of treatment, keeps the plan constantly in view…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/a-good-aim-surveys-the-present-state-of-experience-of-pupils-and/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [The Christian man must aim at that complete obedience to God in which life finds its highest happiness, its greatest good, its perfect consummation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-barclay/the-christian-man-must-aim-at-that-complete-obedience-to-god-in-which/) [William Barclay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-barclay/) > [ He \[an earnest young reporter\] seemed to share the view of many intelligent, well-educated, well-meaning people that, while adult literature may aim to be… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-paterson/he-an-earnest-young-reporter-seemed-to-share-the-view-of-many/) [Katherine Paterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-paterson/) > [In Bosnia, little children shot in the head by a guy who thinks it's okay to aim his gun at a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiane-amanpour/in-bosnia-little-children-shot-in-the-head-by-a-guy-who-thinks-it-s/) [Christiane Amanpour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiane-amanpour/) > [Design certainly has a cosmetic, aesthetic aim. It always aims at making things beautiful. But relevance is just as important. I often say, 'If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yves-behar/design-certainly-has-a-cosmetic-aesthetic-aim-it-always-aims-at/) [Yves Behar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yves-behar/) > [My aim was to make money for the bank. You lose track of the amounts involved when you are engaged in this kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-kerviel/my-aim-was-to-make-money-for-the-bank-you-lose-track-of-the-amounts/) [Jerome Kerviel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-kerviel/) > [My only aim is to clock a time that everyone remembers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hima-das/my-only-aim-is-to-clock-a-time-that-everyone-remembers/) [Hima Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hima-das/) > [My main aim has always been to do good quality films with roles that have some substance. With Power and Beauty there were loads…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-henstridge/my-main-aim-has-always-been-to-do-good-quality-films-with-roles-that/) [Natasha Henstridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-henstridge/) > [ I really enjoyed it - being involved in watching rushes and playback \[in "The Invisible Woman"\]. Ralph \[Fiennes\] was very open to my input,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/i-really-enjoyed-it-being-involved-in-watching-rushes-and-playback-in/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) > [My aim is to be counted among the top players.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babar-azam/my-aim-is-to-be-counted-among-the-top-players/) [Babar Azam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babar-azam/) > [The single aim of my life is that every child is: free to be a child, free to grow and develop, free to eat,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kailash-satyarthi/the-single-aim-of-my-life-is-that-every-child-is-free-to-be-a-child/) [Kailash Satyarthi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kailash-satyarthi/) > [The aim of good prose words is to mean what they say. The aim of good poetical words is to mean what they do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/the-aim-of-good-prose-words-is-to-mean-what-they-say-the-aim-of-good/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [Prescribing hard work for the soft, or easy work for the hardy, is generally nonsense. What is always needed in any aim is right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idries-shah/prescribing-hard-work-for-the-soft-or-easy-work-for-the-hardy-is/) [Idries Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idries-shah/) > [To be normal is the ultimate aim of the unsuccessful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/to-be-normal-is-the-ultimate-aim-of-the-unsuccessful/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) [Browse all 3,047 Aim quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aim/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Eroticism is first and foremost a thirst for otherness. And the supernatural is the supreme otherness. This is perhaps the most noble aim of poetry, to attach ourselves to the world around us, to turn desire into love, to embrace, finally what always evades us, what is beyond, but what is always there – the unspoken, the spirit, the soul.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Octavio Paz" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst-for-otherness-and-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Aim" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst-for-otherness-and-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b99/octavio-paz-1790_aim_eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst_2479870.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b99/octavio-paz-1790_aim_eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst_2479870.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b99/octavio-paz-1790_aim_eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst_2479870.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Eroticism is first and foremost a thirst for otherness. And the supernatural is the supreme otherness. This…” — Octavio Paz", "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": "Octavio Paz", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Eroticism is first and foremost a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst-for-otherness-and-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/eroticism-is-first-and-foremost-a-thirst-for-otherness-and-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 } } ] } ```