--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think that you can treat a classic like…" description: "\"I think that you can treat a classic like a museum piece -stuffed and mounted- or you can make it a living, breathing narrative that is unfolding right..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f23/peter-jackson-1771_breathing_i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-lik_1225286.jpg" --- # I think that you can treat a classic like a museum piece… ![“I think that you can treat a classic like a museum piece -stuffed and mounted- or you can make it a living, breathing narrative that is unfolding right then and there.” quote by Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f23/peter-jackson-1771_breathing_i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-lik_1225286.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f23/peter-jackson-1771_breathing_i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-lik_1225286.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f23/peter-jackson-1771_breathing_i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-lik_1225286.jpg) > “I think that you can treat a classic like a museum piece -stuffed and mounted- or you can make it a living, breathing narrative that is unfolding right then and there.” [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Treating classics as static museums limits relevance; reimagining them keeps them alive and dynamic. **In simple terms:** Keep classics alive by reinterpreting them. Key Takeaway Revitalize old works creatively. Themes art literature innovation Mood creative innovative Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - teaching - publishing - film adaptation Key Concepts tradition reinterpretation living narrative Questions to Reflect On - How can you honor the original while innovating? - What makes a classic timeless? A Different Perspective Risk of losing original intent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Breathing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breathing/) [Museums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/museums/) [Narrative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narrative/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [It was rumored she held grudges till they died of old age, then had them stuffed and mounted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-weber/it-was-rumored-she-held-grudges-till-they-died-of-old-age-then-had/) [David Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-weber/) > [We console ourselves with the comfortable fallacy that a single museum piece will do, ignoring the clear dictum of history that a species must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldo-leopold/we-console-ourselves-with-the-comfortable-fallacy-that-a-single/) [Aldo Leopold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldo-leopold/) > [“In the king’s bed is always found, just before it becomes a museum piece, the droppings of the black sheep.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathanael-west/in-the-king-s-bed-is-always-found-just-before-it-becomes-a-museum/) [Nathanael West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathanael-west/) > [I think with my hands. I design things to be touched-not for a museum. A piece is ready when it has the shape of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-zeisel/i-think-with-my-hands-i-design-things-to-be-touched-not-for-a-museum/) [Eva Zeisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-zeisel/) > [A product is not a product unless it sells. Otherwise it is merely a museum piece.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-levitt/a-product-is-not-a-product-unless-it-sells-otherwise-it-is-merely-a/) [Theodore Levitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-levitt/) > [I never thought Jazz was meant to be a museum piece like other dead things once considered artistic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/i-never-thought-jazz-was-meant-to-be-a-museum-piece-like-other-dead/) [Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/) > [“To visit a museum is fine, to be a museum piece is terrible! - Gioconda and Si-Ya-U ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naz-m-hikmet/to-visit-a-museum-is-fine-to-be-a-museum-piece-is-terrible-gioconda/) [Nâzım Hikmet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naz-m-hikmet/) > [“It's an old church and smells like a museum - in a good way, a survived-lots-of-shit-and-still-standing kind of way. Something about the stained-glass windows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chevy-stevens/it-s-an-old-church-and-smells-like-a-museum-in-a-good-way-a-survived/) [Chevy Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chevy-stevens/) > [It'd be really great to see the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame mature. It's a good facility there in Cleveland. I like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-miller/it-d-be-really-great-to-see-the-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-mature-it/) [Steve Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-miller/) > [“It looks like-" "- a museum," Ariane said, with the smallest note of envy. I shrugged. "I was going to go with fancy rehab…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-kade/it-looks-like-a-museum-ariane-said-with-the-smallest-note-of-envy-i/) [Stacey Kade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-kade/) > [Any city in America would like to get a museum built if they didn't have to pay for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-broad/any-city-in-america-would-like-to-get-a-museum-built-if-they-didn-t/) [Eli Broad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-broad/) > [“A zoo is a cultural institution. Like a public library, like a museum, it is at the service of popular education and science. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/a-zoo-is-a-cultural-institution-like-a-public-library-like-a-museum/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [My room isn t dirty, I just have everything on display like a museum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-siddiq-prince/my-room-isn-t-dirty-i-just-have-everything-on-display-like-a-museum/) [Young Siddiq Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-siddiq-prince/) > [I've got a house full of taxidermy. It's like a museum. I have about 200 pieces in total, all ethically sourced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derren-brown/i-ve-got-a-house-full-of-taxidermy-it-s-like-a-museum-i-have-about/) [Derren Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derren-brown/) > [To have a museum like the Museum of Modern Art in New York is to have power. I don't have any interest in being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-gonzalez/to-have-a-museum-like-the-museum-of-modern-art-in-new-york-is-to-have/) [Luis Gonzalez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-gonzalez/) ## More by Peter Jackson > [It's not a happy time when a film drops dead on your doorstep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/it-s-not-a-happy-time-when-a-film-drops-dead-on-your-doorstep/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [I don't have an anti-Hollywood feeling. It's just I'm a New Zealander. I was born in New Zealand, and it's where my house is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/i-don-t-have-an-anti-hollywood-feeling-it-s-just-i-m-a-new-zealander/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [The only thing about 3-D is the dullness of the image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/the-only-thing-about-3-d-is-the-dullness-of-the-image/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [You shouldn't think of these movies as being 'The Lord of the Rings.' The Lord of the Rings is, and always will be, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/you-shouldn-t-think-of-these-movies-as-being-the-lord-of-the-rings/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [It's one thing to support your kid, but if you have an interest in what your child is doing, it makes it a whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/it-s-one-thing-to-support-your-kid-but-if-you-have-an-interest-in/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [Strategically, horror films are a good way to start your career. You can get a lot of impact with very little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/strategically-horror-films-are-a-good-way-to-start-your-career-you/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [To his ex-wife in court, he said I lost interest in you when the Botox lost its effect and you looked like a plastic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/to-his-ex-wife-in-court-he-said-i-lost-interest-in-you-when-the-botox/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > ['Bad Taste' was - it was, in many respects, my sort of, my, I guess, my single-minded desire to want to break into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/bad-taste-was-it-was-in-many-respects-my-sort-of-my-i-guess-my-single/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [To me, fantasy should be as real as possible. I don't buy into the notion that because it's fantastic, it should be unrealistic, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/to-me-fantasy-should-be-as-real-as-possible-i-don-t-buy-into-the/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [I always have had a slightly jaundiced view about people who promote books about themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/i-always-have-had-a-slightly-jaundiced-view-about-people-who-promote/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [Obviously, movies, you're often on location, out in the rain or the sun, in a real place where the trees and the cars are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/obviously-movies-you-re-often-on-location-out-in-the-rain-or-the-sun/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [Structure is important in film, but there's often structure to be found in the most unlikely of places! It's quite possible to build a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/structure-is-important-in-film-but-there-s-often-structure-to-be/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [Film is such a powerful medium. It's like a weapon and I think you have a duty to self-censor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/film-is-such-a-powerful-medium-it-s-like-a-weapon-and-i-think-you/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [I remember when I was - I must've been 17 or 18 years old - I remember 'The Empire Strikes Back' had a big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/i-remember-when-i-was-i-must-ve-been-17-or-18-years-old-i-remember/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) > [I love collaborating with people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/i-love-collaborating-with-people/) [Peter Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) [Explore all 209 Peter Jackson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/) ## More Breathing quotes > [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [“As long as we’re breathing, we have a chance to start over and build a stable future.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-ha-campbell/as-long-as-we-re-breathing-we-have-a-chance-to-start-over-and-build-a/) [Kim Ha Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-ha-campbell/) > [People don't think much about breathing. Of all the things we take for granted, breathing has to be number one - even though it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laird-hamilton/people-don-t-think-much-about-breathing-of-all-the-things-we-take-for/) [Laird Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laird-hamilton/) > [Aging is like enlightenment at gunpoint. Before I had cancer, I lived my life for my art. After I had cancer, I lived my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-halprin/aging-is-like-enlightenment-at-gunpoint-before-i-had-cancer-i-lived/) [Anna Halprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-halprin/) > [I wish," Jared began, and stopped, breathing in. "Do you remember how you used to believe I wasn't real? Sometimes I wish that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-rees-brennan/i-wish-jared-began-and-stopped-breathing-in-do-you-remember-how-you/) [Sarah Rees Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-rees-brennan/) > [The still affection of the heart Became an outward breathing type, That into stillness past again, And left a want unknown before; Although the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lord-tennyson/the-still-affection-of-the-heart-became-an-outward-breathing-type/) [Alfred Lord Tennyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lord-tennyson/) > [Breathing is give(carbon dioxide) and take(oxygen), such is life, find balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-williams/breathing-is-give-carbon-dioxide-and-take-oxygen-such-is-life-find/) Marcel Williams > [I'll probably be writing as long as I'm breathing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-kristofferson/i-ll-probably-be-writing-as-long-as-i-m-breathing/) [Kris Kristofferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-kristofferson/) > [For me writing is like breathing. I could not live without breathing and I could not live without writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-neruda/for-me-writing-is-like-breathing-i-could-not-live-without-breathing/) [Pablo Neruda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-neruda/) > [I’m in, Cat. I’d never leave you. Especially when you’ve got death breathing down your neck.” “Very funny,” I retorted, since Bones was inches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeaniene-frost/i-m-in-cat-i-d-never-leave-you-especially-when-you-ve-got-death/) [Jeaniene Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeaniene-frost/) > [Splutter, splutter. Yes - we're off - we're rising. But why start off with an engine like that? But it smooths out now, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/splutter-splutter-yes-we-re-off-we-re-rising-but-why-start-off-with/) [Anne Morrow Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) > [He’d moved toward me again. His hands released mine and moved to my waist, and I noticed I wasn’t the only one breathing heavily.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-mead/he-d-moved-toward-me-again-his-hands-released-mine-and-moved-to-my/) [Richelle Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-mead/) > [My worry is that opera will become an historic art form as opposed to a living, breathing thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-fleming/my-worry-is-that-opera-will-become-an-historic-art-form-as-opposed-to/) [Renee Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-fleming/) > [I'm really fascinated and you know I've been wondering about that usage of language, various breathing techniques and why in these practices language is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-acker/i-m-really-fascinated-and-you-know-i-ve-been-wondering-about-that/) [Kathy Acker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-acker/) > [I’m exactly right for you, Bella. It would have been effortless for us — comfortable, easy as breathing. I was the natural path your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephenie-meyer/i-m-exactly-right-for-you-bella-it-would-have-been-effortless-for-us/) [Stephenie Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephenie-meyer/) [Browse all 1,666 Breathing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breathing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think that you can treat a classic like a museum piece -stuffed and mounted- or you can make it a living, breathing narrative that is unfolding right then and there.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Peter Jackson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-like-a-museum-piece-stuffed-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Breathing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-like-a-museum-piece-stuffed-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f23/peter-jackson-1771_breathing_i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-lik_1225286.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f23/peter-jackson-1771_breathing_i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-lik_1225286.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f23/peter-jackson-1771_breathing_i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-lik_1225286.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think that you can treat a classic like a museum piece -stuffed and mounted- or you can make it a living…” — Peter Jackson", "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": "Peter Jackson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jackson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think that you can treat...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-like-a-museum-piece-stuffed-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jackson/i-think-that-you-can-treat-a-classic-like-a-museum-piece-stuffed-and/#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 } } ] } ```