--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Fiction is overrated, Fly. We’ve…" description: "\"“Fiction is overrated, Fly. We’ve discussed this. In the time it takes those novelist fuckers to contemplate a few poetic passages, a thousand kids die..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c71/rawi-hage-18181_fiction_fiction-is-overrated-fly-we-ve-discussed_1148113.jpg" --- # Fiction is overrated, Fly. We’ve discussed this. In the… ![“Fiction is overrated, Fly. We’ve discussed this. In the time it takes those novelist fuckers to contemplate a few poetic passages, a thousand kids die from malnutrition. Immediacy, man, that’s what counts.” quote by Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c71/rawi-hage-18181_fiction_fiction-is-overrated-fly-we-ve-discussed_1148113.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c71/rawi-hage-18181_fiction_fiction-is-overrated-fly-we-ve-discussed_1148113.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c71/rawi-hage-18181_fiction_fiction-is-overrated-fly-we-ve-discussed_1148113.jpg) > ““Fiction is overrated, Fly. We’ve discussed this. In the time it takes those novelist fuckers to contemplate a few poetic passages, a thousand kids die from malnutrition. Immediacy, man, that’s what counts.”” [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that immediate humanitarian crises outweigh the value of literary contemplation, urging focus on urgent action over artistic pursuits. **In simple terms:** Urgent action matters more than art. Key Takeaway Prioritize helping those in need now. Themes humanitarianism priorities art vs action Mood urgent reflective Type activist philosophical When to use this quote - disaster relief - food aid - policy advocacy - community volunteering Key Concepts ethical urgency social responsibility resource allocation Questions to Reflect On - What immediate needs can you address today? - How can art support humanitarian work? A Different Perspective Art can inspire change, but may not address immediate suffering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Novelist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novelist/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“She'll be an excellent novelist: a monster of self-absorption.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lan-samantha-chang/she-ll-be-an-excellent-novelist-a-monster-of-self-absorption/) [Lan Samantha Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lan-samantha-chang/) > [“I know you would be watching over me all through this journey called life... whenever I look next to me, I feel like you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santonu-kumar-dhar/i-know-you-would-be-watching-over-me-all-through-this-journey-called/) [Santonu Kumar Dhar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santonu-kumar-dhar/) > [“A warm sunny evening, the plash and gurgle of the waves in the rock pools, the rush of the cold gin. I thought for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-boyd/a-warm-sunny-evening-the-plash-and-gurgle-of-the-waves-in-the-rock/) [William Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-boyd/) > [I maintain that if you're a novelist and you go into an art museum, you'll come out a better novelist. And if you paint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hawkes/i-maintain-that-if-you-re-a-novelist-and-you-go-into-an-art-museum/) [John Hawkes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hawkes/) > [I am not an academic who happens to have written a novel. I am a novelist who happens to be quite good academically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-s-byatt-2/i-am-not-an-academic-who-happens-to-have-written-a-novel-i-am-a/) [A. S. Byatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-s-byatt-2/) > [I think of myself now as a writer, although I wouldn't go as far as to say 'novelist' because that sounds like a Victorian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-french/i-think-of-myself-now-as-a-writer-although-i-wouldn-t-go-as-far-as-to/) [Dawn French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-french/) > [I'm a novelist. Fortunately I don't have to rule the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-a-novelist-fortunately-i-don-t-have-to-rule-the-world/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [As an historical novelist - there are few jobs more retrospective. I dumped science at an early age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/as-an-historical-novelist-there-are-few-jobs-more-retrospective-i/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [“Amanda herself couldn't understand why her writing was so different from her own personality. Her pen seemed to take on a life of its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/amanda-herself-couldn-t-understand-why-her-writing-was-so-different/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [The novelist's intuition for the sacred differs from the translator's interrogation of the sacred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/the-novelist-s-intuition-for-the-sacred-differs-from-the-translator-s/) [Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/) > [A novelist should not be too intelligent either, although... he may be permitted to be an intellectual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-burgess/a-novelist-should-not-be-too-intelligent-either-although-he-may-be/) [Anthony Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-burgess/) > [“I have from the first felt sure that the writer, when he sits down to commence his novel, should do so, not because he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/i-have-from-the-first-felt-sure-that-the-writer-when-he-sits-down-to/) [Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/) > [“I love you so much. Our love is eternal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santonu-kumar-dhar/i-love-you-so-much-our-love-is-eternal/) [Santonu Kumar Dhar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santonu-kumar-dhar/) > [“The novelist is like a scout commissioned to go and see what is happening in the depth of the soul. He comes back and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julien-green/the-novelist-is-like-a-scout-commissioned-to-go-and-see-what-is/) [Julien Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julien-green/) > [Working on an adaptation is not as satisfying, because it's not your original work: you're interpreting. With 'L.A. Confidential,' I loved the book. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-helgeland/working-on-an-adaptation-is-not-as-satisfying-because-it-s-not-your/) [Brian Helgeland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-helgeland/) ## More by Rawi Hage > [Books were always important. I have to thank my father, he filled my life with books. He didn't write but he always read. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/books-were-always-important-i-have-to-thank-my-father-he-filled-my/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [In cities it is useless to look at the stars or to describe them, worship them, or seek direction from them. When lost, one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/in-cities-it-is-useless-to-look-at-the-stars-or-to-describe-them/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“Poor Mary. They married her to Jesus, and Jesus is an asexual circumcised revolutionary. What future is there to be had in that scenario?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/poor-mary-they-married-her-to-jesus-and-jesus-is-an-asexual/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“Everyone loves a comedy, my dear. It is divine.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/everyone-loves-a-comedy-my-dear-it-is-divine/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“We are all the products and victims of our own upbringing, until we reflect, refuse, and rebel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/we-are-all-the-products-and-victims-of-our-own-upbringing-until-we/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“God created each one of us with a light inside. I’ve had sex with all kinds of people; every single person has a kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/god-created-each-one-of-us-with-a-light-inside-i-ve-had-sex-with-all/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“So long, I replied, may we all have one good flight before we rest among flowers and the orbits of hungry worms.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/so-long-i-replied-may-we-all-have-one-good-flight-before-we-rest/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“Everything about her seems to be saying, Listen, if you don’t look attentively, if you don’t go beyond my simplicity to detect the simmering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/everything-about-her-seems-to-be-saying-listen-if-you-don-t-look/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“The moon should be colonised, I thought. Mankind should seek a happier beginning, and humans should be free to stroll hand in hand regardless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/the-moon-should-be-colonised-i-thought-mankind-should-seek-a-happier/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“What the fuck is legal in this universe? Stars eat each other, wolves eat the pigs, and Grandma fucks over Little Red Riding Hood.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/what-the-fuck-is-legal-in-this-universe-stars-eat-each-other-wolves/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“Miller is overrated. Ninety percent of his writing is incomprehensible, and incantation of the word cunt does not make you a sexual liberator.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/miller-is-overrated-ninety-percent-of-his-writing-is-incomprehensible/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“This lesser world is all about reproduction, as you might well know. Those who cease to duplicate simply die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/this-lesser-world-is-all-about-reproduction-as-you-might-well-know/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“The visual and the popular are essential.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/the-visual-and-the-popular-are-essential/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [There is nothing like the cure of fresh air for cases of bladder infection, paranoia, and Cartesian thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/there-is-nothing-like-the-cure-of-fresh-air-for-cases-of-bladder/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [“And when Rambo whispered to me, assuring me of my nearest death, I was relieved at my parents' absence, for my death like all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/and-when-rambo-whispered-to-me-assuring-me-of-my-nearest-death-i-was/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) [Explore all 35 Rawi Hage quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) ## More Fiction quotes > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) Phil Hogan > [The thing about science fiction is that it's totally wide open. But it's wide open in a conditional way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavia-butler/the-thing-about-science-fiction-is-that-it-s-totally-wide-open-but-it/) [Octavia Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavia-butler/) > [I do think that theater is a great venue for science fiction, and not just adaptations but also original work. I also think some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-einhorn/i-do-think-that-theater-is-a-great-venue-for-science-fiction-and-not/) Edward Einhorn > [Fiction is a way of exploring possibilities present but undreamt of in the living of a single life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/fiction-is-a-way-of-exploring-possibilities-present-but-undreamt-of/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [I love writing fiction and can do it anywhere - I once even missed a flight because I was so engrossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prue-leith/i-love-writing-fiction-and-can-do-it-anywhere-i-once-even-missed-a/) [Prue Leith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prue-leith/) > [“The fiction will seek the real.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coheed-and-cambria/the-fiction-will-seek-the-real/) Coheed and Cambria > [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [The danger that may really threaten (crime fiction) is that soon there will be more writers than readers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/the-danger-that-may-really-threaten-crime-fiction-is-that-soon-there/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [There's always that discussion about fiction about how do you market it - these are books for boys, these are books for girls, these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-a-weatherly/there-s-always-that-discussion-about-fiction-about-how-do-you-market/) [L.A. Weatherly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-a-weatherly/) > [Inspiration comes from so many sources. Music, other fiction, the non-fiction I read, TV shows, films, news reports, people I know, stories I hear,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trudi-canavan/inspiration-comes-from-so-many-sources-music-other-fiction-the-non/) [Trudi Canavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trudi-canavan/) > [I'm not interested in making a diagnostic novel or a concern. I'm 100 percent committed in fiction to the pleasure principle - that's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/i-m-not-interested-in-making-a-diagnostic-novel-or-a-concern-i-m-100/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [“His hands on my waist he gently pulled me n embrace. I could feel his breath on my face our lips were about to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-eglinger/his-hands-on-my-waist-he-gently-pulled-me-n-embrace-i-could-feel-his/) [Nicole Eglinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-eglinger/) > [In early drafts, one of the trickiest things for me to do was to realize that the techniques and devices that make readable and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/in-early-drafts-one-of-the-trickiest-things-for-me-to-do-was-to/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [I don't think it's always a sign of respect for persons (inside or outside of fiction) to pretend to be able to represent, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-lerner/i-don-t-think-it-s-always-a-sign-of-respect-for-persons-inside-or/) [Ben Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-lerner/) > [Metafiction says something. It has to do with taking a large fiction itself and writing within it; that kind of self-reflecting writing that emerges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-coover/metafiction-says-something-it-has-to-do-with-taking-a-large-fiction/) [Robert Coover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-coover/) [Browse all 7,410 Fiction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Fiction is overrated, Fly. We’ve discussed this. In the time it takes those novelist fuckers to contemplate a few poetic passages, a thousand kids die from malnutrition. 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