Smoking Quote by Robert Penn Warren
““I'd be (...) lying there on my back with my clothes on and looking up at the ceiling and watching the cigarette smoke flow up slow and splash against the ceiling like the upside-down slow-motion moving picture of the ghost of a waterfall or like the pale uncertain spirit rising up out of your mouth on the last exhalation, the way the Egyptians figured it, to leave the horizontal tenement of clay in its ill-fitting pants and vest.””
About This Quote
Source Short story: “The Man Who Was Almost a Man” (excerpt), 1940
Observing smoke becomes a metaphor for fleeting thoughts and the desire to escape ordinary constraints, likened to ancient myths of transformation.
In simple terms: Smoke symbolizes fleeting ideas and yearning for change.
Key Takeaway
Embrace the moment’s transience.
Themes
observation
smoke
transformation
myth
escape
Mood
contemplative
introspective
Type
literary
philosophical
When to use this quote
- writing
- mindfulness
- artistic inspiration
Key Concepts
metaphor
existentialism
creative imagination
Questions to Reflect On
- What does the smoke represent for you?
- How do you confront ordinary limits?
A Different Perspective
Interpretations may vary, risking over‑analysis.
![“I guarantee you [Hillary Clinton] is smoking in humiliation over the idea that she needs to heal and that [Donald] Trump's the guy to do it. That was great.” quote by Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/702/rush-limbaugh-28_clinton_i-guarantee-you-hillary-clinton-is-smoki_4403.jpg)
![“[A]nd soon now we shall go out of the house and go into the convulsion of the world, out of history into history and the awful responsibility of Time.” quote by Robert Penn Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/857/robert-penn-warren-2118_awful_a-nd-soon-now-we-shall-go-out-of-the-hou_158285.jpg)
