--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Life is an enigma. We have to approach it…" description: "\"“Life is an enigma. We have to approach it not scientifically but poetically.”\" — Ronald Frame" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/ronald-frame-16363_enigma_life-is-an-enigma-we-have-to-approach-it_2255560.jpg" --- # Life is an enigma. We have to approach it not… ![“Life is an enigma. We have to approach it not scientifically but poetically.” quote by Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/ronald-frame-16363_enigma_life-is-an-enigma-we-have-to-approach-it_2255560.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/ronald-frame-16363_enigma_life-is-an-enigma-we-have-to-approach-it_2255560.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23b/ronald-frame-16363_enigma_life-is-an-enigma-we-have-to-approach-it_2255560.jpg) > ““Life is an enigma. We have to approach it not scientifically but poetically.”” [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life requires imagination and feeling rather than only data analysis. **In simple terms:** Approach life with creativity, not just facts. Key Takeaway Embrace poetic perspective. Themes creativity philosophy perception Mood reflective inquisitive Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - art criticism - personal growth - decision making Key Concepts existentialism subjectivity Questions to Reflect On - How does poetry change your understanding of reality? - When is scientific method insufficient? A Different Perspective Poetic view may lack empirical rigor. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Enigma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enigma/) [Enigma Approach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enigma-approach-1024893/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Enigma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-enigma-1024891/) [Poetically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetically-667198/) [Scientifically Poetically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientifically-poetically-1024892/) ## Related quotes > [“Life is an enigma. We have to approach it not 'just' scientifically, but poetically. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/life-is-an-enigma-we-have-to-approach-it-not-just-scientifically-but/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [I have never thought of my life as being an enigma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-clinton/i-have-never-thought-of-my-life-as-being-an-enigma/) [Chelsea Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-clinton/) > [Ma vie est une énigme dont ton nom est le mot. (My life is an enigma, of which your name is the word.)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/ma-vie-est-une-nigme-dont-ton-nom-est-le-mot-my-life-is-an-enigma-of/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Life is an enigma, we'll never know what will happen. It's like a big cinema, so many glow but sometimes frighten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniya/life-is-an-enigma-we-ll-never-know-what-will-happen-it-s-like-a-big/) [Daniya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniya/) > [A poet must never make a statement simply because it is sounds poetically exciting; he must also believe it to be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/a-poet-must-never-make-a-statement-simply-because-it-is-sounds/) [W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/) > [For some reason focusing on destruction and mortality is more poetically exciting to me than hope and love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-elvrum/for-some-reason-focusing-on-destruction-and-mortality-is-more/) [Phil Elvrum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-elvrum/) > [We can’t say why we search, except that there seems to be an innate need, in each human being, to know who one is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-segal/we-can-t-say-why-we-search-except-that-there-seems-to-be-an-innate/) [William Segal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-segal/) > [I cannot write poetically, for I am no poet. I cannot make fine artistic phrases that cast light and shadow, for I am no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/i-cannot-write-poetically-for-i-am-no-poet-i-cannot-make-fine/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [“His hands cup my face as if he’s claiming me, saying you’re mine with his lips and his hands and the way he draws…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-blakely/his-hands-cup-my-face-as-if-he-s-claiming-me-saying-you-re-mine-with/) [Lauren Blakely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-blakely/) > [It was as important to live poetically as to write poems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-broughton/it-was-as-important-to-live-poetically-as-to-write-poems/) [James Broughton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-broughton/) > [I am a poet, and I speak poetically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krs-one/i-am-a-poet-and-i-speak-poetically/) [KRS-One](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krs-one/) > [Love is never finished expressing itself, and it expresses itself better the more poetically it is dreamed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaston-bachelard/love-is-never-finished-expressing-itself-and-it-expresses-itself/) [Gaston Bachelard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaston-bachelard/) > [Everything I do has to be poetically done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raheem-devaughn/everything-i-do-has-to-be-poetically-done/) [Raheem DeVaughn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raheem-devaughn/) > [“You two should get some help. You're poetically disadvantaged.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kierin-meehan/you-two-should-get-some-help-you-re-poetically-disadvantaged/) [Kierin Meehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kierin-meehan/) > [Intrigued by that enigma, he dug so deeply into her sentiments that in search of interest he found love, because by trying to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/intrigued-by-that-enigma-he-dug-so-deeply-into-her-sentiments-that-in/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) ## More by Ronald Frame > [I've actually got quite a good memory. I've good recall. It's often things which other people might not notice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/i-ve-actually-got-quite-a-good-memory-i-ve-good-recall-it-s-often/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [As a writer, you need a strong sense of self-belief. And when it comes to writing, I've always had that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/as-a-writer-you-need-a-strong-sense-of-self-belief-and-when-it-comes/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [What appears on the page comes out of your experience, and no-one is going to see it in quite the same way - so,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/what-appears-on-the-page-comes-out-of-your-experience-and-no-one-is/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [I can remember somebody once saying to me that they thought my life must be less real than these other people that they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/i-can-remember-somebody-once-saying-to-me-that-they-thought-my-life/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [I think if you study people in the street today, you do sometimes feel that they have taken their behavior and their language from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/i-think-if-you-study-people-in-the-street-today-you-do-sometimes-feel/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [“Some things belong to the past.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/some-things-belong-to-the-past/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [“You care for empresses and queens?” I asked him. “No. For tragic heroines.” “Why them?” “Suffering and courageous women who deserve their own immortality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/you-care-for-empresses-and-queens-i-asked-him-no-for-tragic-heroines/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [“Experience can never be undone, or knowledge unlearned.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/experience-can-never-be-undone-or-knowledge-unlearned/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [“That’s what friends are for,” Sheba said. “I don’t know what they’re for,” I told her. “So that we don’t get out of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/that-s-what-friends-are-for-sheba-said-i-don-t-know-what-they-re-for/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [As a little boy, I apparently had a predilection for undoing latch gates, running up pathways and ringing doorbells - and then running off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/as-a-little-boy-i-apparently-had-a-predilection-for-undoing-latch/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [“A woman can only satisfy and fulfil herself, I understood, when she establishes her own authority, and see beyond equality, realising how terrible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/a-woman-can-only-satisfy-and-fulfil-herself-i-understood-when-she/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [“I’m not just a face, or a body. I’m a Havisham.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/i-m-not-just-a-face-or-a-body-i-m-a-havisham/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > ['Ghost City' began as a idea. I felt that I hadn't read or heard a great deal about the sort of life that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/ghost-city-began-as-a-idea-i-felt-that-i-hadn-t-read-or-heard-a-great/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [“Martin suggests, let's see Chartres on the way back. The cathedral with its bleached stone and green roofs is visible across miles of flat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/martin-suggests-let-s-see-chartres-on-the-way-back-the-cathedral-with/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [When I was younger, when I was at school, I did read a lot of fiction. I think as you get older perhaps you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/when-i-was-younger-when-i-was-at-school-i-did-read-a-lot-of-fiction-i/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) [Explore all 40 Ronald Frame quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) ## More Enigma quotes > [Intrigued by that enigma, he dug so deeply into her sentiments that in search of interest he found love, because by trying to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/intrigued-by-that-enigma-he-dug-so-deeply-into-her-sentiments-that-in/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [We are very wrong to think that some fault or other can exclude virtue, or to consider the alliance of good and evil as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-de-clapiers/we-are-very-wrong-to-think-that-some-fault-or-other-can-exclude/) [Luc de Clapiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-de-clapiers/) > [There is a ... matter - much more valuable and divine than natural philosophy . ... On this matter I must speak to you in enigmas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/there-is-a-matter-much-more-valuable-and-divine-than-natural/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [I'm tired of being this solemn poet of the masses, the enigma shrouded in a mystery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-stipe/i-m-tired-of-being-this-solemn-poet-of-the-masses-the-enigma-shrouded/) [Michael Stipe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-stipe/) > [It may well be doubted whether human ingenuity can construct an enigma... which human ingenuity may not, by proper application, resolve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/it-may-well-be-doubted-whether-human-ingenuity-can-construct-an/) [Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/) > [The definitive resolution of the UFO enigma will not come about unless and until the problem is subjected to open and extensive scientific study…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-a-sturrock/the-definitive-resolution-of-the-ufo-enigma-will-not-come-about/) [Peter A. Sturrock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-a-sturrock/) > [I love being an enigma. Every time I'm tempted to respond to someone who tries to put me in a box, politically - you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-paisley/i-love-being-an-enigma-every-time-i-m-tempted-to-respond-to-someone/) [Brad Paisley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-paisley/) > [A stunning survey of the latest evidence for intelligent life on Mars. Mac Tonnies brings a thoughtful, balanced and highly accessible approach to one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbie-brennan/a-stunning-survey-of-the-latest-evidence-for-intelligent-life-on-mars/) [Herbie Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbie-brennan/) > [In Náhuatl, the language of the Aztec world, one key word for poet was 'tlamatine,' meaning 'the one who knows,' or 'he who knows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/in-n-huatl-the-language-of-the-aztec-world-one-key-word-for-poet-was/) [Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/) > [“KAR-MA-GIC The stock solution for every enigma”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamil-ali/kar-ma-gic-the-stock-solution-for-every-enigma/) [Kamil Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamil-ali/) > [Watching a coast as it slips by the ship is like thinking about an enigma. There it is before you, smiling, frowning, inviting, grand,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/watching-a-coast-as-it-slips-by-the-ship-is-like-thinking-about-an/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [“The "Garcilaso" mentioned by Markham is the chronicler Garcilaso Inca de la Vega, the son of a Spanish conquistador and an Inca princess, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-hancock/the-garcilaso-mentioned-by-markham-is-the-chronicler-garcilaso-inca/) [Graham Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-hancock/) > [If we understood the enigmas of life there would be no need for art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/if-we-understood-the-enigmas-of-life-there-would-be-no-need-for-art/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [The abstraction, ostensibly, is simply for me the penetration of something that is more profound in many ways than rigidity of a form. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beauford-delaney/the-abstraction-ostensibly-is-simply-for-me-the-penetration-of/) [Beauford Delaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beauford-delaney/) > [Here life goes on, even and monotonous on the surface, full of lightning, of summits and of despair, in its depths. We have now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/here-life-goes-on-even-and-monotonous-on-the-surface-full-of/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) [Browse all 165 Enigma quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enigma/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Life is an enigma. 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