--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The human eyelid is not teartight…" description: "\"The human eyelid is not teartight (happily for the human eye).\" — Samuel Beckett" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26d/samuel-beckett-365_eye_the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happil_420170.png" --- # The human eyelid is not teartight (happily for the human… ![“The human eyelid is not teartight (happily for the human eye).” quote by Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26d/samuel-beckett-365_eye_the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happil_420170.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26d/samuel-beckett-365_eye_the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happil_420170.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26d/samuel-beckett-365_eye_the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happil_420170.png) > “The human eyelid is not teartight (happily for the human eye).” [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The eyelid protects the eye, yet it is not tightly sealed, allowing brief glimpses of the world. **In simple terms:** Eyelids open and close, not fully shut. Key Takeaway Appreciate brief moments of awareness. Themes perception vulnerability awareness Mood contemplative reflective Type philosophical observational When to use this quote - daily routines - mindfulness - observing details Key Concepts human anatomy psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do brief pauses affect your perception? - What does openness mean to you? A Different Perspective The metaphor may be stretched beyond literal physiology. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Sorrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sorrow/) [Tears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tears/) ## Related quotes > [Let's face it, the human eye is clumsy, sloppy, and unintelligible when compared to the camera's eye.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-smithson/let-s-face-it-the-human-eye-is-clumsy-sloppy-and-unintelligible-when/) [Robert Smithson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-smithson/) > [What the human eye sees is an illusion of what is real. The black and white image transforms illusions into another reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-bernhard/what-the-human-eye-sees-is-an-illusion-of-what-is-real-the-black-and/) [Ruth Bernhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-bernhard/) > [Perhaps most intriguing of all is that it is possible to photograph what is impossible for the human eye to see - cumulative time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-kenna/perhaps-most-intriguing-of-all-is-that-it-is-possible-to-photograph/) [Michael Kenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-kenna/) > [Let me look into a human eye; it is better than to gaze into sea or sky; better than to gaze upon God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/let-me-look-into-a-human-eye-it-is-better-than-to-gaze-into-sea-or/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [What the human eye observes casually and incuriously, the eye of the camera (the lens) notes with relentless fidelity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/berenice-abbott/what-the-human-eye-observes-casually-and-incuriously-the-eye-of-the-2/) [Berenice Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/berenice-abbott/) > [All we did was to turn back the time to a photography of precision which is superior to the human eye.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernd-becher/all-we-did-was-to-turn-back-the-time-to-a-photography-of-precision/) [Bernd Becher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernd-becher/) > [Photography works upon the human eye: what is seen is reflected in the brain without the need for complicated thought. In this way the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willi-munzenberg/photography-works-upon-the-human-eye-what-is-seen-is-reflected-in-the/) Willi Munzenberg > [The painting of tomorrow will use the photographic eye as it has used the human eye.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-aragon/the-painting-of-tomorrow-will-use-the-photographic-eye-as-it-has-used/) [Louis Aragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-aragon/) > [Your house shall be not an anchor but a mast It shall not be a glistening film that covers a wound, but an eyelid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/your-house-shall-be-not-an-anchor-but-a-mast-it-shall-not-be-a/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [“Did you doze off there?” He shook my hand. “Uh, no. I was just tryin’ to rub somethin’ off the back of my eyelid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wong/did-you-doze-off-there-he-shook-my-hand-uh-no-i-was-just-tryin-to-rub/) [David Wong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wong/) > [I exercise every morning without fail. One eyelid goes up and the other follows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-postlethwaite/i-exercise-every-morning-without-fail-one-eyelid-goes-up-and-the/) [Pete Postlethwaite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-postlethwaite/) > [My eyes are green, and in one of them there is a splash of brown - apparently it is not a colour, but a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-wakeman/my-eyes-are-green-and-in-one-of-them-there-is-a-splash-of-brown/) [Rick Wakeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-wakeman/) > [“It shall not be a glistening film that covers a wound, but an eyelid that guards the eye.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/it-shall-not-be-a-glistening-film-that-covers-a-wound-but-an-eyelid/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [The line between life and death is not thicker than an eyelid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eiji-yoshikawa/the-line-between-life-and-death-is-not-thicker-than-an-eyelid/) [Eiji Yoshikawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eiji-yoshikawa/) > [It kind of amazes me that putting a black line on my eyelid, can make me feel better about myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/strawberry/it-kind-of-amazes-me-that-putting-a-black-line-on-my-eyelid-can-make/) [Strawberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/strawberry/) ## More by Samuel Beckett > [“It was December, I had never felt so cold, the eel soup lay heavy on my stomach, I was afraid I'd die, I turned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/it-was-december-i-had-never-felt-so-cold-the-eel-soup-lay-heavy-on-my/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“To be always what I am - and so changed from what I was.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/to-be-always-what-i-am-and-so-changed-from-what-i-was/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [To what will love not stoop!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/to-what-will-love-not-stoop/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [With all this darkness round me I feel less alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/with-all-this-darkness-round-me-i-feel-less-alone/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“You may say it is all in my head, and indeed sometimes it seems to me I am in a head and that these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/you-may-say-it-is-all-in-my-head-and-indeed-sometimes-it-seems-to-me/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“Here he stood. Here he sat. Here he knelt. Here he lay. Here he moved, to and fro, from the door to the window,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/here-he-stood-here-he-sat-here-he-knelt-here-he-lay-here-he-moved-to/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [What are we doing here, that is the question. And we are blessed in this, that we happen to know the answer. Yes, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/what-are-we-doing-here-that-is-the-question-and-we-are-blessed-in/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [I shall state silences more competently than ever a better man spangled the butterflies of vertigo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/i-shall-state-silences-more-competently-than-ever-a-better-man/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [It is useless not to seek, not to want, for when you cease to seek you start to find, and when you cease to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/it-is-useless-not-to-seek-not-to-want-for-when-you-cease-to-seek-you/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [We are not saints, but we have kept our appointment. How many people can boast as much?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/we-are-not-saints-but-we-have-kept-our-appointment-how-many-people/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [The new light above my table is a great improvement. With all this darkness around me I feel less alone. (Pause.) In a way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/the-new-light-above-my-table-is-a-great-improvement-with-all-this/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [I lay down across her with my face in her breasts and my hand on her. We lay there without moving. But under us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/i-lay-down-across-her-with-my-face-in-her-breasts-and-my-hand-on-her/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [Women are all the bloody sameyou can't love for five minutes without wanting it abolished in brats and house bloody wifery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/women-are-all-the-bloody-sameyou-can-t-love-for-five-minutes-without/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“ESTRAGON: Do you think God sees me? VLADIMIR: You must close your eyes. Estragon closes his eyes, staggers worse. ESTRAGON: (stopping, brandishing his fists,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/estragon-do-you-think-god-sees-me-vladimir-you-must-close-your-eyes/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [Deplorable mania, when something happens, to inquire what.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/deplorable-mania-when-something-happens-to-inquire-what/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) [Explore all 609 Samuel Beckett quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) ## More Eye quotes > [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/) [Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/) > [If you take your eye off the ball or lose focus for even a minute you can lose a game against any team.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-anderson/if-you-take-your-eye-off-the-ball-or-lose-focus-for-even-a-minute-you/) [Felipe Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-anderson/) > [“He blinked. His eyes fell as he processed her response. Then he lifted his chin and attempted a grin that was almost painfully dejected.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marissa-meyer/he-blinked-his-eyes-fell-as-he-processed-her-response-then-he-lifted/) [Marissa Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marissa-meyer/) > [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/) [Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/) > [I wrote when I was a young teen, but I didn't put an eye on the available markets until I was seventeen. The next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reed/i-wrote-when-i-was-a-young-teen-but-i-didn-t-put-an-eye-on-the/) [Robert Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reed/) > [Changes before your eyes, things you can do and things you can't. My attitude is always let it keep rolling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-malick/changes-before-your-eyes-things-you-can-do-and-things-you-can-t-my/) [Terrence Malick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrence-malick/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) > [Quotations can be valuable, like raisins in the rice pudding, for adding iron as well as eye appeal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peg-bracken/quotations-can-be-valuable-like-raisins-in-the-rice-pudding-for/) [Peg Bracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peg-bracken/) > [Clearly, when we baptize, our eyes should gaze beyond the baptismal font to the holy temple. The great garner into which the sheaves should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/clearly-when-we-baptize-our-eyes-should-gaze-beyond-the-baptismal/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [At the end of night, before you close your eyes, be content with what you've done and be proud of who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-almond/at-the-end-of-night-before-you-close-your-eyes-be-content-with-what/) [Steve Almond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-almond/) > [Be neither too early in the fashion, nor too long out of it, nor too precisely in it; what custom hath civilized is become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-quarles/be-neither-too-early-in-the-fashion-nor-too-long-out-of-it-nor-too/) [Francis Quarles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-quarles/) > [It lies around us like a cloud- A world we do not see; Yet the sweet closing of an eye May bring us there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-beecher-stowe/it-lies-around-us-like-a-cloud-a-world-we-do-not-see-yet-the-sweet/) [Harriet Beecher Stowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-beecher-stowe/) > [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [She'd read once that if you ran into a bear in the woods you should avoid eye contact and you shouldn't run away, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-ursu/she-d-read-once-that-if-you-ran-into-a-bear-in-the-woods-you-should/) [Anne Ursu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-ursu/) > [Liesel observed the strangeness of her foster father's eyes. They were made of kindness, and silver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/liesel-observed-the-strangeness-of-her-foster-father-s-eyes-they-were/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) Browse all 16,237 Eye quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The human eyelid is not teartight (happily for the human eye).", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Samuel Beckett" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happily-for-the-human-eye/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Eye" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happily-for-the-human-eye/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26d/samuel-beckett-365_eye_the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happil_420170.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26d/samuel-beckett-365_eye_the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happil_420170.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26d/samuel-beckett-365_eye_the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happil_420170.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The human eyelid is not teartight (happily for the human eye).” — Samuel Beckett", "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": "Samuel Beckett", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The human eyelid is not teartight...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happily-for-the-human-eye/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/the-human-eyelid-is-not-teartight-happily-for-the-human-eye/#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 } } ] } ```