--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [Jorge Luis Borges] had short stories…" description: "\"[Jorge Luis Borges] had short stories, and I was trying to learn how to write short stories, and then he had these things in the middle that were like ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/sandra-cisneros-862_borges_jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and_102630.png" --- # \[Jorge Luis Borges\] had short stories, and I was trying to… ![“[Jorge Luis Borges] had short stories, and I was trying to learn how to write short stories, and then he had these things in the middle that were like fables, and I loved hearing fables.” quote by Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/sandra-cisneros-862_borges_jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and_102630.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/sandra-cisneros-862_borges_jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and_102630.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/sandra-cisneros-862_borges_jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and_102630.png) > “\[Jorge Luis Borges\] had short stories, and I was trying to learn how to write short stories, and then he had these things in the middle that were like fables, and I loved hearing fables.” [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Borges blended narrative with fable‑like interludes, inspiring the speaker to appreciate the moral and imaginative power of such hybrid storytelling. **In simple terms:** Borges mixed stories with fables, sparking admiration. Key Takeaway Hybrid forms enrich narrative depth. Themes literature storytelling creativity Mood inspired curious Type reflection appreciation When to use this quote - writing workshops - literary analysis classes - creative reading groups Key Concepts intertextuality Practical Applications - experiment with inserting allegorical sections into prose - study fable structures for thematic layering Questions to Reflect On - What does a fable add to a short story? - How can genre blending affect pacing? A Different Perspective Mixing styles can confuse readers expecting a single genre. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fables](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fables/) [Short stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-stories/) [Short story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/short-story/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [ There \[DreamTigers by Jorge Luis Borges\] were these little fablesque things, you know, dream tigers, beautiful, beautiful pieces that when you read them had… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/there-dreamtigers-by-jorge-luis-borges-were-these-little-fablesque/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [Those of us who thought Jorge Luis Borges was a pioneer of magical realism were mistaken; he was a pioneer of science fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/those-of-us-who-thought-jorge-luis-borges-was-a-pioneer-of-magical/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [“Centuries of centuries and only in the present do things happen. —JORGE LUIS BORGES”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/centuries-of-centuries-and-only-in-the-present-do-things-happen-jorge/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I read Borges, Jorge Luis Borges. He think he too good for me, but I love him . . . he was a blind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheridan-hay/i-read-borges-jorge-luis-borges-he-think-he-too-good-for-me-but-i/) [Sheridan Hay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheridan-hay/) > [My biggest superhero of writing is Jorge Luis Borges, the Argentine fabulist. He's an amazingly perceptive writer, but also willing to make a joke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hodgman/my-biggest-superhero-of-writing-is-jorge-luis-borges-the-argentine/) [John Hodgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hodgman/) > [Jorge Luis Borges had the soapbox and the authority to complain about this myopic understanding of the duty of Latin American writers, which sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-morris/jorge-luis-borges-had-the-soapbox-and-the-authority-to-complain-about/) [Adam Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-morris/) > [“The truth is that we all live by leaving behind. Borges. That was it. Jorge Luis Borges’s Funes the Memorious, a book about a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-hilary/the-truth-is-that-we-all-live-by-leaving-behind-borges-that-was-it/) [Sarah Hilary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-hilary/) > [I always read the Latin American writers. I love so many of them: Gabriel García Márquez, José Donoso, Alejo Carpentier, Jorge Luis Borges, Clarice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/porochista-khakpour/i-always-read-the-latin-american-writers-i-love-so-many-of-them/) [Porochista Khakpour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/porochista-khakpour/) > [I first got online in the late '80s when I was an eccentric teenager in suburban New Jersey, in a town mostly interested in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caterina-fake/i-first-got-online-in-the-late-80s-when-i-was-an-eccentric-teenager/) [Caterina Fake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caterina-fake/) > [Jorge Luis Borges wrote a poem when he was in his 80s about one day writing the book that would justify him. This was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodora-goss/jorge-luis-borges-wrote-a-poem-when-he-was-in-his-80s-about-one-day/) [Theodora Goss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodora-goss/) > [One of my favorite writers is short story writer/essayist Jorge Luis Borges, who was blind. I'm not claiming to be anything remotely resembling a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-howes/one-of-my-favorite-writers-is-short-story-writer-essayist-jorge-luis/) Larry Howes > [“Oh, Buenos Aires, I have traveled around the world, but I’ve never been separated from you,” said Argentine poet Jorge Luis Borges. And Saint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-jodorowsky/oh-buenos-aires-i-have-traveled-around-the-world-but-i-ve-never-been/) [Alejandro Jodorowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-jodorowsky/) > [ I remember I was very taken with a book called DreamTigers by \[Jorge Luis\] Borges. He was at the University of Texas, Austin, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/i-remember-i-was-very-taken-with-a-book-called-dreamtigers-by-jorge/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [“Suggestions for further reading Karen Armstrong, Jerusalem; Jorge Luis Borges, Ficciones; Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha; Deepak Chopra, God: A Story of Revelation; Kahlil Gibran, The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/suggestions-for-further-reading-karen-armstrong-jerusalem-jorge-luis/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [ I would say that Edgar Allan Poe, \[Georges\] Perec, Thomas Pynchon, and \[Jorge Luis\] Borges are all boy-writers. These are writers who take... a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/i-would-say-that-edgar-allan-poe-georges-perec-thomas-pynchon-and/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) ## More by Sandra Cisneros > [We tend to think of orphans as being the protagonist of stories we read when we're kids, and yet here you are: you're an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/we-tend-to-think-of-orphans-as-being-the-protagonist-of-stories-we/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [I'm learning a lot by reading teachers like Thich Nhat Hanh, Pema Chodron. They teach me because I feel like I have a responsibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/i-m-learning-a-lot-by-reading-teachers-like-thich-nhat-hanh-pema/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [I never know what something is going to be until it emerges from the womb and you see the crown of its head and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/i-never-know-what-something-is-going-to-be-until-it-emerges-from-the/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [Believe it or not, Mexican cooking, for those of you who have not gone farther south than Taco Bell, uses a lot of vegetables.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/believe-it-or-not-mexican-cooking-for-those-of-you-who-have-not-gone/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [I feel that I can teach my listener about a new word they can use too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/i-feel-that-i-can-teach-my-listener-about-a-new-word-they-can-use-too/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [Now I feel life is really short and I have to take care of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/now-i-feel-life-is-really-short-and-i-have-to-take-care-of-things/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [To this day, on my cheat days from my diet, which are New Year's Eve and my birthday, I buy luxury foods that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/to-this-day-on-my-cheat-days-from-my-diet-which-are-new-year-s-eve/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [You can never have too much sky . You can fall asleep and wake up drunk on sky, and sky can keep you safe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/you-can-never-have-too-much-sky-you-can-fall-asleep-and-wake-up-drunk/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [I want to thank you, especially those people who are agnostic or atheist. I don't mean any offense by the things I said of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/i-want-to-thank-you-especially-those-people-who-are-agnostic-or/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [ We changed it to emocionó, the way you say in Spanish, "to emotion me" \[to be moved\]. That, as opposed to "haunt." We wanted… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/we-changed-it-to-emocion-the-way-you-say-in-spanish-to-emotion-me-to/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [When I'm starting to feel, "How many more people are there?" I go slower. I ask questions, and that person engaging with me gives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/when-i-m-starting-to-feel-how-many-more-people-are-there-i-go-slower/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [I've put up with too much, too long, and now I'm just too intelligent, too powerful, too beautiful, too sure of who I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/i-ve-put-up-with-too-much-too-long-and-now-i-m-just-too-intelligent/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [If we got an educational program going, we could tell people, "Instead of butter, use avocado." That's something we eat, it has the good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/if-we-got-an-educational-program-going-we-could-tell-people-instead/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [I always have to have sweet and salty. I know some of you are going to say, "Oh, I tried dates. I hate them."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/i-always-have-to-have-sweet-and-salty-i-know-some-of-you-are-going-to/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [If you live in poor neighborhoods - I know from living in several poor neighborhoods - the worst supermarkets in the city are in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/if-you-live-in-poor-neighborhoods-i-know-from-living-in-several-poor/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) [Explore all 347 Sandra Cisneros quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) ## More Borges quotes > [I'm educating myself more about world poetry. I know a lot about contemporary American poetry, so I felt I needed to learn more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-joseph/i-m-educating-myself-more-about-world-poetry-i-know-a-lot-about/) [Allison Joseph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-joseph/) > [ I would say that Edgar Allan Poe, \[Georges\] Perec, Thomas Pynchon, and \[Jorge Luis\] Borges are all boy-writers. These are writers who take... a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/i-would-say-that-edgar-allan-poe-georges-perec-thomas-pynchon-and/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [“As Borges has taught us, all the books in the library are contemporary. Great poems are like granaries: they are always ready to enlarge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-gass/as-borges-has-taught-us-all-the-books-in-the-library-are-contemporary/) [William H. Gass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-gass/) > [“Perhaps, as Borges concludes in his story, it is forgetting, not remembering, that is the essence of what makes us human.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-foer/perhaps-as-borges-concludes-in-his-story-it-is-forgetting-not/) [Joshua Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-foer/) > [“Oh, Buenos Aires, I have traveled around the world, but I’ve never been separated from you,” said Argentine poet Jorge Luis Borges. And Saint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-jodorowsky/oh-buenos-aires-i-have-traveled-around-the-world-but-i-ve-never-been/) [Alejandro Jodorowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-jodorowsky/) > [“Si me quieren buscar, búsquenme en los libros. No los lean, por favor, si no obtienen placer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/si-me-quieren-buscar-b-squenme-en-los-libros-no-los-lean-por-favor-si/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [Nazi Literature in the Americas, a wicked invented encyclopedia of imaginary fascist writers and literary tastemakers, is Bolaño playing with sharp, twisting knives. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-d-erasmo/nazi-literature-in-the-americas-a-wicked-invented-encyclopedia-of/) Stacey D'Erasmo > [“The hours I spent in this anachronistic, bibliophile, Anglophile retreat were in surreal contrast to the shrieking horror show that was being enacted in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-hours-i-spent-in-this-anachronistic-bibliophile-anglophile/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ “This book first arose out of a passage in \[Jorge Luis\] Borges, out of the laughter that shattered, as I read the passage, all… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/this-book-first-arose-out-of-a-passage-in-jorge-luis-borges-out-of/) [Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/) > [“Sanjala sam da sam J.L.Borges, koji je nekim čudom uskrsnuo, progledao, lupio se dlanom po čelu i brzo pretvorio u - Paula Coelha.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dubravka-ugre-i/sanjala-sam-da-sam-j-l-borges-koji-je-nekim-udom-uskrsnuo-progledao/) [Dubravka Ugrešić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dubravka-ugre-i/) > [One should read Borges more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-bola-o/one-should-read-borges-more/) [Roberto Bolano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-bola-o/) > [I was an eccentric teenager in suburban New Jersey, in a town mostly interested in sports, popularity, and clothes. A fan of Jorge Luis…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caterina-fake/i-was-an-eccentric-teenager-in-suburban-new-jersey-in-a-town-mostly/) [Caterina Fake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caterina-fake/) > [“Borges is particularly stimulating to a man who works in the cinema, because the unusual thing about his writing is that it is like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/federico-fellini/borges-is-particularly-stimulating-to-a-man-who-works-in-the-cinema/) [Federico Fellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/federico-fellini/) > [From Borges, those wonderful gaucho stories from which I learned that you can be specific as to a time and place and culture and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-wilson/from-borges-those-wonderful-gaucho-stories-from-which-i-learned-that/) [August Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-wilson/) > [One of my favorite writers is short story writer/essayist Jorge Luis Borges, who was blind. I'm not claiming to be anything remotely resembling a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-howes/one-of-my-favorite-writers-is-short-story-writer-essayist-jorge-luis/) Larry Howes Browse all 64 Borges quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "[Jorge Luis Borges] had short stories, and I was trying to learn how to write short stories, and then he had these things in the middle that were like fables, and I loved hearing fables.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sandra Cisneros" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and-i-was-trying-to-learn-how-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Borges" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and-i-was-trying-to-learn-how-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/sandra-cisneros-862_borges_jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and_102630.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/sandra-cisneros-862_borges_jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and_102630.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/sandra-cisneros-862_borges_jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and_102630.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“[Jorge Luis Borges] had short stories, and I was trying to learn how to write short stories, and then he had…” — Sandra Cisneros", "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": "Sandra Cisneros", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "[Jorge Luis Borges] had short stories,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and-i-was-trying-to-learn-how-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/jorge-luis-borges-had-short-stories-and-i-was-trying-to-learn-how-to/#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 } } ] } ```