--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Through traditional realism, the comics…" description: "\"“Through traditional realism, the comics artist can portray the world without-- --and through the cartoon, the world within.”\" — Scott McCloud" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/scott-mccloud-15046_art_through-traditional-realism-the-comics-a_2560296.jpg" --- # Through traditional realism, the comics artist can portray… ![“Through traditional realism, the comics artist can portray the world without-- --and through the cartoon, the world within.” quote by Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/scott-mccloud-15046_art_through-traditional-realism-the-comics-a_2560296.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/scott-mccloud-15046_art_through-traditional-realism-the-comics-a_2560296.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/scott-mccloud-15046_art_through-traditional-realism-the-comics-a_2560296.jpg) > ““Through traditional realism, the comics artist can portray the world without-- --and through the cartoon, the world within.”” [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Cartoon art reveals inner worlds, realism shows outer reality. **In simple terms:** Cartoons explore inner life; realism shows external. Key Takeaway Balance both perspectives. Themes art perception creativity Mood analytical creative Type philosophical artistic When to use this quote - graphic design - education - therapy - media analysis Key Concepts visual storytelling psychology metaphor Questions to Reflect On - How do cartoons shape inner thought? - When is realism essential? A Different Perspective May oversimplify complex realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist Portray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist-portray-1598377/) [Cartoon World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cartoon-world-1139830/) [Comic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic/) [Comics Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comics-artist-1598376/) [Realism Comics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realism-comics-1598374/) [Traditional Realism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traditional-realism-1598375/) ## Related quotes > [The literary artist will ... portray what he knows, and little else. 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It's not because the artist "felt like it" or is a guru who channels the truth of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-mouly/the-artists-catch-what-s-in-the-air-it-s-not-because-the-artist-felt/) [Francoise Mouly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-mouly/) > [The fine-art world knows very little about the cartoon world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-crumb/the-fine-art-world-knows-very-little-about-the-cartoon-world/) [Robert Crumb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-crumb/) > [FOAM OF THE DAZE is a novel like no other, a sexy, innocent, smart and sweet cartoon of a world which then begins, little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-krusoe/foam-of-the-daze-is-a-novel-like-no-other-a-sexy-innocent-smart-and/) [Jim Krusoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-krusoe/) > [The cartoon me writes the books cartoon people read in the cartoon world, because they need things to read there too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/the-cartoon-me-writes-the-books-cartoon-people-read-in-the-cartoon/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I grew up with Thundercats and She-Ra: Princess Of Power. That was sort of my take on fantasy: the women after-school cartoon world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milla-jovovich/i-grew-up-with-thundercats-and-she-ra-princess-of-power-that-was-sort/) [Milla Jovovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milla-jovovich/) > [Like a cartoon world, where the figures are flat and outlined in black, jerking through some kind of goofy story that might be real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-kesey/like-a-cartoon-world-where-the-figures-are-flat-and-outlined-in-black/) [Ken Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-kesey/) > [There's more flexibility in the cartoon world than there is in video games. In video games, if I tweak a line, I could screw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-hale/there-s-more-flexibility-in-the-cartoon-world-than-there-is-in-video/) [Jennifer Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-hale/) > [I had a lot of ideas on how comics worked and pretty early on I had this idea that it would be fun to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/i-had-a-lot-of-ideas-on-how-comics-worked-and-pretty-early-on-i-had/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [There's a very big part of me that just wants to take all of comics history and toss it on the bonfire. I'd sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/there-s-a-very-big-part-of-me-that-just-wants-to-take-all-of-comics/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [It would take a lifetime to read all the webcomics published in one year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/it-would-take-a-lifetime-to-read-all-the-webcomics-published-in-one/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [One of the key characteristics of the comic book medium is that it is not brought to life by just one voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lee/one-of-the-key-characteristics-of-the-comic-book-medium-is-that-it-is/) [Jim Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lee/) > [I always loved as a kid reading 'Spider-Man,' and the 'Fantastic Four' would show up... it was all about that larger universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peyton-reed/i-always-loved-as-a-kid-reading-spider-man-and-the-fantastic-four/) [Peyton Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peyton-reed/) > [Any incarnation of 'Batman' I am delighted to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-west/any-incarnation-of-batman-i-am-delighted-to-do/) [Adam West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-west/) ## More by Scott McCloud > [It would take a lifetime to read all the webcomics published in one year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/it-would-take-a-lifetime-to-read-all-the-webcomics-published-in-one/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [“...when you look at a photo or realistic drawing of a face, you see it as the face of another . But when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/when-you-look-at-a-photo-or-realistic-drawing-of-a-face-you-see-it-as/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [By stripping down an image to essential meaning, an artist can simplify that meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/by-stripping-down-an-image-to-essential-meaning-an-artist-can/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [There's a very big part of me that just wants to take all of comics history and toss it on the bonfire. I'd sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/there-s-a-very-big-part-of-me-that-just-wants-to-take-all-of-comics/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [I had a lot of ideas on how comics worked and pretty early on I had this idea that it would be fun to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/i-had-a-lot-of-ideas-on-how-comics-worked-and-pretty-early-on-i-had/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [All through my comics career, I was always trying to reinvent the form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/all-through-my-comics-career-i-was-always-trying-to-reinvent-the-form/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [My first influences were superhero artists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/my-first-influences-were-superhero-artists/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [The notion of getting under the hood and explaining how something works, that's fairly familiar territory to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/the-notion-of-getting-under-the-hood-and-explaining-how-something/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [I don't think the potential for comics in nonfiction has been exploited nearly as much as it could be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/i-don-t-think-the-potential-for-comics-in-nonfiction-has-been/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [Webcomics are much bigger than any one scene can circumscribe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/webcomics-are-much-bigger-than-any-one-scene-can-circumscribe/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [A medium is a bridge between two minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/a-medium-is-a-bridge-between-two-minds/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [If you just write the kinds of stories you think others will want to read, you'll be competing with cartoonists who are far more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/if-you-just-write-the-kinds-of-stories-you-think-others-will-want-to/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [Today, comics is one of the very few forms of mass communication in which individual voices still have a chance to be heard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/today-comics-is-one-of-the-very-few-forms-of-mass-communication-in/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [“I may have drawn an axe being raised in this example, but I'm not the one who let it drop or decided how hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/i-may-have-drawn-an-axe-being-raised-in-this-example-but-i-m-not-the/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [My dad was an engineer and so I had this picture of science and technology and pursuits of the mind as being more impressive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/my-dad-was-an-engineer-and-so-i-had-this-picture-of-science-and/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) [Explore all 44 Scott McCloud quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Through traditional realism, the comics artist can portray the world without-- --and through the cartoon, the world within.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Scott McCloud" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/through-traditional-realism-the-comics-artist-can-portray-the-world/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/through-traditional-realism-the-comics-artist-can-portray-the-world/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/scott-mccloud-15046_art_through-traditional-realism-the-comics-a_2560296.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/scott-mccloud-15046_art_through-traditional-realism-the-comics-a_2560296.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/scott-mccloud-15046_art_through-traditional-realism-the-comics-a_2560296.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Through traditional realism, the comics artist can portray the world without-- --and through the cartoon…” — Scott McCloud", "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": "Scott McCloud", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Through traditional realism, the comics artist...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/through-traditional-realism-the-comics-artist-can-portray-the-world/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/through-traditional-realism-the-comics-artist-can-portray-the-world/#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 } } ] } ```