--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I wouldn't characterize my work, however…" description: "\"I wouldn't characterize my work, however, as directly political.\" — Suzanne Vega" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9b/suzanne-vega-12807_characterize_i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however_3220392.jpg" --- # I wouldn't characterize my work, however, as directly… ![“I wouldn't characterize my work, however, as directly political.” quote by Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9b/suzanne-vega-12807_characterize_i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however_3220392.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9b/suzanne-vega-12807_characterize_i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however_3220392.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9b/suzanne-vega-12807_characterize_i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however_3220392.jpg) > “I wouldn't characterize my work, however, as directly political.” [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She distances her art from overt politics, suggesting a more personal or abstract approach. **In simple terms:** Her work isn’t overtly political. Key Takeaway Focus on art beyond politics. Themes art politics identity expression Mood reflective neutral Type philosophical informative When to use this quote - songwriting - public speaking - media interviews Key Concepts artist intent public perception Questions to Reflect On - Do you think art can be political unintentionally? - How do you define "directly political"? A Different Perspective Political themes may still be inferred by audiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Characterize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characterize/) [Characterize Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characterize-work-6052021/) [Directly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/directly/) [Directly Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/directly-political-4828982/) [However](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/however/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trump/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Work Directly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-directly-341832/) [Wouldn Characterize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wouldn-characterize-6052020/) ## Related quotes > [“You know longer work directly under her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-black/you-know-longer-work-directly-under-her/) [Lena Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-black/) > [Generally, it's not good to be engaged directly with the political system unless you are qualified. It's a very depressing business, the way politics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-yorke/generally-it-s-not-good-to-be-engaged-directly-with-the-political/) [Thom Yorke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-yorke/) > [All the brands that I work with I can call directly and talk to a CEO or somebody high up and have a regular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-kamara/all-the-brands-that-i-work-with-i-can-call-directly-and-talk-to-a-ceo/) [Alvin Kamara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-kamara/) > [Our work is directly proportional to the distances our dreams travel across.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/our-work-is-directly-proportional-to-the-distances-our-dreams-travel/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I would only hire someone to work directly for me if I was willing to work for that person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-zuckerberg/i-would-only-hire-someone-to-work-directly-for-me-if-i-was-willing-to/) [Mark Zuckerberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-zuckerberg/) > [I will only hire someone to work directly for me if I would work for that person. It's a pretty good test.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-zuckerberg/i-will-only-hire-someone-to-work-directly-for-me-if-i-would-work-for/) [Mark Zuckerberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-zuckerberg/) > [I don't tend to work directly from life, except in trying to mimic or match the outlines of its insanity. In other words, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/i-don-t-tend-to-work-directly-from-life-except-in-trying-to-mimic-or/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [I always work directly from life, partly because I really enjoy having an interaction with the person in front of me but also because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beth-mckenzie/i-always-work-directly-from-life-partly-because-i-really-enjoy-having/) [Mary Beth McKenzie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beth-mckenzie/) > [If I would characterize my life, I would say that I was a very lucky actor who came into very lucky times, and got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/efrem-zimbalist-jr/if-i-would-characterize-my-life-i-would-say-that-i-was-a-very-lucky/) [Efrem Zimbalist, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/efrem-zimbalist-jr/) > [I don't want to, in any way, characterize a race or a people or get accused of racial profiling, but the Irish, as lyrical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-lang/i-don-t-want-to-in-any-way-characterize-a-race-or-a-people-or-get/) [Stephen Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-lang/) > [By the '50s and '60s, war movies had become big and impersonal. They almost never bothered to characterize the Japanese enemy as particularly evil;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hunter/by-the-50s-and-60s-war-movies-had-become-big-and-impersonal-they/) [Stephen Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hunter/) > [“There are at least five different ways to characterize: Through physical attributes. With clothing or the manner of wearing clothing. Through psychological attributes and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-at-least-five-different-ways-to-characterize-through/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't worry about how folks want to characterize me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-rice/i-don-t-worry-about-how-folks-want-to-characterize-me/) [Susan Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-rice/) > [Today, war of necessity is used by critics of military action to describe unavoidable response to an attack like that on Pearl Harbor that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/today-war-of-necessity-is-used-by-critics-of-military-action-to/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [Political folk talk a lot these days about 'messaging' - a neologism designed to describe the way in which parties and politicians consciously characterize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/political-folk-talk-a-lot-these-days-about-messaging-a-neologism/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) ## More by Suzanne Vega > [When I was pregnant, I felt filled with life, and I felt really happy. I ate well, and I slept well. I felt much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/when-i-was-pregnant-i-felt-filled-with-life-and-i-felt-really-happy-i/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [Some girls are taught to be sexy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/some-girls-are-taught-to-be-sexy/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [I was the oldest child, and both my parents worked, so I had a great deal of responsibility from a very young age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/i-was-the-oldest-child-and-both-my-parents-worked-so-i-had-a-great/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [Girls are crazy and mean. They don't fight fair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/girls-are-crazy-and-mean-they-don-t-fight-fair/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [But I never want to get to the point where I write a safe song or one that represents my sense of a subject…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/but-i-never-want-to-get-to-the-point-where-i-write-a-safe-song-or-one/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [Writing in other voices is almost Japanese in the sense that there's a certain formality there which allows me to sidestep the embarrassment of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/writing-in-other-voices-is-almost-japanese-in-the-sense-that-there-s/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [I think that if you have a strong narrative, if the idea of the song can be boiled down to the basics, it won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/i-think-that-if-you-have-a-strong-narrative-if-the-idea-of-the-song/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [The first song I wrote was the first song I remember thinking, "Well, maybe I can do something here." The very first one. By…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/the-first-song-i-wrote-was-the-first-song-i-remember-thinking-well/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [To me, a feminist belong in the same category as a humanist or an advocate for human rights. I don't see why someone who's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/to-me-a-feminist-belong-in-the-same-category-as-a-humanist-or-an/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [Of course, sometimes when you write personally, you are also writing about society, obliquely reflecting topical issues, but not in a way that people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/of-course-sometimes-when-you-write-personally-you-are-also-writing/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [Kindness to me is only powerful if it has the cruel streak behind it. If someone is kind all the time under all circumstances,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/kindness-to-me-is-only-powerful-if-it-has-the-cruel-streak-behind-it/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [I still consider myself a feminist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/i-still-consider-myself-a-feminist/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [And I really wanted a driver's license. I was 43, had my learner's permit and had failed the test once already - but that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/and-i-really-wanted-a-driver-s-license-i-was-43-had-my-learner-s/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [Last year's troubles, They shine up so prettily, They gleam with a lustre they don't have today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/last-year-s-troubles-they-shine-up-so-prettily-they-gleam-with-a/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) > [My mother wanted me to understand that as a woman I could do pretty much whatever I wanted to, that I didn't have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/my-mother-wanted-me-to-understand-that-as-a-woman-i-could-do-pretty/) [Suzanne Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) [Explore all 53 Suzanne Vega quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/) ## More Characterize quotes > [Today, war of necessity is used by critics of military action to describe unavoidable response to an attack like that on Pearl Harbor that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/today-war-of-necessity-is-used-by-critics-of-military-action-to/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [I don't worry about how folks want to characterize me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-rice/i-don-t-worry-about-how-folks-want-to-characterize-me/) [Susan Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-rice/) > [I don't want to, in any way, characterize a race or a people or get accused of racial profiling, but the Irish, as lyrical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-lang/i-don-t-want-to-in-any-way-characterize-a-race-or-a-people-or-get/) [Stephen Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-lang/) > [If I would characterize my life, I would say that I was a very lucky actor who came into very lucky times, and got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/efrem-zimbalist-jr/if-i-would-characterize-my-life-i-would-say-that-i-was-a-very-lucky/) [Efrem Zimbalist, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/efrem-zimbalist-jr/) > [Political folk talk a lot these days about 'messaging' - a neologism designed to describe the way in which parties and politicians consciously characterize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/political-folk-talk-a-lot-these-days-about-messaging-a-neologism/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [By the '50s and '60s, war movies had become big and impersonal. They almost never bothered to characterize the Japanese enemy as particularly evil;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hunter/by-the-50s-and-60s-war-movies-had-become-big-and-impersonal-they/) [Stephen Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hunter/) > [“There are at least five different ways to characterize: Through physical attributes. With clothing or the manner of wearing clothing. Through psychological attributes and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-at-least-five-different-ways-to-characterize-through/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Characterize people by their actions, and you'll never be fooled by their words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/characterize-people-by-their-actions-and-you-ll-never-be-fooled-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Duke came to us. They volunteered to come to us and made a number of suggestions to some people on my staff. I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gray-davis/duke-came-to-us-they-volunteered-to-come-to-us-and-made-a-number-of/) [Gray Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gray-davis/) > [It's hard for me to label myself or characterize myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/velveteen-dream/it-s-hard-for-me-to-label-myself-or-characterize-myself/) [Velveteen Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/velveteen-dream/) > [There are so many ways to characterize evolutionary success. If one criterion is the number of millions of years that the species persists, we're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-graffin/there-are-so-many-ways-to-characterize-evolutionary-success-if-one/) [Greg Graffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-graffin/) > [Junk, redundancy, and inefficiency characterize astrophysical signals. It seems they characterize cells and sea lions, too. These biological constructions have lots of superfluous and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/junk-redundancy-and-inefficiency-characterize-astrophysical-signals/) [Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/) > [I think the way to be an influential journalist is to be accurate and to be fair and to get things right and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kara-swisher/i-think-the-way-to-be-an-influential-journalist-is-to-be-accurate-and/) [Kara Swisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kara-swisher/) > [“The only thing that comes close to defining me correctly is my love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/the-only-thing-that-comes-close-to-defining-me-correctly-is-my-love/) [Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/) > [I would absolutely characterize myself as ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-kardashian/i-would-absolutely-characterize-myself-as-ambitious/) [Kim Kardashian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-kardashian/) [Browse all 21 Characterize quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/characterize/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I wouldn't characterize my work, however, as directly political.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Suzanne Vega" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however-as-directly-political/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Characterize" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however-as-directly-political/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9b/suzanne-vega-12807_characterize_i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however_3220392.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9b/suzanne-vega-12807_characterize_i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however_3220392.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9b/suzanne-vega-12807_characterize_i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however_3220392.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I wouldn't characterize my work, however, as directly political.” — Suzanne Vega", "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": "Suzanne Vega", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-vega/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I wouldn't characterize my work, however,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however-as-directly-political/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-vega/i-wouldn-t-characterize-my-work-however-as-directly-political/#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 } } ] } ```