--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A literary influence is never just a…" description: "\"A literary influence is never just a literary influence. It's also an influence in the way you see everything - in the way you feel your life.\" — Thom ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/thom-gunn-15259_feels_a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-lit_2927441.png" --- # A literary influence is never just a literary influence… ![“A literary influence is never just a literary influence. It's also an influence in the way you see everything - in the way you feel your life.” quote by Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/thom-gunn-15259_feels_a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-lit_2927441.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/thom-gunn-15259_feels_a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-lit_2927441.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/thom-gunn-15259_feels_a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-lit_2927441.png) > “A literary influence is never just a literary influence. It's also an influence in the way you see everything - in the way you feel your life.” [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Literary influence shapes worldview and emotional perception. **In simple terms:** Literature changes how you see and feel life. Key Takeaway Read to broaden perspective. Themes literature perception emotional influence Mood reflective introspective Type artistic philosophical When to use this quote - reading groups - creative writing - critical analysis Key Concepts cultural literacy psychology artistic impact Questions to Reflect On - How does a favorite book affect your values? - Can literature alter emotional responses? A Different Perspective Influence may be subconscious. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Influence Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence-influence-1003581/) [Influence Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence-way-952221/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Literary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literary/) [Literary Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literary-influence-460859/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [I don't know if nature is a direct literary influence on my writing, but it is certainly important to me. I take great joy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/per-petterson/i-don-t-know-if-nature-is-a-direct-literary-influence-on-my-writing/) [Per Petterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/per-petterson/) > [“Never underestimate the value of superior hair as a literary influence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/never-underestimate-the-value-of-superior-hair-as-a-literary-influence/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [My father is my biggest literary influence. Recently, I've been looking through his letters. He was in the National Guard when I was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/my-father-is-my-biggest-literary-influence-recently-i-ve-been-looking/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [To be yourself is greatest accomplishment as others will try to influence you the way which suits them.Make sure you dont start seeing yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dranil-kr-sinha/to-be-yourself-is-greatest-accomplishment-as-others-will-try-to/) [DrAnil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dranil-kr-sinha/) > [My greatest influence has been the blues. And that's a literary influence, because I think the blues is the best literature that we as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-wilson/my-greatest-influence-has-been-the-blues-and-that-s-a-literary/) [August Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-wilson/) > [I think influence is one way to exercise power and that the challenge is whether it is power over or power with. That's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-buffett/i-think-influence-is-one-way-to-exercise-power-and-that-the-challenge/) [Peter Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-buffett/) > [“You can pay for influence the way you can pay for sex, but from what I understand neither is quite the same as when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-holiday/you-can-pay-for-influence-the-way-you-can-pay-for-sex-but-from-what-i/) [Ryan Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-holiday/) > [So many things influence me in one way or another. Some might be surprising, but that's OK.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wilson/so-many-things-influence-me-in-one-way-or-another-some-might-be/) [Steven Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wilson/) > [Dave Bassett was a key influence on me, the way he treated and talked to people. Wimbledon and Sheffield United were quite direct sides…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-wilder/dave-bassett-was-a-key-influence-on-me-the-way-he-treated-and-talked/) [Chris Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-wilder/) > [“By building mountains out of molehills, through lying by omission, agenda-setting, framing stories and issues in a certain light, and by manipulating what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dice/by-building-mountains-out-of-molehills-through-lying-by-omission/) [Mark Dice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dice/) > [Unless you are able to influence the way others think and act, your chances for success are limited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-burg/unless-you-are-able-to-influence-the-way-others-think-and-act-your/) [Bob Burg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-burg/) > [“I am not above the influence, I am not below it, I am the influence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernon-scott/i-am-not-above-the-influence-i-am-not-below-it-i-am-the-influence/) [Vernon Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernon-scott/) > [There is nothing higher, nothing sweeter, no better influence than the influence of goodbye.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/there-is-nothing-higher-nothing-sweeter-no-better-influence-than-the/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [“Don't spoil him. Don't try to influence him. Your influence would be bad. The world is wide and has many marvellous people in it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/don-t-spoil-him-don-t-try-to-influence-him-your-influence-would-be/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The stewardship of influence. What have you done with influence?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-hunt/the-stewardship-of-influence-what-have-you-done-with-influence/) [Johnny Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-hunt/) ## More by Thom Gunn > [How sociable the garden was. We ate and talked in given light. The children put their toys to grass All the warm wakeful August…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/how-sociable-the-garden-was-we-ate-and-talked-in-given-light-the/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [It was difficult being a teacher and out of the closet in the '50s. By the time I retired, the English department was proud…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/it-was-difficult-being-a-teacher-and-out-of-the-closet-in-the-50s-by/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [We tend to put poems into factions. And it restricts our reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/we-tend-to-put-poems-into-factions-and-it-restricts-our-reading/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [We control the content of our dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/we-control-the-content-of-our-dreams/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [Deep feeling doesn't make for good poetry. A way with language would be a bit of help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/deep-feeling-doesn-t-make-for-good-poetry-a-way-with-language-would/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [My old teacher's definition of poetry is an attempt to understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/my-old-teacher-s-definition-of-poetry-is-an-attempt-to-understand/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [I admired what my students were writing, but I think their improvement doesn't directly result from me but from being in a class, being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/i-admired-what-my-students-were-writing-but-i-think-their-improvement/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [One joins the movement in a valueless world, Choosing it, till both hurler and the hurled, One moves as well, always toward, toward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/one-joins-the-movement-in-a-valueless-world-choosing-it-till-both/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [As humans we look at things and think about what we've looked at. We treasure it in a kind of private art gallery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/as-humans-we-look-at-things-and-think-about-what-we-ve-looked-at-we/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [I was at a benefit for some imprisoned students in the '60s at San Francisco State, and there were lots of poets reading for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/i-was-at-a-benefit-for-some-imprisoned-students-in-the-60s-at-san/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [“At worse, one is in motion; and at best, Reaching no absolute, in which to rest, One is always nearer by not keeping still.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/at-worse-one-is-in-motion-and-at-best-reaching-no-absolute-in-which/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [There have been two popular subjects for poetry in the last few decades: the Vietnam War and AIDS, about both of which almost all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/there-have-been-two-popular-subjects-for-poetry-in-the-last-few/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [I deliberately wrote a poem in my last book where I was suggesting that there are other passions as great as or more important…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/i-deliberately-wrote-a-poem-in-my-last-book-where-i-was-suggesting/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [I was much influenced by Jean-Paul Sartre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/i-was-much-influenced-by-jean-paul-sartre/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) > [I don't think of sex as a self-destructive impulse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/i-don-t-think-of-sex-as-a-self-destructive-impulse/) [Thom Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) [Explore all 43 Thom Gunn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/) ## More Feels quotes > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We all know what it feels like to love someone and care about them and want to protect them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiana-madeira/we-all-know-what-it-feels-like-to-love-someone-and-care-about-them/) [Kiana Madeira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiana-madeira/) > [Pain is meant to wake us up. People try to hide their pain. But they're wrong. Pain is something to carry, like a radio.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/pain-is-meant-to-wake-us-up-people-try-to-hide-their-pain-but-they-re/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) > [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/) > [Most days, I go home and I feel rejuvenated. I feel ebullient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddhartha-mukherjee/most-days-i-go-home-and-i-feel-rejuvenated-i-feel-ebullient/) [Siddhartha Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddhartha-mukherjee/) > [Do you think that God would separate me from my husband if I killed myself? I feel as though I am going out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-you-think-that-god-would-separate-me-from-my-husband-if-i-killed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [Personal Style comes from within. It's when the woman, her individuality and spirit come through. She uses clothes to express who she is and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-karan/personal-style-comes-from-within-it-s-when-the-woman-her/) [Donna Karan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-karan/) > [(knitting while on a motorcycle) "For several years she knitted in secret (my father would not approve; she was to concentrate on motorcycling and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-zimmermann/knitting-while-on-a-motorcycle-for-several-years-she-knitted-in/) [Elizabeth Zimmermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-zimmermann/) > [Then come to realize that you're making mountains out of molehills. Realize how petty you've become. Sure, it may feel like you can't get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-asher/then-come-to-realize-that-you-re-making-mountains-out-of-molehills/) [Jay Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-asher/) > [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [I feel like I could eat the world raw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeline-miller/i-feel-like-i-could-eat-the-world-raw/) [Madeline Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeline-miller/) [Browse all 38,933 Feels quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A literary influence is never just a literary influence. It's also an influence in the way you see everything - in the way you feel your life.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thom Gunn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-literary-influence-it-s-also-an/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Feels" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-literary-influence-it-s-also-an/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/thom-gunn-15259_feels_a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-lit_2927441.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/thom-gunn-15259_feels_a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-lit_2927441.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac2/thom-gunn-15259_feels_a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-lit_2927441.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A literary influence is never just a literary influence. It's also an influence in the way you see…” — Thom Gunn", "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": "Thom Gunn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-gunn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A literary influence is never just...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-literary-influence-it-s-also-an/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-gunn/a-literary-influence-is-never-just-a-literary-influence-it-s-also-an/#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 } } ] } ```