--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Why is it that the look of another person…" description: "\"“Why is it that the look of another person looking at you is different from everything else in the Cosmos? That is to say, looking at lions or tigers o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/01d/walker-percy-1958_eyes_why-is-it-that-the-look-of-another-perso_1613898.jpg" --- # Why is it that the look of another person looking at you… ![“Why is it that the look of another person looking at you is different from everything else in the Cosmos? That is to say, looking at lions or tigers or Saturn or the Ring Nebula or at an owl or at another person from the side is one thing, but finding yourself looking in the eyes of another person…” quote by Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/01d/walker-percy-1958_eyes_why-is-it-that-the-look-of-another-perso_1613898.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/01d/walker-percy-1958_eyes_why-is-it-that-the-look-of-another-perso_1613898.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/01d/walker-percy-1958_eyes_why-is-it-that-the-look-of-another-perso_1613898.jpg) > ““Why is it that the look of another person looking at you is different from everything else in the Cosmos? That is to say, looking at lions or tigers or Saturn or the Ring Nebula or at an owl or at another person from the side is one thing, but finding yourself looking in the eyes of another person looking at you is something else. And why is it that one can look at a lion or a planet or an owl or at someone's finger as long as one pleases, but looking into the eyes of another person is, if prolonged past a second, a perilous affair?”” [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The gaze of another person carries a unique, unsettling intimacy that differs from observing any other object or creature, making prolonged eye contact potentially dangerous. **In simple terms:** Seeing another's eyes is uniquely intense and risky. Key Takeaway Respect personal boundaries in eye contact. Themes intimacy vulnerability human connection Mood thoughtful cautious Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - romantic encounters - conflict - public speaking - counseling Key Concepts psychology existentialism social perception Questions to Reflect On - How does eye contact affect trust? - When is it appropriate to hold someone's gaze? A Different Perspective Eye contact can be misinterpreted and cause discomfort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Eyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eyes/) [Finding yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/finding-yourself/) ## Related quotes > [Why is it that one can look at a lion or a planet or an owl or at someone's finger as long as one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/why-is-it-that-one-can-look-at-a-lion-or-a-planet-or-an-owl-or-at/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [“I swear that each of us keeps, battened down inside himself, a sort of lunatic giant - impossible socially, but full-scale - and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bowen/i-swear-that-each-of-us-keeps-battened-down-inside-himself-a-sort-of/) [Elizabeth Bowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bowen/) > [“We usually end up finding what we are looking for, but we only look for what we already know.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-junger/we-usually-end-up-finding-what-we-are-looking-for-but-we-only-look/) [Alejandro Junger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-junger/) > [“The blessing of Google is its uncanny skill in finding what you're looking for; the curse is that it so rarely finds any of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-jacobs/the-blessing-of-google-is-its-uncanny-skill-in-finding-what-you-re/) [Alan Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-jacobs/) > [Finding out something about someone, and never looking at them the same way again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/finding-out-something-about-someone-and-never-looking-at-them-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Serendipity is when you find things you weren't looking for because finding what you are looking for is so damned difficult.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-mckean/serendipity-is-when-you-find-things-you-weren-t-looking-for-because/) [Erin McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-mckean/) > [The only way we can ever get through to the truth is by finding out what we are not. We do that by looking,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-long/the-only-way-we-can-ever-get-through-to-the-truth-is-by-finding-out/) [Barry Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-long/) > [Beware of finding what you're looking for. A favorite aphorism he often used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-hamming/beware-of-finding-what-you-re-looking-for-a-favorite-aphorism-he/) [Richard Hamming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-hamming/) > [In all my life I'd never been approached this way, the car pulling up, the Where you going? It was something I wish had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/in-all-my-life-i-d-never-been-approached-this-way-the-car-pulling-up/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [I've never looked through a keyhole without finding someone was looking back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-garland/i-ve-never-looked-through-a-keyhole-without-finding-someone-was/) [Judy Garland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-garland/) > [You'll never know pain until you look into the eyes of the person you love and they look away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-never-know-pain-until-you-look-into-the-eyes-of-the-person-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You can see the whole entire world in the eyes of a person who knows how to simply stand there and take all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-can-see-the-whole-entire-world-in-the-eyes-of-a-person-who-knows/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When someone opens the eyes of a person blindly in love, they see nothing but darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/when-someone-opens-the-eyes-of-a-person-blindly-in-love-they-see/) Mak\_786 > [A woman with eyes only for one person, or with eyes always averted from him, creates exactly the same impression.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/a-woman-with-eyes-only-for-one-person-or-with-eyes-always-averted/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [“It's not man's job to think about whether God exists or not, especially when you know that right in front of your eyes one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eka-kurniawan/it-s-not-man-s-job-to-think-about-whether-god-exists-or-not/) [Eka Kurniawan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eka-kurniawan/) ## More by Walker Percy > [“Do you know what he told me after lying under a cliff for thirty six hours with two inches of his femur sticking out?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/do-you-know-what-he-told-me-after-lying-under-a-cliff-for-thirty-six/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [Americans are the nicest, most generous, and sentimental people on earth. Yet Americans have killed more unborn children than any nation in history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/americans-are-the-nicest-most-generous-and-sentimental-people-on/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [“The real wonder is not that the Cosmos is now seen as wonderful but that it is not. Despite its inconceivable vastness, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/the-real-wonder-is-not-that-the-cosmos-is-now-seen-as-wonderful-but/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [“Ours is the only civilization in history which has enshrined mediocrity as its national ideal. Others have been corrupt, but leave it to us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/ours-is-the-only-civilization-in-history-which-has-enshrined/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [ \[In art\] you are telling the reader or the listener or the viewer something he already knows but which he doesn't quite know that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/in-art-you-are-telling-the-reader-or-the-listener-or-the-viewer/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [“People usually told him the same joke two or three times.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/people-usually-told-him-the-same-joke-two-or-three-times/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [For the world is broken, sundered, busted down the middle, self ripped from self and man pasted back together as mythical monster, half angel,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/for-the-world-is-broken-sundered-busted-down-the-middle-self-ripped/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [Nobody but a Southerner knows the wrenching rinsing sadness of the cities of the North.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/nobody-but-a-southerner-knows-the-wrenching-rinsing-sadness-of-the/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [“For me, all signifiers fit me, one as well as another. I am rascal, hero, craven, brave, treacherous, loyal, at once the secret hero…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/for-me-all-signifiers-fit-me-one-as-well-as-another-i-am-rascal-hero/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [“But the expectation of the self, to be informed in its nothingness--if only I can get out of this old place and into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/but-the-expectation-of-the-self-to-be-informed-in-its-nothingness-if/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [Nothing remains but desire, and desire comes howling down Elysian Fields like a mistral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/nothing-remains-but-desire-and-desire-comes-howling-down-elysian/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [“A variant of the amnesic-plot device is the inadvertent return of the amnesiac to home territory, where he is welcomed by a lovely woman,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/a-variant-of-the-amnesic-plot-device-is-the-inadvertent-return-of-the/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [A novel is what you call something that won't sell if you call it poems or short stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/a-novel-is-what-you-call-something-that-won-t-sell-if-you-call-it/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [The search is what anyone would undertake if he were not sunk in the everydayness of his own life. To become aware of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/the-search-is-what-anyone-would-undertake-if-he-were-not-sunk-in-the/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) > [“Am I, in my search, a hundred miles ahead of my fellow Americans or a hundred miles behind them? That is to say: Have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/am-i-in-my-search-a-hundred-miles-ahead-of-my-fellow-americans-or-a/) [Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) [Explore all 194 Walker Percy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/) ## More Eyes quotes > [My father longed for a better life for us, and when I was nine he got a job as a heart surgeon in Belfast.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-melua/my-father-longed-for-a-better-life-for-us-and-when-i-was-nine-he-got/) [Katie Melua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-melua/) > [When I was a teen, I would draw a really, really long line around my eyes with eyeliner, like Lola Flores.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalia/when-i-was-a-teen-i-would-draw-a-really-really-long-line-around-my/) [Rosalia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalia/) > [It's a great story for us whenever an entrepreneur makes a crazy amount of money and we get to tell the world about it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-lacy/it-s-a-great-story-for-us-whenever-an-entrepreneur-makes-a-crazy/) [Sarah Lacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-lacy/) > [Human beings should stick together. Honestly, if I see a red-haired person with blue eyes now, I say, 'Is your granny black?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-jones/human-beings-should-stick-together-honestly-if-i-see-a-red-haired/) [Grace Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-jones/) > [It's similar to basketball: when you go to different gyms and win or lose, you learn something new. So when kids get out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-iguodala/it-s-similar-to-basketball-when-you-go-to-different-gyms-and-win-or/) [Andre Iguodala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-iguodala/) > [When I see things through my eyes, I don't want to ever just be really negative towards someone's performance. There are many ways to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stone-cold-steve-austin/when-i-see-things-through-my-eyes-i-don-t-want-to-ever-just-be-really/) [Stone Cold Steve Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stone-cold-steve-austin/) > [My only trick to having wing liner sharp enough to cut is be careful and take your time! I have hooded eyes, so I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-charles/my-only-trick-to-having-wing-liner-sharp-enough-to-cut-is-be-careful/) [James Charles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-charles/) > [“I fell in love with your eyes first because I looked into their depths and saw the other half of my soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-k-lilley/i-fell-in-love-with-your-eyes-first-because-i-looked-into-their/) [R.K. Lilley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-k-lilley/) > [I think, reading about yourself through somebody else's eyes, you're always going to have your own story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-sestero/i-think-reading-about-yourself-through-somebody-else-s-eyes-you-re/) [Greg Sestero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-sestero/) > [For the Russian masses, the proletarians, knew for certain, and already saw during the war, and in part before their very eyes, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-gorter/for-the-russian-masses-the-proletarians-knew-for-certain-and-already/) [Herman Gorter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-gorter/) > [Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-prescott/don-t-fire-until-you-see-the-whites-of-their-eyes/) [William H. Prescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-prescott/) > [Evertime I close my eyes it doesnt matter where, I always see you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patience/evertime-i-close-my-eyes-it-doesnt-matter-where-i-always-see-you/) Patience > [Look with all your eyes, look.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-verne/look-with-all-your-eyes-look/) [Jules Verne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-verne/) > [It's not your mistake if you cant read the eyes which cheats you. But it's really your mistake if you cant read the eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-mbululo/it-s-not-your-mistake-if-you-cant-read-the-eyes-which-cheats-you-but/) [Ally Mbululo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-mbululo/) > [Kiss me with your eyes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-warhol/kiss-me-with-your-eyes/) [Andy Warhol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-warhol/) [Browse all 3,942 Eyes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eyes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Why is it that the look of another person looking at you is different from everything else in the Cosmos? That is to say, looking at lions or tigers or Saturn or the Ring Nebula or at an owl or at another person from the side is one thing, but finding yourself looking in the eyes of another person looking at you is something else. 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