---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Case turned back, in time to catch the…"
description: "\"“Case turned back, in time to catch the briefest flash of a black rose, its petals sheened like leather, the black stem thorned with bright chrome.”\" —..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c99/william-gibson-642_flower_case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-br_465387.png"
---

#  Case turned back, in time to catch the briefest flash of a…

![“Case turned back, in time to catch the briefest flash of a black rose, its petals sheened like leather, the black stem thorned with bright chrome.” quote by William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c99/william-gibson-642_flower_case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-br_465387.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c99/william-gibson-642_flower_case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-br_465387.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c99/william-gibson-642_flower_case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-br_465387.png)

> ““Case turned back, in time to catch the briefest flash of a black rose, its petals sheened like leather, the black stem thorned with bright chrome.””

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A fleeting, dark beauty appears, its contrast of leather‑like petals and chrome‑sharp stem evokes a paradox of softness and danger.

**In simple terms:** A black rose shows delicate danger.

Key Takeaway

Notice paradoxes in beauty.

Themes

beauty danger paradox

Mood

moody intrigued

Type

poetic descriptive

When to use this quote

- fashion design
- art installations
- product branding
- creative writing

Key Concepts

aesthetics symbolism

Questions to Reflect On

- What draws you to dark aesthetics?
- How do you balance softness with edge?

A Different Perspective

Such images can be unsettling; not all appreciate stark contrast.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Flowers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flowers/) [Rose petals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rose-petals/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [If you sprinkle a path of rose petals on the floor...you could make a trip to the bathroom look romantic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lacey/if-you-sprinkle-a-path-of-rose-petals-on-the-floor-you-could-make-a/)

Lacey

> [In the middle of a garden grew a rose tree; it was full of roses, and in the loveliest of them all lived an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-christian-andersen/in-the-middle-of-a-garden-grew-a-rose-tree-it-was-full-of-roses-and/)

[Hans Christian Andersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-christian-andersen/)

> [“Don't pluck a rose's petals and then ask the rose why it is sad.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/don-t-pluck-a-rose-s-petals-and-then-ask-the-rose-why-it-is-sad/)

[Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/)

> [“Just in case.” He turned to locate her potential future cube, then scanned the prairie rows until his eyes rested on”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-lawson-timmer/just-in-case-he-turned-to-locate-her-potential-future-cube-then/)

[Julie Lawson Timmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-lawson-timmer/)

> [Slow buds the pink dawn like a rose From out night's gray and cloudy sheath; Softly and still it grows and grows, Petal by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-chauncey-woolsey/slow-buds-the-pink-dawn-like-a-rose-from-out-night-s-gray-and-cloudy/)

[Sarah Chauncey Woolsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-chauncey-woolsey/)

> [In mythos and fairy tales, deities and other great spirits test the hearts of humans by showing up in various forms that disguise their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/in-mythos-and-fairy-tales-deities-and-other-great-spirits-test-the/)

[Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/)

> [Her body was wrapped in shadows like moth wings, like rose-petals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/her-body-was-wrapped-in-shadows-like-moth-wings-like-rose-petals/)

[Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/)

> [Salt is added to dried rose petals with the perfume and spices, when we store them away in covered jars, the summers of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/salt-is-added-to-dried-rose-petals-with-the-perfume-and-spices-when/)

[Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/)

> [Our eyes reflect light. Better that the lips are more like a rose petal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivier-theyskens/our-eyes-reflect-light-better-that-the-lips-are-more-like-a-rose-petal/)

[Olivier Theyskens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivier-theyskens/)

> [It has been well said that an author who expects results from a first novel is in a position similar to that of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-has-been-well-said-that-an-author-who-expects-results-from-a-first/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Valentine's Day money-saving tips: Break up on February 13th, get back together on the 15th. In place of bubble bath, use lavender-scented dish-washing liquid.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/valentine-s-day-money-saving-tips-break-up-on-february-13th-get-back/)

[David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/)

> [Yep, that's me. I know. I know. You're humbled I'm here, feel like throwing rose petals at my feet, blah, blah, blah. No need,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gena-showalter/yep-that-s-me-i-know-i-know-you-re-humbled-i-m-here-feel-like/)

[Gena Showalter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gena-showalter/)

> [However, after the assassination of Salman Taseer, the killer of Salman Taseer was welcomed by the religious fanatics. And they showered rose petals on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shahbaz-bhatti/however-after-the-assassination-of-salman-taseer-the-killer-of-salman/)

[Shahbaz Bhatti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shahbaz-bhatti/)

> [When wine drinkers tell me they taste notes of cherries, tobacco and rose petals, usually all I can detect is a whole lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-stein/when-wine-drinkers-tell-me-they-taste-notes-of-cherries-tobacco-and/)

[Joel Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-stein/)

> [“...it´s not all rose petals, rainbows and shit...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-orton/it-s-not-all-rose-petals-rainbows-and-shit/)

[Randy Orton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-orton/)

## More by William Gibson

> [“We have no idea, now, of who or what the inhabitants of our future might be. In that sense, we have no future. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/we-have-no-idea-now-of-who-or-what-the-inhabitants-of-our-future/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [For me, the melancholy of the late XXth Century is walking late at night by the Mont Blanc pen store and seeing these things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/for-me-the-melancholy-of-the-late-xxth-century-is-walking-late-at/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [“No," said Blackwell, "she won't, because that would be a violation of the very personal terms I will have established in our conversation. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/no-said-blackwell-she-won-t-because-that-would-be-a-violation-of-the/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [“Music was strange that way though; there were people into any damned thing, it seemed like, and if you got enough of them together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/music-was-strange-that-way-though-there-were-people-into-any-damned/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [When I start writing a new imaginary future, I have no idea what it is. The characters arrive first. They help me figure out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/when-i-start-writing-a-new-imaginary-future-i-have-no-idea-what-it-is/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [Hollis thought he looked like William Burroughs, minus the bohemian substrate (or perhaps the methadone). Like someone who'd be invited quail shooting with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/hollis-thought-he-looked-like-william-burroughs-minus-the-bohemian/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [Fiction is an illusion wrought with many small, conventionally symbolic marks, triggering visions in the minds of others](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/fiction-is-an-illusion-wrought-with-many-small-conventionally/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [The experience of celebrity is gradually being democratized.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/the-experience-of-celebrity-is-gradually-being-democratized/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [I don't generate a storyline and then fill it out in the course of writing. The story actually generates in the course of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/i-don-t-generate-a-storyline-and-then-fill-it-out-in-the-course-of/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [“What happened to your arm?" she asked me one night in the Gentleman Loser, the three of us drinking at a small table in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/what-happened-to-your-arm-she-asked-me-one-night-in-the-gentleman/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [“In Heathrow a vast chunk of memory detached itself from a blank bowl of airport sky and fell on him. He vomited into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/in-heathrow-a-vast-chunk-of-memory-detached-itself-from-a-blank-bowl/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [And, for an instant, she stared directly into those soft blue eyes and knew, with an instinctive mammalian certainty, that the exceedingly rich were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/and-for-an-instant-she-stared-directly-into-those-soft-blue-eyes-and/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [ \[When\] Johnny Mnemonic was coming out and I realized that all the kids that worked in 7-11 knew more - or thought they knew… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/when-johnny-mnemonic-was-coming-out-and-i-realized-that-all-the-kids/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [“Andrea maintained that men like Alain lied so constantly, so passionately, that some basic distinction had been lost. They were artists in their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/andrea-maintained-that-men-like-alain-lied-so-constantly-so/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

> [“Because he had a good agent, he had a good contract. Because he had a good contract, he was in Singapore an hour after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/because-he-had-a-good-agent-he-had-a-good-contract-because-he-had-a/)

[William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

[Explore all 430 William Gibson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/)

## More Flower quotes

> [“It is not the force of the wind, but the depth of the roots.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/it-is-not-the-force-of-the-wind-but-the-depth-of-the-roots/)

[Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/)

> [A Light exists in Spring Not present on the Year At any other period - When March is scarcely here A Color stands abroad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-dickinson/a-light-exists-in-spring-not-present-on-the-year-at-any-other-period/)

[Emily Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-dickinson/)

> [Set NOT your hearts on the flowers of this world. They shall fade and die. Prize the Rose of Sharon and the Lily of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/set-not-your-hearts-on-the-flowers-of-this-world-they-shall-fade-and/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Most girls get flowers or candy. I get a declaration of martial law.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-shearin/most-girls-get-flowers-or-candy-i-get-a-declaration-of-martial-law/)

[Lisa Shearin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-shearin/)

> [One of the deepest and strangest of all human moods is the mood which will suddenly strike us perhaps in a garden at night,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-deepest-and-strangest-of-all-human-moods-is-the-mood-which/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Spring training means flowers, people coming outdoors, sunshine, optimism and baseball. Spring training is a time to think about being young again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-banks/spring-training-means-flowers-people-coming-outdoors-sunshine/)

[Ernie Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-banks/)

> [Sometimes, sometimes it is really difficult to turn and walk away from someone you have loved and cherished for so long. You know deep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kreger/sometimes-sometimes-it-is-really-difficult-to-turn-and-walk-away-from/)

[David Kreger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kreger/)

> [This, at last, was where things were as they ought to be. Everything was in its place -- the tree, the earth underneath, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-liedloff/this-at-last-was-where-things-were-as-they-ought-to-be-everything-was/)

[Jean Liedloff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-liedloff/)

> [A garden has a curious innocent way of consuming cash while all the time you are under the illusion that you are spending nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-meynell/a-garden-has-a-curious-innocent-way-of-consuming-cash-while-all-the/)

[Esther Meynell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-meynell/)

> [My days – the blossom of my youth and the flower of my manhood – have been darkened by the dreariness of servitude. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-o-connell/my-days-the-blossom-of-my-youth-and-the-flower-of-my-manhood-have/)

[Daniel O'Connell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-o-connell/)

> [My life is a crystal teardrop. There are snowflakes falling in the teardrop and little figures trudging in slow motion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-baez/my-life-is-a-crystal-teardrop-there-are-snowflakes-falling-in-the/)

[Joan Baez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-baez/)

> [“But any picture could deal with the problem of light. The problem with this picture is greater than that of reflective surfaces - it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-otto/but-any-picture-could-deal-with-the-problem-of-light-the-problem-with/)

[Whitney Otto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-otto/)

> [“I promise to respect and protect your aloneness, knowing that everything created must have its period of darkness: child and bulb, poem and personality.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/i-promise-to-respect-and-protect-your-aloneness-knowing-that/)

[anne morrow lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/)

> [Sometimes it's about less is more. It's about the seed. Thinking about this gigantic tree that you think is so beautiful but it started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-durst/sometimes-it-s-about-less-is-more-it-s-about-the-seed-thinking-about/)

[Fred Durst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-durst/)

> [There are two kinds of beauty; there is a beauty which God gives at birth, and which withers as a flower. And there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-kuyper/there-are-two-kinds-of-beauty-there-is-a-beauty-which-god-gives-at/)

[Abraham Kuyper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-kuyper/)

[Browse all 12,347 Flower quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Case turned back, in time to catch the briefest flash of a black rose, its petals sheened like leather, the black stem thorned with bright chrome.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "William Gibson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-briefest-flash-of-a-black-rose/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Flower"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-briefest-flash-of-a-black-rose/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c99/william-gibson-642_flower_case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-br_465387.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c99/william-gibson-642_flower_case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-br_465387.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c99/william-gibson-642_flower_case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-br_465387.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Case turned back, in time to catch the briefest flash of a black rose, its petals sheened like leather, the…” — William Gibson",
                "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": "William Gibson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Case turned back, in time to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-briefest-flash-of-a-black-rose/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/case-turned-back-in-time-to-catch-the-briefest-flash-of-a-black-rose/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
