--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Cyberspace is where you are when you're…" description: "\"Cyberspace is where you are when you're on the telephone.\" — William Gibson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc6/william-gibson-642_cyberspace_cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re_2229706.png" --- # Cyberspace is where you are when you're on the telephone. ![“Cyberspace is where you are when you're on the telephone.” quote by William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc6/william-gibson-642_cyberspace_cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re_2229706.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc6/william-gibson-642_cyberspace_cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re_2229706.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc6/william-gibson-642_cyberspace_cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re_2229706.png) > “Cyberspace is where you are when you're on the telephone.” [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. Suggests that digital communication blurs the line between virtual and physical presence. **In simple terms:** Being online feels like being somewhere else. Key Takeaway Recognize the fluidity of digital spaces. Themes technology presence identity Mood thoughtful analytical Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - remote work - online dating - virtual reality - social media Key Concepts cyberculture philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How does online presence shape self‑perception? - Can we maintain authentic relationships online? A Different Perspective Digital immersion can cause disconnection from reality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cyberspace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cyberspace/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) ## Related quotes > [Nobody is listening to your telephone calls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/nobody-is-listening-to-your-telephone-calls/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I've suffered from all of the hang-ups known, and none is as bad as the telephone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-armour/i-ve-suffered-from-all-of-the-hang-ups-known-and-none-is-as-bad-as/) [Richard Armour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-armour/) > [What I like best about the telephone is that it keeps you in touch with people, particularly people who want to sell you magazine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/what-i-like-best-about-the-telephone-is-that-it-keeps-you-in-touch/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [Similitude of the heart is like that of a telephone operator between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riaz-ahmed-gohar-shahi/similitude-of-the-heart-is-like-that-of-a-telephone-operator-between/) [Riaz Ahmed Gohar Shahi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riaz-ahmed-gohar-shahi/) > [You are not ashamed of our luuurve, are you, Jas?' 'Look, shut up, people might hear.' 'What do you mean, the people who live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-rennison/you-are-not-ashamed-of-our-luuurve-are-you-jas-look-shut-up-people/) [Louise Rennison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-rennison/) > [Ever hear of a telephone, asshole?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-james/ever-hear-of-a-telephone-asshole/) [Julie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-james/) > [One day every major city in America will have a telephone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/one-day-every-major-city-in-america-will-have-a-telephone/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [Dying's not so bad. At least I won't have to answer the telephone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/dying-s-not-so-bad-at-least-i-won-t-have-to-answer-the-telephone/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [No man who drank or smoked could ever come nearer to me than the telephone. I'd say, I won't let you - you nicotine-soaked,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-nation/no-man-who-drank-or-smoked-could-ever-come-nearer-to-me-than-the/) [Carrie Nation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-nation/) > [Success is when your name is in everything but the telephone directory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-ewing/success-is-when-your-name-is-in-everything-but-the-telephone-directory/) [Sam Ewing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-ewing/) > [You can't pick up the telephone and say, 'Connect me with someone else who has a kid with leukemia.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-rheingold/you-can-t-pick-up-the-telephone-and-say-connect-me-with-someone-else/) [Howard Rheingold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-rheingold/) > [The telephone is the most important single technological resource of later life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-comfort/the-telephone-is-the-most-important-single-technological-resource-of/) [Alex Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-comfort/) > [The telephone is virtual reality in that you can meet with someone as if you are together, at least for the auditory sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-kurzweil/the-telephone-is-virtual-reality-in-that-you-can-meet-with-someone-as/) [Ray Kurzweil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-kurzweil/) > [I will take questions from the guys, but from the girls I want telephone numbers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silvio-berlusconi/i-will-take-questions-from-the-guys-but-from-the-girls-i-want/) [Silvio Berlusconi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silvio-berlusconi/) > [I will not be at the mercy of the telephone!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/i-will-not-be-at-the-mercy-of-the-telephone/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) ## 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 Cyberspace quotes > [Cyberspace' is a metaphorical idea which is supposed to be the space where your consciousness is located when you're using computer technology on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-postman/cyberspace-is-a-metaphorical-idea-which-is-supposed-to-be-the-space/) [Neil Postman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-postman/) > [Galloping advances in technology mean important changes in the work we do to keep the United States secure not just through air, land and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lloyd-austin/galloping-advances-in-technology-mean-important-changes-in-the-work/) [Lloyd Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-austin/) > [Instead of mindlessly tossing billions at or taking billions from the Net as such, investors should be spending their time making sure that it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-surowiecki/instead-of-mindlessly-tossing-billions-at-or-taking-billions-from-the/) [James Surowiecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-surowiecki/) > [As we now know, cyberspace did not liberate human society from pre-existing socioeconomic hierarchies and power structures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenna-wortham/as-we-now-know-cyberspace-did-not-liberate-human-society-from-pre/) [Jenna Wortham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenna-wortham/) > [We need to wage this war against ISIS from the air, on the ground, and online, in cyberspace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/we-need-to-wage-this-war-against-isis-from-the-air-on-the-ground-and/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [The simulator is the stage in-between television and virtual reality, a moment, a phase. The simulator is a moment that leads to cyberspace, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/the-simulator-is-the-stage-in-between-television-and-virtual-reality/) [Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/) > [Human rights in cyberspace are really no different from rights in the physical world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-mackinnon/human-rights-in-cyberspace-are-really-no-different-from-rights-in-the/) [Rebecca MacKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-mackinnon/) > [There actually are buildings that existed in cyberspace before they built it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-rheingold/there-actually-are-buildings-that-existed-in-cyberspace-before-they/) [Howard Rheingold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-rheingold/) > [I think that in an age where so much information is flying through cyberspace, we all have to be aware of the fact that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-think-that-in-an-age-where-so-much-information-is-flying-through/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [Everything will come true in cyberspace. That's the whole idea. What cyberspace is, on one level, it's simply the human imagination vivified, hardwired.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/everything-will-come-true-in-cyberspace-that-s-the-whole-idea-what/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [That's how it is online—there's no time in cyberspace. It's almost like everything physical evaporates, and it's just your mind and the different sites…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-tharp/that-s-how-it-is-online-there-s-no-time-in-cyberspace-it-s-almost/) [Tim Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-tharp/) > [“Don't promote negativity online and expect people to treat you with positivity in person.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/don-t-promote-negativity-online-and-expect-people-to-treat-you-with/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [We will create a civilization of the Mind in Cyberspace. May it be more humane and fair than the world your governments have made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/we-will-create-a-civilization-of-the-mind-in-cyberspace-may-it-be/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [I have spent most of my adult life proving that I existed. A blog is an accessible way of doing this - there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemn-sissay/i-have-spent-most-of-my-adult-life-proving-that-i-existed-a-blog-is/) [Lemn Sissay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemn-sissay/) > [Cyberspace undeniably reflects some form of geography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-day-o-connor/cyberspace-undeniably-reflects-some-form-of-geography/) [Sandra Day O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-day-o-connor/) [Browse all 148 Cyberspace quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cyberspace/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Cyberspace is where you are when you're on the telephone.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Gibson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re-on-the-telephone/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cyberspace" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re-on-the-telephone/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc6/william-gibson-642_cyberspace_cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re_2229706.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc6/william-gibson-642_cyberspace_cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re_2229706.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dc6/william-gibson-642_cyberspace_cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re_2229706.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Cyberspace is where you are when you're on the telephone.” — 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": "Cyberspace is where you are when...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re-on-the-telephone/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/cyberspace-is-where-you-are-when-you-re-on-the-telephone/#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 } } ] } ```