---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Precisely because I'm a man who is…"
description: "\"Precisely because I'm a man who is attracted to women, there may be some things that I have to say as a spectator of feminine grace that women themselv..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/079/william-t-vollmann-2100_able_precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attra_192437.png"
---

#  Precisely because I'm a man who is attracted to women…

![“Precisely because I'm a man who is attracted to women, there may be some things that I have to say as a spectator of feminine grace that women themselves may not be able to see.” quote by William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/079/william-t-vollmann-2100_able_precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attra_192437.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/079/william-t-vollmann-2100_able_precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attra_192437.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/079/william-t-vollmann-2100_able_precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attra_192437.png)

> “Precisely because I'm a man who is attracted to women, there may be some things that I have to say as a spectator of feminine grace that women themselves may not be able to see.”

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

## About This Quote

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

He notes that as a man observing women he can comment on aspects of femininity that women themselves might overlook.

**In simple terms:** Men can see things women miss.

Key Takeaway

Consider perspectives beyond personal experience.

Themes

gender observation perspective femininity

Mood

thoughtful analytical

Type

observational philosophical

When to use this quote

- relationships
- media analysis
- personal reflection

Key Concepts

social perception bias subjectivity

Questions to Reflect On

- How does gender affect what we notice?
- Can an outsider truly understand another's experience?

A Different Perspective

His view may overlook women's own agency and self‑knowledge.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Feminine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminine/) [Grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grace/) [Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man/) [Nature of Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-beauty/) [Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women/)

## Related quotes

> [“In you I see an immaculate woman full of feminine grace and untarnished beauty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/delano-johnson/in-you-i-see-an-immaculate-woman-full-of-feminine-grace-and/)

[Delano Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/delano-johnson/)

> [Not only am I physically and emotionally attracted to women, I also wonder what being a woman would be like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/not-only-am-i-physically-and-emotionally-attracted-to-women-i-also/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [Women, more often than not, do things which aren't remotely relaxing but are all about preening, which is just another sort of work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-burchill/women-more-often-than-not-do-things-which-aren-t-remotely-relaxing/)

[Julie Burchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-burchill/)

> [Women can always put things in fewest words. Except when it's blowing up; and then they lengthens it out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/women-can-always-put-things-in-fewest-words-except-when-it-s-blowing/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [Men often do things for women that they don't want to do, so that women will do things for men that they don't want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-allen/men-often-do-things-for-women-that-they-don-t-want-to-do-so-that/)

[Tim Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-allen/)

> [ \[W\]e need to talk over not only those things which are of vital importance to us as women, but also the things that are… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-st-pierre-ruffin/w-e-need-to-talk-over-not-only-those-things-which-are-of-vital/)

[Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-st-pierre-ruffin/)

> [But there are many men-and women-who do things in a time of war that they wouldn't dream of doing in peacetime, and all for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-winspear/but-there-are-many-men-and-women-who-do-things-in-a-time-of-war-that/)

[Jacqueline Winspear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-winspear/)

> [I was a child of the women's movement. Everything I had learned was from my mother and my grandmother, who both had a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-grier/i-was-a-child-of-the-women-s-movement-everything-i-had-learned-was/)

[Pam Grier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-grier/)

> [It is true that in France, women put on less things. If they have a necklace, they don't put on earrings; if they have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ines-de-la-fressange/it-is-true-that-in-france-women-put-on-less-things-if-they-have-a/)

[Ines de La Fressange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ines-de-la-fressange/)

> [“Woman, you got a mouth on you." "It's not 1955 any longer. Women swear as much as men." "I miss women who talk about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edie-ramer/woman-you-got-a-mouth-on-you-it-s-not-1955-any-longer-women-swear-as/)

Edie Ramer

> [Women are often written as one thing - the ingenue or the vamp - but real women are many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-sudol/women-are-often-written-as-one-thing-the-ingenue-or-the-vamp-but-real/)

[Alison Sudol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-sudol/)

> [I thought everything was interesting. I wanted to go scuba diving and I wanted to learn how to surf. Because I grew up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aimee-mann/i-thought-everything-was-interesting-i-wanted-to-go-scuba-diving-and/)

[Aimee Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aimee-mann/)

> [We're in this space right now where things are very precarious for women and things in the States are so terrifying. There are so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-polley/we-re-in-this-space-right-now-where-things-are-very-precarious-for/)

[Sarah Polley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-polley/)

> [“They did not suspect her for a moment. It did not occur to them that a woman could be dangerous. How foolish they were.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-follett/they-did-not-suspect-her-for-a-moment-it-did-not-occur-to-them-that-a/)

[Ken Follett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-follett/)

> [There's only a very small representation of girls among you. Too little. Women have much to tell us in today’s society. Sometimes we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/there-s-only-a-very-small-representation-of-girls-among-you-too/)

[Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/)

## More by William T. Vollmann

> [Some friends and I, we went right up there behind the studio and we got on a train, we could tell it was going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/some-friends-and-i-we-went-right-up-there-behind-the-studio-and-we/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [I read and write for most of the day, but I do let myself be interrupted by real life. I enjoy going out with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/i-read-and-write-for-most-of-the-day-but-i-do-let-myself-be/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [“A treble clef, for example, resembles a Muscovite or Leningrader in a bulky hooded parka. A bass clef bends as simply and painfully as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/a-treble-clef-for-example-resembles-a-muscovite-or-leningrader-in-a/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [Oh, ants, my sisters, good old honeydew-seekers! From close up you are sticky and shiny and gristly; and your nymphs have parasitic red mites…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/oh-ants-my-sisters-good-old-honeydew-seekers-from-close-up-you-are/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [It will be fun to give some to prostitutes,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/it-will-be-fun-to-give-some-to-prostitutes/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [If I didn't feel that I was doing something or trying to do something for others, then I would have very little excuse for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/if-i-didn-t-feel-that-i-was-doing-something-or-trying-to-do-something/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [Just for the hell of it, try to love someone as unlike you as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/just-for-the-hell-of-it-try-to-love-someone-as-unlike-you-as-possible/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [“The shortest man, codenamed RIMSKY, said to me that freedom means understanding our place within the laws of history; we are more free when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/the-shortest-man-codenamed-rimsky-said-to-me-that-freedom-means/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [“Do you want to know what happiness is? Happiness is the absence of unpleasant information.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/do-you-want-to-know-what-happiness-is-happiness-is-the-absence-of/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [My father hates organized religion, probably because he hates the God who killed his little girl back in 1968. I find religions variously bemusing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/my-father-hates-organized-religion-probably-because-he-hates-the-god/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [There's an Inuit myth about the origin of the human race. There were two brothers, and the younger brother eventually gets changed into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/there-s-an-inuit-myth-about-the-origin-of-the-human-race-there-were/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [Don't write for money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/don-t-write-for-money/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [I first got really interested in Noh in about 1977. There was an independent bookstore in Bloomington, Indiana where I was going to high…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/i-first-got-really-interested-in-noh-in-about-1977-there-was-an/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [“More aid, better directed! Couldn't we all use that? And what if the universe enacts less aid, more poorly directed?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/more-aid-better-directed-couldn-t-we-all-use-that-and-what-if-the/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

> [“whatever fate sends us quickly becomes us, and we grow blind to what we might otherwise have been. And”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/whatever-fate-sends-us-quickly-becomes-us-and-we-grow-blind-to-what/)

[William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

[Explore all 186 William T. Vollmann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/)

## More Able quotes

> [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/)

[Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/)

> [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/)

> [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/)

[Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/)

> [In the '80s, the way radio was programmed, if you didn't have a hit record you weren't going to be able to make any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huey-lewis/in-the-80s-the-way-radio-was-programmed-if-you-didn-t-have-a-hit/)

[Huey Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huey-lewis/)

> [I think I've had the longest career of strength, focus, and still being able to sell records. I think I'm that guy. I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/)

[Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/)

> [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/)

[Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/)

> [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/)

[Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/)

> [I wanted to remember in order to be able to return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-wanted-to-remember-in-order-to-be-able-to-return/)

[Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/)

> [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/)

Greg Perry

> [I don't know if I would qualify as mainstream. I think I have managed to function pretty successfully on the fringes of the music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/i-don-t-know-if-i-would-qualify-as-mainstream-i-think-i-have-managed/)

[Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/)

> [What we're supposed to do as actors is be able to portray real human beings and emotions. And if you grow up in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-browning/what-we-re-supposed-to-do-as-actors-is-be-able-to-portray-real-human/)

[Emily Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-browning/)

> [The reason that Apple is able to create products like iPad is because we always try to be at the intersection of technology and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-reason-that-apple-is-able-to-create-products-like-ipad-is-because/)

[Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/)

> [It was an important period for us, because even though we weren't a "punk band", and what became a model for a punk band,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mallinder/it-was-an-important-period-for-us-because-even-though-we-weren-t-a/)

[Stephen Mallinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mallinder/)

> [- You look fine. - Right. I look fine. Except I don't, said Zora, tugging sadly at her man's nightshirt. This was why Kiki…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-look-fine-right-i-look-fine-except-i-don-t-said-zora-tugging/)

[Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/)

> [There is a way to be a woman, ask for what we deserve and be able to negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/there-is-a-way-to-be-a-woman-ask-for-what-we-deserve-and-be-able-to/)

[Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/)

Browse all 17,257 Able quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Precisely because I'm a man who is attracted to women, there may be some things that I have to say as a spectator of feminine grace that women themselves may not be able to see.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "William T. Vollmann"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attracted-to-women-there-may-be/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Able"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attracted-to-women-there-may-be/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/079/william-t-vollmann-2100_able_precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attra_192437.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/079/william-t-vollmann-2100_able_precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attra_192437.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/079/william-t-vollmann-2100_able_precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attra_192437.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Precisely because I'm a man who is attracted to women, there may be some things that I have to say as a…” — William T. Vollmann",
                "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 T. Vollmann",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Precisely because I'm a man who...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attracted-to-women-there-may-be/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/precisely-because-i-m-a-man-who-is-attracted-to-women-there-may-be/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
