--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What interests me in [Lincoln in the…" description: "\"What interests me in [Lincoln in the Bardo] is a slight perverse balance between the sublime and the grotesque. Like you could have landed only on the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/zadie-smith-584_argument_what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bard_1764730.png" --- # What interests me in \[Lincoln in the Bardo\] is a slight… ![“What interests me in [Lincoln in the Bardo] is a slight perverse balance between the sublime and the grotesque. Like you could have landed only on the sublime. But my argument is that the sublime couldn't exist without this other half.” quote by Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/zadie-smith-584_argument_what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bard_1764730.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/zadie-smith-584_argument_what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bard_1764730.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/zadie-smith-584_argument_what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bard_1764730.png) > “What interests me in \[Lincoln in the Bardo\] is a slight perverse balance between the sublime and the grotesque. Like you could have landed only on the sublime. But my argument is that the sublime couldn't exist without this other half.” [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The sublime and grotesque coexist, each giving meaning to the other. **In simple terms:** Beauty needs darkness to be fully felt. Key Takeaway Embrace both wonder and discomfort. Themes art duality perception Mood thoughtful introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - appreciating art - writing - critical analysis - life’s paradoxes Key Concepts aesthetics philosophy of beauty Questions to Reflect On - How does the grotesque enhance your experience of beauty? - Can you find balance in your own creative work? A Different Perspective Focusing only on the sublime can ignore necessary critique. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Argument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/argument/) [Argument Sublime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/argument-sublime-1725910/) [Balance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) [Bardo Slight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bardo-slight-1725909/) [Grotesque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grotesque/) [Half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/half/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Like you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-you/) [Nature of Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-beauty/) [Other half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/other-half/) [Sublime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sublime/) [Sublime Argument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sublime-argument-1725908/) [Sublime Grotesque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sublime-grotesque-1163999/) ## Related quotes > [As a means of contrast with the sublime, the grotesque is, in our view, the richest sourcethat nature can offer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/as-a-means-of-contrast-with-the-sublime-the-grotesque-is-in-our-view-2/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“We will simply say here that, as a means of contrast with the sublime, the grotesque is, in our view, the richest source that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/we-will-simply-say-here-that-as-a-means-of-contrast-with-the-sublime/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [As a means of contrast with the sublime, the grotesque is, in our view, the richest source that nature can offer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/as-a-means-of-contrast-with-the-sublime-the-grotesque-is-in-our-view/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [ Something in me was changed by Lincoln in the Bardo, and the great sublime/grotesque risk of \[George Saunders'\] ghosts was a part of it. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/something-in-me-was-changed-by-lincoln-in-the-bardo-and-the-great/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [ For example, you have these grotesque, hilarious, profane ghosts in the book \[Lincoln in the Bardo\]. Even the concept of talking ghosts is, from… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/for-example-you-have-these-grotesque-hilarious-profane-ghosts-in-the/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [Size without shape is grotesque.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gironda/size-without-shape-is-grotesque/) [Vince Gironda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gironda/) > [To the hard of hearing you shout, and for the almost blind you draw large and startling figures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/to-the-hard-of-hearing-you-shout-and-for-the-almost-blind-you-draw/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [Salvador Dali has been called kitsch, but, although some of this work may be grotesque, its brazenly self-conscious bad taste saves it from being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-dutton/salvador-dali-has-been-called-kitsch-but-although-some-of-this-work/) [Denis Dutton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-dutton/) > [The statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting the blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-statesmen-will-invent-cheap-lies-putting-the-blame-upon-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [In a way Australia is like Catholicism. The company is sometimes questionable and the landscape is grotesque. But you always come back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-keneally/in-a-way-australia-is-like-catholicism-the-company-is-sometimes/) [Thomas Keneally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-keneally/) > [I think that, honestly, people's censorship issues are personal but I disagree with most of those personal choices that I see others make. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-rogen/i-think-that-honestly-people-s-censorship-issues-are-personal-but-i/) [Seth Rogen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-rogen/) > [People commonly travel the world over to see rivers and mountains, new stars, garish birds, freak fish, grotesque breeds of human; they fall into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/people-commonly-travel-the-world-over-to-see-rivers-and-mountains-new/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [“I was grotesque to the theatrical pitch, a stage miser, but I was certainly not a physical impossibility”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/i-was-grotesque-to-the-theatrical-pitch-a-stage-miser-but-i-was/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [I have to be careful to get out before I become the grotesque caricature of a hatchet-faced woman with big knockers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-lee-curtis/i-have-to-be-careful-to-get-out-before-i-become-the-grotesque/) [Jamie Lee Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-lee-curtis/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## More by Zadie Smith > [- 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/) > [“Pretty girls lie at the centre of straight culture, dyke culture, fag culture. They sell everything, they buy everything, they ruin great men and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/pretty-girls-lie-at-the-centre-of-straight-culture-dyke-culture-fag/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [“I have known many true connoisseurs, with excellent tastes that range across the humanities and the culinary arts--and they never fail to have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/i-have-known-many-true-connoisseurs-with-excellent-tastes-that-range/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [I cannot believe homosexuality is that much fun. Heterosexuality certainly is not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/i-cannot-believe-homosexuality-is-that-much-fun-heterosexuality/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [“Either everything is sacred or nothing is. And if he starts burning other people’s things, then he loses something sacred also. Everyone gets what’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/either-everything-is-sacred-or-nothing-is-and-if-he-starts-burning/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [My feeling is, having lived in different classes, that people want equality of opportunity... that's the thing that makes me despair: the idea that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/my-feeling-is-having-lived-in-different-classes-that-people-want/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [I don't keep any copies of my books in the house - they go to my mum's flat. I don't like them around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/i-don-t-keep-any-copies-of-my-books-in-the-house-they-go-to-my-mum-s/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [But it makes an immigrant laugh to hear the fears of the nationalist, scared of infection, penetration, miscegenation, when this is small fry, peanuts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/but-it-makes-an-immigrant-laugh-to-hear-the-fears-of-the-nationalist/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [Oh, I know that. You know me, baby, I cannot be broken. Takes a giant to snap me in half.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/oh-i-know-that-you-know-me-baby-i-cannot-be-broken-takes-a-giant-to/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [“In short, it was precisely the kind of friendship and Englishman makes on holiday, that he can make only on holiday. A friendship that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/in-short-it-was-precisely-the-kind-of-friendship-and-englishman-makes/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [I suppose I often think of my writing as quite impersonal. But it turned out, when my father died, writing was exactly what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/i-suppose-i-often-think-of-my-writing-as-quite-impersonal-but-it/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [“Some of us are happy with our African hair, thank you very much. I don't want some poor Indian girl's hair. And I wish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/some-of-us-are-happy-with-our-african-hair-thank-you-very-much-i-don/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [You can't state difference and also state equality. We have to state sameness to understand equality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-can-t-state-difference-and-also-state-equality-we-have-to-state/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [“(Unlike many others around this time, Joyce felt no shame about using the term 'middle class'. In the Chalfen lexicon the middle classes were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/unlike-many-others-around-this-time-joyce-felt-no-shame-about-using/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [A lot of women, when they're young, feel they have very good friends, and find later on that friendship is complicated. It's easy to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/a-lot-of-women-when-they-re-young-feel-they-have-very-good-friends/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) [Explore all 457 Zadie Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) ## More Argument quotes > [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/) [Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/) > [Preaching to the choir actually arms the choir with arguments and elevates the choir's discourse. There's a reason the right does it and does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/preaching-to-the-choir-actually-arms-the-choir-with-arguments-and/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [Lutherans, whose arguments and mistakes will not be difficult to contest or discover, do not want to attribute any value to works, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-servetus/lutherans-whose-arguments-and-mistakes-will-not-be-difficult-to/) [Michael Servetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-servetus/) > [Any comprehensive doctrine, religious or secular, can be introduced into any political argument at any time, but I argue that people who do this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rawls/any-comprehensive-doctrine-religious-or-secular-can-be-introduced/) [John Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rawls/) > [As opposed to getting into arguments about, well, these folks have been treated fairly so now we're going to be doing things that, very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/as-opposed-to-getting-into-arguments-about-well-these-folks-have-been/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [There could be no more powerful argument against mixing religion and government than the success of independent African American churches in placing racial segregation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jacoby/there-could-be-no-more-powerful-argument-against-mixing-religion-and/) [Susan Jacoby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jacoby/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [On the stage, the characters express themselves more through words than images. So the arguments of the characters and the tension between characters -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/on-the-stage-the-characters-express-themselves-more-through-words/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [One argument goes that recessions are good for female artists because when money flies out the window, women are allowed in the house. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-saltz/one-argument-goes-that-recessions-are-good-for-female-artists-because/) [Jerry Saltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-saltz/) > [All of the barriers to innovation in the energy sector are arguments for a big commitment to public investment. Only the public sector can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-nordhaus/all-of-the-barriers-to-innovation-in-the-energy-sector-are-arguments/) [Ted Nordhaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-nordhaus/) > [“Arguments led by subjectivity are a waste of time. And, if they take place online, add to that, a waste of one’s keyboard.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/arguments-led-by-subjectivity-are-a-waste-of-time-and-if-they-take/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [If in the middle of an argument I suddenly fall silent it does not mean you have won... No it means you should probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hussein-nishah/if-in-the-middle-of-an-argument-i-suddenly-fall-silent-it-does-not/) [Hussein Nishah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hussein-nishah/) > [Don't get divorced after your first argument! I have a lot of friends that have one fight and that's it, they get divorced. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-ripa/don-t-get-divorced-after-your-first-argument-i-have-a-lot-of-friends/) [Kelly Ripa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-ripa/) > [“The motive behind my arguments have always been to come at truth. I am not interested in conquering anyone with my ideologies or seeking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crystal-evans/the-motive-behind-my-arguments-have-always-been-to-come-at-truth-i-am/) [Crystal Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crystal-evans/) > [In presenting a mathematical argument the great thing is to give the educated reader the chance to catch on at once to the momentary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-edensor-littlewood/in-presenting-a-mathematical-argument-the-great-thing-is-to-give-the/) [John Edensor Littlewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-edensor-littlewood/) [Browse all 3,479 Argument quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/argument/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What interests me in [Lincoln in the Bardo] is a slight perverse balance between the sublime and the grotesque. Like you could have landed only on the sublime. But my argument is that the sublime couldn't exist without this other half.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Zadie Smith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bardo-is-a-slight-perverse/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Argument" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bardo-is-a-slight-perverse/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/zadie-smith-584_argument_what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bard_1764730.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/zadie-smith-584_argument_what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bard_1764730.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/zadie-smith-584_argument_what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bard_1764730.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What interests me in [Lincoln in the Bardo] is a slight perverse balance between the sublime and the…” — Zadie Smith", "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": "Zadie Smith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What interests me in [Lincoln in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bardo-is-a-slight-perverse/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/what-interests-me-in-lincoln-in-the-bardo-is-a-slight-perverse/#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 } } ] } ```