“I can't actually explain why my lines got shorter, but they did. Just as I can't explain why my early poems were 'all image' and my current ones are relatively abstract. The sense of the line changed with the theme, somehow my ear (or brain or heart/mind) fell in love with a short line and very very simple words.” MindHeartI CanLinesSimpleBrainChangedEarsCurrentsAbstractThemeSimple Words Author:Gregory Orr
“You probably have to trust that your work is following certain themes and certain movements, but then the rest is a kind of piecing together so that the whole becomes larger than the parts.” KindWholeTogetherCertainMovementFollowingTheme Author:Jess Walter
“There are times when you need to step back and realize that movie studios today are not necessarily the same things that they were many years ago. Many movie studios are international conglomerates now. They own everything from theme parks to toy companies to T-shirt companies to video companies. There's a lot of different wheels to be greased.” NeedsYearsDifferentTodayRealizingCompanyStepsYears AgoInternationalStudiosVideoShirtsParksThemeWheelsToysT ShirtTheme Parks Author:Michael Uslan
“"Biblical theology" refers to something more precise than theology that is faithful to the Bible. It might be helpful to draw a contrast: at the risk of oversimplification, systematic theology tends to organize theology topically and with an eye cast on its contemporary relevance, while biblical theology tends to organize the same biblical material so that it is easier to see the distinctive contribution of each biblical book and human author, and to trace the trajectories of themes across the Bible so we see how the books of the Bible hold together.” HumansBookMightEyeTogetherRiskMaterialsEasierDrawsCastsTheologyContemporaryFaithfulThemeContributionHelpfulContrastBiblicalOrganizePreciseRelevanceSystematicDistinctiveTrajectoryOversimplification Author:D. A. Carson
“Systematic theology will ask questions like "What are the attributes of God? What is sin? What does the cross achieve?" Biblical theology tends to ask questions such as "What is the theology of the prophecy of Isaiah? What do we learn from John's Gospel? How does the theme of the temple work itself out across the entire Bible?" Both approaches are legitimate; both are important. They are mutually complementary.” DoeImportantAsksSinAchieveApproachCrossesTheologyThemeTemplesAttributesBiblicalProphecySystematicComplementaryAttributes Of God Author:D. A. Carson
“It's better to emphasize biblical theology, partly because there are fine Study Bibles already available that lean into systematic theology, and partly because biblical theology is particularly strong at helping readers see how the Bible hangs together in its own categories: that is, God in his infinite wisdom chose to give us his Word in the 66 canonical books, with all of their variations in theme, emphasis, vocabulary, literary form, and distinctive contributions across time.” GivingBookHelpingTogetherFormStrongStudyFineReaderInfiniteAvailableTheologyThemeContributionCategoriesBiblicalVocabularyEmphasisVariationSystematicDistinctive Author:D. A. Carson
“I just am a person who loves houses. In a way, it's dovetailed into one of the themes of The Unspeakable: Why do you have to change? Why don't you just accept that this is how you are? Why do you have to grow from an experience?” WayPersonsHouseGrowsAcceptingThemeUnspeakable Author:Meghan Daum
“People have taken advantage of the very well-trodden pathways that divide science and faith on other issues, such as creation, evolution, and the age of the universe, to pigeonhole climate change as yet another variant on the same theme.” PeopleWellsAgeUniverseIssuesTakenCreationEvolutionAdvantageClimateClimate ChangeThemeDividesPathwaysTaken Advantage Author:Katharine Hayhoe
“Translated books rarely get reviewed in the press. Books or poems or works of art that don't seem to have a corresponding style or figure or theme, obviously they're hard to digest.” ArtBookHardSeemsStyleFiguresPressesThemeWorks Of ArtCorresponding Author:Elliott Colla
“One of the unspoken themes that I'm grappling with in Day of Honey is the relationship between violence and cosmopolitanism. It's one thing to comprehend violence as an outgrowth of ignorance, poverty, and backwardness. It's another matter entirely to confront incredible atrocities in a country with a rich civic and intellectual life.” CountryMatterPovertyRichViolenceOne ThingIgnoranceIntellectualIncrediblesThemeHoneyCivicsAtrocitiesUnspokenGrapplingIntellectual LifeCosmopolitanism Author:Annia Ciezadlo
“As far as CGI and hand-drawn animation, I consider them both nothing more than tools for drawing pictures, the same as crayons or oils. Which is why, to me, the most important thing is what it is you are drawing, and in the themes that I depict, I think hand-drawing is the most effective.” ThinkingImportantHandsToolsImportant ThingsOilDrawingThemeAnimationCrayonCgiDrawing Pictures Author:Mamoru Hosoda
“I want to take themes that are shared throughout the world, express them through animation, and make movies from them.” WorldWantThemeAnimation Author:Mamoru Hosoda
“There are definitely recurring themes in humanity's relationship with our environment. The biggest is probably adaptation, because humans are incredibly good at adapting to new environments in relatively short periods of time. The ancestors of Homo sapiens started leaving Africa over one million years ago, moving from warm, tropical climates into the freezing wilderness of Europe and the desert ecosystems of the Middle East.” YearsHumansMovingHumanityMillionsEnvironmentMiddlePeriodsEuropeYears AgoClimateLeavingWarmEastDesertThemeWildernessAncestorMiddle EastAdaptationOur EnvironmentHomo SapiensEcosystemsAdaptingFreezingTropicalRecurringNew EnvironmentRecurring Themes Author:Annalee Newitz
“I love outsider stories. And I also like a lot of genre fiction, too. So I wanted to write a literary book that flirted with thriller and fantasy and even science fiction. I wanted the coming-of-age story and the love story to be about "outsiderdom" - one of the themes I am most interested in.” WritingBookStoriesAgeWantedFictionFantasyScience FictionLove StoryGenreThemeComing Of AgeOutsidersThrillers Author:Porochista Khakpour
“I write first drafts feverishly fast, and then I spend years editing. It's not that sentence-by-sentence perfectionist technique some writers I admire use. I need to see the thing, in some form, and then work with it over and over and over until it makes sense to me - until its concerns approach me, until its themes come to my attention. At that editing stage, the story picks itself and it's just up to me to see it, to find it. If I've done a good job, what it all means will force me to confront it in further edits.” IfsNeedsWritingYearsFirstsMeanDoneStoriesUseJobsFormForceAttentionStageApproachPicksConcernSentencesTechniqueAdmireMake SenseThemeEditingGood JobEditsPerfectionist Author:Porochista Khakpour
“The Illusionist is the storyteller in so many ways. Symbols become his obsession. It's not simply about creating plot - one must also grapple with theme. Nowadays we have a lot of characters and a lot of action but it's hard to sit still and really meditate on meaning, worldviews, concepts, ideologies even. I make my Illusionist do what I've had to do, often with copious amounts of stumbling and frustration. His real humanity comes from being an artist, I think - his creativity is what makes him a man.” ThinkingMenWayStillsRealHardCharacterActionArtistHumanityCreativityAmountCreatingConceptsObsessionIdeologySymbolsThemeFrustrationPlotStorytellerWorldviewBeing An ArtistStumblingIllusionists Author:Porochista Khakpour
“California seemed to me to be all about secrets and the need for safety. And this leads to this thematic messiness I'm still trying to figure out what to do with. I mean, when it comes to the themes, this is nothing like an Atwood novel.” NeedsTryingMeanStillsSecretNovelFiguresSafetyCaliforniaThemeThematicMessiness Author:Edan Lepucki
“With my students, I don't offer any simple tips like that, maybe because my own process is pretty messy, but when we workshop we talk a lot about the deeper subject, which is what the story or novel is about. I think defining a narrative's themes can lay bare a narrative's tensions.” ThinkingStoriesProcessMy OwnSimpleNovelSubjectsStudentsOffersLaysDeeperNarrativeTensionThemeDefiningMessyWorkshops Author:Edan Lepucki
“I thought of the structure as musical. The first piece, for instance, contains the names/subject matter of every person to come in the book. Like a piece of music with themes, etc.” FirstsPersonsBookMatterNamesPiecesSubjectsStructureMusicalInstanceThemeEtcSubject Matter Author:Hilton Als
“I guess I try to find the humor by juxtaposing deeper themes in literature with what people perceive as being lighter, disposable children's fare in comics.” PeopleTryingChildrenLiteratureDeeperPerceiveThemeLightersDisposable Author:Robert Sikoryak
“I start every first draft with voice rather than theme or image or even character as such, so it isn't like I'm ever rubbing my hands, cackling, "The dad is really going to take it on the chin in this one!" Not in terms of any given story, and certainly not in terms of the collection as a whole.” FirstsWholeCharacterStoriesHandsGivenVoiceTermDadThemeCollectionsChins Author:Roy Kesey
“The White Horse video which was directed by Marco Ovando started off with a biker theme. Once Ava Sanjurjo came in as stylist along with Marco & I it really took it's own shape. It was all very improvised but wound up paying homage to NY and night life. People say it reminds them of a Guess ad which I love!” PeopleNightWhiteShapesHorseWoundsVideoThemeAdsHomageMarcosStylistBikersWhite Horse Author:Nomi Ruiz
“The themes that the anti-globalization protesters bring to the discussion are of extraordinary importance. However, the theses that they often bring to it, sometimes in the form of slogans, are often oversimple.” SometimesFormImportanceExtraordinaryDiscussionThemeGlobalizationSlogansThesis Author:Amartya Sen
“One of the things that we talked about was this idea of 'Memento Mori' - like the reminder of our own mortality - and so we were sort of trying to express that in our press photos. And it's one of the themes of the album [Modern Vampires of the City] as well.” TryingWellsIdeasCitiesModernPressesAlbumsVampireThemeMortalityRemindersMemento MoriMemento Author:Rostam Batmanglij
“I wasn't writing stories with the intention of creating a particular collection. I simply wrote stories, and then discovered common themes among a good number of them.” WritingStoriesCommonNumbersParticularCreatingIntentionThemeCollectionsWriting Stories Author:Bonnie Jo Campbell
“If there's a theme in my work, it's that I like to focus on smart people who are facing oppression and who are fighting back against it.” PeopleIfsFightingFocusSmartOppressionThemeWorking ItSmart PeopleFighting Back Author:Molly Crabapple
“The feeling of being an outsider, and the identity theme, are hardwired into me. If there's anything really autobiographical in my fiction, it's that feeling. I always feel that way.” IfsWayFeelsFeelingsFictionIdentityThemeOutsiders Author:Dan Chaon
“I've often had the fortune to work on projects with a small theme I find very interesting enough to pursue and to be passionate about in the context of the story, then it may turn out there's a universality about my character which still resonates with many people as well.” PeopleWellsMayStillsEnoughCharacterStoriesTurnsInterestingProjectsFortunePassionatePursueThemeVery InterestingUniversality Author:Chiwetel Ejiofor
“The Pink Panther is legendary, but a lot of people my age haven't ever seen the original. So, I think it's great to bring it back for my generation, and to expose them to where that theme song which still sounds so modern and that legendary image of a pink cat came from. It's great to be a part of that, because it's history.” PeopleThinkingStillsAgeSongSoundGenerationsModernHavensCatOriginalsThemeMy GenerationLegendaryPanthersPink Panther Author:Beyonce Knowles
“If a person just takes what is socio-political and geographical from the themes of my films then that's not enough. But if the person goes out of the theatre and, for example, makes the dinner he's eating later on, extra nice then I feel that I have succeeded. We have this urge to anaesthetize the moment we're living in.” IfsFeelsPersonsEnoughMomentsFilmPoliticalNiceExampleEatingDinnerTheatreExtrasThemeUrges Author:Elia Suleiman
“My most recent project has been acting and dancing on VH1's TV series Hit the Floor. On the show, we perform at least one dance number an episode. They are all different themes and different dance styles and keep us literally on our toes. The show is exuberant, exciting, and full of scandal. Tune in and I know you'll get addicted.” KnowsHas BeensDifferentShowsNumbersActingStyleTvsProjectsExcitingDancingSeriesThemeTunesEpisodesToesScandalTv Series Author:Allison Holker
“If you can have a show that has quite strong morals and cover important themes but be able to put them out to a broad audience, that's an interesting thing.” IfsImportantShowsAbleStrongInterestingMoralAudienceThemeBroadsInteresting Things Author:Ed Speleers
“There were some particular themes that I knew I wanted to hit, and when I got deeper into the project I found that it was becoming serious in and on its own. By the end, it's not very funny at all. I think, now, that part of the power of the book is that the jokes are kind of sparkly distractions.” ThinkingKindBookEndsWantedFoundParticularSeriousBecomingProjectsJokesDeeperThemeDistraction Author:Moshe Kasher
“In keeping with the theme of "I got my hands on," my brother and I would listen to The Diceman Cometh. That was the dirtiest thing we'd ever heard, and we could listen to that at full volume without fear of penalty, because my mom couldn't hear that either. I wasn't a huge comedy fan growing up, but I definitely listened to Andrew Dice Clay a lot.” HandsGrowing UpComedyGrowingHeardFansBrotherHugeMomMy MomMy BrotherThemeVolumePenaltiesClayAndrewDice Author:Moshe Kasher
“I don't think we really planned it ahead of time but rather oozed out of our pores. All three of the demonstrative themes of Corrosion of Conformity are on there. The Hardcore/Punk from the 80's, the late 80's/early 90's mathy metal and finally the more Pepper, swampy/doomy stuff. We love all three so that's what came out on the album and I think it came out magically.” ThinkingThreeStuffLateAlbumsThemeConformityMetalsPunkHardcorePeppersAhead Of Time Author:Reed Mullin
“One of the consistent themes you'll find throughout the Bible is that God will always provide the necessary information about Jesus Christ to someone who sincerely desires to receive that revelation.” DesireJesusChristInformationJesus ChristGods WillThemeRevelationsConsistentSincerely Author:Robert Jeffress
“The use of neuroscientific data to help resolve phenomenological questions is proving a common theme in much contemporary thinking about the mind. How rich are the contents of visual perception? Does vision only tell us about shapes and colours, or does it also represent higher categories like lemon or umbrella?” ThinkingMindDoeHelpingUseCommonVisionRichHigherShapesProvePerceptionContemporaryDataThemeVisualsColourResolveCategoriesLemonsUmbrellaVisual Perception Author:David Papineau
“The specifics of the platform, I don`t think, are necessarily going to be written by Bernie Sanders, but the themes of the platform are going to be written by Bernie Sanders.” ThinkingWrittenThemePlatformsSpecifics Author:Steve Kornacki
“I think Bernie's [Sanders] setting a direction in the way that [Barry] Goldwater when he lost - I'm not saying he's going to lose. We don't know what is going to happen. It's early. But I think he's already set a lot of themes.” ThinkingKnowsWayHappensLostLosesSettingSettingsTheme Author:Chris Matthews
“I'm very surprised at Carol didn't get a best picture. Todd Haynes is an Academy darling, his period pieces are nothing short of brilliant, and they hold up. And I definitely feel like Carol speaks to, even though it's set in the past, it speaks to themes we're dealing with in life right now. It's really really shocking that it didn't get it.” FeelsPastSpeakPiecesPeriodsRight NowBrilliantThemeShockingDarlingAcademyCarolsBest Picture Author:Bun B
“Sometime during the 1990s, when I was teaching philosophy at UCSD, my friend, colleague, and music teacher, Carol Plantamura, discussed the possibility of teaching a course together looking at ways in which various literary works (plays, stories, novels) had been treated as operas, and how different themes emerged in the opera and in its original. One of the pairings we planned to use was Mann's great novella and Britten's opera. Unfortunately, the course was never taught, but the idea remained with me.” WayIdeasDifferentPhilosophyPlayStoriesUseTogetherCoursesNovelTeacherTeachingPossibilityTaughtMy FriendsOriginalsVariousTreatedThemeOperaColleaguesCarolsLiterary WorksMusic TeacherWork Play Author:Philip Kitcher
“First, my frame of reference for the Britten opera shifted. I'd always thought of Britten's approach in Death in Venice as another exploration of the plight of the individual whose aspirations are at odds with those of the surrounding community: his last opera returning to the themes of Peter Grimes. As I read and listened and thought, however, Billy Budd came to seem a more appropriate foil for Death in Venice.” FirstsSeemsLastsIndividualCommunityApproachAspirationThemeAppropriateExplorationOperaPeterOddsVenicePlightFoilsFrame Of ReferenceGrimeDeath In Venice Author:Philip Kitcher
“Think about Mann's own daily routine (ascribed to Aschenbach), read the extant diaries and the letters in which he discusses the novella's themes, and it won't be so obvious that the attraction to Tadzio is completely unprecedented; it also won't be obvious that what Aschenbach wants is full sexual contact.” ThinkingWantLettersObviousAttractionContactThemeRoutineDiariesUnprecedentedDaily Routines Author:Philip Kitcher
“The "little theme" from Vinteuil, heard by Swann as emblematic of his love for Odette, remains a point of reference for him, as the character of that love changes and as the love eventually fades.” LittlesCharacterHeardRemainsThemeFadesHis Love Author:Philip Kitcher
“Though energy and inspiration diminish, experience grows - the theme of parents and kids, for instance.” InspirationKidsEnergyGrowsParentInstanceThemeDiminish Author:Steve Erickson
“Shambhala existed in Tibet and has been continued over the years, and now it is in the West. At its core, it is very much dedicated to the basic theme of benefiting others.” YearsHas BeensWestCoreThemeDedicatedTibetShambhalaBenefiting Others Author:Sakyong Mipham
“I started with wanting to think about witches, about strong women who have special powers - who are often misunderstood. Then I found some beautiful blue fabric, so I made Blue Witches. My creative process is always like that. Organic, text, theme, subtext, each day evolving and trying to make strong, beautiful clothes. It's that simple.” ThinkingTryingMadeBeautifulFoundStrongProcessSimpleCreativeSpecialClothesBlueEvolveThemeEach DayWitchCreative ProcessFabricStrong WomenMisunderstoodSubtextBeautiful Clothes Author:Rei Kawakubo
“In Comme des Garçons, I hardly do any sketches; there's no fittings on bodies, there's no models that come in and say, "Oh, a little bit like this." In the beginning, there isn't even a theme. It's like getting the whole world at your feet - to empty your mind of everything that's ever happened before, to get an empty space.” WorldMindLittlesWholeBodyBitsSpaceHappenedFeetLittle BitModelsEmptyWhole WorldThemeEmpty Space Author:Rei Kawakubo
“There's no linear narrative - the structure is more like a series of variations on a theme (how identity is shaped by language), with the past constantly bleeding into the present, dreams into reality. And the language, while incredibly lyrical in places, also has this underlying dissonance, the sense of it having itself been translated.” DreamRealityPastLanguageIdentityStructureSeriesNarrativeThemeVariationBleedingLinearLyricalDissonanceDream Reality Author:Deborah Smith
“I knew that I wanted to create rich themes, and something that people might really relate to emotionally. That was the quest, authenticity, and then just to make the audience feel something.” PeopleFeelsMightWantedAudienceRichAuthenticityRelateThemeQuests Author:John Debney