81 Literal Quotes for You to Enjoy

A lot of the lyrics I write involve images that just swing the song in a way that feels really good to me and there isn't a literal explanation. They're not riddles for the listener to solve. Matt Berninger

Good Me Song Lyrics Way Solve Write Feels Involve Lot Listener Just Literal Explanation Really Riddles Swing Images

There is no part of the executive branch that more exists on the outer edge of executive prerogative than the American intelligence community - the intelligence community, CIA, covert action. My literal responsibility as director of CIA with regard to covert action was to inform the Congress - not to seek their approval, to inform. Michael Hayden

Director CIA Intelligence Responsibility Edge Intelligence Community Community Congress Action Approval Outer Seek More Part Executive Executive Branch Covert Exists Branch Than American Literal Regard Inform Prerogative

In a sense, mass incarceration has emerged as a far more extreme form of physical and residential segregation than Jim Crow segregation. Rather than merely shunting people of color to the other side of town, people are locked in literal cages - en masse. Michelle Alexander

People Sense Other Side Jim Jim Crow Extreme Locked Physical Emerged Rather More Crow Segregation Color Merely Mass Town Masse Than Literal Form Far Incarceration Residential

Whenever you have dynamic interactions between 300 million people and the American economy acting in really complex ways, that introduces a degree of almost chaos theory to the system, in a literal sense. Nate Silver

In a very literal way, of course, Shakespeare did change the course of history: when it didn't fit the plot he had in mind, he simply rewrote it. His English histories play fast and loose with chronology and fact to achieve the desired dramatic effect, re-ordering history even as it was then understood. Neil MacGregor

History Change Achieve Mind Chronology Dramatic Way Plot Shakespeare Fact Had He Simply Course Loose Understood His Effect Fit Histories Very Did Literal Then English Even Fast Play Desired

I try not to be overly literal. When I'm writing songs, I write down a lot of words, and then I try to simplify it. I like to give people hints or words that make visual pictures for them. Neko Case

People Writing Words Try Down Visual Give Write Songs Simplify Pictures Like Make Hints Overly Lot Literal Them Then

Melted down, silver is worth a little more than four dollars an ounce. But carved, inlaid, and engraved, and identified with a particular year, it becomes the direct reflection, often the literal record, of human history, our movement through time. Peter Landesman

Time History Worth Reflection Year Down Ounce Our Melted Record Carved Direct Silver More Through Particular Identified Becomes Dollars Than Often Human Movement Literal Little Human History Engraved Four

I've always had a more spatial mind, mathematical, than literal. Portia Doubleday

Mind More Had Always Mathematical Than Literal Spatial

I like Roy Orbison's video for 'I Drove All Night' because it's so literal. It is just a man driving throughout the night. I like that silliness. To be in a video is a ridiculous thing. It's almost impossible to do it without any humour. Richard Ayoade

If it's just screaming - and I know this sounds so ridiculous - that gets old. But sometimes when there's literal chaos, it's like being in a war zone, and that's kind of exciting. You're just running through the crowd of people chasing after you and no one knows what's going on. Robert Pattinson

War You People Sometimes Old Chasing Chaos Kind Running Crowd Through No-One Exciting Like Know Knows Sounds Gets Going Just Screaming Being Literal After War Zone Ridiculous Zone

Trans women, trans men, AFAB - which is assigned female at birth - and non-binary performers, but especially trans women of color, have been doing drag for literal centuries and deserve to be equally represented and celebrated alongside cis men. Sasha Velour

Women Men Birth Color Performers Alongside Equally Female Doing Been Celebrated Literal Which Centuries Deserve Assigned Drag

People ask me about 'The Hurt Locker' a lot, and it's an incredible piece of filmmaking - as are 'Band of Brothers' and 'Platoon' and 'Full Metal Jacket' and 'Apocalypse Now.' But they're not necessarily true to war in a literal sense. What they are, really, are brilliant movies about Hollywood's idea of war. Sebastian Junger

War Me Hurt People Brilliant Band Sense Incredible Locker Brothers About True Idea Piece Metal Lot Jacket Literal Movies Hollywood Apocalypse Ask Really Full Now Platoon Necessarily Filmmaking

I think a really rich world to live in is where you're thinking in terms of human behavior and human types and not being super literal. In order to see the deeper truth, you need to break out of literal frame of mind. Silas Weir Mitchell

Truth You World Behavior Mind Rich Live Think Thinking Frame Types Out See Super Terms Human Being Human Behavior Where Order Literal Break Really Deeper Need

My parents are very democratic and liberal people who made the mistake of being democratic and liberal in the upbringing of their children! And in my case, they are still paying for it! Paying in the literal sense as well. Swara Bhaskar

Mistake People Made Parents Sense Liberal Case Democratic Well Still Very Upbringing Being Children Literal Paying Who

When I see Bruce Banner becoming the Hulk, it's only a picture. My imagination has to do some of the work there, to impute feeling and everything. We're talking about something that's so surreal, it's just not possible within the world as we know it. So that requires a form that is not so literal. Ta-Nehisi Coates

Work World Feeling Picture Imagination Everything Possible See Some About Bruce Something Only Know Talking Within Becoming Surreal Hulk Just Literal Form Banner Requires

In order to deliver the emotional truth in the story, you have to include some of the literal truth. Theresa Breslin

Truth You Some Emotional Deliver Emotional Truth Order Literal Story Include

As I got older, I had more experience with borders. Some literal - living in the dramatically blue misty mountains on the line between North Carolina and Tennessee, and living in California - home to expats, transplants, and refugees from both sides of innumerable borders. Tim Pratt

Home Experience Mountains Older Living Sides Dramatically Carolina Borders Some More Both Both Sides Tennessee Had Between California Misty Got Line North North Carolina Blue Refugees Literal

Nelson Mandela is, for me, the single statesman in the world. The single statesman, in that literal sense, who is not solving all his problems with guns. It's truly unbelievable. Toni Morrison

Me World Problems Single Sense Statesman Nelson Nelson Mandela Solving Guns Unbelievable His Truly Mandela Literal Who

My favorite records are, like, The Pretty Things' 'Parachute' and 'S.F. Sorrow' and The Mothers of Invention's 'We're Only in It for the Money' and The Kinks' 'Village Green Preservation Society' - these records that have a story - even if it's not a literal story - because of how they're sequenced and flow. It's like a novel with sound. Ty Segall

Money Invention Society Favorite Parachute Pretty Kinks Pretty Things Only Records Like Sorrow Because How Mothers Sound Green Literal Story Even Novel Village Things Flow Preservation

When it comes to literal nourishment, the food we eat, life begets life. Victoria Moran

Life Food Eat Begets Literal Nourishment

I titled the book 'Homo Deus' because we really are becoming gods in the most literal sense possible. We are acquiring abilities that have always been thought to be divine abilities - in particular, the ability to create life. And we can do with that whatever we want. Yuval Noah Harari

If people call my book an actor's memoir I will be very upset. I can't bear anything too literal, so it has elements of truth and elements of fiction sitting side by side. Zawe Ashton

Truth Book People Will Too Side Memoir Bear Call Very Sitting Upset Fiction Literal Anything Elements Actor

Drama is not a literal portrayal of events. It's a depiction, it's impressionistic. Chris Chibnall

Events Drama Literal Depiction Portrayal

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