Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear

“He was like a rare orchid, with blooms separated by many years. He never promoted himself in the least.”

Gilbert uses figurative language, comparing writer Jack Gilbert’s disappearances from the public eye to rare orchids that bloom infrequently. Her use of the word “like” makes the comparison a simile rather than a metaphor. The image of the rare orchid illuminates Jack Gilbert’s disappearance from the public for periods of time.

“I happen to believe we are all walking repositories of buried treasure. I believe this is one of the oldest and most generous tricks the universe plays on us human beings, both for its own amusement and for ours. The universe buries strange jewels deep within us all, and then stands back to see if we can find them. The hunt to uncover those jewels—that’s creative living. The courage to go on that hunt in the first place—that’s what separates a mundane existence from a more enchanted one. The often surprising results of that hunt—that’s what I call Big Magic.”

Gilbert hints at her idea of the trickster that she discusses later in the book when claiming that the universe plays tricks on people. Here, the universe itself is a trickster who enjoys play. This relates to her suggestion that creatives have a trickster persona, as well as The Importance of Play and Curiosity. By stating that ideas are buried within us, she contradicts her idea that inspiration is separate from humans, an example of Apparent Contradictions in the Creative Process. This is also her first mention of “Big Magic,” which she defines as the results of creative living.

“Ideas spend eternity swirling around us, searching for available and willing human partners [...] When an idea thinks it as found somebody—say, you—who might be able to bring it into the world, the idea will pay you a visit. It will try to get your attention.”

Gilbert personifies abstract ideas as humanlike; they “visit” people and try to get their “attention.” By personifying ideas, Gilbert explores the theme of