It's a bad word, 'belong.' Especially when you put it with somebody you love ... You can't own a human being.
Interpretation
The quote highlights the importance of autonomy in love, suggesting that one cannot possess another person.
Toni Morrison's quote challenges the notion of ownership in relationships, particularly in love. It suggests that the word 'belong' implies possession, which is inherently problematic because it diminishes individual freedom and humanity. In love, rather than viewing a partner as someone to own, it is essential to recognize and respect their autonomy and individuality.
In practice
This quote can be shared during discussions about healthy relationships.
There is a certain kind of peace that is not merely the absence of war. It is larger than that. The peace I am thinking of is not at the mercy of history's rule, nor is it a passive surrender to the status quo. The peace I am thinking of is the dance of an open mind when it engages another equally open one -- an activity that occurs most naturally, most often in the reading/writing world we live in. Accessible as it is, this particular kind of peace warrants vigilance.
You looking good." "Devil's confusion. He lets me look good long as I feel bad.
What do you say? There really are no words for that. There really aren't. Somebody tries to say, 'I'm sorry, I'm so sorry.' People say that to me. There's no language for it. Sorry doesn't do it. I think you should just hug people and mop their floor or something.
An innocent man is a sin before God. Inhuman and therefore untrustworthy. No man should live without absorbing the sins of his kind, the foul air of his innocence, even if it did wilt rows of angel trumpets and cause them to fall from their vines.
Like friendship, hatred needed more than physical intimacy; it wanted creativity and hard work to sustain itself
One of my kids was born in 1968. There were going to be political difficulties, but they were never going to have that level of hatred and contempt that my brothers and my sister and myself were exposed to.
Now the fair goddess, Fortune,_x000D_ _x000D_ Fall deep in love with thee, and her great charms_x000D_ _x000D_ Misguide thy opposers' swords!
Now love's the only thing that's free /We must take it where it's found /Pretty soon it may be costly
If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it. If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it. He sends you flowers every spring and a sunrise every morning... Face it, friend. He is crazy about you!
Singing is the love of my life, but I was ready to give it all up because I couldn't handle people talking about how fat I was.
Well I see you there with the rose in your teeth One more thin gypsy thief... Yes, and thanks, for the trouble you took from her eyes I thought it was there for good so I never tried... And Jane came by with a lock of your hair She said that you gave it to her That night that you planned to go clear.
In my opinion, the best thing you can do is find a person who loves you for exactly what you are. Good mood, bad mood, ugly, pretty, handsome, what have you, the right person will still think the sun shines out your ass. That's the kind of person that's worth sticking with.
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