Not biology, but ignorance of ourselves, has been the key to our powerlessness
Interpretation
Our limitations come from a lack of understanding of ourselves rather than our inherent biological capabilities.
Adrienne Rich emphasizes that the true source of our powerlessness lies not in our biological makeup, but rather in our ignorance about our own potential and the complexities of our identity. By suggesting that understanding ourselves is crucial, she advocates for self-awareness and knowledge as keys to empowerment and agency in our lives.
In practice
In a motivational speech about personal development, one could use this quote to highlight the importance of self-discovery.
My children cause me the most exquisite suffering of which I have any experience. It is the suffering of ambivalence: the murderous alternation between bitter resentment and raw-edged nerves, and blissful gratification and tenderness. Sometimes I seem to myself, in my feelings toward these tiny guiltless beings, a monster of selfishness and intolerance.
The word revolution itself has become not only a dead relic of Leftism, but a key to the deadendedness of male politics: the revolution of a wheel which returns in the end to the same place; the revolving door of a politics which has liberated women only to use them, and only within the limits of male tolerance.
A president cannot meaningfully honor certain token artists while the people at large are so dishonored.'”
There is no 'the truth','a truth' - truth is not one thing, or even a system. It is an increasing complexity. the pattern of the carpet is a surface. When we look closely, or when we become weavers, we learn of the tiny multiple threads unseen in the overall pattern, the knots on the underside of the carpet
It is the suffering of ambivalence: the murderous alternation between bitter resentment and raw-edged nerves, and blissful gratification and tenderness
It's as if, in the mother's eyes, her smile, her stroking touch, the child first reads the message:'You are there!'
Take one, and you cannot take the other. But neither path is safe. Which way would you walk — the way of hard truths or the way of fine lies?
Actors tend to get in their own way, a lot. A lot of times you will do things that will screw up your audition process. I was very bad at auditioning, and I always went in to it saying ‘God I hope I don’t screw this up.’ But at the same time, the directors are saying, ‘God, I hope this person is the savior.’ You have to remember is that the worst thing that could happen is you don’t get the job you don’t already have.
It turned out that time doesn't heal the wound , but in its so merciful way , blunts the edges ever so slightly
The best way to handle responsibility is to break it down into smaller parts. Take care of one small thing at a time.
We either allow our past to keep interfering with our optimal expression of love and happiness, or we can move beyond our past with renewed passion for life
Nobody can think straight who does not work. Idleness warps the mind.
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