The biggest problem that women have is being ambivalent about their own power, ... We should be comfortable with the idea of wielding power. We shouldn't feel that it detracts from our femininity.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
Nothing in my life ever seemed to fade away or take its rightful place among the pantheon of experiences that constituted my eighteen years. It was all still with me, the storage space in my brain crammed with vivid memories, packed and piled like photographs and old dresses in my grandmother’s bureau. I wasn’t just the madwoman in the attic — I was the attic itself. The past was all over me, all under me, all inside me.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on the enduring nature of memories and their impact on one's identity.
In this quote, Elizabeth Wurtzel expresses how every experience from her eighteen years has left a lasting impression on her, likening her mind to an attic filled with memories that shape who she is. She highlights the complexity of her past, suggesting that it is not only a part of her but also a defining aspect of her identity, emphasizing the struggle of being overwhelmed by the weight of these experiences.
Themes
MemoryIdentityPastExperienceLife
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about how past experiences shape who we are, this quote could illustrate the importance of memory.
More from Elizabeth Wurtzel
All quotes →The men have piled up in my past, have fallen trenchantly through my life, like an avalanche that doesn't mean to kill but is going to bury me alive just the same.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
Whenever I talk to anyone I care about, I am always seeking approval. There is always a pleading lilt in my voice that demands love. Even the people I work with, the ones I am supposed to have a professional relationship with, all business, get pulled into my need. I can't help it. I want to be adored.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
Getting help for substance abuse can be reduced to the deceptively simple focus of ‘keeping away from the dope.’ But what does getting help with depression mean? Learning to keep away from your own mind?
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
Taking a hypersensitive approach to life had come to seem so much more pure and honest then joining the ranks of the numb masses who could let it all slide by. What I stopped realizing was that if you feel everything intensely, ultimately you feel nothing at all. Everything registers at the same decibel.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
It's being a grown up, which I never figured out how to do, scrubbing the tub, and remembering to eat and shampoo my hair. It's the basics: I can write a whole book, but I cannot handle the basics.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
Similar quotes
I realized this is what God has dealt me, and I should be thankful considering all that's happened to me in my life, but MS caused the movies to stop - stop dead - and I miss it.
Richard PryorRead
Living a life fully engaged and full of whimsy and the kind of things that love does is something most people plan to do, but along the way they just kind of forget. Their dreams become one of those "we'll go there next time" deferrals. The sad thing is, for many there is no "next time" because passing on the chance to cross over is an overall attitude toward life rather than a single decision.
Bob GoffRead
I think the hardest thing in life is to forgive. Hate is self destructive. If you hate somebody, you're not hurting the person you hate, you're hurting yourself. It's a healing, actually, it's a real healing...forgiveness.
Louis ZamperiniRead
LIVE for LIFE, but let live everybody
Marvin GayeRead
The hurrier I go, the behinder I get.
Lewis CarrollRead
So here's to the girls on the go_x000D_ Everybody tries._x000D_ Look into their eyes,_x000D_ And you'll see what they know:_x000D_ Everybody dies._x000D_ A toast to that invincible bunch,_x000D_ The dinosaurs surviving the crunch._x000D_ Let's hear it for the ladies who lunch_x000D_ Everybody rise!
Stephen SondheimRead