The more research you do, the more at ease you are in the world you're writing about. It doesn't encumber you, it makes you free.
A. S. ByattRead
Vocabularies are crossing circles and loops. We are defined by the lines we choose to cross or to be confined by.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Our identities are shaped by the choices we make in communication and understanding.
A. S. Byatt's quote emphasizes the intricate nature of language and how it influences our identity and experiences. It suggests that the words we choose to use and the boundaries we decide to transcend or adhere to define us, highlighting the importance of communication in our lives and the potential for personal growth and understanding through the connections we forge with others.
Themes
LanguageIdentityCommunicationChoicesUnderstanding
In practice
Example use cases
Using this quote in a lecture about the impact of language on personal identity.
More from A. S. Byatt
All quotes →It's because I'm a feminist that I can't stand women limiting other women's imaginations. It really makes me angry.
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Why do we take pleasure in gruesome death, neatly packaged as a puzzle to which we may find a satisfactory solution through clues - or if we are not clever enough, have it revealed by the all-powerful tale-teller at the end of the book? It is something to do with being reduced to, and comforted by, playing by the rules.
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Never stop paying attention to things. Never make your mind up finally. Do not hold beliefs.
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Only write to me, write to me, I love to see the hop and skip and sudden starts of your ink.
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I am a creature of my pen. My pen is the best of me.
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