--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whatever is unnamed, undepicted in…" description: "\"Whatever is unnamed, undepicted in images, whatever is omitted from biography, censored in collections of letters, whatever is misnamed as something el..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6b/adrienne-rich-803_biographies_whatever-is-unnamed-undepicted-in-images_2594315.png" --- # Whatever is unnamed, undepicted in images, whatever is… ![“Whatever is unnamed, undepicted in images, whatever is omitted from biography, censored in collections of letters, whatever is misnamed as something else, made difficult-to-come-by, whatever is buried in the memory by the collapse of meaning under an inadequate or lying language - this will…” quote by Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6b/adrienne-rich-803_biographies_whatever-is-unnamed-undepicted-in-images_2594315.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6b/adrienne-rich-803_biographies_whatever-is-unnamed-undepicted-in-images_2594315.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6b/adrienne-rich-803_biographies_whatever-is-unnamed-undepicted-in-images_2594315.png) > “Whatever is unnamed, undepicted in images, whatever is omitted from biography, censored in collections of letters, whatever is misnamed as something else, made difficult-to-come-by, whatever is buried in the memory by the collapse of meaning under an inadequate or lying language - this will become, not merely unspoken, but unspeakable.” [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Unspeakable truths arise from omission, censorship, and language failure. **In simple terms:** Omitted truths become unspeakable. Key Takeaway Address hidden narratives openly. Themes silence censorship language Mood reflective urgent Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - history - activism Key Concepts feminist theory memory studies Questions to Reflect On - What is left unsaid? - How to give voice to the silenced? A Different Perspective Silence can be protective. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Biographies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biographies/) [Biography Censored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biography-censored-1888414/) [Buried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buried/) [Censored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/censored/) [Censored Collections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/censored-collections-1888416/) [Collapse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collapse/) [Collections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collections/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Inadequate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inadequate/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Letters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/letters/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Unnamed Undepicted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unnamed-undepicted-1888415/) [Unspoken Unspeakable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unspoken-unspeakable-1888417/) ## Related quotes > [We might possess every technological resource... but if our language is inadequate, our vision remains formless, our thinking and feeling are still running in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/we-might-possess-every-technological-resource-but-if-our-language-is/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [At the U.N., any nation that fights back is censored as an "aggressor."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-levenson/at-the-u-n-any-nation-that-fights-back-is-censored-as-an-aggressor/) [Sam Levenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-levenson/) > [Making music on TV used to be as common as commercials. In the '60s and '70s, prime time was stuffed with variety shows headlined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-shales/making-music-on-tv-used-to-be-as-common-as-commercials-in-the-60s-and/) [Tom Shales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-shales/) > [Part of the power of the Internet is that information flows out there and it's generally not censored and it's generally not controlled by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/part-of-the-power-of-the-internet-is-that-information-flows-out-there/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Between 1961 and 1982, 'The Catcher in the Rye' was the most censored book in high schools and libraries in the United States. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grenell/between-1961-and-1982-the-catcher-in-the-rye-was-the-most-censored/) [Richard Grenell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grenell/) > [Usually the audience has no idea that the censored version of whatever movie they're watching isn't the original.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-solondz/usually-the-audience-has-no-idea-that-the-censored-version-of/) [Todd Solondz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-solondz/) > [Libraries should be open to all - except the censor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/libraries-should-be-open-to-all-except-the-censor/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [I never really expected "Hurricane" to be censored and banned around the world, but I think the good thing that came from it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-leto/i-never-really-expected-hurricane-to-be-censored-and-banned-around/) [Jared Leto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-leto/) > [Thanks to television, for the first time the young are seeing history made before it is censored by their elders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/thanks-to-television-for-the-first-time-the-young-are-seeing-history/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [As it is an ancient truth that freedom cannot be legislated into existence, so it is no less obvious that freedom cannot be censored…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/as-it-is-an-ancient-truth-that-freedom-cannot-be-legislated-into/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [Consistently, Baidu has censored politically sensitive search results much more thoroughly than Google.cn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-mackinnon/consistently-baidu-has-censored-politically-sensitive-search-results/) [Rebecca MacKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-mackinnon/) > [While the Internet is censored in China, the censorship is allowing a level of speech to take place that's unprecedented.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-zuckerman/while-the-internet-is-censored-in-china-the-censorship-is-allowing-a/) [Ethan Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-zuckerman/) > [For me, books were my source of affirmation. Alice Walker, Audrey Lord - it was these authors who wrote about their experiences. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/for-me-books-were-my-source-of-affirmation-alice-walker-audrey-lord/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [I don't think that anything anyone has to say should ever be censored or unheard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eminem/i-don-t-think-that-anything-anyone-has-to-say-should-ever-be-censored/) [Eminem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eminem/) > [Satire that the censor understands is rightly censored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/satire-that-the-censor-understands-is-rightly-censored/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) ## More by Adrienne Rich > [Only to have a grief equal to all these tears!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/only-to-have-a-grief-equal-to-all-these-tears/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [“Responsibility to yourself means refusing to let others do your thinking, talking, and naming for you...it means that you do not treat your body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/responsibility-to-yourself-means-refusing-to-let-others-do-your/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [The beauty of darkness is how it lets you see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/the-beauty-of-darkness-is-how-it-lets-you-see/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [What I search for continuously in my art is adequate language, language I hope can stand beyond any particular occasion. What I'm finding is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/what-i-search-for-continuously-in-my-art-is-adequate-language/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [“Well, she's long about her coming, who must be more merciless to herself than history. Her mind full to the wind, I see her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/well-she-s-long-about-her-coming-who-must-be-more-merciless-to/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [I think my work comes out of both an intense desire for connection and what it means to feel isolated. 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There was a whole political movement asking such questions and others I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/the-women-s-movement-appeared-at-a-very-crucial-moment-in-my-life/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [The word revolution itself has become not only a dead relic of Leftism, but a key to the deadendedness of male politics: the revolution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/the-word-revolution-itself-has-become-not-only-a-dead-relic-of/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [The decision to feed the world is the real decision. No revolution has chosen it. For that choice requires that women shall be free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/the-decision-to-feed-the-world-is-the-real-decision-no-revolution-has/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [The necessity of poetry has to be stated over and over, but only to those who have reason to fear its power, or those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/the-necessity-of-poetry-has-to-be-stated-over-and-over-but-only-to/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [I think many poets, including myself, write both for the voice and for the page. I certainly write for the person alone in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/i-think-many-poets-including-myself-write-both-for-the-voice-and-for/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [If I cling to circumstances I could feel not responsible. Only she who says she did not choose, is the loser in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/if-i-cling-to-circumstances-i-could-feel-not-responsible-only-she-who/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) [Explore all 364 Adrienne Rich quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) ## More Biographies quotes > [Don't be afraid of hard work. Nothing worthwhile comes easily. Don't let others discourage you or tell you that you can't do it. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-b-elion/don-t-be-afraid-of-hard-work-nothing-worthwhile-comes-easily-don-t/) [Gertrude B. Elion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-b-elion/) > [The last act in the biography of the hero is that of the death or departure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-last-act-in-the-biography-of-the-hero-is-that-of-the-death-or/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [If I were entering adulthood now instead of in the environment of fifty years ago, I would choose a career that kept me in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lindbergh/if-i-were-entering-adulthood-now-instead-of-in-the-environment-of/) [Charles Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lindbergh/) > [I have my own biography of Gram Parsons - I don't want to be part of somebody else's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmylou-harris/i-have-my-own-biography-of-gram-parsons-i-don-t-want-to-be-part-of/) [Emmylou Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmylou-harris/) > [Biographies of great, but especially of good men are most instructive and useful as helps, guides, and incentives to others. Some of the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-smiles/biographies-of-great-but-especially-of-good-men-are-most-instructive/) [Samuel Smiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-smiles/) > [All Philosophy is Biography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-j-carroll/all-philosophy-is-biography/) [Peter J. Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-j-carroll/) > [Life is a biography, not a series of disconnected moments, more or less pleasurable but increasingly tedious and unsatisfying unless one imposes a purposive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-dalrymple/life-is-a-biography-not-a-series-of-disconnected-moments-more-or-less/) [Theodore Dalrymple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-dalrymple/) > [I hope any poem I've ever written could stand on its own and not need to be a part of biography, critical theory or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-goldbarth/i-hope-any-poem-i-ve-ever-written-could-stand-on-its-own-and-not-need/) [Albert Goldbarth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-goldbarth/) > [The richly cadenced prose is hypnotic, the research prodigious, the analysis acute, the mood spellbinding, and the cast of characters mythic in scale. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/the-richly-cadenced-prose-is-hypnotic-the-research-prodigious-the/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [ I read so ravenously that I would read through whole categories. I was crazy about reading biographies. \[...\] I think biographies are very urgent… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/i-read-so-ravenously-that-i-would-read-through-whole-categories-i-was/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [I don't want to say that most rock bands live these formulaic biography existences - but they kinda do. There's always a divorce. 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