--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Perhaps I am no one. True, I have a body…" description: "\"Perhaps I am no one. True, I have a body and I cannot escape from it. I would like to fly out of my head, but that is out of the question.\" — Anne Sexton" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/anne-sexton-645_body_perhaps-i-am-no-one-true-i-have-a-body-a_117107.png" --- # Perhaps I am no one. True, I have a body and I cannot… ![“Perhaps I am no one. True, I have a body and I cannot escape from it. I would like to fly out of my head, but that is out of the question.” quote by Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/anne-sexton-645_body_perhaps-i-am-no-one-true-i-have-a-body-a_117107.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/anne-sexton-645_body_perhaps-i-am-no-one-true-i-have-a-body-a_117107.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/anne-sexton-645_body_perhaps-i-am-no-one-true-i-have-a-body-a_117107.png) > “Perhaps I am no one. True, I have a body and I cannot escape from it. I would like to fly out of my head, but that is out of the question.” [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A yearning to transcend bodily limits and mental confinement, expressing a desire for freedom beyond the self. **In simple terms:** Desire to escape physical and mental constraints. Key Takeaway Freedom feels unattainable within the self. Themes existential freedom self desire Mood melancholic longing Type philosophical poetic When to use this quote - creative writing retreats - therapy sessions Key Concepts mind‑body dualism existential longing Practical Applications - Practice mindfulness to accept bodily presence - Channel yearning into artistic expression Questions to Reflect On - What does it mean to be 'free' from one's own mind? - Can acceptance replace the desire to escape? A Different Perspective Escaping the self may ignore the value of embodied experience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Body Escape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body-escape-1376598/) [Escape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/escape/) [Escape Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/escape-like-456085/) [Question](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/question/) ## Related quotes > [“Running keeps me at a physical peak and sharpens my senses. It makes me touch and see and hear as if for the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sheehan/running-keeps-me-at-a-physical-peak-and-sharpens-my-senses-it-makes/) [George Sheehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sheehan/) > [Music is an escape. It's like going into a time machine, it takes you wherever you want to go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isiahnunn/music-is-an-escape-it-s-like-going-into-a-time-machine-it-takes-you/) [IsiahNunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isiahnunn/) > [I'd go to swim practice, put my face in the water, and I didn't have to talk to anybody. Swimming was like my escape,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-beard/i-d-go-to-swim-practice-put-my-face-in-the-water-and-i-didn-t-have-to/) [Amanda Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-beard/) > [I like when people are trapped in the joke, when there's no escape. I like to lead people down the wrong path and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mooney/i-like-when-people-are-trapped-in-the-joke-when-there-s-no-escape-i/) [Paul Mooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mooney/) > [I think of escape, be like a newborn and leave everything behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-of-escape-be-like-a-newborn-and-leave-everything-behind/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Look for a way to escape if you do not like the worldly life. And if you like the worldly life, then hold on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/look-for-a-way-to-escape-if-you-do-not-like-the-worldly-life-and-if/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) > [Did you see me escape I was like whoop whoop whoop whoop!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoidberg/did-you-see-me-escape-i-was-like-whoop-whoop-whoop-whoop/) [Zoidberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoidberg/) > [For me, wrestling was an escape. It was like a way out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-ambrose/for-me-wrestling-was-an-escape-it-was-like-a-way-out/) [Dean Ambrose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-ambrose/) > [I grew up in a situation of extreme abuse, but there was no chance to talk about it, so music became the escape if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sinead-o-connor/i-grew-up-in-a-situation-of-extreme-abuse-but-there-was-no-chance-to/) [Sinead O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sinead-o-connor/) > [Id go to swim practice, put my face in the water, and I didnt have to talk to anybody. Swimming was like my escape,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-beard/id-go-to-swim-practice-put-my-face-in-the-water-and-i-didnt-have-to/) [Amanda Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-beard/) > [“No escape--like life itself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-weaver/no-escape-like-life-itself/) [Will Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-weaver/) > [Dancing allows me to go away and not have to think of what I’m doing next. That is the opportunity for me to really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/selena/dancing-allows-me-to-go-away-and-not-have-to-think-of-what-i-m-doing/) [Selena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/selena/) > [I always felt that acting was an escape, like having the secret key to every door and permission to go into any realm and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-norton/i-always-felt-that-acting-was-an-escape-like-having-the-secret-key-to/) [Edward Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-norton/) > [“Often the most tricky questions are the ones we secretly know the answers of. What are you running from? What are you waiting for?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanhita-baruah/often-the-most-tricky-questions-are-the-ones-we-secretly-know-the/) [Sanhita Baruah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanhita-baruah/) > [How did you escape? (Syd) I fought my way out in a manner that would have made Rambo proud. And when I got home…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/how-did-you-escape-syd-i-fought-my-way-out-in-a-manner-that-would/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) ## More by Anne Sexton > [Blind with love, my daughter has cried nightly for horses, those long-necked marchers and churners that she has mastered, any and all, reigning them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/blind-with-love-my-daughter-has-cried-nightly-for-horses-those-long/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I am crazy as hell, but I know it. And knowing it is a kind of sanity that makes the sickness worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-am-crazy-as-hell-but-i-know-it-and-knowing-it-is-a-kind-of-sanity/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [And what of the dead? They lie without shoes in the stone boats. They are more like stone than the sea would be if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/and-what-of-the-dead-they-lie-without-shoes-in-the-stone-boats-they/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [The Witch's Life" When I was a child there was an old woman in our neighborhood whom we called The Witch. All day she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/the-witch-s-life-when-i-was-a-child-there-was-an-old-woman-in-our/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I have forgiven all the old actors for dying. A new one comes on with the same lines, like large white growths, in his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-have-forgiven-all-the-old-actors-for-dying-a-new-one-comes-on-with/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [“From the Garden” Come, my beloved, consider the lilies. We are of little faith. We talk too much. Put your mouthful of words away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/from-the-garden-come-my-beloved-consider-the-lilies-we-are-of-little/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Oh thumb, I want a drink it is dark, where are the big people, when will I get there...?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/oh-thumb-i-want-a-drink-it-is-dark-where-are-the-big-people-when-will/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I want to kiss God on His nose and watch Him sneeze and so do you. Not out of disrespect. Out of pique. Out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-want-to-kiss-god-on-his-nose-and-watch-him-sneeze-and-so-do-you-not/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I, in my brand new body, which was not a woman's yet, told the stars my questions and thought God could really see the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-in-my-brand-new-body-which-was-not-a-woman-s-yet-told-the-stars-my/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Father, you died once, salted down at fifty-nine, packed down like a big snow angel, wasn't that enough?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/father-you-died-once-salted-down-at-fifty-nine-packed-down-like-a-big/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [When I'm writing, I know I'm doing the thing I was born to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/when-i-m-writing-i-know-i-m-doing-the-thing-i-was-born-to-do/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Cinderella and the prince lived, they say, happily ever after, like two dolls in a museum case never bothered by diapers or dust, never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/cinderella-and-the-prince-lived-they-say-happily-ever-after-like-two/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [“Quite collected at cocktail parties, meanwhile in my head I'm undergoing open-heart surgery.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/quite-collected-at-cocktail-parties-meanwhile-in-my-head-i-m/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I cannot walk an inch / without trying to walk to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-cannot-walk-an-inch-without-trying-to-walk-to-god/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Now that I have written many words, and let out so many loves, for so many, and been altogether what I always was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/now-that-i-have-written-many-words-and-let-out-so-many-loves-for-so/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) [Explore all 428 Anne Sexton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) ## More Body quotes > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. 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I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) [Jennifer Siebel Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-siebel-newsom/) > [Boys and boys' body image and clothes have become just as important an issue for boys as for girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-wiseman/boys-and-boys-body-image-and-clothes-have-become-just-as-important-an/) [Rosalind Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-wiseman/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Racism is a cancer. 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My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/) [Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/) > [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) [Browse all 20,814 Body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Perhaps I am no one. True, I have a body and I cannot escape from it. 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