--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And when we look in through the windows…" description: "\"And when we look in through the windows, all we see are shadows. And when we try and listen, all we hear is a whispering. And we cannot understand the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1cf/arundhati-roy-346_adore_and-when-we-look-in-through-the-windows_876849.jpg" --- # And when we look in through the windows, all we see are… ![“And when we look in through the windows, all we see are shadows. And when we try and listen, all we hear is a whispering. And we cannot understand the whispering, because our minds have been invaded by a war. A war that we have both won and lost. The very worst sort of war. A war that captures…” quote by Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1cf/arundhati-roy-346_adore_and-when-we-look-in-through-the-windows_876849.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1cf/arundhati-roy-346_adore_and-when-we-look-in-through-the-windows_876849.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1cf/arundhati-roy-346_adore_and-when-we-look-in-through-the-windows_876849.jpg) > “And when we look in through the windows, all we see are shadows. And when we try and listen, all we hear is a whispering. And we cannot understand the whispering, because our minds have been invaded by a war. A war that we have both won and lost. The very worst sort of war. A war that captures dreams and re-dreams them. A war that has made us adore our conquerors and despise ourselves.” [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage depicts a society numb to reality, where war—both external and internal—distorts perception, silences truth, and forces people to idolize oppressors while self‑despising. **In simple terms:** War clouds perception and silences truth. Key Takeaway Question the narratives that shape your reality. Themes war perception self‑identity oppression illusion Mood somber reflective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - political activism - mental health awareness - education reform - media literacy Key Concepts post‑colonial trauma psychological conflict cultural critique Questions to Reflect On - How does conflict shape your self‑image? - What narratives do you accept without question? A Different Perspective The metaphor of war may oversimplify complex personal and societal struggles. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conqueror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conqueror/) [Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Shadow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shadow/) [Shadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shadows/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Whispering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whispering/) ## Related quotes > [“There comes a time when we can no longer tell the invaders from the invaded. That is what we call "War.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hiroya-oku/there-comes-a-time-when-we-can-no-longer-tell-the-invaders-from-the/) [Hiroya Oku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hiroya-oku/) > [ In his fairy dreams of war \[Thaddeus\] always made conquest the sure end of his battles. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-porter/in-his-fairy-dreams-of-war-thaddeus-always-made-conquest-the-sure-end/) [Jane Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-porter/) > [I got the one, the dream of horror! Dreams of blood, dreams of war! Rudest eyes have seen the fright Welcome to the eternal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/children-of-bodom/i-got-the-one-the-dream-of-horror-dreams-of-blood-dreams-of-war/) [Children Of Bodom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/children-of-bodom/) > [For over a thousand years Roman conquerors returning from the wars enjoyed the honor of triumph, a tumultuous parade. In the procession came trumpeteers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-over-a-thousand-years-roman-conquerors-returning-from-the-wars/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There is a war that makes us adore our conquerors and despise ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/there-is-a-war-that-makes-us-adore-our-conquerors-and-despise/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [If all the barbarian conquerors had been annihilated in the same hour, their total destruction would not have restored the empire of the West:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/if-all-the-barbarian-conquerors-had-been-annihilated-in-the-same-hour/) [Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/) > [“Napoleon the greatest of the conquerors, is a sufficient proof that great men of action are criminals, and, therefore not geniuses. One can understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/napoleon-the-greatest-of-the-conquerors-is-a-sufficient-proof-that/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [He came, not as a flash of light or as an unapproachable conqueror, but as one whose first cries were heard by a peasant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/he-came-not-as-a-flash-of-light-or-as-an-unapproachable-conqueror-but/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [Yet only the atrocities of the conquered are referred to as criminal acts; those of the conqueror are justified as necessary, heroic, and even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-fergus/yet-only-the-atrocities-of-the-conquered-are-referred-to-as-criminal/) [Jim Fergus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-fergus/) > [The most foolish mistake we could possibly make would be to permit the conquered Eastern peoples to have arms. History teaches that all conquerors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/the-most-foolish-mistake-we-could-possibly-make-would-be-to-permit/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [Faith is always at a disadvantage; it is a perpetually defeated thing which survives all conquerors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/faith-is-always-at-a-disadvantage-it-is-a-perpetually-defeated-thing/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [Much can they praise the trees so straight and high, The sailing pine,the cedar proud and tall, The vine-prop elm, the poplar never dry,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-spenser/much-can-they-praise-the-trees-so-straight-and-high-the-sailing-pine/) [Edmund Spenser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-spenser/) > [Oh while I live, to be the ruler of life, not a slave, to meet life as a powerful conqueror, and nothing exterior to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/oh-while-i-live-to-be-the-ruler-of-life-not-a-slave-to-meet-life-as-a/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [How you see yourself is IMPORTANT... We would do well to see ourselves as God sees us More than a conqueror !!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marv-stark/how-you-see-yourself-is-important-we-would-do-well-to-see-ourselves/) [Marv Stark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marv-stark/) > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) ## More by Arundhati Roy > [...As the disparity between the rich and the poor grows, the fight to corner resources is intensifying. To push through their "sweetheart deals," to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/as-the-disparity-between-the-rich-and-the-poor-grows-the-fight-to/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [In 2001, we were told that the war in Afghanistan was a feminist mission. The marines were liberating Afghan women from the Taliban. Can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/in-2001-we-were-told-that-the-war-in-afghanistan-was-a-feminist/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Poverty is a crime and the poor are terrorists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/poverty-is-a-crime-and-the-poor-are-terrorists/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Flat muscled and honey coloured. Sea secrets in his eyes. A silver raindrop in his ear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/flat-muscled-and-honey-coloured-sea-secrets-in-his-eyes-a-silver/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Fiction and non-fiction are only different techniques of story telling. For reasons I do not fully understand, fiction dances out of me. Non-fiction is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/fiction-and-non-fiction-are-only-different-techniques-of-story/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [NGOs have a complicated space in neoliberal politics. They are supposed to mop up the anger. Even when they are doing good work, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/ngos-have-a-complicated-space-in-neoliberal-politics-they-are/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [I've never been that person who thought that because I've written one novel, I should write another and another. It's only when there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/i-ve-never-been-that-person-who-thought-that-because-i-ve-written-one/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [It is such a supreme folly to believe that nuclear weapons are deadly only if they're used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/it-is-such-a-supreme-folly-to-believe-that-nuclear-weapons-are-deadly/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [I think one of the saddest things that's happening to literature is that it's getting over-simplified by this diet of simple political ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/i-think-one-of-the-saddest-things-that-s-happening-to-literature-is/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [The only dream worth having, I told her, is to dream that you will live while you're alive and die only when you're dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/the-only-dream-worth-having-i-told-her-is-to-dream-that-you-will-live/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [But what was there to say? Only that there were tears. Only that Quietness and Emptiness fitted together like stacked spoons. Only that there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/but-what-was-there-to-say-only-that-there-were-tears-only-that/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Truly, there's no alternative to stupidity. Cretinism is the mother of fascism. I have no defence against it, really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/truly-there-s-no-alternative-to-stupidity-cretinism-is-the-mother-of/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“...the secret of the Great Stories is that they have no secrets. The Great Stories are the ones you have heard and want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/the-secret-of-the-great-stories-is-that-they-have-no-secrets-the/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“stilts, the ground floors given over to parking. It’s a good idea in this car-maddened city,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/stilts-the-ground-floors-given-over-to-parking-it-s-a-good-idea-in/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [“Perhaps it’s true that things can change in a day. That a few dozen hours can affect the outcome of whole lifetimes. And that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/perhaps-it-s-true-that-things-can-change-in-a-day-that-a-few-dozen/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) [Explore all 628 Arundhati Roy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) ## More Adore quotes > [I adore extravagance but I abhor waste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-copland/i-adore-extravagance-but-i-abhor-waste/) [Aaron Copland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-copland/) > [“I am happier when I love than when I am loved. 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If I become a good actress and be in movies where I'm expected to be a good actress,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-reilly/i-don-t-like-the-word-celebrity-if-i-become-a-good-actress-and-be-in/) [Kelly Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-reilly/) > [“I adore you, my greatest love, as only through you I can find my moment’s eternity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sorin-cerin/i-adore-you-my-greatest-love-as-only-through-you-i-can-find-my-moment/) [Sorin Cerin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sorin-cerin/) > [“A spark of every fire we seek is already within us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/a-spark-of-every-fire-we-seek-is-already-within-us/) [Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/) > [We are going to die, as is everyone we adore - I hate this! But the question is, how do we live as women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/we-are-going-to-die-as-is-everyone-we-adore-i-hate-this-but-the/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [She's all I want and more I mean damn. What's not to adore?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nevershoutnever/she-s-all-i-want-and-more-i-mean-damn-what-s-not-to-adore/) Nevershoutnever > [She dotes on poetry, sir. She adores it; I may say that her whole soul and mind are wound up, and entwined with it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/she-dotes-on-poetry-sir-she-adores-it-i-may-say-that-her-whole-soul/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [I adore Chicago. It is the pulse of America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-bernhardt/i-adore-chicago-it-is-the-pulse-of-america/) [Sarah Bernhardt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-bernhardt/) > [It isn't called TV money for nothing. There was a time where I paid my rent by doing theater for years, and I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-parsons/it-isn-t-called-tv-money-for-nothing-there-was-a-time-where-i-paid-my/) [Jim Parsons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-parsons/) > [I'm sorry I can't give you the normal life you wanted, but I promise to adore you every day for the rest of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeaniene-frost/i-m-sorry-i-can-t-give-you-the-normal-life-you-wanted-but-i-promise/) [Jeaniene Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeaniene-frost/) > [You could at least complain,” I say. “I adore complaining. 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I meet fantastic writers, I meet architects,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-ghesquiere/i-love-what-i-do-and-i-adore-this-whole-world-i-m-able-to-meet/) [Nicolas Ghesquiere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-ghesquiere/) Browse all 749 Adore quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "And when we look in through the windows, all we see are shadows. And when we try and listen, all we hear is a whispering. And we cannot understand the whispering, because our minds have been invaded by a war. A war that we have both won and lost. The very worst sort of war. A war that captures dreams and re-dreams them. 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