---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I can't help but feel that trying to…"
description: "\"I can't help but feel that trying to locate a universal femininity in either consumer culture or particular bodily functions serves as a way to opt out..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1f/ash-sarkar-13807_bodily_i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-loc_2305278.jpg"
---

#  I can't help but feel that trying to locate a universal…

![“I can't help but feel that trying to locate a universal femininity in either consumer culture or particular bodily functions serves as a way to opt out of dealing with the multiple processes that impede our full participation in society.” quote by Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1f/ash-sarkar-13807_bodily_i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-loc_2305278.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1f/ash-sarkar-13807_bodily_i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-loc_2305278.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1f/ash-sarkar-13807_bodily_i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-loc_2305278.jpg)

> “I can't help but feel that trying to locate a universal femininity in either consumer culture or particular bodily functions serves as a way to opt out of dealing with the multiple processes that impede our full participation in society.”

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Attempting to define a single femininity in consumer culture distracts from addressing systemic barriers that limit women's full societal participation.

**In simple terms:** Defining one femininity hides real obstacles.

Key Takeaway

Focus on dismantling systemic barriers rather than stereotypes.

Themes

gender culture systemic oppression identity society

Mood

critical thoughtful

Type

feminist analytical

When to use this quote

- workplace equality
- media representation
- policy reform

Key Concepts

feminist theory consumerism intersectionality

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we move beyond stereotypes?
- What actions dismantle systemic gender barriers?

A Different Perspective

Changing deep-rooted cultural norms is challenging.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Bodily](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bodily/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Feel Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel-trying-262047/) [Femininity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/femininity/) [Femininity Consumer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/femininity-consumer-5459113/) [Help](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/help/) [Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society/) [Universal Femininity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universal-femininity-5459112/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/)

## Related quotes

> [It is not the smallest use to try to make people good, unless you try at the same time - and they feel that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/it-is-not-the-smallest-use-to-try-to-make-people-good-unless-you-try/)

[Dinah Maria Murlock Craik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/)

> [I don't feel I'm trying to make art. I'm trying to make interesting things. People can relate to that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-heatherwick/i-don-t-feel-i-m-trying-to-make-art-i-m-trying-to-make-interesting/)

[Thomas Heatherwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-heatherwick/)

> [I'm just fighting a lot of high-level guys. I feel everyone is trying to be tactical, everyone is trying to put their A-game out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robbie-lawler/i-m-just-fighting-a-lot-of-high-level-guys-i-feel-everyone-is-trying/)

[Robbie Lawler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robbie-lawler/)

> [“You feel as if someone is trying to trick or con you, but you’re not sure. You’re faced with some significant change in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-farmer/you-feel-as-if-someone-is-trying-to-trick-or-con-you-but-you-re-not/)

[Steven Farmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-farmer/)

> [I feel I should be trying to complete my life, whatever 'completing a life' means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-sacks/i-feel-i-should-be-trying-to-complete-my-life-whatever-completing-a/)

[Oliver Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-sacks/)

> [I felt a constant, low-flying desperation, the kind you feel when you are trying, trying, trying to get something you will never, ever get.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deb-caletti/i-felt-a-constant-low-flying-desperation-the-kind-you-feel-when-you/)

[Deb Caletti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deb-caletti/)

> [Sometimes I feel as though I'm trying to take a hit for the team so that other people then can move forward. I'm like,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-parker/sometimes-i-feel-as-though-i-m-trying-to-take-a-hit-for-the-team-so/)

[Morgan Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-parker/)

> [You can feel yourself trying too hard, doing too much. Nobody wants to watch somebody when they're needy, and actors are in the unfortunate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-weixler/you-can-feel-yourself-trying-too-hard-doing-too-much-nobody-wants-to/)

[Jess Weixler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-weixler/)

> [I feel I'm trying to get this really crap car going, and it just keeps stalling on me. And then other times I feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-burchill/i-feel-i-m-trying-to-get-this-really-crap-car-going-and-it-just-keeps/)

[Julie Burchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-burchill/)

> [“You don’t know how it is. It’s like I’ve got this angry little person inside me, and I can feel him trying to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-niven/you-don-t-know-how-it-is-it-s-like-i-ve-got-this-angry-little-person/)

[Jennifer Niven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-niven/)

> [ The stress that we \[with Abilities\] always feel is trying to continue advancing with our music. That's our plight, it's ingrained in our personalities.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eyedea/the-stress-that-we-with-abilities-always-feel-is-trying-to-continue/)

[Eyedea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eyedea/)

> [Music has become really important now. It's helped me to open up more and take a chance on loving people. Music is a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-ray-vaughan/music-has-become-really-important-now-it-s-helped-me-to-open-up-more/)

[Stevie Ray Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-ray-vaughan/)

> [So am I wrong for thinking that we could be something for real?Now am I wrong for trying to reach the things that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemis-khan/so-am-i-wrong-for-thinking-that-we-could-be-something-for-real-now-am/)

[Kemis Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemis-khan/)

> [I feel like I'm walking into quick sand I feel I'm trying way to hard so how do I show someone love with them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-howard-altman/i-feel-like-i-m-walking-into-quick-sand-i-feel-i-m-trying-way-to-hard/)

[Joshua Howard Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-howard-altman/)

> [I try each day to make at least one sacrifice for the good of someone other than myself. For no benefit other than the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-jay-taylor/i-try-each-day-to-make-at-least-one-sacrifice-for-the-good-of-someone/)

[T Jay Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-jay-taylor/)

## More by Ash Sarkar

> [But communism is the only thing which says all things should be brought into the hands of commons to benefit all people. In the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/but-communism-is-the-only-thing-which-says-all-things-should-be/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [The reason Brexiteers have been so effective is that they have made the fight about broad political values.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/the-reason-brexiteers-have-been-so-effective-is-that-they-have-made/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [As a long-termist, I acknowledge there are more pressing causes than the abolition of private property.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/as-a-long-termist-i-acknowledge-there-are-more-pressing-causes-than/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [Britain's done a lot of changing in the past 50 years. The decline of manufacturing and heavy industry under Margaret Thatcher ripped the economic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/britain-s-done-a-lot-of-changing-in-the-past-50-years-the-decline-of/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [Our priorities are all wrong if we only care about how long people are in prison for, and not what goes on inside them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/our-priorities-are-all-wrong-if-we-only-care-about-how-long-people/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [It is up to us to push for a transformation in political culture in which the basic human dignity of migrants is unequivocally respected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/it-is-up-to-us-to-push-for-a-transformation-in-political-culture-in/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [International Women's Day, if it is to claim any kind of political relevance, has to reject ladies' Christmas consumerism and lowest-common-denominator universalism. Look beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/international-women-s-day-if-it-is-to-claim-any-kind-of-political/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [Not all cultural borrowing is a form of social violence: some of it is just cringe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/not-all-cultural-borrowing-is-a-form-of-social-violence-some-of-it-is/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [As in health, so in crime - prevention is better than cure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/as-in-health-so-in-crime-prevention-is-better-than-cure/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [The launch of the National Health Service in 1948, one of the world's foremost examples of something being decommodified in the interest of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/the-launch-of-the-national-health-service-in-1948-one-of-the-world-s/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [Offering a politician's non-apology that accepts everything but responsibility isn't the same as accountability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/offering-a-politician-s-non-apology-that-accepts-everything-but/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [Ezra Pound was a pioneer of the most exciting aesthetic movement of the 20th century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/ezra-pound-was-a-pioneer-of-the-most-exciting-aesthetic-movement-of/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [The demand for adequate social housing provision is something that transcends race, religion and settled status.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/the-demand-for-adequate-social-housing-provision-is-something-that/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [Immigration has tremendously changed the fabric of this country. Immigration is what built our NHS, when Britain invited people from the Commonwealth, from nations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/immigration-has-tremendously-changed-the-fabric-of-this-country/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

> [No one but the ruling class wins in a culture war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/no-one-but-the-ruling-class-wins-in-a-culture-war/)

[Ash Sarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

[Explore all 49 Ash Sarkar quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/)

## More Bodily quotes

> [Perhaps the most sophisticated and highly evolved system is that originated by Joseph Scogna. I was impressed by the profound insights into the relationship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolph-ballentine/perhaps-the-most-sophisticated-and-highly-evolved-system-is-that/)

[Rudolph Ballentine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolph-ballentine/)

> [My work is very bodily. It's not a shell, but a body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-zeisel/my-work-is-very-bodily-it-s-not-a-shell-but-a-body/)

[Eva Zeisel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-zeisel/)

> [We can't feel the rotation of the planet, but in some ways we can because our bodily systems are reacting to it and have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessa-gamble/we-can-t-feel-the-rotation-of-the-planet-but-in-some-ways-we-can/)

[Jessa Gamble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessa-gamble/)

> [Poetry is language trying to become bodily experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-mccabe/poetry-is-language-trying-to-become-bodily-experience/)

[Herbert McCabe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-mccabe/)

> [I'm careful, controlled, bodily conservative: if someone offered me a pill I'd only ever take a half.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-harper/i-m-careful-controlled-bodily-conservative-if-someone-offered-me-a/)

[Roy Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-harper/)

> [Although skin color is undoubtedly the most salient signal of racial identity in America, other actual or imagined bodily features have also been seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-kennedy/although-skin-color-is-undoubtedly-the-most-salient-signal-of-racial/)

[Randall Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-kennedy/)

> [“Human society should very seriously understand that the body itself is the source of all miserable life. Modern civilization is supposed to be making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/human-society-should-very-seriously-understand-that-the-body-itself/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Every man has the right to life, to bodily integrity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-john-xxiii/every-man-has-the-right-to-life-to-bodily-integrity/)

[Pope John XXIII](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-john-xxiii/)

> [Sixteen games, to me, is a long enough schedule for anybody. We're already concerning ourselves with head injuries and bodily harm to all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmitt-smith/sixteen-games-to-me-is-a-long-enough-schedule-for-anybody-we-re/)

[Emmitt Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmitt-smith/)

> [“Resurrection means bodily resurrection or it means nothing at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-edgcumbe-hughes/resurrection-means-bodily-resurrection-or-it-means-nothing-at-all/)

[Philip Edgcumbe Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-edgcumbe-hughes/)

> [ The power of the state stops at our skins. They can't restrict contraception \[or\] abortion. They can't take our kidneys. Bodily integrity is a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-power-of-the-state-stops-at-our-skins-they-can-t-restrict/)

[Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/)

> [Bodily pain affects man as a whole down to the deepest layers of his moral being. It forces him to face again the fundamental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-pius-xii/bodily-pain-affects-man-as-a-whole-down-to-the-deepest-layers-of-his/)

[Pope Pius XII](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-pius-xii/)

> [...more than other senses, the eye objectifies and masters. it sets at a distance, maintains the distance. in our culture, the predominance of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luce-irigaray/more-than-other-senses-the-eye-objectifies-and-masters-it-sets-at-a/)

[Luce Irigaray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luce-irigaray/)

> [Now, there are a very large number of bodily movements, having their source in our nervous system, that do not possess the character of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/now-there-are-a-very-large-number-of-bodily-movements-having-their/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [It's an amusing idea to some, this feminism thing - this audacious notion that women should be able to move through the world as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/it-s-an-amusing-idea-to-some-this-feminism-thing-this-audacious/)

[Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/)

[Browse all 86 Bodily quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bodily/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I can't help but feel that trying to locate a universal femininity in either consumer culture or particular bodily functions serves as a way to opt out of dealing with the multiple processes that impede our full participation in society.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Ash Sarkar"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-locate-a-universal-femininity-in/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bodily"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-locate-a-universal-femininity-in/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1f/ash-sarkar-13807_bodily_i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-loc_2305278.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1f/ash-sarkar-13807_bodily_i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-loc_2305278.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1f/ash-sarkar-13807_bodily_i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-loc_2305278.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I can't help but feel that trying to locate a universal femininity in either consumer culture or particular…” — Ash Sarkar",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Ash Sarkar",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ash-sarkar/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I can't help but feel that...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-locate-a-universal-femininity-in/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ash-sarkar/i-can-t-help-but-feel-that-trying-to-locate-a-universal-femininity-in/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
