--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But silence is not a natural environment…" description: "\"But silence is not a natural environment for stories. They need words. Without them they grown pale, sicken and die. And then they haunt you.\" — Diane ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de0/diane-setterfield-1008_environment_but-silence-is-not-a-natural-environment_3164776.png" --- # But silence is not a natural environment for stories. They… ![“But silence is not a natural environment for stories. They need words. Without them they grown pale, sicken and die. And then they haunt you.” quote by Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de0/diane-setterfield-1008_environment_but-silence-is-not-a-natural-environment_3164776.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de0/diane-setterfield-1008_environment_but-silence-is-not-a-natural-environment_3164776.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de0/diane-setterfield-1008_environment_but-silence-is-not-a-natural-environment_3164776.png) > “But silence is not a natural environment for stories. They need words. Without them they grown pale, sicken and die. And then they haunt you.” [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories need language to survive; silence starves them, causing decay and lingering hauntings. **In simple terms:** Stories die without words. Key Takeaway Give voice to ideas before they fade. Themes creativity communication storytelling Mood thoughtful inspirational Type motivational creative When to use this quote - writing workshops - teaching - marketing pitches - personal journaling Key Concepts narrative theory psychology Questions to Reflect On - What stories have you let die? - How can you revive a silent narrative? A Different Perspective Silence can also protect privacy or create mystery. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Environment Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment-stories-3558174/) [Natural](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural/) [Natural environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural-environment/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Need Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/need-words/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Pale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pale/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) [Silence is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence-is/) [Silence Natural](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence-natural-3042594/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Stories Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-need/) ## Related quotes > [“Silence is not a natural environment for stories. They need words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/silence-is-not-a-natural-environment-for-stories-they-need-words/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“This was killing her. She had to break the silence. This was not natural. It was too awful. People were meant to talk.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-quinn/this-was-killing-her-she-had-to-break-the-silence-this-was-not/) [Julia Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-quinn/) > [Do you think a woman's silence can be natural?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-farquhar/do-you-think-a-woman-s-silence-can-be-natural/) [George Farquhar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-farquhar/) > [Silence must be comprehended as not solely the absence of sound. It is the natural environment for serenity and contemplation. Life without silence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-cousins/silence-must-be-comprehended-as-not-solely-the-absence-of-sound-it-is/) [Norman Cousins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-cousins/) > [“I see,” she said softly, nodding her head as though she really did. “Well, it’s your business, of course.” She turned her hand in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/i-see-she-said-softly-nodding-her-head-as-though-she-really-did-well/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [ We \[people\] are a species that's wired to tell stories. We need stories. It's how we make sense of things. It's how we learn. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-soderbergh/we-people-are-a-species-that-s-wired-to-tell-stories-we-need-stories/) [Steven Soderbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-soderbergh/) > [My life has been wild enough to derive all of the stories you need out of it. 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"No,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-catmull/have-i-heard-all-the-stories-i-need-to-hear-she-asked-stupidly-but-he/) [Katherine Catmull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-catmull/) > [Certain stories need the resources of a studio. If you're telling a story about a giant robot war in outer space, you're going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leigh-whannell/certain-stories-need-the-resources-of-a-studio-if-you-re-telling-a/) [Leigh Whannell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leigh-whannell/) > [As far as I know, he never asked where she had been or why she had left and she never told. I guess some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/as-far-as-i-know-he-never-asked-where-she-had-been-or-why-she-had/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [I constantly think as an artist, as a rapper of what are the stories you want to tell? They can't all be, "I'm ill,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/himanshu-suri/i-constantly-think-as-an-artist-as-a-rapper-of-what-are-the-stories/) [Himanshu Suri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/himanshu-suri/) > [“We all create the stories we need to survive”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kameron-hurley/we-all-create-the-stories-we-need-to-survive/) [Kameron Hurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kameron-hurley/) > [I believe there are some stories that need to be told and 'Sarbjit' is definitely one of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackky-bhagnani/i-believe-there-are-some-stories-that-need-to-be-told-and-sarbjit-is/) [Jackky Bhagnani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackky-bhagnani/) ## More by Diane Setterfield > [“They are more real than the books on the shelves, books that are sketched with the barest hint of a line here and there,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/they-are-more-real-than-the-books-on-the-shelves-books-that-are/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“Margaret Lea.” “The biographer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/margaret-lea-the-biographer/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“He was the first of my ghosts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/he-was-the-first-of-my-ghosts/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“It was like living entirely inside a book.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/it-was-like-living-entirely-inside-a-book/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“Then something rang a bell in his mind. 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Of course I valued "Jane Eyre" over the anonymous stranger...Of course all of Shakespeare was worth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people-of-course-i-valued-jane-eyre/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) [Explore all 292 Diane Setterfield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) ## More Environment quotes > [I feel like the future is unwritten. 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