--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I had been straight, I would have been…" description: "\"If I had been straight, I would have been an entirely different person. I would never have turned toward writing with a burning desire to confess, to u..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/edmund-white-2376_been_if-i-had-been-straight-i-would-have-been_2354921.jpg" --- # If I had been straight, I would have been an entirely… ![“If I had been straight, I would have been an entirely different person. I would never have turned toward writing with a burning desire to confess, to understand, to justify myself in the eyes of others... I wouldn't have been impelled to live in New York and choose the hard poverty of bohemia over…” quote by Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/edmund-white-2376_been_if-i-had-been-straight-i-would-have-been_2354921.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/edmund-white-2376_been_if-i-had-been-straight-i-would-have-been_2354921.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/edmund-white-2376_been_if-i-had-been-straight-i-would-have-been_2354921.jpg) > “If I had been straight, I would have been an entirely different person. I would never have turned toward writing with a burning desire to confess, to understand, to justify myself in the eyes of others... I wouldn't have been impelled to live in New York and choose the hard poverty of bohemia over the soft comfort of the business world.” [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Being gay shaped the author's identity, driving creative passion and life choices distinct from a straight path. **In simple terms:** Sexual identity influences life direction and artistic drive. Key Takeaway Embrace authentic self for creative purpose. Themes identity creativity choice sexuality Mood introspective defiant Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing career - urban life - bohemian lifestyle - self-acceptance Key Concepts autobiography social context Questions to Reflect On - How does identity inform your work? - What freedoms arise from authenticity? A Different Perspective Societal pressures may limit expression of true self. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bohemia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bohemia/) [Burning desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burning-desire/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Business world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business-world/) [Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comfort/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Eyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eyes/) [Impelled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impelled/) [New york](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-york/) [Poverty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poverty/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The desire to confess ... lies at the root of most fiction writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-poate-stebbins/the-desire-to-confess-lies-at-the-root-of-most-fiction-writing/) Lucy Poate Stebbins > [Leaders of organisations, political parties and large businesses frequently fail to talk in a straight and entirely truthful fashion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-esler/leaders-of-organisations-political-parties-and-large-businesses/) [Gavin Esler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-esler/) > [I've always been impelled to say the truth. When I was 14, in 1954, I already wrote a gay novel, though I'd never read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/i-ve-always-been-impelled-to-say-the-truth-when-i-was-14-in-1954-i/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [It is our business to go as we are impelled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence/it-is-our-business-to-go-as-we-are-impelled/) [D. H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence/) > [I am impelled, not to squeak like a grateful and apologetic mouse, but to roar like a lion out of pride in my profession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-am-impelled-not-to-squeak-like-a-grateful-and-apologetic-mouse-but/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [ \[We are not\] to take one step, even in the direction of what is good, beyond that to which we are irresistibly impelled by… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/we-are-not-to-take-one-step-even-in-the-direction-of-what-is-good/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [I'm inclined to think that, because it's such an awful life, that politicians do go into it for the best reasons. I mean, some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-eyre/i-m-inclined-to-think-that-because-it-s-such-an-awful-life-that/) [Richard Eyre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-eyre/) > [The point really is that a writer tends to write a book that he or she tends to write. It's as simple as that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/the-point-really-is-that-a-writer-tends-to-write-a-book-that-he-or/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [“Idly, I flipped through the ledger's pages, for I cannot resist a book set before me no matter its kind. Writing draws my eye;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-elliot/idly-i-flipped-through-the-ledger-s-pages-for-i-cannot-resist-a-book/) Kate Elliot > [“Every thing was to take its natural course, however, neither impelled nor assisted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/every-thing-was-to-take-its-natural-course-however-neither-impelled/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [A man feels impelled to do something to keep awake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mulock/a-man-feels-impelled-to-do-something-to-keep-awake/) [William Mulock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mulock/) > [Bohemia and all its works are vanished out of America; or, more exactly, bohemia has migrated to the middle class, and is alive and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/bohemia-and-all-its-works-are-vanished-out-of-america-or-more-exactly/) [Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/) > [Arnošt Lustig is one of the leading contemporary Czech fiction writers, and certainly the most important Jewish writer of Bohemia to have survived the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-skvorecky/arno-t-lustig-is-one-of-the-leading-contemporary-czech-fiction/) [Josef Skvorecky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-skvorecky/) > [ Preserve there \[bohemia\] a hidden seed to glorify thy name. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-amos-comenius/preserve-there-bohemia-a-hidden-seed-to-glorify-thy-name/) [John Amos Comenius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-amos-comenius/) > [The closing period of the fifteenth century witnessed the slow but sure increase of the churches of the Brethren. Although far from being unmolested,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-hall-gillett/the-closing-period-of-the-fifteenth-century-witnessed-the-slow-but/) Ezra Hall Gillett ## More by Edmund White > [The talk shows in the States want celebrities, not authors. In France, it is different; writers are called upon to comment on everything. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/the-talk-shows-in-the-states-want-celebrities-not-authors-in-france/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Just like Barack Obama, my views on gay marriage have evolved, and now I am a reluctant groom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/just-like-barack-obama-my-views-on-gay-marriage-have-evolved-and-now/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [In 'A Boy's Own Story' and 'Jack Holmes and His Friend,' my idea was to take someone totally different from my real self and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/in-a-boy-s-own-story-and-jack-holmes-and-his-friend-my-idea-was-to/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Everyone seems agreed that writing about sex is perilous, partly because it threatens to swamp highly individualised characters in a generic, featureless activity (much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/everyone-seems-agreed-that-writing-about-sex-is-perilous-partly/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > ['The Sound of Things Falling' may be a page turner, but it's also a deep meditation on fate and death. Even in translation, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/the-sound-of-things-falling-may-be-a-page-turner-but-it-s-also-a-deep/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [If you're a beach person or a golfer, Key West is not for you. Most of the sand has been imported, and the water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/if-you-re-a-beach-person-or-a-golfer-key-west-is-not-for-you-most-of/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [First, I was opposed to gay marriage because it seemed like one more way that gays were wanting to assimilate. When I realized the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/first-i-was-opposed-to-gay-marriage-because-it-seemed-like-one-more/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [From my mother I learned just how violent and unquenchable a woman's loneliness can be. She had been sheltered excessively by her husband and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/from-my-mother-i-learned-just-how-violent-and-unquenchable-a-woman-s/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [From an early age, I had the idea that writing was truth-telling. It's on the record. Everybody can see it. Maybe it goes back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/from-an-early-age-i-had-the-idea-that-writing-was-truth-telling-it-s/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Since, in the best Southern tradition, I was named Edmund Valentine White III, sometimes when people look up my books on Amazon they find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/since-in-the-best-southern-tradition-i-was-named-edmund-valentine/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [When I was young, I despised old people. I was provincial and narrow-minded. It's the reason I stayed stupid so long. If you only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/when-i-was-young-i-despised-old-people-i-was-provincial-and-narrow/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Key West is the place where your sickly house plant back in New York grows to 10 ft. It's also the place where an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/key-west-is-the-place-where-your-sickly-house-plant-back-in-new-york/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [“In the past, when gays were very flamboyant as drag queens or as leather queens or whatever, that just amused people. And most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/in-the-past-when-gays-were-very-flamboyant-as-drag-queens-or-as/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [When a woman falls in love with me, I feel guilty. I am convinced that it's pure obstinacy that keeps me from reciprocating her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/when-a-woman-falls-in-love-with-me-i-feel-guilty-i-am-convinced-that/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [While writing 'City Boy,' I relied mainly on my own memories. In particular, I was able to describe the effect of gay liberation on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/while-writing-city-boy-i-relied-mainly-on-my-own-memories-in/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) [Explore all 166 Edmund White quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) ## More Been quotes > [When I was trying to come up with a stage name, I thought 'Lord' was super rad, but really masculine - ever since I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorde/when-i-was-trying-to-come-up-with-a-stage-name-i-thought-lord-was/) [Lorde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorde/) > [I once told someone I could act. 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I coulda played a great street urchin or ragamuffin. Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-lyonne/i-would-have-done-well-as-a-gypsy-child-i-think-a-circus-baby-i/) [Natasha Lyonne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-lyonne/) > [A lot of people have been saying 'The 100' reminds them of 'Lord Of The Flies,' 'Lost' and 'Battlestar Galactica,' and all of those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-avgeropoulos/a-lot-of-people-have-been-saying-the-100-reminds-them-of-lord-of-the/) [Marie Avgeropoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-avgeropoulos/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) > [Well, I've been politically involved for a really long time. Growing up in the segregated South, it was a very painful experience for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cybill-shepherd/well-i-ve-been-politically-involved-for-a-really-long-time-growing-up/) [Cybill Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cybill-shepherd/) > [I've seen guys come along with more ability - they've been faster or bigger or stronger - but they never worked hard to develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-largent/i-ve-seen-guys-come-along-with-more-ability-they-ve-been-faster-or/) [Steve Largent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-largent/) > [I have always been a big meta guy because I think the way journalism is practiced in Washington, and the way everyone sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leibovich/i-have-always-been-a-big-meta-guy-because-i-think-the-way-journalism/) [Mark Leibovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leibovich/) > [Windmills and solar cells are carbon-free sources of electricity. But they are costly. 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It's great to have an instinctual human reaction to a character, too, of course, but it has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chiwetel-ejiofor/i-ve-always-been-a-believer-in-research-it-s-great-to-have-an/) [Chiwetel Ejiofor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chiwetel-ejiofor/) Browse all 13,699 Been quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If I had been straight, I would have been an entirely different person. I would never have turned toward writing with a burning desire to confess, to understand, to justify myself in the eyes of others... 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