--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was raised feral, and I mostly stayed…" description: "\"“I was raised feral, and I mostly stayed that way. I”\" — Gillian Flynn" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d2/gillian-flynn-316_feral_i-was-raised-feral-and-i-mostly-stayed-t_141717.jpg" --- # I was raised feral, and I mostly stayed that way. I ![“I was raised feral, and I mostly stayed that way. I” quote by Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d2/gillian-flynn-316_feral_i-was-raised-feral-and-i-mostly-stayed-t_141717.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d2/gillian-flynn-316_feral_i-was-raised-feral-and-i-mostly-stayed-t_141717.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d2/gillian-flynn-316_feral_i-was-raised-feral-and-i-mostly-stayed-t_141717.jpg) > ““I was raised feral, and I mostly stayed that way. I”” [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A narrator describes a wild, untamed upbringing that continues into adulthood, highlighting a sense of alienation and resilience. **In simple terms:** She grew up wild and stayed that way. Key Takeaway Embrace your unique background. Themes identity resilience alienation Mood reflective defiant Type literary personal When to use this quote - personal growth - creative writing - mental health awareness Key Concepts psychology survival self‑acceptance Questions to Reflect On - How does your past shape your present choices? - Can wildness be a strength? A Different Perspective The quote may romanticize hardship, ignoring need for support. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Feral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feral/) [Feral Stayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feral-stayed-1042781/) [Raised](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/raised/) [Raised Feral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/raised-feral-1599803/) [Stayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stayed/) [Stayed Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stayed-way-1599804/) ## Related quotes > [“Oh, I guess people change sheets after they have sex. It made sense, but I’d never thought of it. I was raised feral, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/oh-i-guess-people-change-sheets-after-they-have-sex-it-made-sense-but/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Somehow they stayed that way For those 5 days in May Made all the stars around them shine Funny how you can look in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blue-rodeo/somehow-they-stayed-that-way-for-those-5-days-in-may-made-all-the/) [Blue Rodeo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blue-rodeo/) > [UCF stayed with me all the way, so I felt I should stay with them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daunte-culpepper/ucf-stayed-with-me-all-the-way-so-i-felt-i-should-stay-with-them/) [Daunte Culpepper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daunte-culpepper/) > [It wasn't that I forgot Hanna. But at a certain point the memory of her stopped accompanying me wherever I went. She stayed behind,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernhard-schlink/it-wasn-t-that-i-forgot-hanna-but-at-a-certain-point-the-memory-of/) [Bernhard Schlink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernhard-schlink/) > [This one time I stayed up way past my bedtime... man that was scary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-christ/this-one-time-i-stayed-up-way-past-my-bedtime-man-that-was-scary/) [Johnny Christ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-christ/) > [The natural world operates by its own set of rules. The animal world, all the places that are feral and ungovernable, that's where I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/the-natural-world-operates-by-its-own-set-of-rules-the-animal-world/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) > [“Is it not strange how humans will resort to the most inhumane of actions as the first plausible solution? Why are we such a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimitri-zaik/is-it-not-strange-how-humans-will-resort-to-the-most-inhumane-of/) [Dimitri Zaik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimitri-zaik/) > [“To make good environmental decision, we must stop focusing on trying to remove or undo human influence, on turning back time or freezing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-marris/to-make-good-environmental-decision-we-must-stop-focusing-on-trying/) [Emma Marris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-marris/) > [You can tame feral cats, but you are never gonna get them like a cat that's been socialized at a very young age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/temple-grandin/you-can-tame-feral-cats-but-you-are-never-gonna-get-them-like-a-cat/) [Temple Grandin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/temple-grandin/) > [“Was I hiding from reality, on the outside looking in? Or, was I living my reality, on the outside looking out?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-durham/was-i-hiding-from-reality-on-the-outside-looking-in-or-was-i-living/) [Heather Durham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-durham/) > [“Girls love each other like animals. There is something ferocious and unself-conscious about it. We don't guard ourselves like we do with boys. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leah-raeder/girls-love-each-other-like-animals-there-is-something-ferocious-and/) [Leah Raeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leah-raeder/) > [Words at night were feral things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-williams/words-at-night-were-feral-things/) [Joy Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-williams/) > [“Feral rearranging. Letting form ferment. Letting form pass through you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/durga-chew-bose/feral-rearranging-letting-form-ferment-letting-form-pass-through-you/) [Durga Chew-Bose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/durga-chew-bose/) > [The word "feral" has a kind of magic potency which allied itself to two other words, "ferocious" and "free." To revert to a feral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-h-white-2/the-word-feral-has-a-kind-of-magic-potency-which-allied-itself-to-two/) [T. H. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-h-white-2/) > [“In every way there is, murder is chaos. Our job is simple, when you get down to it: we stand against that, for order.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tana-french/in-every-way-there-is-murder-is-chaos-our-job-is-simple-when-you-get/) [Tana French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tana-french/) ## More by Gillian Flynn > [“Our kind of love can go into remission, but it's always waiting to return. Like the world sweetest cancer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/our-kind-of-love-can-go-into-remission-but-it-s-always-waiting-to/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [The midwest is great because it hasn't been entirely claimed. There's more room to write about it; it's harder to write about New York,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/the-midwest-is-great-because-it-hasn-t-been-entirely-claimed-there-s/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Sometimes it is all too loud.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/sometimes-it-is-all-too-loud/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“My thank-yous always come out rather labored. I often don't give them at all. People do what they're supposed to do and then wait…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/my-thank-yous-always-come-out-rather-labored-i-often-don-t-give-them/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [There’s something disturbing about recalling a warm memory and feeling utterly cold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/there-s-something-disturbing-about-recalling-a-warm-memory-and/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“My life has begun to feel like an epilogue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/my-life-has-begun-to-feel-like-an-epilogue/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“The Victorians, especially southern Victorians, needed a lot of room to stray away from each other, to duck tuberculosis and flu, to avoid rapacious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/the-victorians-especially-southern-victorians-needed-a-lot-of-room-to/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“You think: Oh, here is the rest of my life. It’s finally arrived.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/you-think-oh-here-is-the-rest-of-my-life-it-s-finally-arrived/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [What a generous thing that is, I realize, for a husband to try to make his wife laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/what-a-generous-thing-that-is-i-realize-for-a-husband-to-try-to-make/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [I am a great believer in jobs for teens. They teach important life lessons, build character, and inflict just the right amount of humiliation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/i-am-a-great-believer-in-jobs-for-teens-they-teach-important-life/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“you'd literally lie, cheat, and steal -hell, kill- to convince people you are a good guy”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/you-d-literally-lie-cheat-and-steal-hell-kill-to-convince-people-you/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [My imagination is more tweaked by imagining the lives of the people who were there before us. I don't need to give myself the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/my-imagination-is-more-tweaked-by-imagining-the-lives-of-the-people/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Given my druthers now, I’d prefer a snapshot of Warren Harding’s wife, “the Duchess,” who recorded the smallest offenses in a little red notebook…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/given-my-druthers-now-i-d-prefer-a-snapshot-of-warren-harding-s-wife/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [A town so suffocating and small, you tripped over people you hated every day. People who knew things about you. It's the kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/a-town-so-suffocating-and-small-you-tripped-over-people-you-hated/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“For a long time Cool Girl offended me. I used to see men - friends, coworkers, strangers - giddy over these awful pretender women,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/for-a-long-time-cool-girl-offended-me-i-used-to-see-men-friends/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) [Explore all 668 Gillian Flynn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) ## More Feral quotes > [“In every way there is, murder is chaos. Our job is simple, when you get down to it: we stand against that, for order.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tana-french/in-every-way-there-is-murder-is-chaos-our-job-is-simple-when-you-get/) [Tana French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tana-french/) > [The word "feral" has a kind of magic potency which allied itself to two other words, "ferocious" and "free." To revert to a feral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-h-white-2/the-word-feral-has-a-kind-of-magic-potency-which-allied-itself-to-two/) [T. H. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-h-white-2/) > [“Feral rearranging. Letting form ferment. Letting form pass through you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/durga-chew-bose/feral-rearranging-letting-form-ferment-letting-form-pass-through-you/) [Durga Chew-Bose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/durga-chew-bose/) > [Words at night were feral things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-williams/words-at-night-were-feral-things/) [Joy Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-williams/) > [“Girls love each other like animals. There is something ferocious and unself-conscious about it. We don't guard ourselves like we do with boys. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leah-raeder/girls-love-each-other-like-animals-there-is-something-ferocious-and/) [Leah Raeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leah-raeder/) > [“Was I hiding from reality, on the outside looking in? Or, was I living my reality, on the outside looking out?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-durham/was-i-hiding-from-reality-on-the-outside-looking-in-or-was-i-living/) [Heather Durham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-durham/) > [You can tame feral cats, but you are never gonna get them like a cat that's been socialized at a very young age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/temple-grandin/you-can-tame-feral-cats-but-you-are-never-gonna-get-them-like-a-cat/) [Temple Grandin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/temple-grandin/) > [“To make good environmental decision, we must stop focusing on trying to remove or undo human influence, on turning back time or freezing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-marris/to-make-good-environmental-decision-we-must-stop-focusing-on-trying/) [Emma Marris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-marris/) > [“Is it not strange how humans will resort to the most inhumane of actions as the first plausible solution? Why are we such a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimitri-zaik/is-it-not-strange-how-humans-will-resort-to-the-most-inhumane-of/) [Dimitri Zaik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimitri-zaik/) > [The natural world operates by its own set of rules. The animal world, all the places that are feral and ungovernable, that's where I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/the-natural-world-operates-by-its-own-set-of-rules-the-animal-world/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) > [“I was like a feral cat, drunk off of his essence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gideon-rathbone/i-was-like-a-feral-cat-drunk-off-of-his-essence/) [Gideon Rathbone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gideon-rathbone/) > [An unfinished book. left unattended, turns feral, and she would need all her focus, will and ruthless determination to tame it again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-ozeki/an-unfinished-book-left-unattended-turns-feral-and-she-would-need-all/) [Ruth Ozeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-ozeki/) > [“As a result, Hobyo is as good an example as any of a “feral city.” It’s a term that is used in military circles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alastair-bonnett/as-a-result-hobyo-is-as-good-an-example-as-any-of-a-feral-city-it-s-a/) [Alastair Bonnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alastair-bonnett/) > [I'm best when I'm feral, when I don't wash or shave or change my trousers for a couple of weeks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-wise/i-m-best-when-i-m-feral-when-i-don-t-wash-or-shave-or-change-my/) [Greg Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-wise/) > [“You make me feel uncomfortable." "I'm sorry." "Not your fault", she said. "It's just the way you are." "And what way is that?" "You're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-child/you-make-me-feel-uncomfortable-i-m-sorry-not-your-fault-she-said-it-s/) [Lee Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-child/) [Browse all 41 Feral quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feral/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I was raised feral, and I mostly stayed that way. 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