--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: At a time I used to think that in a world…" description: "\"“At a time I used to think that in a world without guards people would walk differently from the way we do in our country. Where people are allowed to ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b26/herta-m-ller-4269_dictatorship_at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-worl_1291426.jpg" --- # At a time I used to think that in a world without guards… ![“At a time I used to think that in a world without guards people would walk differently from the way we do in our country. Where people are allowed to think and write differently, I thought, they will also walk differently.” quote by Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b26/herta-m-ller-4269_dictatorship_at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-worl_1291426.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b26/herta-m-ller-4269_dictatorship_at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-worl_1291426.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b26/herta-m-ller-4269_dictatorship_at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-worl_1291426.jpg) > ““At a time I used to think that in a world without guards people would walk differently from the way we do in our country. Where people are allowed to think and write differently, I thought, they will also walk differently.”” [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She suggests that societal norms shape behavior, so differing freedoms would lead to different ways of living. **In simple terms:** Freedom changes behavior. Key Takeaway Recognize how environment influences actions. Themes society freedom behavior culture Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical social commentary When to use this quote - political reform - education systems - urban planning - media representation Key Concepts social psychology normative influence Questions to Reflect On - How might personal values alter behavior despite external freedoms? - Can different cultures coexist with varied freedoms? A Different Perspective Assumes uniform response to freedom, ignoring individual agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dictatorship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictatorship/) [Differently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differently/) [Differently Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differently-thought-4208311/) [Differently Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differently-way-2225211/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Thought Walk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-walk-2649276/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Totalitarianism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/totalitarianism/) [Walk Differently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/walk-differently-3498425/) ## Related quotes > [We all have to crawl before we walk. We seen the outcome of those that thought they could walk way before their time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merle-rutledge-jr/we-all-have-to-crawl-before-we-walk-we-seen-the-outcome-of-those-that/) [Merle Rutledge Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merle-rutledge-jr/) > [Things go entirely differently from the way you planned them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/things-go-entirely-differently-from-the-way-you-planned-them/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [“Some people could clearly not bear the fact that others saw the world differently to the way they did. While”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/some-people-could-clearly-not-bear-the-fact-that-others-saw-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Try to see things differently - It's the only way to get a clearer perspective on the world and on your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/try-to-see-things-differently-it-s-the-only-way-to-get-a-clearer/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [You will walk differently alone, dear, through a thicker atmosphere, forcing your way through the shadows of chairs, through the dripping smoke of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/you-will-walk-differently-alone-dear-through-a-thicker-atmosphere/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [People walk differently in high heels. Your body sways to a different kind of tempo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manolo-blahnik/people-walk-differently-in-high-heels-your-body-sways-to-a-different/) [Manolo Blahnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manolo-blahnik/) > [People are not mirrors: They see you completely differently, than the way you see yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-are-not-mirrors-they-see-you-completely-differently-than-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think we have to own the fears that we have of each other, and then, in some practical way, some daily way, figure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-think-we-have-to-own-the-fears-that-we-have-of-each-other-and-then/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Historians sometimes view presidents very differently from the way the public did at the time. Sometimes they don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-beschloss/historians-sometimes-view-presidents-very-differently-from-the-way/) [Michael Beschloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-beschloss/) > [When I came into your life your life was over. It had a beginning, a middle, and an end. This is the end. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/when-i-came-into-your-life-your-life-was-over-it-had-a-beginning-a-2/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [Everyone is going to see things differently - and that's the way it should be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-ross/everyone-is-going-to-see-things-differently-and-that-s-the-way-it/) [Bob Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-ross/) > [Seeing architecture differently from the way you see the rest of life is a bit weird. I believe one should be consistent in all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chipperfield/seeing-architecture-differently-from-the-way-you-see-the-rest-of-life/) [David Chipperfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chipperfield/) > [“In 1870, came the victory of the short-service troops of Prussia over the long-service troops of France, where conscription had but recently been reintroduced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-h-liddell-hart-2/in-1870-came-the-victory-of-the-short-service-troops-of-prussia-over/) [B.H. Liddell Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-h-liddell-hart-2/) > [ “In this confusion we begin to see what lies behind John Paul II's startling warning about democracy "effectively mov\[ing\] towards a form of totalitarianism."… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-cardinal-pell/in-this-confusion-we-begin-to-see-what-lies-behind-john-paul-ii-s/) [George Cardinal Pell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-cardinal-pell/) > [People who live in the post-totalitarian system know only too well that the question of whether one or several political parties are in power,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/people-who-live-in-the-post-totalitarian-system-know-only-too-well/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) ## More by Herta Müller > [“And I’m different without you. You’re the only one who thinks you’re never different.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/and-i-m-different-without-you-you-re-the-only-one-who-thinks-you-re/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [Working with language requires beauty for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/working-with-language-requires-beauty-for-me/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“I wanted to work out a trade with things that aren’t alive but aren’t dead either. I wanted to make an emergency exchange, trading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-wanted-to-work-out-a-trade-with-things-that-aren-t-alive-but-aren-t/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [My first book, 'Nadirs,' was very important for me. I'll leave its literary worth for others to judge. But its publication in Berlin in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/my-first-book-nadirs-was-very-important-for-me-i-ll-leave-its/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“I'm drawn outside to the empty yard of the afternoon. The wind tosses thin snow that crackles against my neck. With open hunger the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-m-drawn-outside-to-the-empty-yard-of-the-afternoon-the-wind-tosses/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“The cabbage white flies through the tailor's cheek. The tailor sinks his head. The cabbage white flies out of the back of the tailor's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/the-cabbage-white-flies-through-the-tailor-s-cheek-the-tailor-sinks/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“The reasaon I'm shy of objects is because I like them. I transfer the thoughts that are against me onto them. Then these thoughts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/the-reasaon-i-m-shy-of-objects-is-because-i-like-them-i-transfer-the/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“The gym instructor was the first to raise his hand. All the other hands flew up after his. While raising their hands, everybody looked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/the-gym-instructor-was-the-first-to-raise-his-hand-all-the-other/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [I have packed myself into silence so deeply and for so long that I can never unpack myself using words. When I speak, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-have-packed-myself-into-silence-so-deeply-and-for-so-long-that-i/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [I never wanted to be a writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-never-wanted-to-be-a-writer/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [To combat death you don't need much of a life, just one that isn't yet finished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/to-combat-death-you-don-t-need-much-of-a-life-just-one-that-isn-t-yet/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [Some people speak and sing and walk and sit and sleep and silence their homesickness, for a long time, and to no avail. Some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/some-people-speak-and-sing-and-walk-and-sit-and-sleep-and-silence/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“I wanted love to grow back, like the grass when it’s mown down. To grow differently, if need be, like children’s teeth, like hair,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-wanted-love-to-grow-back-like-the-grass-when-it-s-mown-down-to-grow/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [Whatever I read went under my skin. I almost devoured the literature, which became like a road to discovery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/whatever-i-read-went-under-my-skin-i-almost-devoured-the-literature/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“Some say that over time homesickness loses its specific content, that it starts to smolder and only then becomes all-consuming, because it’s no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/some-say-that-over-time-homesickness-loses-its-specific-content-that/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) [Explore all 92 Herta Müller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) ## More Dictatorship quotes > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [Dictatorship is rule based directly upon force and unrestricted by any laws. The revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat is rule won and maintained by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/dictatorship-is-rule-based-directly-upon-force-and-unrestricted-by/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [I was born in Cuba. At the age of 14 years of age I was involved in a revolution. We were suffering from a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/i-was-born-in-cuba-at-the-age-of-14-years-of-age-i-was-involved-in-a/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [The situation with Tibet has to change. China is one of the last huge dictatorships, holding on to these colonies, provinces. That has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-yauch/the-situation-with-tibet-has-to-change-china-is-one-of-the-last-huge/) [Adam Yauch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-yauch/) > [Motherland is our property and we have right to handle our properties as pleased. The jokes about death for the sake of the motherland…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/motherland-is-our-property-and-we-have-right-to-handle-our-properties/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [Your best friends are your principles, if you havent them, dont look for another friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/your-best-friends-are-your-principles-if-you-havent-them-dont-look/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [“. Despite the considerable horror they had felt when the SA men were bellowing crude anti-Semitic slogans, in retrospect the joke-tellers were very much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolph-herzog/despite-the-considerable-horror-they-had-felt-when-the-sa-men-were/) [Rudolph Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolph-herzog/) > [A strong saying is not afraid of criticism, because it includes all the answers to criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/a-strong-saying-is-not-afraid-of-criticism-because-it-includes-all/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [The dictatorship of the proletariat and the leadership of the Marxist-Leninist party are indispensable conditions for the triumph of the Socialist revolution and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-khrushchev/the-dictatorship-of-the-proletariat-and-the-leadership-of-the-marxist/) [Nikita Khrushchev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-khrushchev/) > [I never thought about becoming a politician. But during the military dictatorship, my grandfather was put in prison six times and my father twice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-papandreou/i-never-thought-about-becoming-a-politician-but-during-the-military/) [George Papandreou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-papandreou/) > [ “\[...\] dictatorship, the most extreme form of tyranny, can never lead to social liberation.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/dictatorship-the-most-extreme-form-of-tyranny-can-never-lead-to/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I'm not a prophet, but I always thought it was natural for dictatorships to fall. I remember in 1989, two months before the fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-not-a-prophet-but-i-always-thought-it-was-natural-for/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [In many ways, the media today makes dictatorship impossible. But it also makes democracy intolerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/in-many-ways-the-media-today-makes-dictatorship-impossible-but-it/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [“Your law always does more harm than crime, and your morality is a form of violence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bond/your-law-always-does-more-harm-than-crime-and-your-morality-is-a-form/) [Edward Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bond/) > [Something that comes to us, some gym shoe that comes to us as a result of child labor from a brutal dictatorship, where people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/something-that-comes-to-us-some-gym-shoe-that-comes-to-us-as-a-result/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) [Browse all 793 Dictatorship quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictatorship/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“At a time I used to think that in a world without guards people would walk differently from the way we do in our country. Where people are allowed to think and write differently, I thought, they will also walk differently.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Herta Müller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-world-without-guards-people-would/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dictatorship" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-world-without-guards-people-would/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b26/herta-m-ller-4269_dictatorship_at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-worl_1291426.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b26/herta-m-ller-4269_dictatorship_at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-worl_1291426.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b26/herta-m-ller-4269_dictatorship_at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-worl_1291426.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“At a time I used to think that in a world without guards people would walk differently from the way we do in…” — Herta Müller", "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": "Herta Müller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“At a time I used to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-world-without-guards-people-would/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/at-a-time-i-used-to-think-that-in-a-world-without-guards-people-would/#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 } } ] } ```