--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He says, this silence of More's, it was…" description: "\"“He says, this silence of More's, it was never really silence, was it? It was loud with his treason; it was quibbling as far as quibbles would serve hi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f9/hilary-mantel-440_silence_he-says-this-silence-of-more-s-it-was-ne_2798977.jpg" --- # He says, this silence of More's, it was never really… ![“He says, this silence of More's, it was never really silence, was it? It was loud with his treason; it was quibbling as far as quibbles would serve him, it was demurs and cavils, suave ambiguities. It was fear of plain words, or the assertion that plain words pervert themselves; More's dictionary…” quote by Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f9/hilary-mantel-440_silence_he-says-this-silence-of-more-s-it-was-ne_2798977.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f9/hilary-mantel-440_silence_he-says-this-silence-of-more-s-it-was-ne_2798977.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f9/hilary-mantel-440_silence_he-says-this-silence-of-more-s-it-was-ne_2798977.jpg) > ““He says, this silence of More's, it was never really silence, was it? It was loud with his treason; it was quibbling as far as quibbles would serve him, it was demurs and cavils, suave ambiguities. It was fear of plain words, or the assertion that plain words pervert themselves; More's dictionary, against our dictionary. You can have a silence full of words. A lute retains, in its bowl, the notes it has played. The viol, in its strings, holds a concord. A shriveled petal can hold its scent, a prayer can rattle with curses; an empty house, when the owners have gone out, can still be loud with ghosts.”” [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage explores paradoxical silence, filled with hidden treason, ambiguity, and lingering presence. **In simple terms:** Silence can be loud with hidden meaning. Key Takeaway Listen for unspoken tension. Themes language silence power Mood thoughtful introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - political intrigue - personal reflection - creative writing Key Concepts literary analysis psychology Questions to Reflect On - How does silence reveal truth? - What does “loud silence” mean to you? A Different Perspective Interpretations may differ by reader. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dictionary Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary-silence-3089878/) [Says Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/says-silence-1943845/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) [Silence Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence-words-529654/) [Words Lute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words-lute-3089879/) ## Related quotes > [“They hurry in; the wind bangs a door behind them. Rafe takes his arm. He says, this silence of More's, it was never really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/they-hurry-in-the-wind-bangs-a-door-behind-them-rafe-takes-his-arm-he/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Every silence says something: the silence between words, between notes in music and between people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathalie-abi-ezzi/every-silence-says-something-the-silence-between-words-between-notes/) [Nathalie Abi-Ezzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathalie-abi-ezzi/) > [You can have a silence full of words. A lute retains, in its bowl, the notes it has played. The viol, in its strings,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/you-can-have-a-silence-full-of-words-a-lute-retains-in-its-bowl-the/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [A woman's silence says it all. Her silence & lack of expression means that she's reached her breaking point!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-woman-s-silence-says-it-all-her-silence-lack-of-expression-means/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When a woman who has much to say says nothing, her silence can be deafening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-landon/when-a-woman-who-has-much-to-say-says-nothing-her-silence-can-be/) [Margaret Landon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-landon/) > [“No one says anything, and the silence gets uncomfortably awkward very quickly. I feel like I am the third wheel, which is kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-harper/no-one-says-anything-and-the-silence-gets-uncomfortably-awkward-very/) [Emily Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-harper/) > [“The Silence took your friend." Nobody says What’s the Silence? Satan Says, "It is a creature that came out of the walm. Large as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlton-mellick-iii/the-silence-took-your-friend-nobody-says-what-s-the-silence-satan/) [Carlton Mellick III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlton-mellick-iii/) > [Somewhere we know that without silence, words lose their meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/somewhere-we-know-that-without-silence-words-lose-their-meaning/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Silence has many words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/silence-has-many-words/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Discomfort Many of us are uncomfortable with silence, so we compensate by filling that silence with words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mcgowan/discomfort-many-of-us-are-uncomfortable-with-silence-so-we-compensate/) [Bill McGowan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mcgowan/) > [“Silence has its own language and in that silence he found words within himself; words for her, words for him and words for them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faraaz-kazi/silence-has-its-own-language-and-in-that-silence-he-found-words/) [Faraaz Kazi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faraaz-kazi/) > [“Sometimes I choose silence to words as I cannot express my feelings and thoughts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vasso-charalambous/sometimes-i-choose-silence-to-words-as-i-cannot-express-my-feelings/) [Vasso Charalambous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vasso-charalambous/) > [Previously they smile even on your silence and now neither your words are working nor tears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/previously-they-smile-even-on-your-silence-and-now-neither-your-words/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [Poetry is an orphan of silence. The words never quite equal the experience behind them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-simic/poetry-is-an-orphan-of-silence-the-words-never-quite-equal-the/) [Charles Simic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-simic/) > [How can I explain the silent in my life when I disguise that silence with my words everyday?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laylablack/how-can-i-explain-the-silent-in-my-life-when-i-disguise-that-silence/) [Laylablack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laylablack/) ## More by Hilary Mantel > [People will identify with a persecuted minority without asking themselves what they are identifying with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/people-will-identify-with-a-persecuted-minority-without-asking/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“The hunter is among the most innocent of men; living in the moment makes him feel pure. When he returns in the evening, his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/the-hunter-is-among-the-most-innocent-of-men-living-in-the-moment/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“But what would happen … I mean, what would be so awful … if they did meet up?” “Why, it would be like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/but-what-would-happen-i-mean-what-would-be-so-awful-if-they-did-meet/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [When you have committed enough words to paper, you feel you have a spine stiff enough to stand up in the wind. But when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/when-you-have-committed-enough-words-to-paper-you-feel-you-have-a/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [At New Year's he had given Anne a present of silver forks with handles of rock crystal. He hopes she will use them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/at-new-year-s-he-had-given-anne-a-present-of-silver-forks-with/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“The story of my own childhood is a complicated sentence that I am always trying to finish, to finish and put behind me. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/the-story-of-my-own-childhood-is-a-complicated-sentence-that-i-am/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“He wants to say, because Anne is not a carnal being, she is a calculating being, with a cold slick brain at work behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/he-wants-to-say-because-anne-is-not-a-carnal-being-she-is-a/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Come to that, don't pay out good money for horoscopes. If things are going to go badly for you, is that what you need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/come-to-that-don-t-pay-out-good-money-for-horoscopes-if-things-are/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“But my sins are my strength, he thinks; the sins I have done, that others have not even found the opportunity of committing. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/but-my-sins-are-my-strength-he-thinks-the-sins-i-have-done-that/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [Feminism hasn't failed, it's just never been tried.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/feminism-hasn-t-failed-it-s-just-never-been-tried/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Mirabeau: “If you have been told to clear us from this hall, you must ask for orders to use force. We shall leave our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/mirabeau-if-you-have-been-told-to-clear-us-from-this-hall-you-must/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Cardinal Campeggio has implored Katherine to bow to the king's will, accept that her marriage is invalid and retire to a convent. Certainly, she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/cardinal-campeggio-has-implored-katherine-to-bow-to-the-king-s-will/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“Sion calls Anne an eel, he calls her a slippery dipper from the slime, and he remembers what the cardinal had called her: my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/sion-calls-anne-an-eel-he-calls-her-a-slippery-dipper-from-the-slime/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [I spend a great deal of time on research, on finding all the available accounts of a scene or incident, finding out all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/i-spend-a-great-deal-of-time-on-research-on-finding-all-the-available/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) > [“At the front, people die for their mistakes. Why should politicians be more gently treated? They made the war. They deserve a dozen deaths,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/at-the-front-people-die-for-their-mistakes-why-should-politicians-be/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) [Explore all 559 Hilary Mantel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) ## More Silence quotes > [Let us have the luxury of silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/let-us-have-the-luxury-of-silence/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [Alone in a world, With millions of souls Walking in circles Trapped in their dreams unhealthy, unclean walking in circles, now do not disturb…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chester-bennington/alone-in-a-world-with-millions-of-souls-walking-in-circles-trapped-in/) [Chester Bennington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chester-bennington/) > [I just can’t, Nick, okay? Now, please give me a second to lie here in silence and bleed.” – Caleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-just-can-t-nick-okay-now-please-give-me-a-second-to-lie-here-in/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“SILENT LIKE SLEEP You appear by my side, silent like sleep. Soft hair, a little wild. No fear, gentle like a calm river. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-goddard/silent-like-sleep-you-appear-by-my-side-silent-like-sleep-soft-hair-a/) [Donna Goddard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-goddard/) > [“A word is not filling in the gaps, but the fertilization of silence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/a-word-is-not-filling-in-the-gaps-but-the-fertilization-of-silence/) [Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/) > [“I’m not like her. I don’t steal people.” Mr. Tibbalt watched her, saying nothing. The silence made Victoria bristle. “Well, I don’t.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-legrand/i-m-not-like-her-i-don-t-steal-people-mr-tibbalt-watched-her-saying/) [Claire Legrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-legrand/) > [Silence can be the world's strongest weapon in torturing people's emotions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/silence-can-be-the-world-s-strongest-weapon-in-torturing-people-s/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [“Proverbs from the East: The wind howls, but the mountain remains still. Even though I make no special attempt to observe the discipline of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/proverbs-from-the-east-the-wind-howls-but-the-mountain-remains-still/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“When all are one sentience, Language withers and fades away. Let's sit together and speak in silence, Let's be light to each other's way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/when-all-are-one-sentience-language-withers-and-fades-away-let-s-sit/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [True friendship is sitting together in silence and feeling like it was the best conversation you've ever had.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/true-friendship-is-sitting-together-in-silence-and-feeling-like-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“So what did God say to me in the silence that morning? I’m not sure, but I think God said something like, Don’t try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-held-evans/so-what-did-god-say-to-me-in-the-silence-that-morning-i-m-not-sure/) [Rachel Held Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-held-evans/) > [If nothing that can be seen can either be God or represent Him to us as He is, then to find God we must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/if-nothing-that-can-be-seen-can-either-be-god-or-represent-him-to-us/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [I suppose he'll just have to do," she amended. "You'll have to suffer in silence with your male model...I feel for you." "Oh, stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-adornetto/i-suppose-he-ll-just-have-to-do-she-amended-you-ll-have-to-suffer-in/) [Alexandra Adornetto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-adornetto/) > [The silent majority is silent, and that is best for everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-kocher/the-silent-majority-is-silent-and-that-is-best-for-everybody/) [Gerhard Kocher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-kocher/) > [“I once asked you what anxiety felt like, and you told me that most days left you riddled with bullet holes. Every morning came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-s/i-once-asked-you-what-anxiety-felt-like-and-you-told-me-that-most/) [d.a.s](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-s/) [Browse all 8,731 Silence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He says, this silence of More's, it was never really silence, was it? It was loud with his treason; it was quibbling as far as quibbles would serve him, it was demurs and cavils, suave ambiguities. It was fear of plain words, or the assertion that plain words pervert themselves; More's dictionary, against our dictionary. You can have a silence full of words. A lute retains, in its bowl, the notes it has played. The viol, in its strings, holds a concord. 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