--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I knew words were like chains, they held…" description: "\"I knew words were like chains, they held me back . . . the act of description taints the description.\" — John Fowles" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86d/john-fowles-816_chains_i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held_1907364.png" --- # I knew words were like chains, they held me back . . . the… ![“I knew words were like chains, they held me back . . . the act of description taints the description.” quote by John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86d/john-fowles-816_chains_i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held_1907364.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86d/john-fowles-816_chains_i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held_1907364.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86d/john-fowles-816_chains_i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held_1907364.png) > “I knew words were like chains, they held me back . . . the act of description taints the description.” [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Suggests language can constrain thought and that describing can distort reality. **In simple terms:** Words can imprison and corrupt description. Key Takeaway Use precise, honest language. Themes language creativity limitations Mood thought‑provoking reflective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - journalism - teaching - art criticism Key Concepts semiotics self‑expression Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance description with experience? - When does language enhance vs. limit understanding? A Different Perspective Over‑analysis can hinder spontaneity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chains/) [Chains Held](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chains-held-2851108/) [Description](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/description/) [Description Taints](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/description-taints-2851107/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Like Chains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-chains-625708/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) ## Related quotes > [“We wear him like chains.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kendare-blake/we-wear-him-like-chains/) [Kendare Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kendare-blake/) > [“Love is like chains of unbreakable steel. Love is like iron weights, heavier than the world. Love can crush just as surely as it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-norman-lippert/love-is-like-chains-of-unbreakable-steel-love-is-like-iron-weights/) [G. Norman Lippert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-norman-lippert/) > [“They know him at molecular level. He lives in them like chains of matter that determine who they are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/they-know-him-at-molecular-level-he-lives-in-them-like-chains-of/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“When I go out to eat at restaurants, I don’t like chains. I prefer whips.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/when-i-go-out-to-eat-at-restaurants-i-don-t-like-chains-i-prefer-whips/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [Like for 2 chains Comment for future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/like-for-2-chains-comment-for-future/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I hardly ever work from a synopsis -- I find they act like chains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanith-lee/i-hardly-ever-work-from-a-synopsis-i-find-they-act-like-chains/) [Tanith Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanith-lee/) > [“Could you get off like that without it? Without the chains?" Without the absolute surrender. "No. And not without you. You more than any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manna-francis/could-you-get-off-like-that-without-it-without-the-chains-without-the/) [Manna Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manna-francis/) > [The camera is simply not the supple and powerful instrument of description that the pen is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-malcolm/the-camera-is-simply-not-the-supple-and-powerful-instrument-of/) [Janet Malcolm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-malcolm/) > [Part of my plan was not only to introduce all useful animals that I possibly could into this part of Australia, but also the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-grey/part-of-my-plan-was-not-only-to-introduce-all-useful-animals-that-i/) [George Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-grey/) > [Selfish hedonism is not a pejorative. It is a description - an exactly accurate description of what is involved in homosexual relations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-keyes/selfish-hedonism-is-not-a-pejorative-it-is-a-description-an-exactly/) [Alan Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-keyes/) > [I already know what things look like - I don't want description. People believe in appearances, and I don't believe in appearances at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duane-michals/i-already-know-what-things-look-like-i-don-t-want-description-people/) [Duane Michals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duane-michals/) > [First of all, principles should be general. That is, it must be possible to formulate them without use of what would be intuitively recognized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rawls/first-of-all-principles-should-be-general-that-is-it-must-be-possible/) [John Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rawls/) > [“There was a short railway official travelling up to the terminus, three fairly short market-gardeners picked up two stations afterwards, one very short widow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/there-was-a-short-railway-official-travelling-up-to-the-terminus/) [G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/) > [It is a great delusion to suppose that flesh-meat of any kind is essential to health. Considerably more than three parts of the work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-booth/it-is-a-great-delusion-to-suppose-that-flesh-meat-of-any-kind-is/) [Catherine Booth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-booth/) > [Developing fewer features allows you to conserve development resources and spend more time refining those features that users really need. Fewer features mean fewer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jakob-nielsen/developing-fewer-features-allows-you-to-conserve-development/) [Jakob Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jakob-nielsen/) ## More by John Fowles > [I am infinitely strange to myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-am-infinitely-strange-to-myself/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [I do not plan my fiction any more than I normally plan woodland walks; I follow the path that seems most promising at any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-do-not-plan-my-fiction-any-more-than-i-normally-plan-woodland-walks/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [“The sky is absolutely empty. Beautifully pure and empty. As if the architects and builders would live in all the houses they built! Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-sky-is-absolutely-empty-beautifully-pure-and-empty-as-if-the/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [“The evolution of human mentality has put us all in vitro now, behind the glass wall of our own ingenuity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-evolution-of-human-mentality-has-put-us-all-in-vitro-now-behind/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [Most marriages recognize this paradox: Passion destroys passion; we want what puts an end to wanting what we want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/most-marriages-recognize-this-paradox-passion-destroys-passion-we/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [That is the great distinction between the sexes. Men see objects, women see the relationships between objects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/that-is-the-great-distinction-between-the-sexes-men-see-objects-women/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [The craving to risk death is our last great perversion. We come from night, we go into night. Why live in night?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-craving-to-risk-death-is-our-last-great-perversion-we-come-from/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [There is only one good definition of God: the freedom that allows other freedoms to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/there-is-only-one-good-definition-of-god-the-freedom-that-allows/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [They looked down on her; and she looked up through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/they-looked-down-on-her-and-she-looked-up-through-them/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [“Long afterwards I realized why some men, racing drivers and their like, become addicted to speed. There are those of us who never see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/long-afterwards-i-realized-why-some-men-racing-drivers-and-their-like/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [The best wines take the longest to mature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-best-wines-take-the-longest-to-mature/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [But however good you get at translating personality into line or paint it's no go if your personality isn't worth translating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/but-however-good-you-get-at-translating-personality-into-line-or/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [“Liking other people is an illusion we have to cherish in ourselves if we are to live in society. It”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/liking-other-people-is-an-illusion-we-have-to-cherish-in-ourselves-if/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [Do you know that every great thing in the history of art and every beautiful thing in life is actually what you call nasty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/do-you-know-that-every-great-thing-in-the-history-of-art-and-every/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [“Yet this distance, all those abysses unbridged and then unbridgeable by radio, television, cheap travel and the rest, was not wholly bad. People knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/yet-this-distance-all-those-abysses-unbridged-and-then-unbridgeable/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) [Explore all 341 John Fowles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) ## More Chains quotes > [Unchecked, the new tolerance will sooner or later put many people in chains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson/unchecked-the-new-tolerance-will-sooner-or-later-put-many-people-in/) [D. A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson/) > [Somewhere somebody must have some sense. Men must see that force begets force, hate begets hate, toughness begets toughness. And it is all a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/somewhere-somebody-must-have-some-sense-men-must-see-that-force/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The Chains of conformity click in tiresomely monotonous unison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-sweet/the-chains-of-conformity-click-in-tiresomely-monotonous-unison/) [Leonard Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-sweet/) > [The dark ages still reign over all humanity, and the depth and persistence of this domination are only now becoming clear. This Dark Ages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-buckminster-fuller/the-dark-ages-still-reign-over-all-humanity-and-the-depth-and/) [R. Buckminster Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-buckminster-fuller/) > [I don't have a huge amount of gear, but on the software side, I have a number of plug-in chains that act as abstracted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hopkins/i-don-t-have-a-huge-amount-of-gear-but-on-the-software-side-i-have-a/) [Jon Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hopkins/) > [We don't have a farm-to-table food safety system. I keep saying this. It came as a big surprise to the FDA that tomatoes were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-nestle/we-don-t-have-a-farm-to-table-food-safety-system-i-keep-saying-this/) [Marion Nestle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-nestle/) > [So many times we come to Jesus in worship and ask Him for things that He already IS and has already done... What a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christy-nockels/so-many-times-we-come-to-jesus-in-worship-and-ask-him-for-things-that/) [Christy Nockels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christy-nockels/) > [How can I set free anyone who doesn't have the guts to stand up alone and declare his own freedom? I think it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/how-can-i-set-free-anyone-who-doesn-t-have-the-guts-to-stand-up-alone/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) > [I'm bigger than you! I'm higher on the food chain - get in my belly!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-myers/i-m-bigger-than-you-i-m-higher-on-the-food-chain-get-in-my-belly/) [Mike Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-myers/) > [The chains will fall off freely, no more worries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dl-watson/the-chains-will-fall-off-freely-no-more-worries/) [DL WATSON](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dl-watson/) > [I am ever mindful of the legacy of my grandfather, the founder of this Kingdom, who had said to me that he perceived his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/king-hussein-i/i-am-ever-mindful-of-the-legacy-of-my-grandfather-the-founder-of-this/) [King Hussein I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/king-hussein-i/) > [Think about it: we went into slavery pagans; we came out Christians. We went into slavery pieces of property; we came out American citizens.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/think-about-it-we-went-into-slavery-pagans-we-came-out-christians-we/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [To one who is accustomed to thinking a lot, every new thought that he hears or reads about immediately appears as a link in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/to-one-who-is-accustomed-to-thinking-a-lot-every-new-thought-that-he/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Man's ethics must not end with man, but should extend to the universe. He must regain the consciousness of the great Chain of Life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/man-s-ethics-must-not-end-with-man-but-should-extend-to-the-universe/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [To sigh, yet feel no pain; To weep, yet scarce know why; To sport an hour with Beauty's chain, Then throw it idly by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/to-sigh-yet-feel-no-pain-to-weep-yet-scarce-know-why-to-sport-an-hour/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) [Browse all 1,639 Chains quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chains/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I knew words were like chains, they held me back . . . the act of description taints the description.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Fowles" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held-me-back-the-act-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Chains" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held-me-back-the-act-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86d/john-fowles-816_chains_i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held_1907364.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86d/john-fowles-816_chains_i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held_1907364.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/86d/john-fowles-816_chains_i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held_1907364.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I knew words were like chains, they held me back . . . the act of description taints the description.” — John Fowles", "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": "John Fowles", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I knew words were like chains,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held-me-back-the-act-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-knew-words-were-like-chains-they-held-me-back-the-act-of/#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 } } ] } ```