--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I mistook non-conformity for freedom and…" description: "\"“I mistook non-conformity for freedom and in so doing found myself anything but free. For it is in conformity to one's true nature that one is most bec..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/karen-swallow-prior-26891_freedom_i-mistook-non-conformity-for-freedom-and_2197140.jpg" --- # I mistook non-conformity for freedom and in so doing found… ![“I mistook non-conformity for freedom and in so doing found myself anything but free. For it is in conformity to one's true nature that one is most becoming, in both senses of the word: well-fitted and beautiful.” quote by Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/karen-swallow-prior-26891_freedom_i-mistook-non-conformity-for-freedom-and_2197140.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/karen-swallow-prior-26891_freedom_i-mistook-non-conformity-for-freedom-and_2197140.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a0e/karen-swallow-prior-26891_freedom_i-mistook-non-conformity-for-freedom-and_2197140.jpg) > ““I mistook non-conformity for freedom and in so doing found myself anything but free. For it is in conformity to one's true nature that one is most becoming, in both senses of the word: well-fitted and beautiful.”” [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Non‑conformity can feel like freedom but may lead to isolation; true freedom aligns with one's authentic nature. **In simple terms:** Non‑conformity may limit freedom. Key Takeaway Seek authentic alignment. Themes freedom conformity authenticity Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical advice When to use this quote - career choices - social groups - creative projects Key Concepts existential philosophy psychology identity Questions to Reflect On - When have you felt trapped by conformity? - How do you define authentic freedom? A Different Perspective Conformity can also suppress individuality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conformity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conformity/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Non conformity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/non-conformity/) [True nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/true-nature/) ## Related quotes > [In America, through pressure of conformity, there is freedom of choice, but nothing to choose from.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-ustinov/in-america-through-pressure-of-conformity-there-is-freedom-of-choice/) [Peter Ustinov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-ustinov/) > [We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-r-murrow/we-must-not-confuse-dissent-with-disloyalty/) [Edward R. Murrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-r-murrow/) > [There are a lot of things in this world that are more important than being popular. Being true to yourself is one of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-landon/there-are-a-lot-of-things-in-this-world-that-are-more-important-than/) [Michael Landon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-landon/) > [Woe to him inside a non-conformist clique who does not conform to non-conformity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/woe-to-him-inside-a-non-conformist-clique-who-does-not-conform-to-non/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [There is a light seed grain inside. You fill it with yourself, or it dies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/there-is-a-light-seed-grain-inside-you-fill-it-with-yourself-or-it/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [To be original, or different, is felt to be "dangerous."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rogers/to-be-original-or-different-is-felt-to-be-dangerous/) [Carl Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rogers/) > [One must never forbid oneself anything. One must also be able to go back, one must always be able to change...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-hartung/one-must-never-forbid-oneself-anything-one-must-also-be-able-to-go/) Hans Hartung > [All my work keeps going like a pendulum; it seems to swing back to something I was involved with earlier, or it moves between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-krasner/all-my-work-keeps-going-like-a-pendulum-it-seems-to-swing-back-to/) [Lee Krasner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-krasner/) > [I like him. I have a weakness for losers. Invalids, foreigners, the fat boy of the class, the ones nobody ever wants to dance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-h-eg/i-like-him-i-have-a-weakness-for-losers-invalids-foreigners-the-fat/) [Peter Høeg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-h-eg/) > [Had I not created my whole world, I would certainly have died in other people’s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/had-i-not-created-my-whole-world-i-would-certainly-have-died-in-other/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [... I stare into the fridge. Like a mirrored image of myself. Cold and empty, and the lights come on only when you open…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hallgr-mur-helgason/i-stare-into-the-fridge-like-a-mirrored-image-of-myself-cold-and/) [Hallgrimur Helgason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hallgr-mur-helgason/) > [One day you're there and then all of a sudden, there's less of you. And you wonder where that part went. If it's living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-moss/one-day-you-re-there-and-then-all-of-a-sudden-there-s-less-of-you-and/) [Elisabeth Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-moss/) > [Non-conformity is the only real passion worth being ruled by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/non-conformity-is-the-only-real-passion-worth-being-ruled-by/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [The American people...have a stake in non-conformity. For they know that the American genius is non-conformist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-steele-commager/the-american-people-have-a-stake-in-non-conformity-for-they-know-that/) [Henry Steele Commager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-steele-commager/) > [A self is a frightening thing to waste, it's the lens through which one's whole life is viewed, and few people are willing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/a-self-is-a-frightening-thing-to-waste-it-s-the-lens-through-which/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) ## More by Karen Swallow Prior > [“Brontë was attempting to depict a character that adheres to the unchanging principles of her faith though she refused conformity to the particular practices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/bront-was-attempting-to-depict-a-character-that-adheres-to-the/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“If the right book can save your soul, then perhaps the wrong ones can damn it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/if-the-right-book-can-save-your-soul-then-perhaps-the-wrong-ones-can/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“It is no coincidence that the term “voice” has come to mean in modern usage much more than just the sound made by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/it-is-no-coincidence-that-the-term-voice-has-come-to-mean-in-modern/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“When my youth group leader told all of the kids in youth group that he had burned all of his rock albums, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/when-my-youth-group-leader-told-all-of-the-kids-in-youth-group-that/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“Even in their reading, More charged, too many women were prone to superficiality. In search of a passing knowledge of books and authors, many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/even-in-their-reading-more-charged-too-many-women-were-prone-to/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“Nothing defined the latter half of England's Victorian age more than the way in which Darwin's claims shook the collective faith of Victorian society.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/nothing-defined-the-latter-half-of-england-s-victorian-age-more-than/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“Thomas Merton says, “Discovering vocation does not mean scrambling toward some prize just beyond my reach but accepting the treasure of true self I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/thomas-merton-says-discovering-vocation-does-not-mean-scrambling/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“Discovering truth is a process that occurs over time, more fully with each idea or book that gets added to the equation. Sure, many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/discovering-truth-is-a-process-that-occurs-over-time-more-fully-with/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“What good literature can do and does do—far greater than any importation of morality—is touch the human soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/what-good-literature-can-do-and-does-do-far-greater-than-any/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“From that moment, and for the rest of my life, my mother's words--perceptive and many others--have helped me to be the thing she saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/from-that-moment-and-for-the-rest-of-my-life-my-mother-s-words/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“God who spoke the world into existence with words is, in fact, the source of meaning of all words. My journey toward that discovery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/god-who-spoke-the-world-into-existence-with-words-is-in-fact-the/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“The more I thought about it, the more I realized that reading—that is, really reading, interpreting—literature is practice for reading and interpreting life. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/the-more-i-thought-about-it-the-more-i-realized-that-reading-that-is/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“In so doing, I resisted the descent into what the school counselors called low self-esteem. Self-esteem is the dark, distorted shadow of self-possession. Self-esteem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/in-so-doing-i-resisted-the-descent-into-what-the-school-counselors/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“It’s true of most couples, I suspect, particularly of young ones like us in the fresh stage of love as we were to fool…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/it-s-true-of-most-couples-i-suspect-particularly-of-young-ones-like/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [“I believe in a God who not only intervenes in human affairs--again and again--but one who also makes banquets out of stale bread.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/i-believe-in-a-god-who-not-only-intervenes-in-human-affairs-again-and/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) [Explore all 21 Karen Swallow Prior quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) ## More Conformity quotes > [“So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-supertramp-chris-mccandless/so-many-people-live-within-unhappy-circumstances-and-yet-will-not/) Alexander Supertramp Chris McCandless > [“All to often, on the long road up, young leaders become servants of what is rather than shapers of what might be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gardner/all-to-often-on-the-long-road-up-young-leaders-become-servants-of/) [John Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gardner/) > [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/) > [No shepherd and one herd! Everybody wants the same, everybody is the same: whoever feels different goes voluntarily into a madhouse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/no-shepherd-and-one-herd-everybody-wants-the-same-everybody-is-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [A self is a frightening thing to waste, it's the lens through which one's whole life is viewed, and few people are willing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/a-self-is-a-frightening-thing-to-waste-it-s-the-lens-through-which/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [Ideation is not a synonym for innovation, conformity is not its simple antonym, and innovation is not the automatic consequence of "creative thinking.".](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-levitt/ideation-is-not-a-synonym-for-innovation-conformity-is-not-its-simple/) [Theodore Levitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-levitt/) > [“I lead with the knowingness that my reality conforms to my wishes and desires instantly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-s-baker/i-lead-with-the-knowingness-that-my-reality-conforms-to-my-wishes-and/) [Robin S. Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-s-baker/) > [Alas, everything that men say to one another is alike; the ideas they exchange are almost always the same, in their conversation. But inside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-musset/alas-everything-that-men-say-to-one-another-is-alike-the-ideas-they/) [Alfred de Musset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-musset/) > [The search for truth is a cooperative, unending endeavor. We can, and should, engage in it to the extent we can and encourage others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-search-for-truth-is-a-cooperative-unending-endeavor-we-can-and/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Seeds have the power to preserve species, to enhance cultural as well as genetic diversity, to counter economic monopoly and to check the advance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/seeds-have-the-power-to-preserve-species-to-enhance-cultural-as-well/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“Brontë was attempting to depict a character that adheres to the unchanging principles of her faith though she refused conformity to the particular practices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/bront-was-attempting-to-depict-a-character-that-adheres-to-the/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [Officers conditioned to conformity in peacetime cannot be expected to behave boldly and flexibly in combat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-yingling/officers-conditioned-to-conformity-in-peacetime-cannot-be-expected-to/) Paul Yingling > [The more civilized a nation, the more conformed its population, until that civilization's last age arrives, when multiplicity wages war with conformity. The former…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-erikson/the-more-civilized-a-nation-the-more-conformed-its-population-until/) [Steven Erikson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-erikson/) > [Society everywhere is in conspiracy against the manhood of every one of its members. The virtue in most request is conformity. Self-reliance is its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/society-everywhere-is-in-conspiracy-against-the-manhood-of-every-one/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Deaths, births, and marriages, considering how much they are separately dependent on the freedom of the human will, should seem to be subject to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/deaths-births-and-marriages-considering-how-much-they-are-separately/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) [Browse all 937 Conformity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conformity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I mistook non-conformity for freedom and in so doing found myself anything but free. 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