--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The idea of equality is misunderstood. I…" description: "\"The idea of equality is misunderstood. I wouldn't ever argue that everyone is the same, but that differences should not be hierarchical. Attitudes and ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/462/lynne-tillman-5609_arguing_the-idea-of-equality-is-misunderstood-i_2579376.png" --- # The idea of equality is misunderstood. I wouldn't ever… ![“The idea of equality is misunderstood. I wouldn't ever argue that everyone is the same, but that differences should not be hierarchical. Attitudes and expectations have been imposed on both men and women. For instance, men had very little to do with the raising of their children before the women's…” quote by Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/462/lynne-tillman-5609_arguing_the-idea-of-equality-is-misunderstood-i_2579376.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/462/lynne-tillman-5609_arguing_the-idea-of-equality-is-misunderstood-i_2579376.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/462/lynne-tillman-5609_arguing_the-idea-of-equality-is-misunderstood-i_2579376.png) > “The idea of equality is misunderstood. I wouldn't ever argue that everyone is the same, but that differences should not be hierarchical. Attitudes and expectations have been imposed on both men and women. For instance, men had very little to do with the raising of their children before the women's movement. The women's movement has freed men to become more active as fathers. We're living in a period of transition, but change can be much slower than we want, with unintended consequences, and can also be happening without our seeing it.” [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Equality means recognizing differences without ranking them, allowing all genders to share roles and responsibilities equally. **In simple terms:** Treat differences as equal, not hierarchical. Key Takeaway Promote shared responsibilities across genders. Themes gender equality social roles hierarchy change unintended consequences Mood reflective hopeful Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - parenting - workplace policies - education curricula - media representation Key Concepts intersectionality social construction power dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How can we measure hidden progress? - What unintended effects arise from rapid change? A Different Perspective Progress may be uneven and hidden, causing resistance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitude/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Consequence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consequence/) [Equality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/equality/) [Expectations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expectations/) [Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men and women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-and-women/) [Misunderstood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misunderstood/) [Unintended consequences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unintended-consequences/) ## Related quotes > [“I know that for a lot of people, including a lot of women, the movement for women’s equality exists largely in the past. They’re…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/i-know-that-for-a-lot-of-people-including-a-lot-of-women-the-movement/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [When it comes to two of the big social earthquakes in the last fifty years - which are the gay movement and the women's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-condon/when-it-comes-to-two-of-the-big-social-earthquakes-in-the-last-fifty/) [Bill Condon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-condon/) > [In the women's movement, women needed men to stand up and say, 'This isn't right.' In the civil rights of the '60s, it took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pauley-perrette/in-the-women-s-movement-women-needed-men-to-stand-up-and-say-this-isn/) [Pauley Perrette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pauley-perrette/) > [I think obviously we need to work harder at extending the women's movement. How do women who have prepared for careers and have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-brokaw/i-think-obviously-we-need-to-work-harder-at-extending-the-women-s/) [Tom Brokaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-brokaw/) > [Idea is a noble one — an idea that fills and expands all generous souls; the idea of equality — the equality of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-seward/idea-is-a-noble-one-an-idea-that-fills-and-expands-all-generous-souls/) [William H. Seward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-seward/) > [The idea is that to grasp an idea like equality or justice, you can't look at the equal and just or unjust things in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-adamson/the-idea-is-that-to-grasp-an-idea-like-equality-or-justice-you-can-t/) [Peter Adamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-adamson/) > [A party with one idea; but that is a noble idea ... the idea of equality - the equality of all men before human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-seward/a-party-with-one-idea-but-that-is-a-noble-idea-the-idea-of-equality/) [William H. Seward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-seward/) > [What I find most interesting about the U.S. is this idea of equality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-ramos/what-i-find-most-interesting-about-the-u-s-is-this-idea-of-equality-2/) [Jorge Ramos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-ramos/) > [What I find most interesting about the U.S. is this idea of equality. That's what I'm trying to do with immigration. If what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-ramos/what-i-find-most-interesting-about-the-u-s-is-this-idea-of-equality/) [Jorge Ramos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-ramos/) > [The idea of equality is still how I define feminism. I think it's a broad definition that encompasses the variety of experiences women and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-zeilinger/the-idea-of-equality-is-still-how-i-define-feminism-i-think-it-s-a/) [Julie Zeilinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-zeilinger/) > [When I was growing up in the '50s, I had never heard of a "woman film director," so I did not consider it as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hegedus/when-i-was-growing-up-in-the-50s-i-had-never-heard-of-a-woman-film/) [Chris Hegedus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hegedus/) > [We need a new political movement of women and men toward a new society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-friedan/we-need-a-new-political-movement-of-women-and-men-toward-a-new-society/) [Betty Friedan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-friedan/) > [“My story is the story of a life shaped by and devoted to the movement for women’s liberation” would be cheered, not jeered. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/my-story-is-the-story-of-a-life-shaped-by-and-devoted-to-the-movement/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [I'm doing my bit for the women's movement. The women have always been naked in movies, and now I'm just desperate to take my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-m-doing-my-bit-for-the-women-s-movement-the-women-have-always-been/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [I'm hearing here that this Muslim movement, well, for women, is what we have to focus on. And women have been doing, I think,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalia-mogahed/i-m-hearing-here-that-this-muslim-movement-well-for-women-is-what-we/) [Dalia Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalia-mogahed/) ## More by Lynne Tillman > [There may be an art to conversation, and some are better at it than others, but conversation's virtue lies in randomness and possibility: people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/there-may-be-an-art-to-conversation-and-some-are-better-at-it-than/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [I'd studied English literature and American history, but the English literature, which I thought was going to be helpful to me in an immediate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/i-d-studied-english-literature-and-american-history-but-the-english/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [I subject my sentences and the words to a kind of Grand Inquisition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/i-subject-my-sentences-and-the-words-to-a-kind-of-grand-inquisition/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [Laughing and crying are very similar. Sometimes people go from laughing to crying, or crying to laughing. I remember being at someone's wedding and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/laughing-and-crying-are-very-similar-sometimes-people-go-from/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [ \[Reality\] isn't simply the so-called world that you're in. Your reality is a much larger one that takes in all matter of identification and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/reality-isn-t-simply-the-so-called-world-that-you-re-in-your-reality/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [I write about what I'm thinking about. I write about what is bothering me or what is a political, aesthetic, or ethical issue or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/i-write-about-what-i-m-thinking-about-i-write-about-what-is-bothering/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [My friends and I sometimes laugh at each other that there is so much maintenance of a body. I paid no attention when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/my-friends-and-i-sometimes-laugh-at-each-other-that-there-is-so-much/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [I'm interested in reality but I'm not interested in realism at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/i-m-interested-in-reality-but-i-m-not-interested-in-realism-at-all/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [In a practical sense, pain kept me from sitting down as much, so that sometimes I would have to stand to write. Not that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/in-a-practical-sense-pain-kept-me-from-sitting-down-as-much-so-that/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [I'm bothered, as a reader, when I feel the writer is filling in too much. Again, whether it's nonfiction or fiction, I think writers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/i-m-bothered-as-a-reader-when-i-feel-the-writer-is-filling-in-too/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [It wasn't that I wanted to be an artist. But when I took my first drawing class with the painter Doug Ohlson, I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/it-wasn-t-that-i-wanted-to-be-an-artist-but-when-i-took-my-first/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [I'm interested in reality but I'm not interested in realism at all. I'm interested in the ways that I think people want to relate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/i-m-interested-in-reality-but-i-m-not-interested-in-realism-at-all-i/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [It's true you have to screen out a lot living in the city. I stayed away from New York for a long time after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/it-s-true-you-have-to-screen-out-a-lot-living-in-the-city-i-stayed/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [Kafka wrote the great line: "my education has damaged me in ways I do not even know." And that's always been a signature motto…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/kafka-wrote-the-great-line-my-education-has-damaged-me-in-ways-i-do/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) > [There are lots of unlikable characters in literature. It doesn't mean they're not fascinating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/there-are-lots-of-unlikable-characters-in-literature-it-doesn-t-mean/) [Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) [Explore all 100 Lynne Tillman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/) ## More Arguing quotes > [I do wish you wouldn't argue with me when I'm knitting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-durrell/i-do-wish-you-wouldn-t-argue-with-me-when-i-m-knitting/) [Gerald Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-durrell/) > [Any comprehensive doctrine, religious or secular, can be introduced into any political argument at any time, but I argue that people who do this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rawls/any-comprehensive-doctrine-religious-or-secular-can-be-introduced/) [John Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rawls/) > [It's fine to talk about politics with people you agree with. But it is rude to argue about politics with people you disagree with.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/it-s-fine-to-talk-about-politics-with-people-you-agree-with-but-it-is/) [Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/) > [Men are fair, and they have learned not to personalize anger - they can disagree with you and argue to the bone, but afterward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-farrell/men-are-fair-and-they-have-learned-not-to-personalize-anger-they-can/) [Warren Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-farrell/) > [When Eudæmonidas heard a philosopher arguing that only a wise man can be a good general, "This is a wonderful speech," said he; "but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/when-eud-monidas-heard-a-philosopher-arguing-that-only-a-wise-man-can/) [Plutarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plutarch/) > [Fasting is required, staying away from fighting and arguing and bombing of masjids is still going on. Hatred is still manifested between Sunni and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-farrakhan/fasting-is-required-staying-away-from-fighting-and-arguing-and/) [Louis Farrakhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-farrakhan/) > [The problem for the Left, however, is that the moment it stops painting the Right as vile, it has to argue the issues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/the-problem-for-the-left-however-is-that-the-moment-it-stops-painting/) [Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/) > [To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/to-argue-with-a-person-who-has-renounced-the-use-of-reason-is-like/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [You can argue that the Terminator movies reboot their world each time they go back in time, but that doesn't negate the value of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hayter/you-can-argue-that-the-terminator-movies-reboot-their-world-each-time/) [David Hayter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hayter/) > [We may argue eloquently that 'Honesty is the best Policy' - unfortunately, the moment honesty is adopted for the sake of policy it mysteriously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/we-may-argue-eloquently-that-honesty-is-the-best-policy-unfortunately/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [I'm a very serious person, but I don't take myself very seriously and I would rather laugh all day than argue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stone-cold-steve-austin/i-m-a-very-serious-person-but-i-don-t-take-myself-very-seriously-and/) [Stone Cold Steve Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stone-cold-steve-austin/) > [These eyes, tho' clear To outward view of blemish or of spot, Bereft of light, their seeing have forgot, Nor to their idle orbs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/these-eyes-tho-clear-to-outward-view-of-blemish-or-of-spot-bereft-of/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [There's crucial distinction that has to be drawn between the Shari'a, which is this hugely expansive vision of cosmic order that I've been describing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadakat-kadri/there-s-crucial-distinction-that-has-to-be-drawn-between-the-shari-a/) [Sadakat Kadri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadakat-kadri/) > [Only fools argue whether to eat meat or not. They don't understand truth nor do they meditate on it. Who can define what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guru-nanak/only-fools-argue-whether-to-eat-meat-or-not-they-don-t-understand/) [Guru Nanak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guru-nanak/) > [The surest sign that you haven't any sense is to argue with one who hasn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-j-peter/the-surest-sign-that-you-haven-t-any-sense-is-to-argue-with-one-who/) [Laurence J. Peter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-j-peter/) Browse all 1,908 Arguing quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The idea of equality is misunderstood. I wouldn't ever argue that everyone is the same, but that differences should not be hierarchical. Attitudes and expectations have been imposed on both men and women. For instance, men had very little to do with the raising of their children before the women's movement. 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