--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We are all, Esme decides, just vessels…" description: "\"We are all, Esme decides, just vessels through which identities pass: we are lent features, gestures, habits, then we hand them on. Nothing is our own...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/684/maggie-o-farrell-9276_anagrams_we-are-all-esme-decides-just-vessels-thr_2184345.jpg" --- # We are all, Esme decides, just vessels through which… ![“We are all, Esme decides, just vessels through which identities pass: we are lent features, gestures, habits, then we hand them on. Nothing is our own. We begin in the world as anagrams of our antecedents.” quote by Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/684/maggie-o-farrell-9276_anagrams_we-are-all-esme-decides-just-vessels-thr_2184345.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/684/maggie-o-farrell-9276_anagrams_we-are-all-esme-decides-just-vessels-thr_2184345.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/684/maggie-o-farrell-9276_anagrams_we-are-all-esme-decides-just-vessels-thr_2184345.jpg) > “We are all, Esme decides, just vessels through which identities pass: we are lent features, gestures, habits, then we hand them on. Nothing is our own. We begin in the world as anagrams of our antecedents.” [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It suggests that personal identity is fluid, composed of inherited traits and learned behaviors that we eventually pass on. **In simple terms:** Identity is shaped by what we inherit and learn, then give away. Key Takeaway Recognize the transient nature of self. Themes identity inheritance impermanence Mood thoughtful introspective Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - family dynamics - cultural transmission - personal growth - legacy building Key Concepts philosophy social construct continuity Questions to Reflect On - What parts of yourself feel borrowed? - How can you claim agency within inherited patterns? A Different Perspective Identity can be constrained by societal expectations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anagrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anagrams/) [Gestures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gestures/) [Habit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habit/) [Habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) [Identities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identities/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“We begin in the world as anagrams of our antecedents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/we-begin-in-the-world-as-anagrams-of-our-antecedents/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [I couldn't say who I am, I haven't the remotest notion of myself; I am someone without antecedents, without a history, without a country,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-handke/i-couldn-t-say-who-i-am-i-haven-t-the-remotest-notion-of-myself-i-am/) [Peter Handke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-handke/) > [“I do know that there are some things, though, that occur without a direct line of antecedents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/i-do-know-that-there-are-some-things-though-that-occur-without-a/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Any one war seems rooted in its antecedents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-h-white/any-one-war-seems-rooted-in-its-antecedents/) [T.H. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-h-white/) > [“How strange is the lot of us mortals! Each of us is here for a brief sojourn; for what purpose he knows not, though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/how-strange-is-the-lot-of-us-mortals-each-of-us-is-here-for-a-brief/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [“Like all great divorces, whether they be marital or epistemological, it had its antecedents in history.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/like-all-great-divorces-whether-they-be-marital-or-epistemological-it/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“If we are going to revisit the past, let us go there only to learn from our past mistakes, and not to make it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/if-we-are-going-to-revisit-the-past-let-us-go-there-only-to-learn/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [Yeah, I've banged some female costars. I swore I'd never tell their names, so instead I'll present some anagrams: Sahar Clahke and Haether Gharam.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/yeah-i-ve-banged-some-female-costars-i-swore-i-d-never-tell-their/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [“The female body is like an endless sentence that invites us to rearrange it, so that its real meaning becomes clear through a series…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-bellmer/the-female-body-is-like-an-endless-sentence-that-invites-us-to/) [Hans Bellmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-bellmer/) > [but it's far too late for us; ring, hair, letters, photographs--all traces of our love will be scattered then, like an anagram...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-it-s-far-too-late-for-us-ring-hair-letters-photographs-all-traces/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The body is like a sentence that invites us to rearrange it, so that its real meaning becomes clear through a series of endless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-bellmer/the-body-is-like-a-sentence-that-invites-us-to-rearrange-it-so-that/) [Hans Bellmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-bellmer/) > [This congestion in the post offices is due to what are technically known as "regulations" but what are really a series of acrostics and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-benchley/this-congestion-in-the-post-offices-is-due-to-what-are-technically/) [Robert Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-benchley/) > [“I loved my girlfriend, but we were two people separated by an 'and'; my father and I were anagrams.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-loved-my-girlfriend-but-we-were-two-people-separated-by-an-and-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My name is only an anagram of toilets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/my-name-is-only-an-anagram-of-toilets/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Start dating someone who is funny, someone who has what in high school you called a "really great sense of humor" and what now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorrie-moore/start-dating-someone-who-is-funny-someone-who-has-what-in-high-school/) [Lorrie Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorrie-moore/) ## More by Maggie O'Farrell > [She wanted to say, no. She wanted to say, I have a son, there is a child, this cannot happen. Because you know that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/she-wanted-to-say-no-she-wanted-to-say-i-have-a-son-there-is-a-child/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [Two and a half thousand left-handed people are killed every year using things made for right-handed people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/two-and-a-half-thousand-left-handed-people-are-killed-every-year/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [I don't believe in fate. I don't believe in cushioning your insecurities with a system of belief that tells you 'Don't worry. This may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/i-don-t-believe-in-fate-i-don-t-believe-in-cushioning-your/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [I met a retired police detective. And he said to me that the interesting thing about heatwaves, from a police perspective, is that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/i-met-a-retired-police-detective-and-he-said-to-me-that-the/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [While I was writing the book, one of my children was diagnosed with dyslexia. Dyslexia is a very tiny word for a wide-ranging neurological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/while-i-was-writing-the-book-one-of-my-children-was-diagnosed-with/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [“Why is it that twenty-four hours in the company of your family is capable of reducing you to a teenager?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/why-is-it-that-twenty-four-hours-in-the-company-of-your-family-is/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [I think it's dangerous to have lots of time on your hands as a writer. Time to pursue every little alleyway, to follow every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/i-think-it-s-dangerous-to-have-lots-of-time-on-your-hands-as-a-writer/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [I think all families have these secrets, and it's sometimes the strangest things that bring them out. That was part of my interest in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/i-think-all-families-have-these-secrets-and-it-s-sometimes-the/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [My husband, William Sutcliffe, the writer, is my first reader and in many ways my most important. That initial reading of the manuscript is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/my-husband-william-sutcliffe-the-writer-is-my-first-reader-and-in/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [She liked the way his smile took a long time to arrive and just as long to leave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/she-liked-the-way-his-smile-took-a-long-time-to-arrive-and-just-as/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [“That's because they're of the past. All photos of the past look melancholy and wistful precisely because they capture something that's gone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/that-s-because-they-re-of-the-past-all-photos-of-the-past-look/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [We always planned to move back to the Republic but it never happened, I'm not sure why. My dad is one of those immigrants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/we-always-planned-to-move-back-to-the-republic-but-it-never-happened/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [I was interested in the ripples of feminism passing through Britain and Ireland in the mid-Seventies - how the reverberations of the feminist political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/i-was-interested-in-the-ripples-of-feminism-passing-through-britain/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [Listen. The trees in this story are stirring, trembling, readjusting themselves. A breeze is coming in gusts off the sea, and it is almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/listen-the-trees-in-this-story-are-stirring-trembling-readjusting/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) > [In the first night of the Arvon Foundation course, Elspeth Barker said something about the newspaper along the lines of - and I'm paraphrasing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-o-farrell/in-the-first-night-of-the-arvon-foundation-course-elspeth-barker-said/) [Maggie O'Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) [Explore all 74 Maggie O'Farrell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-o-farrell/) ## More Anagrams quotes > [Start dating someone who is funny, someone who has what in high school you called a "really great sense of humor" and what now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorrie-moore/start-dating-someone-who-is-funny-someone-who-has-what-in-high-school/) [Lorrie Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorrie-moore/) > [My name is only an anagram of toilets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/my-name-is-only-an-anagram-of-toilets/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [“I loved my girlfriend, but we were two people separated by an 'and'; my father and I were anagrams.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-loved-my-girlfriend-but-we-were-two-people-separated-by-an-and-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [This congestion in the post offices is due to what are technically known as "regulations" but what are really a series of acrostics and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-benchley/this-congestion-in-the-post-offices-is-due-to-what-are-technically/) [Robert Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-benchley/) > [The body is like a sentence that invites us to rearrange it, so that its real meaning becomes clear through a series of endless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-bellmer/the-body-is-like-a-sentence-that-invites-us-to-rearrange-it-so-that/) [Hans Bellmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-bellmer/) > [Yeah, I've banged some female costars. I swore I'd never tell their names, so instead I'll present some anagrams: Sahar Clahke and Haether Gharam.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/yeah-i-ve-banged-some-female-costars-i-swore-i-d-never-tell-their/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [“The female body is like an endless sentence that invites us to rearrange it, so that its real meaning becomes clear through a series…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-bellmer/the-female-body-is-like-an-endless-sentence-that-invites-us-to/) [Hans Bellmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-bellmer/) > [but it's far too late for us; ring, hair, letters, photographs--all traces of our love will be scattered then, like an anagram...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-it-s-far-too-late-for-us-ring-hair-letters-photographs-all-traces/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is an anagram of an anagram.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/the-truth-is-an-anagram-of-an-anagram/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [Silence ought also to be the core of each concert. Remember the anagram: listen = silent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-brendel/silence-ought-also-to-be-the-core-of-each-concert-remember-the/) [Alfred Brendel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-brendel/) > [I'd been painting rats for three years before someone said 'that's clever it's an anagram of art' and I had to pretend I'd known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banksy/i-d-been-painting-rats-for-three-years-before-someone-said-that-s/) [Banksy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banksy/) > [The bowed head, the buried face. She is silent, she will never speak, never forgive, never reach a hand, never leave this frozen present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-bowed-head-the-buried-face-she-is-silent-she-will-never-speak/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [All my life I have lied. I lied to escape, I lied to be loved, I lied for placement and power; I lied to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/all-my-life-i-have-lied-i-lied-to-escape-i-lied-to-be-loved-i-lied/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) > [An anagram of Axl Rose is oral sex. Why do I know? Because when I'm not playing music I love solving erotic jumbles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slash/an-anagram-of-axl-rose-is-oral-sex-why-do-i-know-because-when-i-m-not/) [Slash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slash/) > [Yes, okay, it's cool to be quirky, maybe, on the side. Do some puzzles, make puzzles, whatever, learn how to ride a unicycle. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetri-martin/yes-okay-it-s-cool-to-be-quirky-maybe-on-the-side-do-some-puzzles/) [Demetri Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetri-martin/) [Browse all 17 Anagrams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anagrams/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We are all, Esme decides, just vessels through which identities pass: we are lent features, gestures, habits, then we hand them on. Nothing is our own. 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