--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I got into trouble a while ago for saying…" description: "\"I got into trouble a while ago for saying that I thought the internet led to increased literacy - people scolded me about the shocking grammar to be fo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_found_i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-sayin_1377656.jpg" --- # I got into trouble a while ago for saying that I thought… ![“I got into trouble a while ago for saying that I thought the internet led to increased literacy - people scolded me about the shocking grammar to be found online - but I was talking about fundamentals: quite simply, you can't use the net unless you can read.” quote by Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_found_i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-sayin_1377656.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_found_i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-sayin_1377656.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_found_i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-sayin_1377656.jpg) > “I got into trouble a while ago for saying that I thought the internet led to increased literacy - people scolded me about the shocking grammar to be found online - but I was talking about fundamentals: quite simply, you can't use the net unless you can read.” [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Literacy is essential for using the internet; without reading skills, the web’s benefits are inaccessible. **In simple terms:** Reading enables internet use. Key Takeaway Improve literacy to fully engage online. Themes literacy technology education Mood concerned hopeful Type educational practical When to use this quote - school curricula - adult education - online learning platforms - community workshops Key Concepts cognitive development digital divide Questions to Reflect On - How can we teach reading in digital age? - What resources help bridge literacy gaps? A Different Perspective Digital content can be overwhelming without guidance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Found](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/found/) [Fundamentals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fundamentals/) [Got Trouble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/got-trouble/) [Grammar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grammar/) [Grammar Online](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grammar-online-4762485/) [Increased Literacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/increased-literacy-1101686/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Literacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literacy/) [Online](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/online/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Shocking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shocking/) [Talking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talking/) [Thought Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-internet-1000040/) [Trouble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trouble/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) ## Related quotes > [I am much more open about categories of gender, and my feminism has been about women's safety from violence, increased literacy, decreased poverty and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-butler/i-am-much-more-open-about-categories-of-gender-and-my-feminism-has/) [Judith Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-butler/) > [When I was starting out, I thought about how the Internet is global and that we should have a global name, a name that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/when-i-was-starting-out-i-thought-about-how-the-internet-is-global/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) > [We thought the Internet would enlighten everyone, but it's given everyone access to more ignorance, and given ignorant people an opportunity to organize themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/weyes-blood/we-thought-the-internet-would-enlighten-everyone-but-it-s-given/) [Weyes Blood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/weyes-blood/) > [The Internet's proven to be a pretty big deal for global society, and Bitcoin could basically be thought of as the Internet, applied to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-kaminsky/the-internet-s-proven-to-be-a-pretty-big-deal-for-global-society-and/) [Dan Kaminsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-kaminsky/) > [In music, which was my world before, you've got thousands and thousands of years of great ideas that have already been thought of. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-mason/in-music-which-was-my-world-before-you-ve-got-thousands-and-thousands/) [Andrew Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-mason/) > [Jeff Bezos is opening a retail store and owns a newspaper. Turns out everything we thought about the Internet is wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-levie/jeff-bezos-is-opening-a-retail-store-and-owns-a-newspaper-turns-out/) [Aaron Levie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-levie/) > [We thought that the Internet was going to connect us all together. As a young geek in rural Maine, I got excited about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-pariser/we-thought-that-the-internet-was-going-to-connect-us-all-together-as/) [Eli Pariser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-pariser/) > [Reading and writing don't inevitably go together. You can read without learning a thing about writing, grammar, or spelling, although, you certainly can't learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-smith/reading-and-writing-don-t-inevitably-go-together-you-can-read-without/) [Frank Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-smith/) > [“ Grammar, n. A system of pitfalls thoughtfully prepared for the feet of the self-made man, along the path by which he advances to distinction.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/grammar-n-a-system-of-pitfalls-thoughtfully-prepared-for-the-feet-of/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [There's nothing like a shovel full of dirt to encourage literacy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-s-nothing-like-a-shovel-full-of-dirt-to-encourage-literacy/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Reading and writing, like everything else, improve with practice. And, of course, if there are no young readers and writers, there will shortly be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/reading-and-writing-like-everything-else-improve-with-practice-and-of/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Back at home they drew the curtains and read, with disapproval, with relish, with avidity and glee - even the ones who'd never thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/back-at-home-they-drew-the-curtains-and-read-with-disapproval-with/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [You most likely need a thesaurus, a rudimentary grammar book, and a grip on reality. This latter means: there's no free lunch. Writing is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/you-most-likely-need-a-thesaurus-a-rudimentary-grammar-book-and-a/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Where was the threshold, between the inner world and the outer one? We each move unthinkingly through this gateway every day, we use the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/where-was-the-threshold-between-the-inner-world-and-the-outer-one-we/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [In high school, in 1956, at the age of sixteen, we were not taught "creative writing." We were taught literature and grammar. So no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/in-high-school-in-1956-at-the-age-of-sixteen-we-were-not-taught/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) ## More by Margaret Atwood > [“I'm fine," said Pilar, "for the moment. And the moment is the only time we can be fine in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-m-fine-said-pilar-for-the-moment-and-the-moment-is-the-only-time-we/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [And yet it disturbs me to learn I have hurt someone unintentionally. I want all my hurts to be intentional.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/and-yet-it-disturbs-me-to-learn-i-have-hurt-someone-unintentionally-i/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Mary: Some call this "Eve's curse," but I think that is stupid because the real curse of Eve was having to put up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/mary-some-call-this-eve-s-curse-but-i-think-that-is-stupid-because/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“The birds were singing around me, but I reflected that the very birds were strangers to me, for I did not even know their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-birds-were-singing-around-me-but-i-reflected-that-the-very-birds/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Strange how we decorate pain. These ribbons, for instance, and the small hard teardrops of blood. Who are they for? Do we think the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/strange-how-we-decorate-pain-these-ribbons-for-instance-and-the-small/) [margaret atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [I wanted to forget the past, but it refused to forget me; it waited for sleep, then cornered me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-wanted-to-forget-the-past-but-it-refused-to-forget-me-it-waited-for/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Back at home they drew the curtains and read, with disapproval, with relish, with avidity and glee - even the ones who'd never thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/back-at-home-they-drew-the-curtains-and-read-with-disapproval-with/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“It's my fault. I am forgetting too much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-my-fault-i-am-forgetting-too-much/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [All fiction is about people, unless it's about rabbits pretending to be people. It's all essentially characters in action, which means characters moving through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/all-fiction-is-about-people-unless-it-s-about-rabbits-pretending-to/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Simon walks back to the house alone. The night is clear and warm, with a moon, almost full, enclosed in a nimbus of mist;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/simon-walks-back-to-the-house-alone-the-night-is-clear-and-warm-with/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“There is indeed something delightful about being able to combine obedience and disobedience in the same act.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-is-indeed-something-delightful-about-being-able-to-combine/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Every time the women appear, Snowman is astonished all over again. They're every known colour from the deepest black to whitest white, they're various…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/every-time-the-women-appear-snowman-is-astonished-all-over-again-they/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Once you publish a book, it is out of your control. You cannot dictate how people read it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/once-you-publish-a-book-it-is-out-of-your-control-you-cannot-dictate/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“The more difficult it was to love the particular man beside us, the more we believed in Love, abstract and total. We were waiting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-more-difficult-it-was-to-love-the-particular-man-beside-us-the/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“She knows she's deceiving herself about that, but she prefers to deceive herself. She desperately needs to believe such pure joy is still possible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/she-knows-she-s-deceiving-herself-about-that-but-she-prefers-to/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) [Explore all 2,072 Margaret Atwood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) ## More Found quotes > [I never believed in trying to do anything. Whatever I set out to do I found I had already accomplished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/i-never-believed-in-trying-to-do-anything-whatever-i-set-out-to-do-i/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I love being in Malibu. It's so cool there, and the water is just, it's nice and, and I love the beach. And I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-evancho/i-love-being-in-malibu-it-s-so-cool-there-and-the-water-is-just-it-s/) [Jackie Evancho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-evancho/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [I'm a big fan of all the Boston guys that are acting - Matt Damon , Ben Affleck, Mark Wahlberg - they made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-wormald/i-m-a-big-fan-of-all-the-boston-guys-that-are-acting-matt-damon-ben/) [Kenny Wormald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-wormald/) > [It is the incongruous thing in my entire life, this isolation.. ... My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/) [Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/) > [It is the interest of the commercial world that wealth should be found everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/it-is-the-interest-of-the-commercial-world-that-wealth-should-be/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [Real breakthroughs are not found because you want to develop some new technology, but because you are curious and want to find out how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-zeilinger/real-breakthroughs-are-not-found-because-you-want-to-develop-some-new/) [Anton Zeilinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-zeilinger/) > [Like a child exploring the attic of an old house on a rainy day, discovering a trunk full of treasure and then calling all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-h-peterson/like-a-child-exploring-the-attic-of-an-old-house-on-a-rainy-day/) [Eugene H. Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-h-peterson/) > [I wish that I had known back then that a mastery of process would lead to a product. Then I probably wouldn't have found…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-george/i-wish-that-i-had-known-back-then-that-a-mastery-of-process-would/) [Elizabeth George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-george/) > [He found in the world without as actual what was in his world within as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/he-found-in-the-world-without-as-actual-what-was-in-his-world-within/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [What has drug addiction done for me? It's cost me my career, my fortune and basically my sex life when I found out I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robbin-crosby/what-has-drug-addiction-done-for-me-it-s-cost-me-my-career-my-fortune/) [Robbin Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robbin-crosby/) > [It hurt, of course, but more often than not the best things do, I've found.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/it-hurt-of-course-but-more-often-than-not-the-best-things-do-i-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [I, measuring his affections by my own, Which then most sought where most might not be found, Being one too many by my weary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-measuring-his-affections-by-my-own-which-then-most-sought-where/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) [Browse all 12,329 Found quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/found/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I got into trouble a while ago for saying that I thought the internet led to increased literacy - people scolded me about the shocking grammar to be found online - but I was talking about fundamentals: quite simply, you can't use the net unless you can read.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Margaret Atwood" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-saying-that-i-thought-the-internet/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Found" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-saying-that-i-thought-the-internet/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_found_i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-sayin_1377656.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_found_i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-sayin_1377656.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_found_i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-sayin_1377656.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I got into trouble a while ago for saying that I thought the internet led to increased literacy - people…” — Margaret Atwood", "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": "Margaret Atwood", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I got into trouble a while...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-saying-that-i-thought-the-internet/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-got-into-trouble-a-while-ago-for-saying-that-i-thought-the-internet/#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 } } ] } ```