--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's impossible to say a thing exactly…" description: "\"“It's impossible to say a thing exactly the way it was, because what you say can never be exact, you always have to leave something out, there are too ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/margaret-atwood-40_forgiveness_it-s-impossible-to-say-a-thing-exactly-t_893740.jpg" --- # It's impossible to say a thing exactly the way it was… ![“It's impossible to say a thing exactly the way it was, because what you say can never be exact, you always have to leave something out, there are too many parts, sides, crosscurrents, nuances; too many gestures, which could mean this or that, too many shapes which can never be fully described, too…” quote by Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/margaret-atwood-40_forgiveness_it-s-impossible-to-say-a-thing-exactly-t_893740.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/margaret-atwood-40_forgiveness_it-s-impossible-to-say-a-thing-exactly-t_893740.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bcd/margaret-atwood-40_forgiveness_it-s-impossible-to-say-a-thing-exactly-t_893740.jpg) > ““It's impossible to say a thing exactly the way it was, because what you say can never be exact, you always have to leave something out, there are too many parts, sides, crosscurrents, nuances; too many gestures, which could mean this or that, too many shapes which can never be fully described, too many flavours, in the air or on the tongue, half-colours, too many. But if you happen to be a man, sometimes in the future, and you've made it this far, please remember: you will never be subjected to the temptation of feeling you must forgive, a man, as a woman. It's difficult to resist, believe me. But remember that forgiveness too is power. To beg for it is a power, and to withhold or bestow it is a power, perhaps the greatest. (p.208-209)”” [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. Language can never fully capture reality; forgiveness is a potent, dual‑edged power that can be granted or denied. **In simple terms:** Words are imperfect; forgiveness is powerful. Key Takeaway Recognize forgiveness as a choice of power. Themes communication power gender dynamics ethics Mood reflective thoughtful critical Type philosophical ethical literary When to use this quote - personal relationships - political negotiations - conflict resolution - self‑reflection Key Concepts language limits forgiveness as agency gendered expectations Questions to Reflect On - How does gender influence perceptions of forgiveness? - When might forgiveness be a weakness? A Different Perspective The quote assumes forgiveness is always a power move, ignoring its emotional complexity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Forgiveness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgiveness/) ## Related quotes > [“It's impossible to say a thing exactly the way it was, because what you say can never be exact, you always have to leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-impossible-to-say-a-thing-exactly-the-way-it-was-because-what/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“But if you happen to be a man, sometime in the future, and you’ve made it this far, please remember: you will never be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/but-if-you-happen-to-be-a-man-sometime-in-the-future-and-you-ve-made/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“When I get out of here, if I'm ever able to set this down, in any form, even in the form of one voice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/when-i-get-out-of-here-if-i-m-ever-able-to-set-this-down-in-any-form/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [But remember that forgiveness too is a power. To beg for it is a power, and to withhold or bestow it is a power,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/but-remember-that-forgiveness-too-is-a-power-to-beg-for-it-is-a-power-3/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“But remember that forgiveness too is a power. To beg for it is a power, and to withhold or bestow it is a power,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/but-remember-that-forgiveness-too-is-a-power-to-beg-for-it-is-a-power-2/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“But remember that forgiveness too is a power. To beg for it is a power, and to withhold or bestow it is a power,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/but-remember-that-forgiveness-too-is-a-power-to-beg-for-it-is-a-power/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [... Remember that forgiveness too is a power. To beg for it is a power, and to withold or bestow it is a power,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/remember-that-forgiveness-too-is-a-power-to-beg-for-it-is-a-power-and/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“It’s impossible to say a thing exactly the way it was, because what you say can never be exact, you always have to leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-impossible-to-say-a-thing-exactly-the-way-it-was-because-what-4/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“It’s impossible to say a thing exactly the way it was, because what you say can never be exact, you always have to leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-impossible-to-say-a-thing-exactly-the-way-it-was-because-what-2/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Don't wait for the feeling to forgive before you forgive. You may never feel it, so just forgive and let go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-mark/don-t-wait-for-the-feeling-to-forgive-before-you-forgive-you-may/) [Terry Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-mark/) > [“But if you happen to be a man, sometime in the future, and you've made it this far, please remember: you will never be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/but-if-you-happen-to-be-a-man-sometime-in-the-future-and-you-ve-made-2/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Forgiveness is a promise not a feeling. When you forgive other people, you are making a promise not to use their past sin against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brett/forgiveness-is-a-promise-not-a-feeling-when-you-forgive-other-people/) Brett > [If you clear that negative feeling and forgive yourself, then you can see the world from a different lens. You stop attracting that same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-bernstein/if-you-clear-that-negative-feeling-and-forgive-yourself-then-you-can/) [Gabrielle Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-bernstein/) > [“It is only a gesture,” he said, turning back to Shadow. “But gestures mean everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/it-is-only-a-gesture-he-said-turning-back-to-shadow-but-gestures-mean/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“It is only a gesture," he said, turning back to Shadow. "But gestures mean everything. The death of one dog symbolizes the death of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/it-is-only-a-gesture-he-said-turning-back-to-shadow-but-gestures-mean-2/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) ## 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 Forgiveness quotes > [“Lord I come before you, I repent all my sins; forgive me. I repent on behalf of my children forgive them Lord. Help them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euginia-herlihy/lord-i-come-before-you-i-repent-all-my-sins-forgive-me-i-repent-on/) [Euginia Herlihy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euginia-herlihy/) > [Forgiveness is not saying, What you did to me is okay. It is saying, Im not going to let what you did to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate/forgiveness-is-not-saying-what-you-did-to-me-is-okay-it-is-saying-im/) [Nate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate/) > [“So in practicing blanket forgiveness you first assume that in any current condition of pain or discomfort there is some anger involved, even if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serge-kahili-king/so-in-practicing-blanket-forgiveness-you-first-assume-that-in-any/) Serge Kahili King > [Do what is given to you, and do it well, and you will have done enough...live together in the forgiveness of your sins. Forgive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-what-is-given-to-you-and-do-it-well-and-you-will-have-done-enough/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The public, more often than not, will forgive mistakes, but it will not forgive trying to wiggle out of one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-grizzard/the-public-more-often-than-not-will-forgive-mistakes-but-it-will-not/) [Lewis Grizzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-grizzard/) > [A Real Boyfriend does the sweetest things randomly because he never wants her to feel unappreciated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enhance-dreams/a-real-boyfriend-does-the-sweetest-things-randomly-because-he-never/) Enhance Dreams > [“(Evil people) do not believe in forgiveness. Their transgressions are either punished or not punished. That is the only result that matters.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-mchugh/evil-people-do-not-believe-in-forgiveness-their-transgressions-are/) [Daniel McHugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-mchugh/) > [Friendship means understanding, not argument. it means forgiveness, not forgetting. it means the memories last, even if contact is lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sokhom/friendship-means-understanding-not-argument-it-means-forgiveness-not/) [Sokhom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sokhom/) > [Grace is the wonderful spirit that imbues every fiber of our being when we practice the fruits of the spirit: kindness, patience, understanding, forgiveness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-cayce/grace-is-the-wonderful-spirit-that-imbues-every-fiber-of-our-being/) [Edgar Cayce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-cayce/) > [One of the most basic principles for making and keeping peace within and between nations. . . is that in political, military, moral, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/one-of-the-most-basic-principles-for-making-and-keeping-peace-within/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [“Have an open mind and heart. Learn to journey in understanding and forgiveness. It's not always going to be easy but it will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-elle/have-an-open-mind-and-heart-learn-to-journey-in-understanding-and/) [Alexandra Elle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-elle/) > [Forgive us our trespasses," says Margarethe, "and get out of our way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-maguire/forgive-us-our-trespasses-says-margarethe-and-get-out-of-our-way/) [Gregory Maguire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-maguire/) > [“ving self and others is an every second of every day of every week, of every month, of every year gift that should not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjo-jendayi/ving-self-and-others-is-an-every-second-of-every-day-of-every-week-of/) [Sanjo Jendayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjo-jendayi/) > [Forgive yourself for not being the richest, the thinnest, the tallest, the one with the best hair. Forgive yourself for not being the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/forgive-yourself-for-not-being-the-richest-the-thinnest-the-tallest/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [If you can't forgive and forget, pick only one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-brault/if-you-can-t-forgive-and-forget-pick-only-one/) [Robert Brault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-brault/) [Browse all 8,311 Forgiveness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgiveness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It's impossible to say a thing exactly the way it was, because what you say can never be exact, you always have to leave something out, there are too many parts, sides, crosscurrents, nuances; too many gestures, which could mean this or that, too many shapes which can never be fully described, too many flavours, in the air or on the tongue, half-colours, too many. But if you happen to be a man, sometimes in the future, and you've made it this far, please remember: you will never be subjected to the temptation of feeling you must forgive, a man, as a woman. It's difficult to resist, believe me. But remember that forgiveness too is power. To beg for it is a power, and to withhold or bestow it is a power, perhaps the greatest. 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