--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Powerlessness and silence go together." description: "\"Powerlessness and silence go together.\" — Margaret Atwood" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_powerlessness_powerlessness-and-silence-go-together-26_2677426.jpg" --- # Powerlessness and silence go together. ![“Powerlessness and silence go together.” quote by Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_powerlessness_powerlessness-and-silence-go-together-26_2677426.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_powerlessness_powerlessness-and-silence-go-together-26_2677426.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_powerlessness_powerlessness-and-silence-go-together-26_2677426.jpg) > “Powerlessness and silence go together.” [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. Powerlessness is inherently linked to silence, reinforcing oppression. **In simple terms:** Silence equals powerlessness. Key Takeaway Speak out against oppression. Themes politics silence power Mood urgent somber Type activist reflective When to use this quote - activism - writing - education - law Key Concepts oppression voice agency Questions to Reflect On - When is silence protective? - How can silence be broken safely? A Different Perspective Silence can be strategic. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Powerlessness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerlessness/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) ## Related quotes > [“A voice is a human gift; it should be cherished and used. Powerlessness and silence go together.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/a-voice-is-a-human-gift-it-should-be-cherished-and-used-powerlessness/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [A voice is a human gift; it should be cherished and used, to utter fully human speech as possible. Powerlessness and silence go together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/a-voice-is-a-human-gift-it-should-be-cherished-and-used-to-utter/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“It must have been an endless breathing in: between the wish to know and the wish to praise there was no seam.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-must-have-been-an-endless-breathing-in-between-the-wish-to-know/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Girls learn to love and have sexual feelings in a position of low status, and the eroticization of powerlessness is a normal part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/girls-learn-to-love-and-have-sexual-feelings-in-a-position-of-low/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [“The threatening tone, harsh aggression, made her submissive (Across Time And Space)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mala-naidoo/the-threatening-tone-harsh-aggression-made-her-submissive-across-time/) [Mala Naidoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mala-naidoo/) > [“Anxiety = Uncertainty x Powerlessness”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-conley/anxiety-uncertainty-x-powerlessness/) [Chip Conley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-conley/) > [May all your expectations be frustrated, may all your plans be thwarted, may all your desires be withered into nothingness, that you may experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/may-all-your-expectations-be-frustrated-may-all-your-plans-be/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [“Power is fortified not just by what it destroys, but also by what it creates. Not just by what it takes, but also by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/power-is-fortified-not-just-by-what-it-destroys-but-also-by-what-it/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [Simply being with someone is difficult because it asks of us that we share in the other's vulnerability, enter with him or her into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/simply-being-with-someone-is-difficult-because-it-asks-of-us-that-we/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [“When external sources of power are sought in personal relationships to overcome inner feelings of powerlessness, power comes not from a place of strength…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rosen/when-external-sources-of-power-are-sought-in-personal-relationships/) [Mark Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rosen/) > [God not only loves me as I am, but also knows me as I am. Because of this I don't need to apply spiritual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/god-not-only-loves-me-as-i-am-but-also-knows-me-as-i-am-because-of/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [I could not stop something I knew was wrong and terrible. I had an awful sense of powerlessness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-sakharov/i-could-not-stop-something-i-knew-was-wrong-and-terrible-i-had-an/) [Andrei Sakharov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrei-sakharov/) > [It does not take a great supernatural heroine or magical hero to save the world.We all save it every day, and we all destroy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/it-does-not-take-a-great-supernatural-heroine-or-magical-hero-to-save/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [“And in taking on the subject of themselves-making themselves vulnerable to the unseen reader-they have exchanged powerlessness for for the power that comes with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-lamb/and-in-taking-on-the-subject-of-themselves-making-themselves/) [Wally Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-lamb/) > [“Here is a man who by all conventions should have been a denizen of the lower depths of society: ignored, illiterate, disfigured, limping, penniless,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-sugich/here-is-a-man-who-by-all-conventions-should-have-been-a-denizen-of/) Michael Sugich ## 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 Powerlessness quotes > [“Here is a man who by all conventions should have been a denizen of the lower depths of society: ignored, illiterate, disfigured, limping, penniless,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-sugich/here-is-a-man-who-by-all-conventions-should-have-been-a-denizen-of/) Michael Sugich > [“And in taking on the subject of themselves-making themselves vulnerable to the unseen reader-they have exchanged powerlessness for for the power that comes with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-lamb/and-in-taking-on-the-subject-of-themselves-making-themselves/) [Wally Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-lamb/) > [It does not take a great supernatural heroine or magical hero to save the world.We all save it every day, and we all destroy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/it-does-not-take-a-great-supernatural-heroine-or-magical-hero-to-save/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [I could not stop something I knew was wrong and terrible. I had an awful sense of powerlessness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-sakharov/i-could-not-stop-something-i-knew-was-wrong-and-terrible-i-had-an/) [Andrei Sakharov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrei-sakharov/) > [“A voice is a human gift; it should be cherished and used. Powerlessness and silence go together.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/a-voice-is-a-human-gift-it-should-be-cherished-and-used-powerlessness/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [God not only loves me as I am, but also knows me as I am. Because of this I don't need to apply spiritual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/god-not-only-loves-me-as-i-am-but-also-knows-me-as-i-am-because-of/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [“When external sources of power are sought in personal relationships to overcome inner feelings of powerlessness, power comes not from a place of strength…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rosen/when-external-sources-of-power-are-sought-in-personal-relationships/) [Mark Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rosen/) > [Simply being with someone is difficult because it asks of us that we share in the other's vulnerability, enter with him or her into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/simply-being-with-someone-is-difficult-because-it-asks-of-us-that-we/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [“Power is fortified not just by what it destroys, but also by what it creates. Not just by what it takes, but also by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/power-is-fortified-not-just-by-what-it-destroys-but-also-by-what-it/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [May all your expectations be frustrated, may all your plans be thwarted, may all your desires be withered into nothingness, that you may experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/may-all-your-expectations-be-frustrated-may-all-your-plans-be/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [“Anxiety = Uncertainty x Powerlessness”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-conley/anxiety-uncertainty-x-powerlessness/) [Chip Conley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-conley/) > [“The threatening tone, harsh aggression, made her submissive (Across Time And Space)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mala-naidoo/the-threatening-tone-harsh-aggression-made-her-submissive-across-time/) [Mala Naidoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mala-naidoo/) > [Girls learn to love and have sexual feelings in a position of low status, and the eroticization of powerlessness is a normal part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/girls-learn-to-love-and-have-sexual-feelings-in-a-position-of-low/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [“Man is constantly being assured today that he has more power than ever before in history, but his daily experience is one of powerlessness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/man-is-constantly-being-assured-today-that-he-has-more-power-than/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [Man is constantly being assured that he has more power than ever before in history, but his daily experience is one of powerlessness. ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/man-is-constantly-being-assured-that-he-has-more-power-than-ever/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) [Browse all 210 Powerlessness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerlessness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Powerlessness and silence go together.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Margaret Atwood" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/powerlessness-and-silence-go-together/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Powerlessness" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/powerlessness-and-silence-go-together/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_powerlessness_powerlessness-and-silence-go-together-26_2677426.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_powerlessness_powerlessness-and-silence-go-together-26_2677426.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-atwood-40_powerlessness_powerlessness-and-silence-go-together-26_2677426.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Powerlessness and silence go together.” — 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": "Powerlessness and silence go together.", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/powerlessness-and-silence-go-together/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/powerlessness-and-silence-go-together/#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 } } ] } ```