--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There can be bonds of real affection, she…" description: "\"“There can be bonds of real affection, she said, blinking at us ingratiatingly, under such conditions. Women united for a common end! Helping one anoth..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/margaret-atwood-40_affection_there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she_2863651.jpg" --- # There can be bonds of real affection, she said, blinking… ![“There can be bonds of real affection, she said, blinking at us ingratiatingly, under such conditions. Women united for a common end! Helping one another in their daily chores as they walk the path of life together, each performing her appointed task. Why expect one woman to carry out all the…” quote by Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/margaret-atwood-40_affection_there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she_2863651.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/margaret-atwood-40_affection_there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she_2863651.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/margaret-atwood-40_affection_there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she_2863651.jpg) > ““There can be bonds of real affection, she said, blinking at us ingratiatingly, under such conditions. Women united for a common end! Helping one another in their daily chores as they walk the path of life together, each performing her appointed task. Why expect one woman to carry out all the functions necessary to the serene running of a household? It isn’t reasonable or humane. Your daughters will have greater freedom. We are working towards the goal of a little garden for each one,”” [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. Women should share household responsibilities rather than one bearing all duties, promoting freedom and equality. **In simple terms:** Share chores for freedom. Key Takeaway Distribute tasks equally. Themes equality feminism cooperation Mood reflective hopeful Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - family life - communal living - parenting - cohabitation Key Concepts shared labor gender roles empowerment Questions to Reflect On - How can shared chores improve family dynamics? - What obstacles prevent equitable task division? A Different Perspective Assumes all households can adopt shared tasks easily. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Affection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affection/) [Daughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/daughter/) [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Helping One Another](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helping-one-another/) [Life together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-together/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Path of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/path-of-life/) ## Related quotes > [Courage, then, for the end draws near! A few more years of persistent, faithful work and the women of the United States will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-livermore/courage-then-for-the-end-draws-near-a-few-more-years-of-persistent/) Mary Livermore > [“You realize that trying to keep your distance from me will not lessen my affection for you," he said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/you-realize-that-trying-to-keep-your-distance-from-me-will-not-lessen-2/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Women united can create movements. We can empower entire generations. We can build peace one action at a time. Together we rise. The time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-leigh-mercree/women-united-can-create-movements-we-can-empower-entire-generations/) [Amy Leigh Mercree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-leigh-mercree/) > [My advice to other female directors would be to pay no heed to naysayers. Women can be united in the fact that there has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharmeen-obaid-chinoy/my-advice-to-other-female-directors-would-be-to-pay-no-heed-to/) [Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharmeen-obaid-chinoy/) > [“And so ended his affection," said Elizabeth impatiently. "There has been many a one, I fancy, overcome in the same way. I wonder who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/and-so-ended-his-affection-said-elizabeth-impatiently-there-has-been-2/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [We need to do a better job of mentorships and role models to bring other young women along so that there's more women in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-cortez-masto/we-need-to-do-a-better-job-of-mentorships-and-role-models-to-bring/) [Catherine Cortez-Masto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-cortez-masto/) > [“And so ended his affection," said Elizabeth impatiently. "There has been many a one, I fancy, overcome in the same way. I wonder who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/and-so-ended-his-affection-said-elizabeth-impatiently-there-has-been/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Odd how one man could evoke so many emotions within her. Lust? Oh yeah, much of the time. The urge to smack him upside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-shalvis/odd-how-one-man-could-evoke-so-many-emotions-within-her-lust-oh-yeah/) [Jill Shalvis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-shalvis/) > [“It all turns on affection now," said Margaret. "Affection. Don't you see?... And affection, when reciprocated, gives rights. Put that down in your notebook,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster-2/it-all-turns-on-affection-now-said-margaret-affection-don-t-you-see/) [E.M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster-2/) > [The power of women united, I am again reminded, is an invincible thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-strohmeyer/the-power-of-women-united-i-am-again-reminded-is-an-invincible-thing/) [Sarah Strohmeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-strohmeyer/) > [Women are not so well united as to form an Insurrection. They are for the most part wise enough to love their Chains, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-astell/women-are-not-so-well-united-as-to-form-an-insurrection-they-are-for/) [Mary Astell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-astell/) > [“I nudged my head into his shoulder. "Thanks for offering to come over." "you realize that trying to keep your distance from me will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-nudged-my-head-into-his-shoulder-thanks-for-offering-to-come-over/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Real affection comes from the face. Those political leaders, when they meet, they are always hugging, but not very genuine. Deep, sincerity comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/real-affection-comes-from-the-face-those-political-leaders-when-they/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [“Real affection does not see anything in terms of 'rights', nor does it even care if it is reciprocated. It merely waits by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-swift-hook/real-affection-does-not-see-anything-in-terms-of-rights-nor-does-it/) E.M. Swift-Hook > [Missing someone when you are alone is not affection... but thinking of someone even when you are busy is called real affection...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/missing-someone-when-you-are-alone-is-not-affection-but-thinking-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## 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 Affection quotes > [My team and I have reunited two elements that coexist with diffiulty: respect and affection, because when they love you they don't respect you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shakira/my-team-and-i-have-reunited-two-elements-that-coexist-with-diffiulty/) [Shakira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shakira/) > [Needs cause motivation. Deep-rooted desires for esteem, affection, belonging, achievement, self-actualization, power, and control motivate us to push for what we want and need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorii-myers/needs-cause-motivation-deep-rooted-desires-for-esteem-affection/) [Lorii Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorii-myers/) > [“It is to build a house with affection, even as if your beloved were to dwell in that house.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kahlil-gibran/it-is-to-build-a-house-with-affection-even-as-if-your-beloved-were-to/) [Kahlil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kahlil-gibran/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [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/) > [There are a number of qualities which are important for mental peace, but from the little experience I have, I believe that one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/there-are-a-number-of-qualities-which-are-important-for-mental-peace/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [A lost love. Deny it who will, ridicule it, treat it as mere imagination and sentiment, the thing is and will be; and women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/a-lost-love-deny-it-who-will-ridicule-it-treat-it-as-mere-imagination/) [Dinah Maria Murlock Craik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/) > [Affection! Affection is false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-i/affection-affection-is-false/) [Elizabeth I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-i/) > [We are a spectacular, splendid manifestation of life. We have language. . . . We have affection. We have genes for usefulness, and usefulness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/we-are-a-spectacular-splendid-manifestation-of-life-we-have-language/) [Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/) > [Listen, I have a great affection and respect for Joe Biden. I think he's been a great vice president. He's taken on a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-axelrod/listen-i-have-a-great-affection-and-respect-for-joe-biden-i-think-he/) [David Axelrod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-axelrod/) > [The still affection of the heart Became an outward breathing type, That into stillness past again, And left a want unknown before; Although the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lord-tennyson/the-still-affection-of-the-heart-became-an-outward-breathing-type/) [Alfred Lord Tennyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lord-tennyson/) > [I am persuaded that there is no affection of the human heart more exquisitely pure, than that which is felt by a grateful son…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-more/i-am-persuaded-that-there-is-no-affection-of-the-human-heart-more/) [Hannah More](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-more/) > [If you live in a material universe where acquiring things is very important to you, then family is an absolute deterrent to maintaining that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/if-you-live-in-a-material-universe-where-acquiring-things-is-very/) [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) > [Our sweetest experiences of affection are meant to be suggestions of that realm which is the home of the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/our-sweetest-experiences-of-affection-are-meant-to-be-suggestions-of/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [“Georgia O’Keeffe moved to rural New Mexico, from which she would sign her letters to the people she loved, “from the faraway nearby.” It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/georgia-o-keeffe-moved-to-rural-new-mexico-from-which-she-would-sign/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) [Browse all 2,465 Affection quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affection/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There can be bonds of real affection, she said, blinking at us ingratiatingly, under such conditions. Women united for a common end! Helping one another in their daily chores as they walk the path of life together, each performing her appointed task. Why expect one woman to carry out all the functions necessary to the serene running of a household? It isn’t reasonable or humane. Your daughters will have greater freedom. We are working towards the goal of a little garden for each one,”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Margaret Atwood" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she-said-blinking-at-us/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Affection" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she-said-blinking-at-us/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/margaret-atwood-40_affection_there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she_2863651.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/margaret-atwood-40_affection_there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she_2863651.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/margaret-atwood-40_affection_there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she_2863651.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There can be bonds of real affection, she said, blinking at us ingratiatingly, under such conditions. Women…” — 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": "“There can be bonds of real...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she-said-blinking-at-us/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-can-be-bonds-of-real-affection-she-said-blinking-at-us/#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 } } ] } ```