--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If sex is a war, I am a conscientious…" description: "\"If sex is a war, I am a conscientious objector: I will not play.\" — Marge Piercy" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/marge-piercy-2610_conscientious_if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-obj_2890971.png" --- # If sex is a war, I am a conscientious objector: I will not… ![“If sex is a war, I am a conscientious objector: I will not play.” quote by Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/marge-piercy-2610_conscientious_if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-obj_2890971.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/marge-piercy-2610_conscientious_if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-obj_2890971.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/marge-piercy-2610_conscientious_if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-obj_2890971.png) > “If sex is a war, I am a conscientious objector: I will not play.” [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker refuses to engage in sexual conflict, choosing non‑participation. **In simple terms:** I refuse to fight in sexual battles. Key Takeaway Choose peace over conflict. Themes nonviolence sexuality agency Mood thoughtful defiant Type philosophical political When to use this quote - relationships - activism - personal boundaries Key Concepts feminism personal autonomy Questions to Reflect On - What does it mean to be a conscientious objector in intimacy? - How can one assert agency without aggression? A Different Perspective Non‑participation can be seen as avoidance rather than empowerment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conscientious objectors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscientious-objectors/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Sex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sex/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [At the vital point of truth, we all become a conscientious objector.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-lyman-atwood-marshall/at-the-vital-point-of-truth-we-all-become-a-conscientious-objector/) [Samuel Lyman Atwood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-lyman-atwood-marshall/) > [... I have become a conscientious objector in the war between the sexes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-buchanan/i-have-become-a-conscientious-objector-in-the-war-between-the-sexes/) [Edna Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-buchanan/) > [I wouldn't choose conscientious objector and I wouldn't go to Canada. I did what Hap did and almost went to prison. I think the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-r-lansdale/i-wouldn-t-choose-conscientious-objector-and-i-wouldn-t-go-to-canada/) [Joe R. Lansdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-r-lansdale/) > [As a conscientious objector I did my community service in 1971 in a psychiatric hospital and a friend there, who also was a guitar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-rother/as-a-conscientious-objector-i-did-my-community-service-in-1971-in-a/) Michael Rother > [The conscientious objector is a revoultionary. On deciding to disobey the law he sacrifices his personal interests to the most important cause of working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/the-conscientious-objector-is-a-revoultionary-on-deciding-to-disobey/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [They asked if I knew what 'conscientious objector' meant. I told them that when the white man asked me to go off somewhere and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/they-asked-if-i-knew-what-conscientious-objector-meant-i-told-them/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Periodically, 'The New York Times' runs a business news story lamenting how few women still make it to the top in the Wall Street…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-brown/periodically-the-new-york-times-runs-a-business-news-story-lamenting/) [Tina Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-brown/) > [I was a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-wright/i-was-a-conscientious-objector-during-the-vietnam-war/) [Lawrence Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-wright/) > [That was luck: I should not then have been a conscientious objector; but I am quite sure that the abominations of war would have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-housman/that-was-luck-i-should-not-then-have-been-a-conscientious-objector/) [Laurence Housman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-housman/) > [“People despised conscientious objectors, even those of the enemy country, because patriotism was held to be an absolute virtue. It is hard to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/people-despised-conscientious-objectors-even-those-of-the-enemy/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Vaccination is a barbarous practice and one of the most fatal of all the delusions current in our time. Conscientious objectors to vaccination should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/vaccination-is-a-barbarous-practice-and-one-of-the-most-fatal-of-all/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [As a very young man I signed a declaration - 'I renounce war and will never support another'. That was in 1939 and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-saunders/as-a-very-young-man-i-signed-a-declaration-i-renounce-war-and-will/) Donald Saunders > [“In 1944-1945, Dr Ancel Keys, a specialist in nutrition and the inventor of the K-ration, led a carefully controlled yearlong study of starvation at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-stacey/in-1944-1945-dr-ancel-keys-a-specialist-in-nutrition-and-the-inventor/) [Michelle Stacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-stacey/) > [“For most of my life, I would have automatically said that I would opt for conscientious objector status, and in general, I still would.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rakoff/for-most-of-my-life-i-would-have-automatically-said-that-i-would-opt/) [David Rakoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rakoff/) > [“By far the easiest grounds for gaining conscientious objector status in wartime are religious. You can be a brilliant moral philosopher with a prize-winning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/by-far-the-easiest-grounds-for-gaining-conscientious-objector-status/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## More by Marge Piercy > [Shared laughter is erotic too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/shared-laughter-is-erotic-too/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [Work is its own cure. You have to like it better than being loved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/work-is-its-own-cure-you-have-to-like-it-better-than-being-loved/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [The anger of the weak never goes away, Professor, it just gets a little moldy. It molds like a beautiful blue cheese in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/the-anger-of-the-weak-never-goes-away-professor-it-just-gets-a-little/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [“The people I love the best jump into work head first without dallying in the shallows and swim off with sure strokes almost out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/the-people-i-love-the-best-jump-into-work-head-first-without-dallying/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [Every poet has a certain amount of "stuff." That's what you draw from for imagery. The more stuff you know well, not simply intellectually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/every-poet-has-a-certain-amount-of-stuff-that-s-what-you-draw-from/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [the body is simple as a turtle / and straight as a dog: / the body cannot lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/the-body-is-simple-as-a-turtle-and-straight-as-a-dog-the-body-cannot/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [We must shine with hope, stained glass windows that shape light into icons, glow like lanterns borne before a procession. Who can bear hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/we-must-shine-with-hope-stained-glass-windows-that-shape-light-into/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [Remember that every son had a mother whose beloved son he was, and every woman had a mother whose beloved son she wasn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/remember-that-every-son-had-a-mother-whose-beloved-son-he-was-and/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [We live in a media soup and are constantly being programmed or are fighting that programming. Thus any truthful account of a life, every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/we-live-in-a-media-soup-and-are-constantly-being-programmed-or-are/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [The moon is always female and so am I although often in the vale of razorblades I have wished I could put on and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/the-moon-is-always-female-and-so-am-i-although-often-in-the-vale-of/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [Sometimes when a character in a novel is difficult for me to enter, I sue something in myself or in my own life as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/sometimes-when-a-character-in-a-novel-is-difficult-for-me-to-enter-i/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [Doorways are sacred to women for we are the doorways of life and we must choose what comes in and what goes out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/doorways-are-sacred-to-women-for-we-are-the-doorways-of-life-and-we/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [“Writing sometimes feels frivolous and sometimes sacred, but memory is one of my strongest muses. I serve her with my words. So long as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/writing-sometimes-feels-frivolous-and-sometimes-sacred-but-memory-is/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [The work of the world is common as mud. Botched, it smears the hands, crumbles to dust. But the thing worth doing well done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/the-work-of-the-world-is-common-as-mud-botched-it-smears-the-hands/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [We're herded into schools and terrified into behaving. Taught how we're supposed to pretend to be, taught to parrot all kinds of nonsense at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/we-re-herded-into-schools-and-terrified-into-behaving-taught-how-we/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) [Explore all 158 Marge Piercy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) ## More Conscientious quotes > [“The smell of the sweat is not sweet, but the fruit of the sweat is very sweet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/the-smell-of-the-sweat-is-not-sweet-but-the-fruit-of-the-sweat-is/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [The duty of the grand jury is to separate fact from fiction, after a full and impartial examination of all the evidence involved, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-p-mcculloch/the-duty-of-the-grand-jury-is-to-separate-fact-from-fiction-after-a/) [Robert P. McCulloch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-p-mcculloch/) > [“I'm not uptight. I'm conscientious. There's a difference.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lenore-appelhans/i-m-not-uptight-i-m-conscientious-there-s-a-difference/) [Lenore Appelhans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lenore-appelhans/) > [“If books can transform, those have to be conscientious.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-books-can-transform-those-have-to-be-conscientious/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Conscientious men are, almost everywhere, less encouraged than tolerated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philibert-joseph-roux/conscientious-men-are-almost-everywhere-less-encouraged-than-tolerated/) [Philibert Joseph Roux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philibert-joseph-roux/) > [Very few things happen at the right time, and the rest do not happen at all. The conscientious historian will correct these defects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herodotus/very-few-things-happen-at-the-right-time-and-the-rest-do-not-happen/) [Herodotus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herodotus/) > [I think I'm very conscientious of how precious life is and how quickly life can be taken away from you, especially at times when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-garcia/i-think-i-m-very-conscientious-of-how-precious-life-is-and-how/) [Jeff Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-garcia/) > [“Time is a conscientious Debunker.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sir-kristian-goldmund-aumann/time-is-a-conscientious-debunker/) sir kristian goldmund aumann > [Conscientious people are self-disciplined, hard workers who spend the least amount of time on Facebook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-morin/conscientious-people-are-self-disciplined-hard-workers-who-spend-the/) [Amy Morin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-morin/) > [In Japan, I live in a little neighborhood in the middle of nowhere. I don't have a bicycle or a car or anything, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/in-japan-i-live-in-a-little-neighborhood-in-the-middle-of-nowhere-i/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [“I am the person beyond the paradigm, I am but a reflection of the best of humankind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/i-am-the-person-beyond-the-paradigm-i-am-but-a-reflection-of-the-best/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [I've never had a teenage rebellion; I'm not that type of person. I always work out my problems in a conscientious way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsten-dunst/i-ve-never-had-a-teenage-rebellion-i-m-not-that-type-of-person-i/) [Kirsten Dunst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsten-dunst/) > [I feel strongly about showing up and being prepared and not taking the opportunity for granted and being conscientious about my fellow co-workers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-schneider/i-feel-strongly-about-showing-up-and-being-prepared-and-not-taking/) [Paul Schneider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-schneider/) > [I believe all conscientious actors feel the same way - that there is too much hurry-scurry in TV to permit a sufficient amount of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-heflin/i-believe-all-conscientious-actors-feel-the-same-way-that-there-is/) [Van Heflin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-heflin/) > [Conscientious objection is an intrinsic part of being a soldier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naftali-bennett/conscientious-objection-is-an-intrinsic-part-of-being-a-soldier/) [Naftali Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naftali-bennett/) Browse all 70 Conscientious quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If sex is a war, I am a conscientious objector: I will not play.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Marge Piercy" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-objector-i-will-not-play/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conscientious" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-objector-i-will-not-play/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/marge-piercy-2610_conscientious_if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-obj_2890971.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/marge-piercy-2610_conscientious_if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-obj_2890971.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/marge-piercy-2610_conscientious_if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-obj_2890971.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If sex is a war, I am a conscientious objector: I will not play.” — Marge Piercy", "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": "Marge Piercy", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If sex is a war, I...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-objector-i-will-not-play/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/if-sex-is-a-war-i-am-a-conscientious-objector-i-will-not-play/#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 } } ] } ```