--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sometimes she feels like a third gender…" description: "\"“Sometimes she feels like a third gender- preferring primary colors to pastels, the radio to singing. At least she's all mermaid: never gets tired of s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fc/matthea-harvey-10757_primary-colors_sometimes-she-feels-like-a-third-gender_925264.jpg" --- # Sometimes she feels like a third gender- preferring… ![“Sometimes she feels like a third gender- preferring primary colors to pastels, the radio to singing. At least she's all mermaid: never gets tired of swimming, hates the thought of socks. -from "The Straight Forward Mermaid” quote by Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fc/matthea-harvey-10757_primary-colors_sometimes-she-feels-like-a-third-gender_925264.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fc/matthea-harvey-10757_primary-colors_sometimes-she-feels-like-a-third-gender_925264.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fc/matthea-harvey-10757_primary-colors_sometimes-she-feels-like-a-third-gender_925264.jpg) > ““Sometimes she feels like a third gender- preferring primary colors to pastels, the radio to singing. At least she's all mermaid: never gets tired of swimming, hates the thought of socks. -from "The Straight Forward Mermaid”” [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) ## 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 describes a nonconforming identity that blends gender fluidity, sensory preferences, and a love for the sea, emphasizing freedom from societal expectations. **In simple terms:** A unique, fluid identity loves the sea and rejects norms. Key Takeaway Embrace your authentic self, even if it defies categories. Themes identity nonconformity freedom creativity Mood playful reflective Type poetic expressive When to use this quote - personal expression - artistic creation - social commentary Key Concepts gender fluidity sensory preference mythical metaphor Questions to Reflect On - How do you express parts of yourself that don’t fit traditional categories? - What does the sea symbolize for you? A Different Perspective May be misread as whimsical rather than serious critique of gender norms. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Forward Mermaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forward-mermaid-1463318/) [Gender Preferring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gender-preferring-1463322/) [Like Gender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-gender-266837/) [Mermaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mermaid/) [Mermaid Gets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mermaid-gets-1463321/) [Preferring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preferring-1463324/) [Primary colors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/primary-colors/) ## Related quotes > [There is no shame in preferring happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/there-is-no-shame-in-preferring-happiness/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“Could Stephen have met men on equal terms, she would always have chosen them as her companions; she preferred them because of their blunt,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/radclyffe-hall/could-stephen-have-met-men-on-equal-terms-she-would-always-have/) [Radclyffe Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/radclyffe-hall/) > [It's not about preferring someone, it's about whose ideas are more close to you and whose ideas are more welcomed in Russian public opinion.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dmitry-peskov/it-s-not-about-preferring-someone-it-s-about-whose-ideas-are-more/) [Dmitry Peskov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dmitry-peskov/) > [“I have spent most of my life preferring books to people,” Irene said sharply. “Just because I like a few specific people doesn’t change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/genevieve-cogman/i-have-spent-most-of-my-life-preferring-books-to-people-irene-said/) [Genevieve Cogman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/genevieve-cogman/) > [I've often found myself preferring second-rate people to supposedly superior people, simply and solely because of their uncontrollable tendency to bang themselves against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/i-ve-often-found-myself-preferring-second-rate-people-to-supposedly/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [A phrase like 'gender dysphoria,' I hear it, and it's like a granite rock. There's no way to enter any emotion into that phrase,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/torrey-peters/a-phrase-like-gender-dysphoria-i-hear-it-and-it-s-like-a-granite-rock/) [Torrey Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/torrey-peters/) > [I'd say my relation to being a woman is, I mean being a woman is whatever you want because the concept of gender is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amandla-stenberg/i-d-say-my-relation-to-being-a-woman-is-i-mean-being-a-woman-is/) [Amandla Stenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amandla-stenberg/) > [I feel like so much more than my gender and so much more than my relationship to my body and my relationship to men.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-feel-like-so-much-more-than-my-gender-and-so-much-more-than-my/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [This business manipulates and screws up women's and men's views of what we're all supposed to look like My gender-bender style is apparently a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aubrey-plaza/this-business-manipulates-and-screws-up-women-s-and-men-s-views-of/) [Aubrey Plaza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aubrey-plaza/) > [I feel like gender lines are changing. A couple of years ago, it wasn't nearly as OK for guys to like girly-sounding music. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grimes/i-feel-like-gender-lines-are-changing-a-couple-of-years-ago-it-wasn-t/) [Grimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grimes/) > [Like my gender, sometimes things don't come out right the first time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-hopkins/like-my-gender-sometimes-things-don-t-come-out-right-the-first-time/) [Ben Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-hopkins/) > [I would like there to be gender equity. I would like the Broadway season to reflect sort of the demographic of the country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-nottage/i-would-like-there-to-be-gender-equity-i-would-like-the-broadway/) [Lynn Nottage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-nottage/) > [“Sometimes, when something has a name it changes things. Especially when the name is big, long, and official-sounding, like "gender-nonconforming".”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-duron/sometimes-when-something-has-a-name-it-changes-things-especially-when/) [Lori Duron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-duron/) > [Sometimes their oppression of emotion and the weird way it comes out is more interesting than painting it in bold primary colors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-norton/sometimes-their-oppression-of-emotion-and-the-weird-way-it-comes-out/) [Edward Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-norton/) > [“No more peeping through keyholes! No more mas turbating in the dark! No more public confessions! Unscrew the doors from their jambs! I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/no-more-peeping-through-keyholes-no-more-mas-turbating-in-the-dark-no/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) ## More by Matthea Harvey > [I don't think that you can say by any stretch of the imagination that all Wisconsin or Brooklyn-based poets write in a particular way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/i-don-t-think-that-you-can-say-by-any-stretch-of-the-imagination-that/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [Not everyone is going to like every carnival ride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/not-everyone-is-going-to-like-every-carnival-ride/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [I think poetry involves heightened noticing or imagining as well as creating a certain made shape. On the other hand, that shape can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/i-think-poetry-involves-heightened-noticing-or-imagining-as-well-as/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [When I get interested in a new topic I teach a class on it. There's a graduate seminar I teach in which the students…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/when-i-get-interested-in-a-new-topic-i-teach-a-class-on-it-there-s-a/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > ["Confessional poetry" is another one of those labels. It goes in and out of fashion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/confessional-poetry-is-another-one-of-those-labels-it-goes-in-and-out/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [I don't think all poems need to be written in conversational language - those are often great poems but there should also be poems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/i-don-t-think-all-poems-need-to-be-written-in-conversational-language/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [I let my narrative embroidering impulses take over in prose poems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/i-let-my-narrative-embroidering-impulses-take-over-in-prose-poems/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [When I have my students do erasures, I'm always amazed by the way their voice comes through, whether they're doing an erasure of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/when-i-have-my-students-do-erasures-i-m-always-amazed-by-the-way/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [Whether you're talking about political borders or aesthetic divisions (and clearly, the political ones have much more tragic consequences), it seems like once they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/whether-you-re-talking-about-political-borders-or-aesthetic-divisions/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [Usually form seems to find me in the process of writing a poem, though I have nothing against starting out with the form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/usually-form-seems-to-find-me-in-the-process-of-writing-a-poem-though/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [I'm pretty lenient with myself about time - if I feel like taking photographs of small things inside ice cubes or making animal collages,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/i-m-pretty-lenient-with-myself-about-time-if-i-feel-like-taking/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [Recently, while I was in England, I saw a documentary on the BBC about the border between India and Pakistan at Wagah. When the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/recently-while-i-was-in-england-i-saw-a-documentary-on-the-bbc-about/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [A lot of people are writing poems and don't realize it. They have this limited idea of how the poem should sound or what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/a-lot-of-people-are-writing-poems-and-don-t-realize-it-they-have-this/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [I am pretty interested in hybrid forms. I love graphic novels and I think there should be more graphic poems in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/i-am-pretty-interested-in-hybrid-forms-i-love-graphic-novels-and-i/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [I suppose it's useful in designating writing that tends to come from personal experience, work that delineates an "I," but it's a loose lasso,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/i-suppose-it-s-useful-in-designating-writing-that-tends-to-come-from/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) [Explore all 63 Matthea Harvey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) ## More Mermaid quotes > [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [Old ladies in wheelchairs with blankets over their legs, I don't think so...retired mermaids.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-jones/old-ladies-in-wheelchairs-with-blankets-over-their-legs-i-don-t-think/) [Milton Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-jones/) > [Magic Sandra’s seen a leprechaun, Eddie touched a troll, Laurie danced with witches once, Charlie found some goblins gold. Donald heard a mermaid sing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shel-silverstein/magic-sandra-s-seen-a-leprechaun-eddie-touched-a-troll-laurie-danced/) [Shel Silverstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shel-silverstein/) > [“He looked steadily in my eyes, and held my hand affectionally. “Narissa, let me take you away to a world that you have never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keira-d-skye/he-looked-steadily-in-my-eyes-and-held-my-hand-affectionally-narissa/) [Keira D. Skye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keira-d-skye/) > [“Human?' The girl cocked her head the other way. I caught a glimpse of pink gills under her chin. 'My sisters told me stories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-kagawa/human-the-girl-cocked-her-head-the-other-way-i-caught-a-glimpse-of/) [Julie Kagawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-kagawa/) > [I would wanna be a mermaid, but I think I'm a little bit more of a unicorn, because I'm like a little bit more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blake-lively/i-would-wanna-be-a-mermaid-but-i-think-i-m-a-little-bit-more-of-a/) [Blake Lively](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blake-lively/) > [I'm so sick of mermaid dresses, trains, borrowed bling-bling, and a pose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-leon-talley/i-m-so-sick-of-mermaid-dresses-trains-borrowed-bling-bling-and-a-pose/) [Andre Leon Talley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-leon-talley/) > [The other day when we were reading The Little Mermaid again, at the part where it says that only human souls can go up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ekaterina-gordeeva/the-other-day-when-we-were-reading-the-little-mermaid-again-at-the/) [Ekaterina Gordeeva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ekaterina-gordeeva/) > [“You'll do fine." "What, you're psychic now?" "Didn't you know?" he asks seriously. "Must be an aftereffect of the bond.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tera-lynn-childs/you-ll-do-fine-what-you-re-psychic-now-didn-t-you-know-he-asks/) [Tera Lynn Childs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tera-lynn-childs/) > [“She swore vengeance on all men with dark hearts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-papademetriou/she-swore-vengeance-on-all-men-with-dark-hearts/) [Lisa Papademetriou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-papademetriou/) > [“Fable of the Mermaid and the Drunks" All those men were there inside, when she came in totally naked. They had been drinking: they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-neruda/fable-of-the-mermaid-and-the-drunks-all-those-men-were-there-inside/) [Pablo Neruda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-neruda/) > [Managing a league club is like making love to a mermaid... you should always be aiming for a top half finish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-holloway/managing-a-league-club-is-like-making-love-to-a-mermaid-you-should/) [Ian Holloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-holloway/) > [“And then I cried a flood of tears as if I really were a mermaid who had absorbed too much sea into herself. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francesca-lia-block/and-then-i-cried-a-flood-of-tears-as-if-i-really-were-a-mermaid-who/) [Francesca Lia Block](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francesca-lia-block/) > [Oh love, rose made wet by mermaids and foams, fire that dances and climbs up the invisible stairs and awakens the blood in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-neruda/oh-love-rose-made-wet-by-mermaids-and-foams-fire-that-dances-and/) [Pablo Neruda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-neruda/) > [I was in Love with a Mermaid and She knew it: But yet she abandoned me at the Seashore with storms and whirlwind threatening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ogunsakin-ayobami-ayorinde/i-was-in-love-with-a-mermaid-and-she-knew-it-but-yet-she-abandoned-me/) [Ogunsakin Ayobami Ayorinde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ogunsakin-ayobami-ayorinde/) [Browse all 278 Mermaid quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mermaid/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Sometimes she feels like a third gender- preferring primary colors to pastels, the radio to singing. 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