--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If there's a theme in my work, it's that…" description: "\"If there's a theme in my work, it's that I like to focus on smart people who are facing oppression and who are fighting back against it.\" — Molly Craba..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/molly-crabapple-17140_fighting_if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that_1861808.jpg" --- # If there's a theme in my work, it's that I like to focus… ![“If there's a theme in my work, it's that I like to focus on smart people who are facing oppression and who are fighting back against it.” quote by Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/molly-crabapple-17140_fighting_if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that_1861808.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/molly-crabapple-17140_fighting_if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that_1861808.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/molly-crabapple-17140_fighting_if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that_1861808.jpg) > “If there's a theme in my work, it's that I like to focus on smart people who are facing oppression and who are fighting back against it.” [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Her work highlights intelligent individuals confronting oppression and resisting it. **In simple terms:** She portrays smart people fighting oppression. Key Takeaway Support and amplify voices of resistance. Themes art social justice resistance Mood thoughtful activist Type creative political When to use this quote - gallery exhibitions - public murals - social media campaigns Key Concepts oppression empowerment identity Questions to Reflect On - How can art responsibly depict oppression? - What risks arise from focusing on “smart” subjects? A Different Perspective Complex issues may be oversimplified. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fighting back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting-back/) [Focus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focus/) [Oppression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oppression/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) [Smart people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart-people/) ## Related quotes > [“I understood intersectionality—the way that white supremacy props up patriarchy props up poverty props up environmental destruction props up white supremacy again—on a gut…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-tobia/i-understood-intersectionality-the-way-that-white-supremacy-props-up/) Jacob Tobia > [I feel like I would be a hypocrite not to use my platform to speak up for people who are facing oppression in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-reid/i-feel-like-i-would-be-a-hypocrite-not-to-use-my-platform-to-speak-up/) [Eric Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-reid/) > [If there's one theme in all my work, it's about authenticity and self-expression. It's the idea that some things are, in some real sense,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-williams/if-there-s-one-theme-in-all-my-work-it-s-about-authenticity-and-self/) [Bernard Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-williams/) > [If there's an enduring theme in my work, it's probably the effects of class on American life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-russo/if-there-s-an-enduring-theme-in-my-work-it-s-probably-the-effects-of/) [Richard Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-russo/) > [When you've written long enough, you see that there's a common theme in your work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/when-you-ve-written-long-enough-you-see-that-there-s-a-common-theme/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [Love's a recurring theme through my work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-chapman/love-s-a-recurring-theme-through-my-work/) [Tracy Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-chapman/) > [Pick a theme and work it to exhaustion... the subject must be something you truly love or truly hate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-lange/pick-a-theme-and-work-it-to-exhaustion-the-subject-must-be-something/) [Dorothea Lange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-lange/) > [There is a single theme behind all our work-we must reduce population levels,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ferguson/there-is-a-single-theme-behind-all-our-work-we-must-reduce-population/) [Thomas Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ferguson/) > [Republicans fighting back against changes Obama made means those changes are important, as with most of the major progress in American history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-chait/republicans-fighting-back-against-changes-obama-made-means-those/) [Jonathan Chait](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-chait/) > [We are being wiped off the face of this earth At an extremely alarming rate And even more alarming is the fact That we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupac-shakur/we-are-being-wiped-off-the-face-of-this-earth-at-an-extremely/) [Tupac Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupac-shakur/) > [“There is just too much cruelty, selfishness and corruption in the world not to want to crush the poisonous will of those who cause…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger-2/there-is-just-too-much-cruelty-selfishness-and-corruption-in-the/) [Carla H. Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger-2/) > [I think this has been a class war waged by the rich against the poor, and I think that they won. And I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/i-think-this-has-been-a-class-war-waged-by-the-rich-against-the-poor/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [ Otherwise, their only engagement I'm going to have with \[Donald Trump\] is fighting back against their attempts to undo Dodd-Frank, their attempts to destroy… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-martin/otherwise-their-only-engagement-i-m-going-to-have-with-donald-trump/) [Michel Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-martin/) > [Policy, for the most part, has been made by white people in America, not by people of color. And they have tended to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-waters/policy-for-the-most-part-has-been-made-by-white-people-in-america-not/) [Maxine Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-waters/) > [The first command given by God when Adam and Eve were pitched out of the Garden of Eden in the Book of Genesis is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-shelby-spong/the-first-command-given-by-god-when-adam-and-eve-were-pitched-out-of/) [John Shelby Spong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-shelby-spong/) ## More by Molly Crabapple > [“Girls like me used the Web in all the ways our parents feared. We read anarchist manifestos and exchanged lurid porn with grown men.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/girls-like-me-used-the-web-in-all-the-ways-our-parents-feared-we-read/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [I didn't want to be beholden to one person. So I did something where I had hundreds of people who backed the work. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/i-didn-t-want-to-be-beholden-to-one-person-so-i-did-something-where-i/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [I love comics, but I'd rather cut off my thumbs than do nothing but.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/i-love-comics-but-i-d-rather-cut-off-my-thumbs-than-do-nothing-but/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [When I started my own business, I funded it as a naked model. I still think that the sex industry can, for some men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/when-i-started-my-own-business-i-funded-it-as-a-naked-model-i-still/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [I feel like the traditional patron system meant that you would kiss the ass of one rich person and then hide all of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/i-feel-like-the-traditional-patron-system-meant-that-you-would-kiss/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [I had difficulty being friends with women who hadn't worked in either the sex or beauty industries. I felt like other women sometimes overvalued…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/i-had-difficulty-being-friends-with-women-who-hadn-t-worked-in-either/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [The thing is, Guantánamo is also a naval base, and they're under the delusion - especially the people on the naval side who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/the-thing-is-guant-namo-is-also-a-naval-base-and-they-re-under-the/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [I can't reasonably pretend to be a transparent and omniscient narrator who brings no personal perspective. That person doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/i-can-t-reasonably-pretend-to-be-a-transparent-and-omniscient/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [Rohini Mohan read. While she did, I sketched her. She writes with such beauty and violence, and it seemed like the best way to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/rohini-mohan-read-while-she-did-i-sketched-her-she-writes-with-such/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [Mainstream feminism might remember that the war on women always starts with the war on whores.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/mainstream-feminism-might-remember-that-the-war-on-women-always/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [Innocence is always the state of being untouched. Sometimes it's synonymous with virginity, so sometimes it's quite literal, but sometimes it's more of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/innocence-is-always-the-state-of-being-untouched-sometimes-it-s/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [I absorbed the lie that any smart woman would use birth control and be responsible for her body. Obviously that's not true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/i-absorbed-the-lie-that-any-smart-woman-would-use-birth-control-and/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [Working a model liberated me from ever having to hold a day job. I transitioned from doing that to working full-time as an artist.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/working-a-model-liberated-me-from-ever-having-to-hold-a-day-job-i/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [When you hold a graphic novel in your hands, you're holding artist blood made ink.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/when-you-hold-a-graphic-novel-in-your-hands-you-re-holding-artist/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) > [Maybe you shouldn't be working as a jailer in Guantánamo. Maybe that's why you feel spiritually unhealthy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/maybe-you-shouldn-t-be-working-as-a-jailer-in-guant-namo-maybe-that-s/) [Molly Crabapple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) [Explore all 38 Molly Crabapple quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/) ## More Fighting quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [“I bet she thought she was getting into a fight with a vanilla wafer on roller skates but little did she know she was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-portes/i-bet-she-thought-she-was-getting-into-a-fight-with-a-vanilla-wafer/) [Andrea Portes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-portes/) > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [We could form a government of national unity fighting corruption. The ordinary Afghan is sick and tired of it, because it's she or he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashraf-ghani/we-could-form-a-government-of-national-unity-fighting-corruption-the/) [Ashraf Ghani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashraf-ghani/) > [In the fight between biology and morality, biology has commonly won in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semir-zeki/in-the-fight-between-biology-and-morality-biology-has-commonly-won-in/) [Semir Zeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semir-zeki/) > [You have to fight gravity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherwin-wine/you-have-to-fight-gravity/) [Sherwin Wine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherwin-wine/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [The only regret I have in my career, is my managers wanted a big payday, and I wanted four or five more fights before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-cooney/the-only-regret-i-have-in-my-career-is-my-managers-wanted-a-big/) [Gerry Cooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-cooney/) > [Women rule the world. It's not really worth fighting because they know what they're doing. Ask Napoleon. Ask Adam. Ask Richard Burton or Richie…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-bon-jovi/women-rule-the-world-it-s-not-really-worth-fighting-because-they-know/) [Jon Bon Jovi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-bon-jovi/) > [Well, He had known what love was-a sharp pang, a fierce experience, in the midst of whose flames he was struggling! but, through that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/well-he-had-known-what-love-was-a-sharp-pang-a-fierce-experience-in/) [Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/) > [It is sort of interesting that in our society this days we are very quick to apply the term 'war' to places where thare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-schneier/it-is-sort-of-interesting-that-in-our-society-this-days-we-are-very/) [Bruce Schneier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-schneier/) > [Someone else who liked what I did might turn around and say, "She's reworking and rethinking everything. She could just be making blankets now,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracey-emin/someone-else-who-liked-what-i-did-might-turn-around-and-say-she-s/) [Tracey Emin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracey-emin/) > [Life is a battle of wits, and many people have to fight it unarmed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-esar/life-is-a-battle-of-wits-and-many-people-have-to-fight-it-unarmed/) [Evan Esar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-esar/) > [The devil has been defeated, stop trying to defeat him. What we have left is the fight of faith, and it's a good fight!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-oyakhilome/the-devil-has-been-defeated-stop-trying-to-defeat-him-what-we-have/) [Chris Oyakhilome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-oyakhilome/) > [There comes a time when you're losing a fight that it just doesn't make sense to keep on fighting. It's not that you're being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-paul-curtis/there-comes-a-time-when-you-re-losing-a-fight-that-it-just-doesn-t/) [Christopher Paul Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-paul-curtis/) Browse all 13,685 Fighting quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If there's a theme in my work, it's that I like to focus on smart people who are facing oppression and who are fighting back against it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Molly Crabapple" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that-i-like-to-focus-on-smart/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fighting" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that-i-like-to-focus-on-smart/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/molly-crabapple-17140_fighting_if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that_1861808.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/molly-crabapple-17140_fighting_if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that_1861808.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/molly-crabapple-17140_fighting_if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that_1861808.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If there's a theme in my work, it's that I like to focus on smart people who are facing oppression and who…” — Molly Crabapple", "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": "Molly Crabapple", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-crabapple/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If there's a theme in my...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that-i-like-to-focus-on-smart/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-crabapple/if-there-s-a-theme-in-my-work-it-s-that-i-like-to-focus-on-smart/#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 } } ] } ```