--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't know where I belong, so I'm free…" description: "\"“I don't know where I belong, so I'm free. No one's got a hold on me.”\" — Philip Pullman" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c7b/philip-pullman-525_belong_i-don-t-know-where-i-belong-so-i-m-free_1101676.png" --- # I don't know where I belong, so I'm free. No one's got a… ![“I don't know where I belong, so I'm free. No one's got a hold on me.” quote by Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c7b/philip-pullman-525_belong_i-don-t-know-where-i-belong-so-i-m-free_1101676.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c7b/philip-pullman-525_belong_i-don-t-know-where-i-belong-so-i-m-free_1101676.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c7b/philip-pullman-525_belong_i-don-t-know-where-i-belong-so-i-m-free_1101676.png) > ““I don't know where I belong, so I'm free. No one's got a hold on me.”” [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Freedom comes from not fitting into predefined roles. **In simple terms:** Freedom through nonconformity. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty. Themes identity freedom individualism Mood reflective hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career choices - personal relationships - creative projects Key Concepts existentialism self‑determination Questions to Reflect On - What does belonging mean to you? - Can freedom coexist with responsibility? A Different Perspective Freedom can lead to isolation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belong/) [Belong Free](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belong-free-2890361/) [Free](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Got Hold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/got-hold-1322229/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Identity crisis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity-crisis/) [Know Belong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-belong-277360/) ## Related quotes > [I imagine therefore I belong and am free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-durrell/i-imagine-therefore-i-belong-and-am-free/) [Lawrence Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-durrell/) > [I think I know where you belong. I think I know its not with me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-i-know-where-you-belong-i-think-i-know-its-not-with-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I know I belong at 170. There is not a shadow of a doubt. This is my division and there's a clearcut path to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chiesa/i-know-i-belong-at-170-there-is-not-a-shadow-of-a-doubt-this-is-my/) [Michael Chiesa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chiesa/) > [I'm lost, I don't know where I'm headed, I don't know where I belong, I don't even know who I am anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-forgotten/i-m-lost-i-don-t-know-where-i-m-headed-i-don-t-know-where-i-belong-i/) [The Forgotten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-forgotten/) > [“Because if you don't have someone to run out of town once in a while, how are you going to know you yourself belong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bachman/because-if-you-don-t-have-someone-to-run-out-of-town-once-in-a-while/) [Richard Bachman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bachman/) > [“you must find yourself before you can know where you belong, yet to find yourself first you must know who you are. However, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-james-pritchard/you-must-find-yourself-before-you-can-know-where-you-belong-yet-to/) [Andrew James Pritchard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-james-pritchard/) > [Everything has its own place and function. That applies to people, although many don't seem to realize it, stuck as they are in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-hoff/everything-has-its-own-place-and-function-that-applies-to-people/) [Benjamin Hoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-hoff/) > [As far as the industries go, in the North, they think I'm a South Indian actress; down South, I've always been thought of as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamannaah/as-far-as-the-industries-go-in-the-north-they-think-i-m-a-south/) [Tamannaah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamannaah/) > [“Just be yourself. You don't have to put on an act." "To be myself, I have to put on an act," Ginny said bitterly.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/just-be-yourself-you-don-t-have-to-put-on-an-act-to-be-myself-i-have/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [Love had never got a hold on me. Until you stepped out of a dream. My life once a misery. Now your love has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/koop/love-had-never-got-a-hold-on-me-until-you-stepped-out-of-a-dream-my/) [Koop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/koop/) > [“If there's one area of me that the devil's got a hold of, it's my tongue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefne-miller/if-there-s-one-area-of-me-that-the-devil-s-got-a-hold-of-it-s-my/) [Stefne Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefne-miller/) > [We've got to hold on to what we've got, it doesn't make a difference if we make it or not, we've got each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bon-jovi/we-ve-got-to-hold-on-to-what-we-ve-got-it-doesn-t-make-a-difference-2/) [Bon Jovi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bon-jovi/) > [“She was the only thing I needed. If everything else went away tomorrow, the big house, all the cars, the money, I wouldn't care.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsty-moseley/she-was-the-only-thing-i-needed-if-everything-else-went-away-tomorrow/) [Kirsty Moseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsty-moseley/) > [You've still got me to hold you up up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-veronicas/you-ve-still-got-me-to-hold-you-up-up/) [The Veronicas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-veronicas/) > [I'll come back as soon as I can with as much as I can. In the meantime, you've got to hold!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-macarthur/i-ll-come-back-as-soon-as-i-can-with-as-much-as-i-can-in-the-meantime/) [Douglas MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-macarthur/) ## More by Philip Pullman > [The state of mind which I put myself when I tell a story is one in which superstition flourishes very easily. And I welcome…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/the-state-of-mind-which-i-put-myself-when-i-tell-a-story-is-one-in/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [Religion grants its adherents malign, intoxicating and morally corrosive sensations. Destroying intellectual freedom is always evil, but only religion makes doing evil feel quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/religion-grants-its-adherents-malign-intoxicating-and-morally/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [We don't need lists of rights and wrongs, tables of do's and don'ts: we need books, time, and silence. Thou shalt not is soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/we-don-t-need-lists-of-rights-and-wrongs-tables-of-do-s-and-don-ts-we/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [I have stolen ideas from every book I have ever read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/i-have-stolen-ideas-from-every-book-i-have-ever-read/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [All the stories of the Bible that I know came to me first from my grandfather's lips... He would see stories in everything. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/all-the-stories-of-the-bible-that-i-know-came-to-me-first-from-my/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [What I do say is that I can write verse, and that the writing of verse in strict form is the best possible training…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/what-i-do-say-is-that-i-can-write-verse-and-that-the-writing-of-verse/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [Writing is tyranny ... but reading is democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/writing-is-tyranny-but-reading-is-democracy/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [“Middlemarch is a novel that is diminished by being put on the screen. It can't help but be, because so much of what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/middlemarch-is-a-novel-that-is-diminished-by-being-put-on-the-screen/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [I have maintained a passionate interest in education, which leads me occasionally to make foolish and ill-considered remarks alleging that not everything is well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/i-have-maintained-a-passionate-interest-in-education-which-leads-me/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [And think what worrying does: has anyone ever added a single hour to the length of his life by worrying about it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/and-think-what-worrying-does-has-anyone-ever-added-a-single-hour-to/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [“The question authors get asked more than any other is "Where do you get your ideas from?" And we all find a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/the-question-authors-get-asked-more-than-any-other-is-where-do-you/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [“We are all subject to the fates. But we must all act as if we are not,” said the witch, “or die of despair.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/we-are-all-subject-to-the-fates-but-we-must-all-act-as-if-we-are-not/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [Lonely? I don't know. They tell me this is cold. I don't know what cold is, because I don't freeze. So I don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/lonely-i-don-t-know-they-tell-me-this-is-cold-i-don-t-know-what-cold/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [Just finished 'Secrecy' - truly enthralling both as a love story and as a tale of suspense - but much more than both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/just-finished-secrecy-truly-enthralling-both-as-a-love-story-and-as-a/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [“As Auden is believed to have said, no poem saved a single Jew from the gas chambers. Never mind. Write the poems anyway. Play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/as-auden-is-believed-to-have-said-no-poem-saved-a-single-jew-from-the/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) [Explore all 479 Philip Pullman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) ## More Belong quotes > [How come I end up where I started How come I end up where I belong... You used to be alright What happened?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-yorke/how-come-i-end-up-where-i-started-how-come-i-end-up-where-i-belong/) [Thom Yorke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-yorke/) > [Each of us is precious to God because each of us has their name written on the palms of God's hands. And God says…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/each-of-us-is-precious-to-god-because-each-of-us-has-their-name/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [Never belong to a crowd; Never belong to a nation; Never belong to a religion; Never belong to a race. Belong to the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/never-belong-to-a-crowd-never-belong-to-a-nation-never-belong-to-a/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [I hate this feeling. Like Im here. But, Im not. Like someone cares. But, they dont. Like I belong somewhere else, anywhere but here.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-hate-this-feeling-like-im-here-but-im-not-like-someone-cares-but/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [As you know, in America there's no rights for the artist, so whatever films I've made kind of belong to the studio, so if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-jewison/as-you-know-in-america-there-s-no-rights-for-the-artist-so-whatever/) [Norman Jewison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-jewison/) > [“When the time comes, everybody’s got to end up where they belong. Only me, I didn’t have a place to call my own. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-the-time-comes-everybody-s-got-to-end-up-where-they-belong-only/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [God has a purpose for us. If he didn't we wouldn't be alive in the first place. We have a calling. We are a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-janssen/god-has-a-purpose-for-us-if-he-didn-t-we-wouldn-t-be-alive-in-the/) [Kenny Janssen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-janssen/) > [I thought of how many places there are in the world that belong in this way to someone, who has it in his blood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesare-pavese/i-thought-of-how-many-places-there-are-in-the-world-that-belong-in/) [Cesare Pavese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesare-pavese/) > [I belong to a Bohri Muslim family, and for us, food is our biggest celebration. We are used to elaborate five- to six-course meals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nushrat-bharucha/i-belong-to-a-bohri-muslim-family-and-for-us-food-is-our-biggest/) [Nushrat Bharucha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nushrat-bharucha/) > [“You need to belong to yourself, and let others belong to themselves too. You need to be free and detached from things and your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-eriksson/you-need-to-belong-to-yourself-and-let-others-belong-to-themselves/) [Charlotte Eriksson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-eriksson/) > [I want all of my films to belong to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-payne/i-want-all-of-my-films-to-belong-to-me/) [Alexander Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-payne/) > [“Your beliefs, and your beliefs alone, belong to you. You are the only one who is with you for your entire life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-ruiz-jr/your-beliefs-and-your-beliefs-alone-belong-to-you-you-are-the-only/) [Miguel Ruiz Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-ruiz-jr/) > [Earth does not belong to us; we belong to earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chief-seattle/earth-does-not-belong-to-us-we-belong-to-earth/) [Chief Seattle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chief-seattle/) > [I think I know where you belong. I think I know its not with me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-i-know-where-you-belong-i-think-i-know-its-not-with-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There's a compelling reason why I belong in the Hall of Fame, but I understand the argument against me. My career didn't go like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-warner/there-s-a-compelling-reason-why-i-belong-in-the-hall-of-fame-but-i/) [Kurt Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-warner/) [Browse all 1,571 Belong quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belong/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I don't know where I belong, so I'm free. 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