--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whatever we might wish to believe about…" description: "\"“Whatever we might wish to believe about ourselves, we are only the result of how others have treated us.”\" — Rachel Cusk" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/rachel-cusk-3482_believe_whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about_2750077.png" --- # Whatever we might wish to believe about ourselves, we are… ![“Whatever we might wish to believe about ourselves, we are only the result of how others have treated us.” quote by Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/rachel-cusk-3482_believe_whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about_2750077.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/rachel-cusk-3482_believe_whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about_2750077.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/rachel-cusk-3482_believe_whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about_2750077.png) > ““Whatever we might wish to believe about ourselves, we are only the result of how others have treated us.”” [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She suggests personal identity is shaped by how others treat us. **In simple terms:** Our identity reflects others’ treatment of us. Key Takeaway Recognize external influences on self. Themes psychology identity social dynamics Mood thoughtful introspective Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - therapeutic settings - educational workshops - personal reflection Key Concepts self‑esteem interpersonal relationships social conditioning Questions to Reflect On - How much control do we have over self‑identity? - What can we do to change harmful perceptions? A Different Perspective Individuals can also shape their own identity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Believe Result](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe-result-2327297/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Result Treated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/result-treated-3092169/) [Treated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/treated/) [Wish Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish-believe-1075941/) ## Related quotes > [I believe that we are a result of our past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-balvin/i-believe-that-we-are-a-result-of-our-past/) [J Balvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-balvin/) > [You've got to believe you can get a result from the game.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-speed/you-ve-got-to-believe-you-can-get-a-result-from-the-game/) [Gary Speed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-speed/) > [Most physicists like myself won't believe the result until every possible caveat has been investigated and/or the result is confirmed elsewhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-randall/most-physicists-like-myself-won-t-believe-the-result-until-every/) [Lisa Randall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-randall/) > [We are never further from what we wish than when we believe that we have what we wished for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/we-are-never-further-from-what-we-wish-than-when-we-believe-that-we/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [“If I Believe in the Wish, I must believe I can loose it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/destin-bays/if-i-believe-in-the-wish-i-must-believe-i-can-loose-it/) [Destin Bays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/destin-bays/) > [Wish it, believe it, and it will be so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-smith/wish-it-believe-it-and-it-will-be-so/) [Deborah Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-smith/) > [If you wish others to believe in you, you must first convince them that you believe in them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-mackay/if-you-wish-others-to-believe-in-you-you-must-first-convince-them/) [Harvey Mackay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-mackay/) > [“Life is whatever you wish it to be or believe what it is or can become.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/life-is-whatever-you-wish-it-to-be-or-believe-what-it-is-or-can-become/) [Steven Redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/) > [“If I believe in the wish, I must believe I can lose it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/destin-bays/if-i-believe-in-the-wish-i-must-believe-i-can-lose-it/) [Destin Bays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/destin-bays/) > [When I was a kid I do believe in falling star,wen I see them I close my eyes and making a wish..until now I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nix/when-i-was-a-kid-i-do-believe-in-falling-star-wen-i-see-them-i-close/) [Nix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nix/) > [“I wish I could believe in the otherworld I wish I could believe in a place Of reunions outside of memory”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/i-wish-i-could-believe-in-the-otherworld-i-wish-i-could-believe-in-a/) [Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/) > [I wish I could believe you. I wish I could forgive you. But if I did, that would just say that you have another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-hope/i-wish-i-could-believe-you-i-wish-i-could-forgive-you-but-if-i-did/) [Amber Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-hope/) > [Remember all you wish for, believe it will be true](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/everlife/remember-all-you-wish-for-believe-it-will-be-true/) [Everlife](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/everlife/) > [Dream Wish Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clinton-amante/dream-wish-believe/) [Clinton Amante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clinton-amante/) > [“When you truly believe in the desires of your heart, they show themselves to you, creating a world you wish to see. When you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-disano-davenport/when-you-truly-believe-in-the-desires-of-your-heart-they-show/) [Chris DiSano Davenport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-disano-davenport/) ## More by Rachel Cusk > [A creative writing workshop will contain students whose ambitions and abilities, whose conceptions of literature itself, are so diverse that what they have in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/a-creative-writing-workshop-will-contain-students-whose-ambitions-and/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [“If a man had a nasty side to his character, she wanted to get to it immediately and confront it. She didn’t want it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/if-a-man-had-a-nasty-side-to-his-character-she-wanted-to-get-to-it/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [If I know somebody is coming 'round, it is incredibly difficult for me to work because I'm waiting for this interruption - even the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/if-i-know-somebody-is-coming-round-it-is-incredibly-difficult-for-me/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [I felt that I could swim for miles, out into the ocean: a desire for freedom, an impulse to move, tugged at me as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/i-felt-that-i-could-swim-for-miles-out-into-the-ocean-a-desire-for/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [The creativity of childhood was often surrendered amid feelings of unworthiness. So the idea that others are demanding to be given it back -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/the-creativity-of-childhood-was-often-surrendered-amid-feelings-of/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [A neighbor is something that belongs to the stable world of home life, the thing that lives next door to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/a-neighbor-is-something-that-belongs-to-the-stable-world-of-home-life/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [Help is dangerous because it exists outside the human economy: the only payment for help is gratitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/help-is-dangerous-because-it-exists-outside-the-human-economy-the/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [A feminist man is a bit like a vegetarian: it's the humanitarian principle he's defending, I suppose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/a-feminist-man-is-a-bit-like-a-vegetarian-it-s-the-humanitarian/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [Feminism remains something that needs to be explained to people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/feminism-remains-something-that-needs-to-be-explained-to-people/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [“At the time, he had got rid of her so efficiently and so suavely that she had felt almost reassured even as she was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/at-the-time-he-had-got-rid-of-her-so-efficiently-and-so-suavely-that/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [“From the distance of England the Italian cuisine seems to be all things to all people. It does not expect you to bend to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/from-the-distance-of-england-the-italian-cuisine-seems-to-be-all/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [You could time a suburban story by your watch: it lasts as long as it takes a small furry animal that's lonely to find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/you-could-time-a-suburban-story-by-your-watch-it-lasts-as-long-as-it/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [It is expected that a children's story will raise a difficulty and then resolve it: increasingly, this resolution is so prompt and so resounding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/it-is-expected-that-a-children-s-story-will-raise-a-difficulty-and/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [Human beings have a need, generally, to destroy things. The Freudian principle of civilisation is correct. There's always, always a difference between the family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/human-beings-have-a-need-generally-to-destroy-things-the-freudian/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) > [I don't think I knew that you could be a novelist. I think a lot of my students are in the same condition. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/i-don-t-think-i-knew-that-you-could-be-a-novelist-i-think-a-lot-of-my/) [Rachel Cusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) [Explore all 128 Rachel Cusk quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) [Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Whatever we might wish to believe about ourselves, we are only the result of how others have treated us.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rachel Cusk" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about-ourselves-we-are-only-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Believe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about-ourselves-we-are-only-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/rachel-cusk-3482_believe_whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about_2750077.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/rachel-cusk-3482_believe_whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about_2750077.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/rachel-cusk-3482_believe_whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about_2750077.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Whatever we might wish to believe about ourselves, we are only the result of how others have treated us.” — Rachel Cusk", "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": "Rachel Cusk", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cusk/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Whatever we might wish to believe...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about-ourselves-we-are-only-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cusk/whatever-we-might-wish-to-believe-about-ourselves-we-are-only-the/#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 } } ] } ```