---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: How long? I asked, and then remembered…"
description: "\"“ How long? I asked, and then remembered that speech came from my mouth. ‘How long?”\" — Robin Hobb"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/robin-hobb-489_communication_how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-tha_3056728.jpg"
---

#  How long? I asked, and then remembered that speech came…

![“How long? I asked, and then remembered that speech came from my mouth. ‘How long?” quote by Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/robin-hobb-489_communication_how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-tha_3056728.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/robin-hobb-489_communication_how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-tha_3056728.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/robin-hobb-489_communication_how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-tha_3056728.jpg)

> ““ How long? I asked, and then remembered that speech came from my mouth. ‘How long?””

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A character questions the duration of speech, reflecting on memory and self‑awareness.

**In simple terms:** Questioning speech length reveals self‑knowledge.

Key Takeaway

Reflect on personal narratives.

Themes

literature self‑reflection memory

Mood

introspective curious

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- writing workshops
- therapy
- public speaking

Key Concepts

narrative theory psychology identity

Questions to Reflect On

- What does “how long?” signify?
- How does memory shape speech?

A Different Perspective

May seem abstract.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Asked Remembered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asked-remembered-5109525/) [Came Mouth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/came-mouth-582306/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Long Asked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-asked-3116238/) [Remembered Speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remembered-speech-5109524/) [Speech Came](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech-came-771786/)

## Related quotes

> [“We were neither lover nor friends, pupil or instructor. At that moment, we were just two faces with two names that I'm not sure,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luna-lacour/we-were-neither-lover-nor-friends-pupil-or-instructor-at-that-moment/)

[Luna Lacour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luna-lacour/)

> [“How long is this to last?" asked the inspector finally. "And what is it we are watching for?" "I have no more notion than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/how-long-is-this-to-last-asked-the-inspector-finally-and-what-is-it/)

[Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/)

> [How long will you keep me?" I asked. You shrugged. "Forever, of course.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-christopher/how-long-will-you-keep-me-i-asked-you-shrugged-forever-of-course/)

[Lucy Christopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-christopher/)

> [“His captivating speech came not from his grammar or vocabulary but from the joy he took in wielding them well.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lane-greene/his-captivating-speech-came-not-from-his-grammar-or-vocabulary-but/)

[Robert Lane Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lane-greene/)

> [What was really interesting in his speech, which, by the way, had (inaudible) footnotes - the written version of it - which might be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avik-roy/what-was-really-interesting-in-his-speech-which-by-the-way-had/)

[Avik Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avik-roy/)

> [When I was inducted into the Hall of Fame, Donald Trump was inducted on the same night. When I was done with my speech,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-backlund/when-i-was-inducted-into-the-hall-of-fame-donald-trump-was-inducted/)

[Bob Backlund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-backlund/)

> [Even as the words came out of my mouth, my heart was dying a million deaths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-kiedis/even-as-the-words-came-out-of-my-mouth-my-heart-was-dying-a-million/)

[Anthony Kiedis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-kiedis/)

> [Your whole vocabulary's played out, admit it. Still wack if it came out my mouth and I spit it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/redman/your-whole-vocabulary-s-played-out-admit-it-still-wack-if-it-came-out/)

[Redman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/redman/)

> [“But I think I would have been happier if the only thing that came out of his mouth was the sound of a turning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/but-i-think-i-would-have-been-happier-if-the-only-thing-that-came-out/)

[Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/)

> [As soon as I stopped trying to control everything that came out of my mouth and every picture that came out, that's when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-stewart/as-soon-as-i-stopped-trying-to-control-everything-that-came-out-of-my/)

[Kristen Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-stewart/)

> [“You would have to forget everything that came out of her mouth in order to later enjoy it on your cock.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-tea/you-would-have-to-forget-everything-that-came-out-of-her-mouth-in/)

[Michelle Tea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-tea/)

> [“She was pretty, but that was it. And looking at her didn’t make up for having to listen to what came out of her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/she-was-pretty-but-that-was-it-and-looking-at-her-didn-t-make-up-for/)

[Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/)

> [“A low growl erupted in his chest, suprising him as much as what came out of his mouth. "You're mine. Trust me, I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-croft/a-low-growl-erupted-in-his-chest-suprising-him-as-much-as-what-came/)

[Sydney Croft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-croft/)

> [“When the blood came out of my mouth I could taste my own shit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/when-the-blood-came-out-of-my-mouth-i-could-taste-my-own-shit/)

[Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/)

> [It was strange how words meant something when they came out of your mouth. Inside your head they were safe and silent, but once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-downham/it-was-strange-how-words-meant-something-when-they-came-out-of-your/)

[Jenny Downham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-downham/)

## More by Robin Hobb

> [Boredom is vastly underrated. Boredom means that nothing is trying to kill you every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/boredom-is-vastly-underrated-boredom-means-that-nothing-is-trying-to/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“But that is not true for all folk. Some folk are meant to argue with fate. And win.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/but-that-is-not-true-for-all-folk-some-folk-are-meant-to-argue-with/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“I tried to leave you alone, Fitz. To find what peace you could, even if it excluded me from your life.” Ten years ago,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/i-tried-to-leave-you-alone-fitz-to-find-what-peace-you-could-even-if/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“Do you think you're taking Etta out of here?" "Yes," Kennit called over his shoulder up the sairs. "What about all these dead men?"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/do-you-think-you-re-taking-etta-out-of-here-yes-kennit-called-over/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“A way out is a way in. Then,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/a-way-out-is-a-way-in-then/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“Die in your dreams, wake up insane.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/die-in-your-dreams-wake-up-insane/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“I felt a familiar squeezing in what I thought must be my heart. I had heard of being "heartbroken" or "heavy-hearted" but I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/i-felt-a-familiar-squeezing-in-what-i-thought-must-be-my-heart-i-had/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“They spoke of a dream of a child who bore the heart of a wolf.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/they-spoke-of-a-dream-of-a-child-who-bore-the-heart-of-a-wolf/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“We all perish in our last attempt to live.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/we-all-perish-in-our-last-attempt-to-live/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“There is always power in holding a secret.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/there-is-always-power-in-holding-a-secret/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“... finally realizing that life was to be lived, rather than hoarded against an unseen tomorrow.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/finally-realizing-that-life-was-to-be-lived-rather-than-hoarded/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“Why, I suddenly wondered, had I wasted all those hours I could have spent with her? Why hadn’t I gone with them, to listen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/why-i-suddenly-wondered-had-i-wasted-all-those-hours-i-could-have/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“I think I made a better boy than I do a man, I admitted ruefully to the wolf. Why not wait until you've been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/i-think-i-made-a-better-boy-than-i-do-a-man-i-admitted-ruefully-to/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“So, with all the wide world to choose from, you didn't choose at all. You simply stopped wandering one day”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/so-with-all-the-wide-world-to-choose-from-you-didn-t-choose-at-all/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

> [“I don't think I can stand it much longer,” he warned her. “Something will have to give way. And I fear it will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/i-don-t-think-i-can-stand-it-much-longer-he-warned-her-something-will/)

[Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

[Explore all 500 Robin Hobb quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/)

## More Communication quotes

> [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 problem posed by indirect speech acts is the problem of how it is possible for the speaker to say one thing and mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-searle/the-problem-posed-by-indirect-speech-acts-is-the-problem-of-how-it-is/)

[John Searle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-searle/)

> [We should have a conversation when we hang up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/we-should-have-a-conversation-when-we-hang-up/)

[Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/)

> [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/)

[Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/)

> [“To engage in dialogue is to serve others via whatever is real inside you; to engage in debate is to ultimately serve the illusions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oli-anderson/to-engage-in-dialogue-is-to-serve-others-via-whatever-is-real-inside/)

[Oli Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oli-anderson/)

> [What it comes down to for me is this: Will the technologies of communication in our culture, serve to enlighten us and help us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/what-it-comes-down-to-for-me-is-this-will-the-technologies-of/)

[Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/)

> [In dialogue, there is opposition, yes, but no head-on collision. Smashing heads does not open minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-tannen/in-dialogue-there-is-opposition-yes-but-no-head-on-collision-smashing/)

[Deborah Tannen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-tannen/)

> [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/)

[Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/)

> [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/)

[Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/)

> [I've been in a serious conversation with one of my children, and a fan has come up. I've been in a public bathroom and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-reddy/i-ve-been-in-a-serious-conversation-with-one-of-my-children-and-a-fan/)

[Helen Reddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-reddy/)

> [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/)

[Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/)

> [Disability, in general, hasn't been included in the conversation about inclusivity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-winston-george/disability-in-general-hasn-t-been-included-in-the-conversation-about/)

[Jason Winston George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-winston-george/)

> [“Women will be at least 50 percent of the communications community workforce … from executive suite to interns. Why? The “integrated” agency will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoram-wind/women-will-be-at-least-50-percent-of-the-communications-community/)

[Yoram Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoram-wind/)

> [There are certain things you must not say in spite of the fact that supposedly democracy means free speech. No. You are not allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-eubank-sr/there-are-certain-things-you-must-not-say-in-spite-of-the-fact-that/)

[Chris Eubank Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-eubank-sr/)

[Browse all 21,506 Communication quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“ How long? I asked, and then remembered that speech came from my mouth. ‘How long?”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Robin Hobb"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-that-speech-came-from-my-mouth/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Communication"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-that-speech-came-from-my-mouth/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/robin-hobb-489_communication_how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-tha_3056728.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/robin-hobb-489_communication_how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-tha_3056728.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba1/robin-hobb-489_communication_how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-tha_3056728.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“How long? I asked, and then remembered that speech came from my mouth. ‘How long?” — Robin Hobb",
                "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": "Robin Hobb",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“ How long? I asked, and...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-that-speech-came-from-my-mouth/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/how-long-i-asked-and-then-remembered-that-speech-came-from-my-mouth/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
