---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A comfortable prison was still a prison."
description: "\"“A comfortable prison was still a prison.”\" — Salman Rushdie"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/salman-rushdie-153_crime_a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison_959818.jpg"
---

#  A comfortable prison was still a prison.

![“A comfortable prison was still a prison.” quote by Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/salman-rushdie-153_crime_a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison_959818.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/salman-rushdie-153_crime_a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison_959818.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/salman-rushdie-153_crime_a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison_959818.jpg)

> ““A comfortable prison was still a prison.””

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

## About This Quote

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

A seemingly comfortable situation can still be a form of confinement, limiting freedom and growth.

**In simple terms:** Comfort can be a hidden prison.

Key Takeaway

Recognize and question comfortable constraints.

Themes

freedom confinement comfort selfawareness

Mood

reflective thoughtful

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- personal relationships
- career choices
- social expectations

Key Concepts

existentialism psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- What comforts might be limiting you?
- How can you test the freedom of your situation?

A Different Perspective

Comfort may mask deeper oppression.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Comfortable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comfortable/) [Comfortable Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comfortable-prison-1768322/) [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Prison Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison-prison-1315748/)

## Related quotes

> [“Newton: but a lot of the guys here were in prison before they came here and they’ll still be in prison when they leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-bates/newton-but-a-lot-of-the-guys-here-were-in-prison-before-they-came/)

[Laura Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-bates/)

> [One does not expect to be comfortable in prison. As a matter of fact, one's mental suffering is so much greater than any common…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmeline-pankhurst/one-does-not-expect-to-be-comfortable-in-prison-as-a-matter-of-fact/)

[Emmeline Pankhurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmeline-pankhurst/)

> [“No, by God, it is false! It wasn't a minuet that we stepped; it was a prison - a prison full of screaming hysterics,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ford-madox-ford/no-by-god-it-is-false-it-wasn-t-a-minuet-that-we-stepped-it-was-a/)

[Ford Madox Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ford-madox-ford/)

> [We're all in prison. All of us are in prison, but some of us have a key.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/we-re-all-in-prison-all-of-us-are-in-prison-but-some-of-us-have-a-key/)

[Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/)

> [A lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight — and when they come out, they’re gay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-carson/a-lot-of-people-who-go-into-prison-go-into-prison-straight-and-when/)

[Benjamin Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-carson/)

> [I do not wish to remove from my present prison to a prison a little larger. I wish to break all prisons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/i-do-not-wish-to-remove-from-my-present-prison-to-a-prison-a-little/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [They released me early because I was a threat to the prison. The whole prison was on lockdown. It was actually really scary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khloe-kardashian/they-released-me-early-because-i-was-a-threat-to-the-prison-the-whole/)

[Khloe Kardashian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khloe-kardashian/)

> [The cruelest prison of all is the prison of the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piri-thomas/the-cruelest-prison-of-all-is-the-prison-of-the-mind/)

[Piri Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piri-thomas/)

> [There is, on the whole, nothing on earth intended for innocent people so horrible as a school. To begin with, it is a prison.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/there-is-on-the-whole-nothing-on-earth-intended-for-innocent-people/)

[George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/)

> [Veels vithin veels, a prison in a prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/veels-vithin-veels-a-prison-in-a-prison/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [People always think about what prison is. What prison really is - it's not a physical challenge, it's mental.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hill-harper/people-always-think-about-what-prison-is-what-prison-really-is-it-s/)

[Hill Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hill-harper/)

> [The percentage of Americans in the prison system, Prison system, has doubled since 1985](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serj-tankian/the-percentage-of-americans-in-the-prison-system-prison-system-has/)

[Serj Tankian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serj-tankian/)

> [“The world of the Takers is one vast prison, and except for a handful of Leavers scattered across the world, the entire human race…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-quinn/the-world-of-the-takers-is-one-vast-prison-and-except-for-a-handful/)

[Daniel Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-quinn/)

> [“No matter how well meaning and astute the investigators are or how well-researched, witnessed and documented the incidents of cruelty are, a prison is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-k-horii/no-matter-how-well-meaning-and-astute-the-investigators-are-or-how/)

[Gayle K. Horii](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-k-horii/)

> [Republican candidate Ben Carson told reporters he thinks American prisons might be too comfortable. As opposed to Mexican prisons that have personal showers with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-fallon/republican-candidate-ben-carson-told-reporters-he-thinks-american/)

[Jimmy Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-fallon/)

## More by Salman Rushdie

> [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [It's a terrible thing that your life turns into a good story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/it-s-a-terrible-thing-that-your-life-turns-into-a-good-story/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [Sometimes by a woodland stream he watched the water rush over the pebbled bed, its tiny modulations of bounce and flow. A woman's body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/sometimes-by-a-woodland-stream-he-watched-the-water-rush-over-the/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [I want to write novels. I want to write stories. I want to do the stuff that I became a writer to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-want-to-write-novels-i-want-to-write-stories-i-want-to-do-the-stuff/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [If you want to be a serious writer, then you have to write what there is to write about. If you're going to pull…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-you-want-to-be-a-serious-writer-then-you-have-to-write-what-there/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [“Después de exigir mi marcha, ya no posees jurisdicción en lo concerniente a mi salud.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/despu-s-de-exigir-mi-marcha-ya-no-posees-jurisdicci-n-en-lo/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [If there is a choice between absolute safety and freedom, then freedom must always prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-there-is-a-choice-between-absolute-safety-and-freedom-then-freedom/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [I'm not a prophet, but I always thought it was natural for dictatorships to fall. I remember in 1989, two months before the fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-not-a-prophet-but-i-always-thought-it-was-natural-for/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [I'd wanted to create a storm so that I could become more famous and richer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-d-wanted-to-create-a-storm-so-that-i-could-become-more-famous-and/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [Who what am I? My answer: I am the sum total of everything that went before me, of all I have been seen done,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/who-what-am-i-my-answer-i-am-the-sum-total-of-everything-that-went/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [“...proving once again that there was no escape from recurrence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/proving-once-again-that-there-was-no-escape-from-recurrence/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [“information, in a stream-of-consciousness soliloquy that revealed the extent to which he had internalised the adversarial fragmentation of American culture and made it a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/information-in-a-stream-of-consciousness-soliloquy-that-revealed-the/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [A little bit of one story joins onto an idea from another, and hey presto, . . . not old tales but new ones.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/a-little-bit-of-one-story-joins-onto-an-idea-from-another-and-hey/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [I'm a novelist. Fortunately I don't have to rule the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-a-novelist-fortunately-i-don-t-have-to-rule-the-world/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

> [The First Amendment defends all forms of speech including hate speech, which is why groups like Ku Klux Klan are allowed to utter their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/the-first-amendment-defends-all-forms-of-speech-including-hate-speech/)

[Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

[Explore all 1,087 Salman Rushdie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/)

## More Comfortable quotes

> [I could not limit my values and pursuits to what makes others comfortable. Being possessed by a promise I live without options. I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/i-could-not-limit-my-values-and-pursuits-to-what-makes-others/)

[Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/)

> [How much more comfortable it is to say 'Yes, and...' than 'Yes, but...'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-fagg/how-much-more-comfortable-it-is-to-say-yes-and-than-yes-but/)

[Lawrence Fagg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-fagg/)

> [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/)

[Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/)

> [I'm more comfortable modelling as a man because I don't get any criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rain-dove/i-m-more-comfortable-modelling-as-a-man-because-i-don-t-get-any/)

[Rain Dove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rain-dove/)

> [I'm aware of who I am and I'm comfortable with who I choose to date.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shibani-dandekar/i-m-aware-of-who-i-am-and-i-m-comfortable-with-who-i-choose-to-date/)

[Shibani Dandekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shibani-dandekar/)

> [Money is only used for two things. One, it's to make you comfortable, and the more comfortable you are the more creative you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/money-is-only-used-for-two-things-one-it-s-to-make-you-comfortable/)

[Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/)

> [I am comfortable talking about sex scenes and stuff, but to me, when it's physically explicit, I do feel prudish and uncomfortable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-waller-bridge/i-am-comfortable-talking-about-sex-scenes-and-stuff-but-to-me-when-it/)

[Phoebe Waller-Bridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-waller-bridge/)

> [It's my intention to make something stand outside the realm of album art, but it also feels comfortable to me to be in it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer-baizley/it-s-my-intention-to-make-something-stand-outside-the-realm-of-album/)

[John Dyer Baizley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer-baizley/)

> [There's always gonna be people with a lot of money making film, and the goal is to make profit and carry on. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-howard/there-s-always-gonna-be-people-with-a-lot-of-money-making-film-and/)

[Clint Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-howard/)

> [There are those that say, if you do the uncomfortable thing long enough, it will become comfortable. But we are really not encouragers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/there-are-those-that-say-if-you-do-the-uncomfortable-thing-long/)

[Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/)

> [It's like my second home, 'It.' And I would like to return to it, because I feel very comfortable with it, and I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-muschietti/it-s-like-my-second-home-it-and-i-would-like-to-return-to-it-because/)

[Andy Muschietti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-muschietti/)

> [I was a bit overweight as a teenager, which may be why I'm more comfortable playing with clothes than showing my body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orla-brady/i-was-a-bit-overweight-as-a-teenager-which-may-be-why-i-m-more/)

[Orla Brady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orla-brady/)

> [When you're comfortable with someone you love, the silence is the best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/britney-spears/when-you-re-comfortable-with-someone-you-love-the-silence-is-the-best/)

[Britney Spears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/britney-spears/)

> [Our families and our homes are the center of American life, Everything we do is to make those homes-and the lives in them-more beautiful,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-stewart/our-families-and-our-homes-are-the-center-of-american-life-everything/)

[Martha Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-stewart/)

> [You build the bonds through the community and police force, build bonds of understanding, and then when people feel comfortable in their communities, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-kaine/you-build-the-bonds-through-the-community-and-police-force-build/)

[Tim Kaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-kaine/)

[Browse all 4,560 Comfortable quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comfortable/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“A comfortable prison was still a prison.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Salman Rushdie"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Comfortable"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/salman-rushdie-153_crime_a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison_959818.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/salman-rushdie-153_crime_a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison_959818.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe1/salman-rushdie-153_crime_a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison_959818.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“A comfortable prison was still a prison.” — Salman Rushdie",
                "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": "Salman Rushdie",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“A comfortable prison was still a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/a-comfortable-prison-was-still-a-prison/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
