--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Like any oppressed people, they defined…" description: "\"“Like any oppressed people, they defined themselves by what offended them, which”\" — Stacy Schiff" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/stacy-schiff-7881_offended_like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-t_2968160.png" --- # Like any oppressed people, they defined themselves by what… ![“Like any oppressed people, they defined themselves by what offended them, which” quote by Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/stacy-schiff-7881_offended_like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-t_2968160.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/stacy-schiff-7881_offended_like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-t_2968160.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/stacy-schiff-7881_offended_like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-t_2968160.png) > ““Like any oppressed people, they defined themselves by what offended them, which”” [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Oppressed groups define themselves through the offenses they endure, shaping identity around external antagonism. **In simple terms:** Oppression defines group identity. Key Takeaway Recognize external influences on self‑definition. Themes oppression identity reactivity Mood critical reflective Type historical philosophical When to use this quote - social movements - minority groups - political activism - cultural narratives Key Concepts sociology history Questions to Reflect On - How can groups reclaim agency beyond oppression? - What alternative identity foundations exist? A Different Perspective Defining self by offense can perpetuate victimhood. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Defined Offended](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defined-offended-4555798/) [Like Oppressed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-oppressed-1537527/) [Offended](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/offended/) [Oppressed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oppressed/) [Oppressed People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oppressed-people/) ## Related quotes > [I don't know what it's like to be oppressed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matty-healy/i-don-t-know-what-it-s-like-to-be-oppressed/) [Matty Healy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matty-healy/) > [I don't know why people like being oppressed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candace-owens/i-don-t-know-why-people-like-being-oppressed/) [Candace Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candace-owens/) > [And clenching your fist for the ones like us Who are oppressed by the figures of beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/and-clenching-your-fist-for-the-ones-like-us-who-are-oppressed-by-the/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr-2/oppressed-people-cannot-remain-oppressed-forever/) [Martin Luther King Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr-2/) > [I supported the right of oppressed people to armed struggle. That didn't mean I did it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-rosenberg/i-supported-the-right-of-oppressed-people-to-armed-struggle-that-didn/) [Susan Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-rosenberg/) > [The women are, of course, the biggest single group of oppressed people in the world and, if we are to believe the Book of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/the-women-are-of-course-the-biggest-single-group-of-oppressed-people/) [Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/) > [Oppressed people are frequently very oppressive when first liberated. They know but two positions: somebody's foot on their neck or their foot on somebody's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florynce-kennedy/oppressed-people-are-frequently-very-oppressive-when-first-liberated/) [Florynce Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florynce-kennedy/) > [I think as an intelligent person you would agree that when you are teaching among oppressed people that they should be relieved of their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/i-think-as-an-intelligent-person-you-would-agree-that-when-you-are/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Nonviolence is the most potent technique for oppressed people. Unearned suffering is redemptive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/nonviolence-is-the-most-potent-technique-for-oppressed-people/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [An oppressed people are authorized whenever they can to rise and break their fetters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-clay/an-oppressed-people-are-authorized-whenever-they-can-to-rise-and/) [Henry Clay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-clay/) > [Oppressed people, whatever their level of formal education, have the ability to understand and interpret the world around them, to see the world for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-baker/oppressed-people-whatever-their-level-of-formal-education-have-the/) [Ella Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-baker/) > [The rights of no oppressed people have ever yet been obtained by a voluntary act of justice on the part of the oppressors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-delany/the-rights-of-no-oppressed-people-have-ever-yet-been-obtained-by-a/) [Martin Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-delany/) > [Palestinians are not victims in need of aid, they are an occupied & oppressed people in need of freedom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/remi-kanazi/palestinians-are-not-victims-in-need-of-aid-they-are-an-occupied/) [Remi Kanazi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/remi-kanazi/) > [I want to be the voice of the people; black, white, everyday, oppressed people. A person trying to make it and to do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/common/i-want-to-be-the-voice-of-the-people-black-white-everyday-oppressed/) [Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/common/) > [Poor and afflicted and oppressed people have faces, and we are required to look squarely into them. We can't love what we won't experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mairs/poor-and-afflicted-and-oppressed-people-have-faces-and-we-are/) [Nancy Mairs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mairs/) ## More by Stacy Schiff > [As always, an educated woman was a dangerous woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/as-always-an-educated-woman-was-a-dangerous-woman/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [Recently a study proved that working from a larger, less cluttered computer screen increases concentration. I could have told them that. And yes, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/recently-a-study-proved-that-working-from-a-larger-less-cluttered/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [“She did not believe Fate as painstaking as her husband; she was more inclined to take matters into her own hands. She had ample…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/she-did-not-believe-fate-as-painstaking-as-her-husband-she-was-more/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [What we know about Cleopatra's looks is based purely on her coin portraits. Engraving was imperfect, and that when you are a ruler and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/what-we-know-about-cleopatra-s-looks-is-based-purely-on-her-coin/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [No one in the modern world controls the wealth or territory that Cleopatra did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/no-one-in-the-modern-world-controls-the-wealth-or-territory-that/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [“Against a powerful enchantress there is no contest. Against a woman who ensnares a man in the coils of her serpentine intelligence - in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/against-a-powerful-enchantress-there-is-no-contest-against-a-woman/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [Motherhood is always an act of courage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/motherhood-is-always-an-act-of-courage/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [Cleopatra stood at one of the most dangerous intersections in history; that of women and power. Clever women, Euripides had warned hundreds of years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/cleopatra-stood-at-one-of-the-most-dangerous-intersections-in-history/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [“Nabokov complained he was afflicted with total recall, an affliction of which he could be miraculously cured by the presence of a biographer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/nabokov-complained-he-was-afflicted-with-total-recall-an-affliction/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [“History existed to be retold, with more panache but not necessarily greater accuracy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/history-existed-to-be-retold-with-more-panache-but-not-necessarily/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [“Véra assumed her married name almost as a stage name; rarely has matrimony so much represented a profession. It was one of the ironies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/v-ra-assumed-her-married-name-almost-as-a-stage-name-rarely-has/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [When a woman teams up with a snake a moral storm threatens somewhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/when-a-woman-teams-up-with-a-snake-a-moral-storm-threatens-somewhere/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [The interesting thing about Cleopatra is that she is such a shape-shifter. I mean through history we've all molded her to our times and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/the-interesting-thing-about-cleopatra-is-that-she-is-such-a-shape/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [parenting is an exercise in unintended consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/parenting-is-an-exercise-in-unintended-consequences/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [Strangely enough, politics may just be the one realm in which having kids imposes no penalty on women. Kids are practically a necessity. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/strangely-enough-politics-may-just-be-the-one-realm-in-which-having/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) [Explore all 86 Stacy Schiff quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) ## More Offended quotes > [“Rose is like a woman love;when love odorous but gets offended when bony..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonnaville/rose-is-like-a-woman-love-when-love-odorous-but-gets-offended-when/) [Jonnaville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonnaville/) > [“Claiming to be offended is a great way to elevate yourself at the expense of others: “Look at me! I'm a much better person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/claiming-to-be-offended-is-a-great-way-to-elevate-yourself-at-the/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [Henry Kissinger may have wished I had presented him as a combination of Charles DeGaulle and Disraeli, but I didn't…out of respect for DeGaulle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oriana-fallaci/henry-kissinger-may-have-wished-i-had-presented-him-as-a-combination/) [Oriana Fallaci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oriana-fallaci/) > [“Rather than being incensed by the nature of the bruise, maybe we should be inspired by the possibilities in the bruise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/rather-than-being-incensed-by-the-nature-of-the-bruise-maybe-we/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [People who wish to be offended will always find some occasion for taking offense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wesley/people-who-wish-to-be-offended-will-always-find-some-occasion-for/) [John Wesley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wesley/) > [If you take the the insults of your fellow human beings personally, you will be offended for the rest of your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/if-you-take-the-the-insults-of-your-fellow-human-beings-personally/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I would like to publicly apologize to anyone I have NOT offended¦I will get to you shortly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-would-like-to-publicly-apologize-to-anyone-i-have-not-offended-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In a certain reign there was a lady not of the first rank whom the emperor loved more than any of the others. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murasaki-shikibu/in-a-certain-reign-there-was-a-lady-not-of-the-first-rank-whom-the/) [Murasaki Shikibu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murasaki-shikibu/) > [I feel offended when people bring up my four marriages. I was 19 when I first got married and I thought it would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosanna-arquette/i-feel-offended-when-people-bring-up-my-four-marriages-i-was-19-when/) [Rosanna Arquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosanna-arquette/) > [“Certainly clumsy, embarrassing, unprincipled, and mean spirited things do occur in our interactions with other people that would allow us to take offense. However,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-a-bednar/certainly-clumsy-embarrassing-unprincipled-and-mean-spirited-things/) [David A. Bednar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-a-bednar/) > [God's wrath is not an implacable, blind rage. However emotional it may be, it is an entirely reasonable and willed response to offenses against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson/god-s-wrath-is-not-an-implacable-blind-rage-however-emotional-it-may/) [D. A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson/) > [Satire is a sort of glass wherein beholders do generally discover everybody’s face but their own; which is the chief reason for that kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-swift/satire-is-a-sort-of-glass-wherein-beholders-do-generally-discover/) [Jonathan Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-swift/) > [I had a very well-respected writer ask me point blank to my face whether it actually mattered to me. Now, without wanting to reach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-furyk/i-had-a-very-well-respected-writer-ask-me-point-blank-to-my-face/) [Jim Furyk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-furyk/) > [Kicking a police car? Really?' Caleb shrugged. 'Car offended me. It was sitting right where I wanted to stand. What would you do?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/kicking-a-police-car-really-caleb-shrugged-car-offended-me-it-was/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [a diplomat ... is not worthy of the name unless he can say 'no' and make the other person like it - or at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margery-wilson/a-diplomat-is-not-worthy-of-the-name-unless-he-can-say-no-and-make/) [Margery Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margery-wilson/) [Browse all 880 Offended quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/offended/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Like any oppressed people, they defined themselves by what offended them, which”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stacy Schiff" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-themselves-by-what-offended/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Offended" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-themselves-by-what-offended/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/stacy-schiff-7881_offended_like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-t_2968160.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/stacy-schiff-7881_offended_like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-t_2968160.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/stacy-schiff-7881_offended_like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-t_2968160.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Like any oppressed people, they defined themselves by what offended them, which” — Stacy Schiff", "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": "Stacy Schiff", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Like any oppressed people, they defined...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-themselves-by-what-offended/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/like-any-oppressed-people-they-defined-themselves-by-what-offended/#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 } } ] } ```