--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We have not been scuffling in this…" description: "\"We have not been scuffling in this waste-howling wildness for the right to be stupid.\" — Toni Cade Bambara" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/toni-cade-bambara-14357_stupid_we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste_1093220.jpg" --- # We have not been scuffling in this waste-howling wildness… ![“We have not been scuffling in this waste-howling wildness for the right to be stupid.” quote by Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/toni-cade-bambara-14357_stupid_we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste_1093220.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/toni-cade-bambara-14357_stupid_we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste_1093220.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/toni-cade-bambara-14357_stupid_we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste_1093220.jpg) > “We have not been scuffling in this waste-howling wildness for the right to be stupid.” [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author critiques the struggle for freedom, suggesting that even the right to be foolish is contested in a chaotic world. **In simple terms:** Even freedom to be foolish is contested. Key Takeaway Value freedom to make mistakes. Themes freedom chaos humanity Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical social When to use this quote - activism - education reform - creative experimentation - personal growth Key Concepts existentialism social critique personal liberty Questions to Reflect On - What does “being stupid” symbolize here? - How can we protect the right to err? A Different Perspective The statement may romanticize foolishness over responsibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Stupidity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupidity/) [Waste](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waste/) [Wildness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wildness/) ## Related quotes > [We have not been scuffling in this waste - howling wilderness for the right to be stupid. All this waste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste-howling-wilderness-for-the/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [But you are right, being stupid is not illegal. Otherwise half this town would be behind bars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-echols/but-you-are-right-being-stupid-is-not-illegal-otherwise-half-this/) [Jennifer Echols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-echols/) > [Freedom means the right to be stupid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/freedom-means-the-right-to-be-stupid/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [If we can combine our knowledge of science with the wisdom of wildness, if we can nurture civilization through roots in the primitive, man's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lindbergh/if-we-can-combine-our-knowledge-of-science-with-the-wisdom-of/) [Charles Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lindbergh/) > [As I came home through the woods with my string of fish, trailing my pole, it being now quite dark, I caught a glimpse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-i-came-home-through-the-woods-with-my-string-of-fish-trailing-my/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“I no longer follow the voices of the sane. I follow the ill because they see farther, feel much more and change what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/i-no-longer-follow-the-voices-of-the-sane-i-follow-the-ill-because/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) > [There are few places in England where you can get so much wildness and desolation of sea and sandhills, wood, green marsh and grey…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-henry-hudson/there-are-few-places-in-england-where-you-can-get-so-much-wildness/) [William Henry Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-henry-hudson/) > [“The more I read, the more I felt connected across time to other lives and deeper sympathies. I felt less isolated. I wasn’t floating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/the-more-i-read-the-more-i-felt-connected-across-time-to-other-lives/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“It was early evening twilight when we came around a corner… and there in the road was a red deer stag. He leapt up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-frost/it-was-early-evening-twilight-when-we-came-around-a-corner-and-there/) [Michelle Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-frost/) > [Every wild apple shrub excites our expectation thus, somewhat as every wild child. It is, perhaps, a prince in disguise. What a lesson to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/every-wild-apple-shrub-excites-our-expectation-thus-somewhat-as-every/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Love is beauty, consciousness is trust. One of the deepest feminine pleasures is when a man stands full, present, and unreactive in the midst…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-deida/love-is-beauty-consciousness-is-trust-one-of-the-deepest-feminine/) [David Deida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-deida/) > [Fury is an entirely appropriate response to a system that sends young people to kill other young people in a war that never should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/fury-is-an-entirely-appropriate-response-to-a-system-that-sends-young/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [If I paint a wild horse, you might not see the horse... but surely you will see the wildness!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/if-i-paint-a-wild-horse-you-might-not-see-the-horse-but-surely-you/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [The saints differ from us in their exuberance, the excess of our human talents. Moderation is not their secret. It is in the wildness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-mcginley/the-saints-differ-from-us-in-their-exuberance-the-excess-of-our-human/) [Phyllis McGinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-mcginley/) > [“In the United States law, federally designated wilderness is famously defined as 'an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-marris/in-the-united-states-law-federally-designated-wilderness-is-famously/) [Emma Marris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-marris/) ## More by Toni Cade Bambara > [... in a capitalist society a man is expected to be an aggressive, uncompromising, factual, lusty, intelligent provider of goods,and the woman, a retiring,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/in-a-capitalist-society-a-man-is-expected-to-be-an-aggressive/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [Old folks are the nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/old-folks-are-the-nation/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [And what is religion, you might ask. It's a technology of living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/and-what-is-religion-you-might-ask-it-s-a-technology-of-living/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [My responsibility to myself, my neighbors, my family and the human family is to try to tell the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/my-responsibility-to-myself-my-neighbors-my-family-and-the-human/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [An artist represents an oppressed people and makes revolution irresistible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/an-artist-represents-an-oppressed-people-and-makes-revolution/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [Writing is one of the ways I participate in transformation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/writing-is-one-of-the-ways-i-participate-in-transformation/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [Medication without explanation is obscene.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/medication-without-explanation-is-obscene/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [The dream is real, my friends. The failure to realize it is the only unreality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/the-dream-is-real-my-friends-the-failure-to-realize-it-is-the-only/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [I tend to agree that celibacy for a time is worth considering, for sex is dirty if all it means is winning a man,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/i-tend-to-agree-that-celibacy-for-a-time-is-worth-considering-for-sex/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [“I am one beautiful and powerful son of a bitch,' he told himself. 'Smart as a whip, respected, prosperous, beloved and valuable. I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/i-am-one-beautiful-and-powerful-son-of-a-bitch-he-told-himself-smart/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [The job of the writer is to make revolution irresistible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/the-job-of-the-writer-is-to-make-revolution-irresistible/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [There are times ... when any visitor - in person, by phone, by mail - is an intruder, a burglar, a space hogger, an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/there-are-times-when-any-visitor-in-person-by-phone-by-mail-is-an/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [“As a culture worker who belongs to an oppressed people my job is to make revolution irresistible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/as-a-culture-worker-who-belongs-to-an-oppressed-people-my-job-is-to/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [TAKE HEART TO FLAT OUT DECIDE TO BE WELL AND STRIDE INTO THE FUTURE, SANE AND WHOLE](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/take-heart-to-flat-out-decide-to-be-well-and-stride-into-the-future/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) > [It's a dismally lonely business, writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/it-s-a-dismally-lonely-business-writing/) [Toni Cade Bambara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) [Explore all 47 Toni Cade Bambara quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/) ## More Stupid quotes > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Don't judge me because I'm stupid. Don't judge me because I'm, mean. Don't judge me because I'm weird. Don't judge me for mistakes. Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaiah-harden-me/don-t-judge-me-because-i-m-stupid-don-t-judge-me-because-i-m-mean-don/) Isaiah Harden (Me > [“If people fully understand you, they will think of you as a normal, if they half understand you, will think of you as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/if-people-fully-understand-you-they-will-think-of-you-as-a-normal-if/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [Loving the wrong person doesn't mean ypu're stupid. It was stupid of that person not to appreciate your LOVE.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pretty-nimy/loving-the-wrong-person-doesn-t-mean-ypu-re-stupid-it-was-stupid-of/) Pretty\_Nimy > [I didn't want to do 'Fashion Police' because I thought, 'This is stupid, this is beneath me, who wants to talk about fashion?' It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/i-didn-t-want-to-do-fashion-police-because-i-thought-this-is-stupid/) [Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/) > [A lot of people say they are dyslexic; some have to realize that they are just stupid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/a-lot-of-people-say-they-are-dyslexic-some-have-to-realize-that-they/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [The truth is I've just never had any kind of plan at all for my career, which is probably not a very flattering thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ty-burrell/the-truth-is-i-ve-just-never-had-any-kind-of-plan-at-all-for-my/) [Ty Burrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ty-burrell/) > [I think the people I talk about are generally so stupid that they don't even know I'm saying bad things about them. I've run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-handler/i-think-the-people-i-talk-about-are-generally-so-stupid-that-they-don/) [Chelsea Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-handler/) > [I want to thank each and every one of you for having extinguished yourselves this session.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gib-lewis/i-want-to-thank-each-and-every-one-of-you-for-having-extinguished/) [Gib Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gib-lewis/) > [When I hut my mouth and turn walk away, it doesn't mean you've won. It simply means your stupid ass isn't worth any more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luphielia/when-i-hut-my-mouth-and-turn-walk-away-it-doesn-t-mean-you-ve-won-it/) Luphielia > [No matter how serious life gets, You still gotta have that one person you can be completely stupid with..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/no-matter-how-serious-life-gets-you-still-gotta-have-that-one-person/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [In the beginning I was just a makeup artist and I never really pictured myself doing anything else. But now that I have so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffree-star/in-the-beginning-i-was-just-a-makeup-artist-and-i-never-really/) [Jeffree Star](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffree-star/) > [The free market is ugly and stupid, like going to the mall; the unfree market is just as ugly and just as stupid, except…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-free-market-is-ugly-and-stupid-like-going-to-the-mall-the-unfree/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only victories which leave no regret are those which are gained over ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/the-only-victories-which-leave-no-regret-are-those-which-are-gained/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [It's almost ironic sitting here watching stories about Norm's courageous 'battle' with cancer. He actually did a bit on stage about how stupid that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-macdonald/it-s-almost-ironic-sitting-here-watching-stories-about-norm-s/) [Neil Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-macdonald/) Browse all 6,392 Stupid quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We have not been scuffling in this waste-howling wildness for the right to be stupid.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Toni Cade Bambara" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste-howling-wildness-for-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Stupid" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste-howling-wildness-for-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/toni-cade-bambara-14357_stupid_we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste_1093220.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/toni-cade-bambara-14357_stupid_we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste_1093220.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/toni-cade-bambara-14357_stupid_we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste_1093220.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We have not been scuffling in this waste-howling wildness for the right to be stupid.” — Toni Cade Bambara", "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": "Toni Cade Bambara", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-cade-bambara/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We have not been scuffling in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste-howling-wildness-for-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-cade-bambara/we-have-not-been-scuffling-in-this-waste-howling-wildness-for-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 } } ] } ```