---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Married against their will, kept in one…"
description: "\"“Married against their will, kept in one room, and to one occupation, how could a dramatist give a full or interesting or truthful account of them? Lov..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b85/virginia-woolf-49_bitterness_married-against-their-will-kept-in-one-r_3212179.jpg"
---

#  Married against their will, kept in one room, and to one…

![“Married against their will, kept in one room, and to one occupation, how could a dramatist give a full or interesting or truthful account of them? Love was the only possible interpreter. The poet was forced to be passionate or bitter, unless indeed he chose to 'hate women', which meant more often…” quote by Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b85/virginia-woolf-49_bitterness_married-against-their-will-kept-in-one-r_3212179.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b85/virginia-woolf-49_bitterness_married-against-their-will-kept-in-one-r_3212179.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b85/virginia-woolf-49_bitterness_married-against-their-will-kept-in-one-r_3212179.jpg)

> ““Married against their will, kept in one room, and to one occupation, how could a dramatist give a full or interesting or truthful account of them? Love was the only possible interpreter. The poet was forced to be passionate or bitter, unless indeed he chose to 'hate women', which meant more often than not that he was unattractive to them.””

[Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/)

## About This Quote

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

Woolf critiques how societal constraints limit women's narratives, forcing them into narrow emotional roles.

**In simple terms:** Women’s stories are limited by oppression.

Key Takeaway

Recognize and expand diverse female voices.

Themes

gender oppression storytelling

Mood

reflective empathetic

Type

literary feminist

When to use this quote

- literary criticism
- gender studies
- creative writing workshops
- media representation

Key Concepts

Patriarchy identity emotional labor

Questions to Reflect On

- What narratives are silenced by these constraints?
- How can we empower authentic female expression?

A Different Perspective

The quote may overlook women's agency in shaping their narratives.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Bitterness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitterness/) [Dramatist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dramatist-431570/) [Dramatist Interesting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dramatist-interesting-6005716/) [Interpreter Poet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interpreter-poet-6005719/) [Misogyny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misogyny/) [Occupation Dramatist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/occupation-dramatist-6005718/) [Poet Forced](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poet-forced-6005717/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/)

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> [Anything may happen when womanhood has ceased to be a protected occupation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/anything-may-happen-when-womanhood-has-ceased-to-be-a-protected/)

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> [As long as she thinks of a man, nobody objects to a woman thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/as-long-as-she-thinks-of-a-man-nobody-objects-to-a-woman-thinking/)

[Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/)

> [Shakespeare was a dramatist of note who lived by writing things to quote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-c-bunner/shakespeare-was-a-dramatist-of-note-who-lived-by-writing-things-to/)

[H. C. Bunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-c-bunner/)

> [Shake was a dramatist of note; He lived by writing things to quote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-c-bunner/shake-was-a-dramatist-of-note-he-lived-by-writing-things-to-quote/)

[H. C. Bunner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-c-bunner/)

> [I'm a dramatist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-lagravenese/i-m-a-dramatist/)

[Richard LaGravenese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-lagravenese/)

> [The art of the dramatist is very like the art of the architect. A plot has to be built up just as a house…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brander-matthews/the-art-of-the-dramatist-is-very-like-the-art-of-the-architect-a-plot/)

[Brander Matthews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brander-matthews/)

> [The history of screenwriting - of what we do - is more than 100 years old. It's thousands of years old, going back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-logan/the-history-of-screenwriting-of-what-we-do-is-more-than-100-years-old/)

[John Logan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-logan/)

> [I can't really define myself as a dramatist or as an actor or as someone who is interested in music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lepage/i-can-t-really-define-myself-as-a-dramatist-or-as-an-actor-or-as/)

[Robert Lepage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lepage/)

> [“Holmes laughed. "Watson insists that I am the dramatist in real life," said he. "Some touch of the artist wells up within me, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/holmes-laughed-watson-insists-that-i-am-the-dramatist-in-real-life/)

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

> [I'm a dramatist. Dramatists have a right to look at history and interpret it the way they see it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-stone/i-m-a-dramatist-dramatists-have-a-right-to-look-at-history-and/)

[Oliver Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-stone/)

> [I am, it seems, an avant-garde dramatist. It would even seem obvious since I am present here at discussions on the avant-garde theatre. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eug-ne-ionesco/i-am-it-seems-an-avant-garde-dramatist-it-would-even-seem-obvious/)

[Eugene Ionesco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eug-ne-ionesco/)

> [I had never thought of myself as a dramatist, and, for really good technical results, the thought came too late: a man of letters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-housman/i-had-never-thought-of-myself-as-a-dramatist-and-for-really-good/)

[Laurence Housman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-housman/)

## More by Virginia Woolf

> [Fatigue is the safest sleeping draught.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/fatigue-is-the-safest-sleeping-draught/)

[Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/)

> [“The train slows and lengthens, as we approach London, the centre, and my heart draws out too, in fear, in exaltation. I am about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/the-train-slows-and-lengthens-as-we-approach-london-the-centre-and-my/)

[Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/)

> [“Across the broad continent of a woman's life falls the shadow of a sword. On one side all is correct, definite, orderly; the paths…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/across-the-broad-continent-of-a-woman-s-life-falls-the-shadow-of-a/)

[Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/)

> [“Other worshipful objects were content with worship; men, women, God, all let one kneel prostrate; but this form, were it only the shape of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/other-worshipful-objects-were-content-with-worship-men-women-god-all/)

[Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/)

> [Why does Samuel Butler say, 'Wise men never say what they think of women'? Wise men never say anything else apparently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/why-does-samuel-butler-say-wise-men-never-say-what-they-think-of/)

[Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/)

> [“Sometimes he woke with a brain like lead; at others it was as if a thousand wax tapers were alight and people were throwing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/sometimes-he-woke-with-a-brain-like-lead-at-others-it-was-as-if-a/)

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> [The extraordinary woman depends on the ordinary woman. It is only when we know what were the conditions of the average woman's life -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/the-extraordinary-woman-depends-on-the-ordinary-woman-it-is-only-when/)

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> [A veil of insanity everywhere: Oh why I was born in this age? It is a terrible age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/a-veil-of-insanity-everywhere-oh-why-i-was-born-in-this-age-it-is-a/)

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> [“What a vast fertility of pleasure books hold for me! (...) I think I could happily live here & read forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/what-a-vast-fertility-of-pleasure-books-hold-for-me-i-think-i-could/)

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> [“She would not say of anyone in the world now that they were this or were that. She felt very young; at the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/she-would-not-say-of-anyone-in-the-world-now-that-they-were-this-or/)

[Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/)

[Explore all 1,872 Virginia Woolf quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/)

## More Bitterness quotes

> [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/)

[Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/)

> [If Japanese tea 'stands,' it acquires a coarse bitterness and an unwholesome astringency. Milk and sugar are not used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-bird/if-japanese-tea-stands-it-acquires-a-coarse-bitterness-and-an/)

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> [Stronger than alcohol, vaster than poetry, Ferment the freckled red bitterness of love!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-rimbaud/stronger-than-alcohol-vaster-than-poetry-ferment-the-freckled-red/)

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[Nina LaCour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-lacour/)

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[Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/)

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