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Perhaps It Is Possible To Discover More In Silence Than In Speech. Or Perhaps It Is Only That Those Who Are Silent Among Us Learn To Listen.
-Alice Hoffman
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Perhaps It Is Possible

Alice Hoffman
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Perhaps It Is Possible To Discover More In Silence Than In Speech. Or Perhaps It Is Only That Those Who Are Silent Among Us Learn To Listen.

Understanding the Quote: "perhaps it is possible to discover more in silence than in speech...."

This quote by Alice Hoffman reflects deeply on the theme of silence. It connects to the universal human journey of purpose, motivation, and reflection. Often categorized under Silence, Speech, Silent, the quote offers insight, emotional clarity, and intellectual inspiration to readers worldwide.

Whether you’re a student exploring new ideas, a leader trying to motivate your team, or someone seeking direction in life — this quote provides value. It resonates because it’s more than words — it’s a bridge between experience and wisdom. It shows how Alice Hoffman interprets life's core challenges and triumphs.

Lessons From the Quote

This quote teaches resilience and focus. It reminds readers that no matter where they stand in life, reflection and self-awareness lead to growth. Each word has meaning, and when studied, it becomes clear how impactful thoughtful language can be.

About Alice Hoffman

Alice Hoffman is celebrated for insightful thoughts on silence and speech. Their legacy lives on through writings that guide, comfort, and inspire. Discover more on their profile page.

Actionable Takeaways

  • Reflect on how this quote applies to your current life path.
  • Share the message with someone who needs inspiration.
  • Write your thoughts on this quote in a journal or blog post.
  • Use it as a daily affirmation or reminder.

Closing Thoughts

Quotes like this endure because they capture universal truths. They comfort us in solitude and empower us in groups. Carry this quote forward — live by its wisdom, share its message, and keep its essence alive.

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Topic
Silence
Speech
Silent
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It Was The Sort Of Beauty You Feel So Deeply It Becomes Contagious And Somehow Makes You Feel Beautiful Too.
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When I Walk, I Walk With You. Where I Go, You're With Me Always.
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When I Looked At Her, She Appeared To Be A Different Person From The One I'd Known... She Had Rewritten Everything, Our History Together, Our Friendship. Now I Was The Girl Who'd Stolen Andres; The Girl Who'd Lied To Her About Who I Was. Therefore, She Owned Me Nothing.
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I Feel As If When You Love A Book It Becomes A Part Of You Whether You Have It On Your Shelves Or Not.
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How Could I Have Been So Stupid To Ignore Everything I’d Had In My Life? The Color Red Alone Was Worth Kingdoms.
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I Was Beginning To Understand.my Grandmother's Love Was Cold Because She Was Afraid Of Things;that Was Why Everything Had To Be Perfect.
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...he Had A Way Of Taking Your Hand Which Made It Clear He'd Have To Be The One To Let Go." From Alice Hoffman's "local Girls", Pg.102.
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In "faithful," Ray Bradbury Is Discussed A Lot. The Characters Read "the Illustrated Man."
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I Didn’t Want To Be Prideful Anymore. I Wanted To Be As Hard As And Brittle As The Stones I Carted Into The Woods. Stones That Could Not Feel Or Cry Or See. I Wished Not To Feel Anything At All. In No Time, What I Wished For, I Became.
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Among Men And Women, Those In Love Do Not Always Announce Themselves With Declarations And Vows. But They Are The Ones Who Weep When You're Gone. Who Miss You Every Single Night, Especially When The Sky Is So Deep And Beautiful, And The Ground So Very Cold.
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Jill Told Me That When You're Really In Love, You Know Right Away. I'm Not Exactly Sure How This Happens. Is It Like A Flash Of Lightning? Like An Angel Tapping You On The Shoulder? Or Is It Similar To Choosing A Puppy? You Think You're Picking The Cutest One, But Really You Wind Up Going Home With The One Who Keeps Insisting On Climbing Into Your Lap.
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My Grandmother Told Me Once That When You Lose Somebody You Think You've Lost The Whole World As Well, But That's Not The Way Things Turn Out In The End. Eventually, You Pick Yourself Up And Look Out The Window, And Once You Do You See Everything That Was There Before The World Ended Is Out There Still. There Are The Same Apple Trees And The Same Songbirds, And Over Our Heads, The Very Same Sky That Shines Like Heaven, So Far Above Us We Can Never Hope To Reach Such Heights.
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Unfinished Business Always Comes Back To Haunt You, And A Man Who Swears He'll Love You Forever Isn't Finished With You Until He's Done.
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The Nature Of Love Had Totally Escaped Her Until Now. She Had Thought That If You Lost It, You Could Never Get It Back, Like A Stone Thrown Down A Well. But It Was Like The Water At The Bottom Of The Well, There When You Can't Even See It, Shifting In The Dark.
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Some Things, However, Are True No Matter How Hard You Might Try To Block Them Out, And A Lie Is Always A Lie, No Matter How Prettily Told. Some Doors, Once They're Opened, Can Never Be Closed Again, Just As Some Trust, Once It's Been Lost, Can Never Be Won Back.
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The Sisters Were Glad To Be Together. They Had The Easy Sort Of Relationship Where They Didn't Have To Speak To Be Understood.
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I Love Science Fiction But Especially His Because It's So Humane.
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Remember What I've Told You. Remember Me.
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I'm At The Point Where Going Forward Is Easier Than Going Back.
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My Mother's Blood That Would Last Forever After. The Blood Of My Brother, My Grandfather, My Father.
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But Most Important Of All, She Explained That It Was All Right To Say 'no. I Disagree.' That Was A Gift. I Understood It Was Power. The Power To Think My Own Thoughts. The Power To Believe In Myself.
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Thinking
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What Else Is There To Write About Than Love And Loss?
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Love Was Like Rain: It Turned Into Ice, Or It Disappeared. Now You Saw It, Now You Couldn't Find It No Matter How Hard You Might Search. Love Evaporated; Obsession Was Realer; It Hurt, Like A Pin In Your Bottom, A Stone In Your Shoe. It Didn't Go Away In The Blink Of An Eye. A Morning Phone Call Filled With Regret. A Letter That Said, Dear You, Good-bye From Me. Obsession Tasted Like Something Familiar. Something You'd Known Your Whole Life. It Settled And Lurked; It Stayed With You.
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People Hide Their Truest Nature. I Understood That; I Even Applauded It. What Sort Of World Would It Be If People Bled All Over The Sidewalks, If They Wept Under Trees, Smacked Whomever They Despised, Kissed Strangers, Revealed Themselves?
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Sorrow
World
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Boys
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Night
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Pride
Funny Things
Treasure
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Kids
Every Time I Finish A Book, I Forget Everything I Learned Writing It - The Information Just Disappears Out Of My Head
Book
Writing
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Looks
Goes On
I Never Plot Out My Novels In Terms Of The Tone Of The Book. Hopefully, Once A Story Is Begun It Reveals Itself
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Stories
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Character
Magic
After A While, The Characters I'm Writing Begin To Feel Real To Me. That's When I Know I'm Heading In The Right Direction
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Writing
Character
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Ocean
Wind
Sea
Unrequited Love Is So Boring. Weeping Under A Blue-black Sky Is For Suckers Or Maniacs.
Unrequited Love
Love Is
Sky
Women Know Things That Men Will Never Know. We Keep The Best Secrets. We Tell The Best Stories.
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Secret
Stories
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Lying
Down And
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Air
Yellow
September
We Stood And Watched As God Abandoned Us, And Then We Did The Best We Could.
Abandoned
I Read Everything Of Ray Bradbury When I Was 12 Or 13, And I Think That's The Most Effective Time To Read Bradbury. He Built Such A Moral World, Where You Have To Make Decisions And Grow Up.
Growing Up
Thinking
Decision
I Read Betty Smith's "a Tree Grows In Brooklyn," All Of Shirley Jackson's Books, Which I Loved.
Book
Tree
Brooklyn
People Want To Ignore What They Can't Understand. They're Looking For Logic At Any Cost.
People
Cost
Want
What You Dream, You Can Grow. Someone Told Me That, But I Didn't Believe It. I Said I Had Nothing And That People With Nothing Are Unable To Dream. But I Was Wrong.
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Believe
People
Maybe Some Love Was Guaranteed. Maybe It Fit Inside You And Around You Like Skin And Bones.
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Skin And Bones
Bones
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Adults
Knows
I Never Even Believed In Happiness. I Didn't Think It Existed. Now Look At Me. I'm Ready To Believe In Just About Anything.
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Thinking
Looks
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War
Men
Desire
Are People Drawn To Each Other Because Of The Stories They Carry Inside? At The Library I Couldn’t Help But Notice Which Patrons Checked Out The Same Books. They Appeared To Have Nothing In Common, But Who Could Tell What A Person Was Truly Made Of? The Unknown, The Riddle, The Deepest Truth. I Noticed Them All: The Ones Who’d Lost Their Way, The Ones Who’d Lived Their Lives In Ashes, The Ones Who Had To Prove Themselves, The Ones Who, Like Me, Had Lost The Ability To Feel.
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He Was In Love, And People In That Condition Did Stupid, Unfathomable Things. They Were All Flawed, Every Single One.
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People
Flawed
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Ridiculous
Arguing
That's Why There Are Ten Gates To Pass Through Before You Reach The Garden. If Life Were Easy There Would Be One Gate. There Would Be No Gates At All.
Garden
Would Be
Easy
Love Ambushed You, It Lay In Wait, Dormant For Days Or Years. It Was The Red Thread, The Peach Stone, The Kiss, The Forgiveness. It Came After You, It Escaped You, It Was Invisible, It Was Everything.
Kissing
Years
Waiting
Certain Things Need Not Be Said, And There’s Nothing, Not A Whisper, Prayer, Not A Sacrifice, Not A Payment Of Any Price, That Would Change What’s About To Happen.
Prayer
Sacrifice
Needs
Holding A Tear Back Makes Them Drain Upward, Higher And Higher, Until One Day Your Head Just Explodes And You're Left With A Stub Of A Neck And Nothing More.
Tears
One Day
Necks
This Was What It Meant To Be Human, To Know That Time Moved And All Things Changed.
Changed
Humans
All Things
I Think We Are Bound To, And By, Nature. We May Want To Deny This Connection And Try To Believe We Control The External World, But Every Time There's A Snowstorm Or Drought, We Know Our Fate Is Tied To The World Around Us
Believe
Fate
Thinking
Our House Was Littered With Books- In The Kitchen, Under The Beds, Stuck Between The Couch Pillows--far Too Many For Her The Ever Finish. I Suppose I Thought If My Grandmother Kept Up Her Interests, She Wouldn't Die; She'd Have To Stay Around To Finish The Books She Was So Fond Of. "i've Got To Get To The Bottom Of This One," She'd Say, As If A Book Were No Different From A Pond Or A Lake. I Thought She'd Go On Reading Forever But It Didn't Work Out That Way.
Book
Reading
Grandmother
The Only People Out At This Hour Were Ones Who Couldn't Sleep,those Haunted By One Thing Or Another:love Thwarted, Love Lost, Love Thrown Away. They Were The Sort Of People Who Didn't Want To Be Noticed, Who Wanted To Slip Through Shadows, Be Alone With Their Despair.
Lost Love
Sleep
People
Here Is The Riddle Of Love: Everything It Gives To You, It Takes Away.
Giving
Riddle
Another World Must Surely Exist Somewhere One Where She Would Be Known In Some Deep Way That Was Far Beyond Words.
Would Be
World
Way
Others Said May Was Best, That Sweet Green Time When Lilacs Bloomed And Gardens Along Main Street Were Filled With Sugary Pink Peonies And Dutch Tulips.
Sweet
Garden
May
I Thought That Love Was A River, Endless And Deep. I Thought It Merely Happened, Washing Over You Like Water. It Was Nothing To Search For, Nothing To Force. I Didn't Understand That Even When We Can't Control Our Fate, We Alone Have The Last Say In Matters Of The Heart. We Can Give It Freely, Even In The Worst Of Times, Even When It Isn't Returned.
Heart
Fate
Rivers
I Wrote To Find Beauty And Purpose, To Know That Love Is Possible And Lasting And Real.... Once I Got To My Desk, Once I Started Writing, I Still Believed Anything Was Possible.
Inspirational
Real
Writing
Most People Know That Ray Bradbury Is One Of My Favorite Authors.
People
Rays
My Favorite
No One Knows How To Write A Novel Until It's Been Written
Writing
Novel
Know How
It's Not Finding What's Lost, It's Understanding What You've Found.
Understanding
Lost
Found
Emily Brontë's "wuthering Heights" Was Extremely Important To Me.
Important
Height
Emily
Some Things, When They Change, Never Do Return To The Way They Once Were. Butterflies For Instance, And Women Who've Been In Love With The Wrong Man Too Often.
Butterfly
Men
Way
Some Fates Are Guaranteed, No Matter Who Tries To Intervene.
Fate
Trying
Matter
Good Fortune Can Take Forever To Get To You, But As It Turns Out, Sorrow Is As Quick As A Shot.
Forever
Sorrow
Fortune
A Red Map Isn't Easy To Follow. Any Document Made Of Blood And Bones Is Tricky. Wrong Turns Are Easily Made, And There Are Often Piles Of Stones In The Road. A Person Has To Disregard Time And Sorrow And All The Damage Done. If You Follow, If You Dare, The Thread Always Leads To Whomever Or Whatever You've Forgotten.
Blood
Sorrow
Done
I Think Love Is A Huge Factor In Fiction And In Real Life. Is There A Risk? Always. In Fiction And In Life
Real
Love Is
Thinking
Are People Drawn To Each Other Because Of The Stories They Carry Inside?
People
Stories
Crying Wasn't Like Riding A Bike. Give It Up, And You Quickly Forget How It's Done.
Giving
Riding
Done
Burn Me. Drown Me. Tell Me Lies. I Will Still Be Who I Am.
Life
Lying
Who I Am
The Best Way To Die Is When Your Living
Way
Best Way
Dies
You Can Be Betrayed In Your Sleep. The Whole World Can Tilt While You're Dreaming Of Butterflies.
Dream
Butterfly
Sleep
Only Her Death Could Prove Her Innocence; A Circle Of Impossible, Deathly Judgement.
Circles
Judgement
Innocence
The Original Fairy Tale Was About The Youngest Sister Going Into A Room In The Castle And Finding All The Bodies Of The Wives That Came Before Her - She Is Confronted With Truth, Thinking About How Often We Think We Know People And We Really Don't.
Thinking
People
Wife
The Weak Are Cruel. The Strong Have No Need To Be.
Strong
Needs
Weak
What Was A Rose But The Living Proof Of Desire, The Single Best Evidence Of Human Longing And Earthly Devotion. But Desire Could Be Twisted,after All, And Jealousy Was The Name Of The Rose That Did Well In Arid Souls.
Names
Rose
Soul
Still, I Couldn't Help But Wonder If It Was A Mistake For People Like Us To Be Tied To A Place. If We Weren't Meant To Be Ready And Willing To Wander. If Everything We Needed Was Contained In Who We Were. And What We Remember.
Mistake
People
Helping
Love Is Worth The Sum Of Itself, And Nothing More.
Love Is
Do You Ever Just Put Your Arms Out And Just Spin And Spin And Spin? Well, That's What Love Is Like; Everything Inside Of You Tells You To Stop Before You Fall, But For Some Reason You Just Keep Going.
Fall
Love Is
Arms
When All Is Said And Done, The Weather And Love Are The Two Elements About Which One Can Never Be Sure.
Love
Weather
Two
I Never See A Novel As A Film While I'm Writing It. Mostly Because Novels And Films Are So Different, And I'm Such An Internal Novelist
Writing
Novelists
Different
I Love Fairy Tales And Feel Very Affected By Them.
Fairy Tale
Tales
Feels
She Can Feel His Blood, Just Beneath His Skin; When He Breathes, The Air Fills With Smoke. He's Like A Dragon, Ancient And Fearless.
Air
Dragons
Blood
You Cannot Dispute The Ridiculous. You Cannot Argue Reasonably With Evil.
Evil
Ridiculous
Arguing
What People Read Revealed So Much About Them That She Considered Our Card Catalog A Treasure House Of Privileged Secrets; Each Card Contained The Map Of An Individual’s Soul.
People
House
Soul
Feel Lucky For What You Have When You Have It. Isn't That The Point? Happily Ever After Doesn't Mean Happy Forever. The Ever After, What Precisely Was That? Your Dreams, Your Life, Your Death, Your Everything. Was It The Blank Space That Went On Without Us? The Forever After We Were Gone?
Dream
Mean
Space
I Wonder How A Lioness Will Manage In A Dovecote. Can You Put Away Your Teeth And Claws?
Teeth
Lioness
Wonder
I'm Much Faster Now. When You Only Have A Certain Amount Of Time To Write, After A While You Learn To Use Your Time Well Or You Stop Writing
Writing
Use
Faster
Abra Demadrigal Didn't Look Young Enough To Be My Sister Anymore. Her Sorrow Weighed Her Down And Aged Her. She Was Still Beautiful, But She Looked Very Far Away. No Wonder Our People Had Raven Eyes, So Distant, So Sad. No Matter How Wise She Was, My Mother Looked Like A Woman Who Hadn't Truely Believed How Much Evil There Was In Our World. Not Until This Moment.
Beautiful
Wise
Mother
I Saw The End Of His Life Right There In That Single Moment. His Pride, His Decency, His Secrets, His Death.
Pride
Secret
Saws
It Doesn't Matter What People Tell You. It Doesn't Matter What They Might Say. Sometimes You Have To Leave Home. Sometimes, Running Away Means You're Headed In The Exact Right Direction.
Running
Home
Mean
Hearts Were Made For Being Broken. There's Really No Way Around It If You Want To Be A Human Being.
Heart
Broken
Want
My Grandmother Was Overwhelmed By What Was Happening To Us. She Ahd Moved Back Into The Past Because The Here And The Now Was Too Terrible.
Grandmother
Past
Overwhelmed
Sometimes Words Drew Blood, They Cut Your Tongue, They Made You Know Things You Couldn't Unknow.
Cutting
Blood
Tongue
It Was As If Hope Had Appeared Out Of Nowhere To Settle Beside Her And It Wasn't Going Anywhere, It Wasn't Going To Desert Her Now.
Desert
Settling
Ifs
Every Problem Has A Solution, Although It May Not Be The Outcome That Was Originally Hoped For Or Expected.
Inspirational
Life
May
He Fell In Love With The Way She Closed Her Eyes, Long Before He Fell In Love With Her.
Eye
Long
Way
The Voice That Arises Out Of The Silence Is Something No One Can Imagine Until It Is Heard. It Roars When It Speaks, It Lies To You And Convinces You, It Steals From You And Leaves You Without A Single Word Of Comfort.
Lying
Voice
Silence
You Don't Fight For Peace Sister,' Nahara Told Me, 'you Embrace It.
Fighting
Embrace
Jill And I Have Known Each Other Our Whole Lives. One House Separates Our Houses But We Act As If It Doesn't Exist. We Met Before We Were Born And We'll Probably Still Know Each Other After We Die. At Least, That's The Way We're Planning It.
House
Way
Planning
I Can't Really Work On More Than One Thing At A Time
One Thing At A Time
One Thing
I Can
She Knows Where She's Going, And What She Has To Do. She Could, After All, Find Her Way To Route 95 South Blindfolded. She Could Do It In The Dark, In Fair Weather Or Foul; She Can Do It Even When It Seems She Will Run Out Of Gas. It Doesn't Matter What People Tell You. It Doesn't Matter What They Might Say. Sometimes You Have To Leave Home. Sometimes, Running Away Means You're Headed In The Exact Right Direction.
Running
Home
Mean
It Wasn't Right To Have Someone Charge Into You Your World Without Even Asking, Acting As If You Were Nothing More Than An Egg To Be Flipped And Flopped, Sunny-side Up Or Scrambled, Depending On The Whims On Whoever Ran Your Life..._
Eggs
Acting
Asking
My Sorrow Is I Used To Read All The Time And Now, As A Writer, I Don't Have The Time To Read.
Sorrow
Used
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