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Meaning
The speaker is saying that human beings are not as separate from nature as they imagine. Our basic instincts and needs are still animal, even when we hide them behind social behavior and self-control. The quote suggests that much of human life is driven by impulses we disguise as something more refined.
When It Was Said
1990
Who It Was Said To
Not documented yet.
Historical Context
Not documented yet.
Source
Animal Dreams, page 118.
Original Language & Translation
Originally said in English.
Did They Really Say It?
Listed with a cited source on Wikiquote: Animal Dreams, page 118.
Did You Know?
Wikiquote lists this quote with a source note: Animal Dreams, page 118.
About Barbara Kingsolver
American novelist, essayist, and poet
Barbara Kingsolver is an American novelist, essayist, and poet. She is known for fiction and nonfiction that examine how people live within their communities and environments, with attention to social justice and biodiversity. Her best-known books include The Poisonwood Bible, about a missionary family in the Congo, and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, a nonfiction account of her family’s effort to eat locally. In 2023, she won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for Demon Copperhead.
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READ THE SOURCE
Books by Barbara Kingsolver
The Poisonwood Bible
2003
The lacuna
2009
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
2007
The Bean Trees
1998
Prodigal Summer Display
2001