On comparing writing to the freedoms that Turkish women have found in another language in “Elif Shafak: ‘I thought the British were calm about politics. Not any longer’” in The Guardian (2019 Sep 16)
“
I have met lots of women who have grown up in Turkey who cannot bring themselves to swear in Turkish. But in English they use the F-word all the time. Writing is like that for me.
— Elif Shafak
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "I have met lots of women who have grown up in Turkey who cannot bring themselves to swear in Turkish. But in English they use the F-word all the time. Writing is like that for me." in the context of "On comparing writing to the freedoms that Turkish women have found in another language in “Elif Shafak: ‘I thought the British were calm about politics. Not any longer’” in The Guardian (2019 Sep 16)" to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "Elif Shafak" (Quotes)
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
About Elif Shafak
Elif Shafak (born October 25, 1971) is a Turkish-British novelist, essayist, academic, public speaker and women's rights activist.
About Elif Shafak
Elif Shafak (born October 25, 1971) is a Turkish-British novelist, essayist, academic, public speaker and women's rights activist.
View all quotes →