Madonna Ciccone Quotes

"Poor is the man whose pleasures depend on the permission of another."

"Be strong, believe in freedom and in God, love yourself, understand your sexuality, have a sense of humor, masturbate, don't judge people by their religion, color or sexual habits, love life and your family."

"I stand for freedom of expression, doing what you believe in, and going after your dreams."

"I am my own experiment. I am my own work of art."

"I refuse to act the way someone expects me to."

"I think my biggest flaw is my insecurity. I'm terribly insecure. I'm plagued with insecurities 24/7."

"I am the result of the good choices I've made and the bad choices."

"I have the same goal I've had ever since I was a girl: I want to rule the world."

"I like to change. A new lamp, a piece of art, can transform a room."

"One thing I've learned is that I'm not the owner of my talent; I'm the manager of it."

"I like to think I'm a role model for women. But I also don't like to just limit it to women. I like to think I'm a role model for human beings in general."

"Things were a lot simpler in Detroit. I didn't care about anything but boyfriends."

"I'm tough, ambitious, and I know exactly what I want."

"I've never really lived a conventional life, so I think it's quite foolish for me or anyone else to start thinking that I am going to start making conventional choices."

"My physical transformations - like changing my hair - are usually a reflection of what's inspiring me at the moment."

"I always felt like I was a freak when I was growing up and that there was something wrong with me because I couldn't fit in anywhere."

"If I can't be daring in my work or the way I live my life, then I don't really see the point of being on this planet."

"My father was very strong. I don't agree with a lot of the ways he brought me up. I don't agree with a lot of his values, but he did have a lot of integrity, and if he told us not to do something, he didn't do it either."

"With all the chaos, pain and suffering in the world, the fact that my adoption of a child from who was living in an orphanage, you know, was the number one story for a week in the world. To me, that says more about our inability to focus on the real problems."

"I know I'm not the greatest singer or dancer, but that doesn't interest me. I'm interested in being provocative and pushing people's buttons."

"I think that everyone should get married at least once, so you can see what a silly, outdated institution it is."

"Catholicism is not a soothing religion. It's a painful religion. We're all gluttons for punishment."

"If I was a girl again, I would like to be like my fans, I would like to be like Madonna."

"In England especially, I've found that if you bring up King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson at a dinner party or a social gathering, it's like throwing a Molotov cocktail into the room."

"I want to be like Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, and John Lennon... but I want to stay alive."

"We like to put people on a pedestal, give them one character trait, and if they step outside of that shrinelike area that we blocked out for them, then we will punish them."

"The thing about dancing - what it taught me all those years - is it gives you an amazing sense of discipline in forcing yourself to do things that you know are good for you but you don't really want to do."

"I think a lot of people have a problem with the fact that I've adopted an African child, a child who has a different color skin than I do."

"I didn't have many friends; I might not have had any friends. But it all turned out good in the end, because when you aren't popular and you don't have a social life, it gives you more time to focus on your future."

"On the one hand, the idea of marriage and the sort of traditional family life repulses me. But on the other hand, I long for it, you know what I mean? I'm constantly in conflict with things. And it is because of my past and my upbringing and the journey that I've been on."