--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You don't understand their mentality…" description: "\"“You don't understand their mentality. They won't accept your resignation because they don't think you have the right to quit. They are the ones who de..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/azar-nafisi-2001_mentality_you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-the_1511085.jpg" --- # You don't understand their mentality. They won't accept… ![“You don't understand their mentality. They won't accept your resignation because they don't think you have the right to quit. They are the ones who decide how long you should stay and when you should be dispensed with. More than anything else, it was this arbitrariness that had become unbearable.” quote by Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/azar-nafisi-2001_mentality_you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-the_1511085.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/azar-nafisi-2001_mentality_you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-the_1511085.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/azar-nafisi-2001_mentality_you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-the_1511085.jpg) > ““You don't understand their mentality. They won't accept your resignation because they don't think you have the right to quit. They are the ones who decide how long you should stay and when you should be dispensed with. More than anything else, it was this arbitrariness that had become unbearable.”” [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critiques oppressive systems that deny individuals the right to quit, highlighting arbitrary control. **In simple terms:** Oppressive control over personal agency. Key Takeaway Advocate for autonomy and fairness. Themes freedom authority injustice Mood challenging serious Type political philosophical When to use this quote - workplace - authoritarian regimes - personal decisions Key Concepts political theory human rights Questions to Reflect On - What avenues exist to challenge such authority? - How can individuals retain agency? A Different Perspective Change may be slow and risky. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accept Resignation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accept-resignation-1683776/) [Mentality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mentality/) [Quit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quit/) [Resignation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resignation/) [Understand Mentality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understand-mentality-3780698/) ## Related quotes > [“I sent the club a wire stating, PLEASE ACCEPT MY RESIGNATION. I DON'T WANT TO BELONG TO ANY CLUB THAT WILL ACCEPT ME AS…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/i-sent-the-club-a-wire-stating-please-accept-my-resignation-i-don-t/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [Please accept my resignation. I don't care to belong to any club that will have me as a member.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/please-accept-my-resignation-i-don-t-care-to-belong-to-any-club-that/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [I understand the mentality of a jock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-centineo/i-understand-the-mentality-of-a-jock/) [Noah Centineo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-centineo/) > [Team sports are very important for shaping personalities. It's important that kids understand the mentality behind playing team sports and playing for one another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-o-driscoll/team-sports-are-very-important-for-shaping-personalities-it-s/) [Brian O'Driscoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-o-driscoll/) > [The mind which renounces, once and for ever, a futile hope, has its compensation in ever-growing calm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gissing/the-mind-which-renounces-once-and-for-ever-a-futile-hope-has-its/) [George Gissing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gissing/) > [We all have to lead our own life, and we only have the one life, and the only people who can live life not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javier-mar-as/we-all-have-to-lead-our-own-life-and-we-only-have-the-one-life-and/) [Javier Marías](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javier-mar-as/) > [“for I have often observed that resignation is never so perfect as when the blessing denied begins to lose somewhat of its value is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/for-i-have-often-observed-that-resignation-is-never-so-perfect-as/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [A calm despair, without angry convulsions or reproaches directed at heaven, is the essence of wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-vigny/a-calm-despair-without-angry-convulsions-or-reproaches-directed-at/) [Alfred de Vigny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-vigny/) > [Pain and pleasure, good and evil, come to us from unexpected sources. It is not there where we have gathered up our brightest hopes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/pain-and-pleasure-good-and-evil-come-to-us-from-unexpected-sources-it/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [pg.9 "In my heart there's a peaceful anguish, and my calm is made of resignation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/pg-9-in-my-heart-there-s-a-peaceful-anguish-and-my-calm-is-made-of/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation. From the desperate city you go into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-mass-of-men-lead-lives-of-quiet-desperation-what-is-called/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The pious farmer, who ne'er misses pray'rs, With patience suffers unexpected rain; He blesses Heav'n for what its bounty spares, And sees, resign'd, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wortley-montagu/the-pious-farmer-who-ne-er-misses-pray-rs-with-patience-suffers/) [Mary Wortley Montagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wortley-montagu/) > [On March 12, 2004, acting attorney general James B. Comey and the Justice Department's top leadership reached the brink of resignation over electronic surveillance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/on-march-12-2004-acting-attorney-general-james-b-comey-and-the/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [Poor David Hume is dying fast, but with more real cheerfulness and good humor and with more real resignation to the necessary course of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/poor-david-hume-is-dying-fast-but-with-more-real-cheerfulness-and/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) ## More by Azar Nafisi > [“A novel is not an allegory...it is a sensual experience of another world. If you don't enter that world, hold your breath with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/a-novel-is-not-an-allegory-it-is-a-sensual-experience-of-another/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“I have a recurring fantasy that one more article has been added to the Bill of Rights: the right to free access to imagination.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/i-have-a-recurring-fantasy-that-one-more-article-has-been-added-to/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“Hope for some means its loss for others; when the hopeless regain some hope, those in power--the ones who had taken it away--become afraid,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/hope-for-some-means-its-loss-for-others-when-the-hopeless-regain-some/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [Imagine you are walking down a leafy path…The sun is receding, and you are walking alone, caressed by the breezy light of the late…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/imagine-you-are-walking-down-a-leafy-path-the-sun-is-receding-and-you/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [If I turned towards books, it was because they were the only sanctuary I knew, one I needed in order to survive, to protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/if-i-turned-towards-books-it-was-because-they-were-the-only-sanctuary/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [ “Such an act \[testifying for an accused prison guard of the Shah's regime\] can only be accomplished by someone who is engrossed in literature,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/such-an-act-testifying-for-an-accused-prison-guard-of-the-shah-s/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [It is only through literature that one can put oneself in someone else’s shoes and understand the other’s different and contradictory sides and refrain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/it-is-only-through-literature-that-one-can-put-oneself-in-someone/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“That first day I asked my students what they thought fiction should accomplish, why one should bother to read fiction at all. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/that-first-day-i-asked-my-students-what-they-thought-fiction-should/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“you cannot just be stubborn against something, you need to be stubborn for something as well”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/you-cannot-just-be-stubborn-against-something-you-need-to-be-stubborn/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [Do not, under any circumstances, belittle a work of fiction by trying to turn it into a carbon copy of real life; what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/do-not-under-any-circumstances-belittle-a-work-of-fiction-by-trying/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [Visa for Avalon is a testament to the power of fiction. It illuminates the truth at the heart of what is commonly called reality.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/visa-for-avalon-is-a-testament-to-the-power-of-fiction-it-illuminates/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“You ask me what it means to be irrelevant? The feeling is akin to visiting your old house as a wandering ghost with unfinished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/you-ask-me-what-it-means-to-be-irrelevant-the-feeling-is-akin-to/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“I explained that most great works of the imagination were meant to make you feel like a stranger in your own home. The best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/i-explained-that-most-great-works-of-the-imagination-were-meant-to/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“We envy people like you, and we want to be you; we can't, so we destroy you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/we-envy-people-like-you-and-we-want-to-be-you-we-can-t-so-we-destroy/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“..."readers were born free and ought to remain free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/readers-were-born-free-and-ought-to-remain-free/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) [Explore all 182 Azar Nafisi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) ## More Mentality quotes > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [Nothing more guarantees the erosion of character than getting something for nothing. In the liberal welfare state, one develops an entitlement mentality. And the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/nothing-more-guarantees-the-erosion-of-character-than-getting/) [Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/) > [California is a place in which a boom mentality and a sense of Chekhovian loss meet in uneasy suspension.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/california-is-a-place-in-which-a-boom-mentality-and-a-sense-of/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [“Fun is not an activity, it is a state of mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/fun-is-not-an-activity-it-is-a-state-of-mind/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [When a new idea comes our way, we must put it on our mental scales and weigh it carefully before deciding its value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/when-a-new-idea-comes-our-way-we-must-put-it-on-our-mental-scales-and/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [“It's just that I take riddling seriously. I was taught that the ability to solve them indicates a sane and rational mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/it-s-just-that-i-take-riddling-seriously-i-was-taught-that-the/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [I think that, honestly, people's censorship issues are personal but I disagree with most of those personal choices that I see others make. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-rogen/i-think-that-honestly-people-s-censorship-issues-are-personal-but-i/) [Seth Rogen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-rogen/) > [“The evolution of human mentality has put us all in vitro now, behind the glass wall of our own ingenuity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/the-evolution-of-human-mentality-has-put-us-all-in-vitro-now-behind/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [I want to be in a winning mentality organization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-schroder/i-want-to-be-in-a-winning-mentality-organization/) [Dennis Schroder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-schroder/) > [My motto is I'm going to go out and work every day no matter who is here. It's a mentality that I always play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deandre-hopkins/my-motto-is-i-m-going-to-go-out-and-work-every-day-no-matter-who-is/) [DeAndre Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deandre-hopkins/) > [If God was the owner, I was the manager. I needed to adopt a steward's mentality toward the assets He had entrusted - not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-alcorn/if-god-was-the-owner-i-was-the-manager-i-needed-to-adopt-a-steward-s/) [Randy Alcorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-alcorn/) > [“Try to think of it as though we are rewriting history––the first time this experience occurred you and I never kissed in this Dream…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-caligiuri/try-to-think-of-it-as-though-we-are-rewriting-history-the-first-time/) [Ross Caligiuri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-caligiuri/) > [If you have the mentality that Jon Jones has when he steps into the cage, no one will beat you on the mat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-anderson/if-you-have-the-mentality-that-jon-jones-has-when-he-steps-into-the/) [Corey Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-anderson/) > [If you look at the brands that I like, there are brands I like because of the clothes; then, there are brands I like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/if-you-look-at-the-brands-that-i-like-there-are-brands-i-like-because/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [But I believe we have a higher level of mentality within us, but we have to use the power in the right way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-turner/but-i-believe-we-have-a-higher-level-of-mentality-within-us-but-we/) [Tina Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-turner/) [Browse all 1,302 Mentality quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mentality/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“You don't understand their mentality. They won't accept your resignation because they don't think you have the right to quit. They are the ones who decide how long you should stay and when you should be dispensed with. More than anything else, it was this arbitrariness that had become unbearable.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Azar Nafisi" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-they-won-t-accept-your/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Mentality" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-they-won-t-accept-your/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/azar-nafisi-2001_mentality_you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-the_1511085.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/azar-nafisi-2001_mentality_you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-the_1511085.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/azar-nafisi-2001_mentality_you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-the_1511085.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You don't understand their mentality. They won't accept your resignation because they don't think you have…” — Azar Nafisi", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Azar Nafisi", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“You don't understand their mentality. They...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-they-won-t-accept-your/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/you-don-t-understand-their-mentality-they-won-t-accept-your/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```