---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We have defied the day as it was set out…"
description: "\"“We have defied the day as it was set out for us.”\" — David Levithan"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a70/david-levithan-67_days_we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out_2839429.jpg"
---

#  We have defied the day as it was set out for us.

![“We have defied the day as it was set out for us.” quote by David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a70/david-levithan-67_days_we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out_2839429.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a70/david-levithan-67_days_we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out_2839429.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a70/david-levithan-67_days_we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out_2839429.jpg)

> ““We have defied the day as it was set out for us.””

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Defying predetermined fate demonstrates human resilience and the power to rewrite one’s destiny.

**In simple terms:** Overcoming fate shows resilience and agency.

Key Takeaway

Embrace agency to reshape destiny.

Themes

resilience destiny agency

Mood

hopeful inspirational

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- personal growth
- social activism
- creative writing

Key Concepts

Self‑determination narrative control

Questions to Reflect On

- How can individuals challenge predetermined paths?
- What limits exist on reshaping destiny?

A Different Perspective

Fate may impose constraints beyond control.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Days](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/days/) [Defiance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defiance/) [Defied](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defied-572321/) [Defied Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defied-day-3714073/) [Rebellion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rebellion/)

## Related quotes

> [... it is one thing to like defiance, and another thing to like its consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/it-is-one-thing-to-like-defiance-and-another-thing-to-like-its/)

[George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/)

> [“Dominance. Control. These things the unjust seek most of all. And so it is the duty of the just to defy dominance and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-fanney/dominance-control-these-things-the-unjust-seek-most-of-all-and-so-it/)

[Robert Fanney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-fanney/)

> [“Making-out is one thing that won’t change even if civilization fizzles and humanity is reduced to two people. So each time Jack and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-george/making-out-is-one-thing-that-won-t-change-even-if-civilization/)

[Caroline George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-george/)

> [There's defiance and then theres stupidity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-marin/there-s-defiance-and-then-theres-stupidity/)

[Juan Marin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-marin/)

> [If you tell me, I will leave you alone," I said. "And if you don't tell me, I am going to grab the nearest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/if-you-tell-me-i-will-leave-you-alone-i-said-and-if-you-don-t-tell-me/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“I deserved the tears that were flooding down my cheeks. I had earned them in blood and sweat, and by defying the odds. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bella-forrest/i-deserved-the-tears-that-were-flooding-down-my-cheeks-i-had-earned/)

[Bella Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bella-forrest/)

> [“I defied them, as I have all my life defied everyone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-rodr-guez-mcrobbie/i-defied-them-as-i-have-all-my-life-defied-everyone/)

[Linda Rodríguez McRobbie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-rodr-guez-mcrobbie/)

> [“But wulf did what it does: Simply insisted. Simply burned through. Simply defied. The same shrugging, grinning continuance. The nature of life. The nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/but-wulf-did-what-it-does-simply-insisted-simply-burned-through/)

[Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/)

> [“People choose the paths that grant them the greatest rewards for the least amount of effort. That's the law of nature, and you defied…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/people-choose-the-paths-that-grant-them-the-greatest-rewards-for-the/)

[Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/)

> [There's no way in hell I'm supposed to be on television or be a broadcaster of any regard. But I have defied those odds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-ross/there-s-no-way-in-hell-i-m-supposed-to-be-on-television-or-be-a/)

[Jim Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-ross/)

> [“This was a fact so simple that it defied logic. It bypassed logic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/this-was-a-fact-so-simple-that-it-defied-logic-it-bypassed-logic/)

[Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/)

> [I don't think I have the face - may have the voice but not the demeanor for an anchor. And I defied it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/i-don-t-think-i-have-the-face-may-have-the-voice-but-not-the-demeanor/)

[Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/)

> [Donald Trump has defied practically every playbook or blue book technique in dispatching an opponent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/donald-trump-has-defied-practically-every-playbook-or-blue-book/)

[Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/)

> [He was so tenacious he defied the distraction of women by refusing to have them in his presence, just as later in life he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kit-williams/he-was-so-tenacious-he-defied-the-distraction-of-women-by-refusing-to/)

[Kit Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kit-williams/)

> [Power, safely defied, touches its downfall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-b-macaulay/power-safely-defied-touches-its-downfall/)

[Thomas B. Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-b-macaulay/)

## More by David Levithan

> [“When you jump, all you're going to do is fall. But leaping? Leaping is when you think there's something on the other side.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/when-you-jump-all-you-re-going-to-do-is-fall-but-leaping-leaping-is/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“The past and the future are what's complicated. It's the present that's simple. And the simplicity is the sensation of it being just her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/the-past-and-the-future-are-what-s-complicated-it-s-the-present-that/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“I hate the way you talk to me And the way you cut your hair I hate the way you drive my car I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/i-hate-the-way-you-talk-to-me-and-the-way-you-cut-your-hair-i-hate/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [You could be the leaf that never falls from the tree you could be the sun that never leaves the sky this might be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/you-could-be-the-leaf-that-never-falls-from-the-tree-you-could-be-the/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“Patrick: Is she worth the trouble? Cameron: I thought she was- Patrick: Either she is, or she isn't. So give it a shot, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/patrick-is-she-worth-the-trouble-cameron-i-thought-she-was-patrick/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“We saw our friends die. But we also see our friends live. So many of them live, and we often toast their long and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/we-saw-our-friends-die-but-we-also-see-our-friends-live-so-many-of/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [maybe tonight you're scared of falling, and maybe there's somebody here or somewhere else you're thinking about, worrying over, fretting over, trying to figure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/maybe-tonight-you-re-scared-of-falling-and-maybe-there-s-somebody/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“You never told me what you saw in him, not convincingly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/you-never-told-me-what-you-saw-in-him-not-convincingly/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“i nod to the other will grayson, up onstage. he nods to me. we have something between us, him and me. but the truth?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/i-nod-to-the-other-will-grayson-up-onstage-he-nods-to-me-we-have/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [The terrorists-those nineteen people, with hundreds or maybe thousands behind them-did the worst thing you can possibly imagine. But tens of millions people did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/the-terrorists-those-nineteen-people-with-hundreds-or-maybe-thousands/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [But I still has enough longing for that concept that I didn't want to dispel it completely. Meaning: I didn't want to tell Lily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/but-i-still-has-enough-longing-for-that-concept-that-i-didn-t-want-to/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“When you break someone's heart, you also break yours.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/when-you-break-someone-s-heart-you-also-break-yours/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“Because toward the end all the words started leaving. Except for the ones that had to lock up at the end of the night.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/because-toward-the-end-all-the-words-started-leaving-except-for-the/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“ misgivings , n . Last night, I got up the courage to ask you if you regretted us. "There are things I miss,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/misgivings-n-last-night-i-got-up-the-courage-to-ask-you-if-you/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

> [“Saving others is always more important than saving yourself. It has to be, or none of us would do any good.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/saving-others-is-always-more-important-than-saving-yourself-it-has-to/)

[David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

[Explore all 1,648 David Levithan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/)

## More Days quotes

> [Five days or five months, but it certainly isn't going to last longer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-rumsfeld/five-days-or-five-months-but-it-certainly-isn-t-going-to-last-longer/)

[Donald Rumsfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-rumsfeld/)

> [The happy have whole days,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colley-cibber/the-happy-have-whole-days/)

[Colley Cibber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colley-cibber/)

> [We're on the road 300 days a year. There's no recovery time. It's a test of your physical and mental endurance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-phoenix/we-re-on-the-road-300-days-a-year-there-s-no-recovery-time-it-s-a/)

[Beth Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-phoenix/)

> [It's going to be used in the last days to get people to come against Christ, and that's the issue: they come against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-lahaye/it-s-going-to-be-used-in-the-last-days-to-get-people-to-come-against/)

[Tim LaHaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-lahaye/)

> [When I wake up on a Monday morning, it's nice knowing for the next 10-12 days that I don't have to do much of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arn-anderson/when-i-wake-up-on-a-monday-morning-it-s-nice-knowing-for-the-next-10/)

[Arn Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arn-anderson/)

> [Everybody has bad days, but how you respond to it is a testament to whether you are a winner or a loser.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-gordon/everybody-has-bad-days-but-how-you-respond-to-it-is-a-testament-to/)

[Aaron Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-gordon/)

> [I recently had an epiphany and now I'm making the most of my days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-recently-had-an-epiphany-and-now-i-m-making-the-most-of-my-days/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Back in the really olden days, dinner was seldom a ceremonial event for U.S. families. Only the very wealthy had a separate dining room.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-gibbs/back-in-the-really-olden-days-dinner-was-seldom-a-ceremonial-event/)

[Nancy Gibbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-gibbs/)

> [I've always been a fan of old-time hymns and Scots-Irish dirges, though I wouldn't necessarily consider myself an expert on the type of music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-bingham/i-ve-always-been-a-fan-of-old-time-hymns-and-scots-irish-dirges/)

[Ryan Bingham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-bingham/)

> [Everything is barely weeks. Everything is days. We have minutes to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/everything-is-barely-weeks-everything-is-days-we-have-minutes-to-live/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [These were days when my heart was volcanic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allen-poe/these-were-days-when-my-heart-was-volcanic/)

[Edgar Allen Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allen-poe/)

> [Some days, I'm going to miss shots; some days, I'm not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-green/some-days-i-m-going-to-miss-shots-some-days-i-m-not/)

[Gerald Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-green/)

> [Whose school-hours are all the days and nights of our existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/whose-school-hours-are-all-the-days-and-nights-of-our-existence/)

[Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/)

> [We simply do not have time as we move from one meeting to the next to have hours to peruse leisure websites of whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crispin-blunt/we-simply-do-not-have-time-as-we-move-from-one-meeting-to-the-next-to/)

[Crispin Blunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crispin-blunt/)

> [The country of Iraq is somewhat of an artificial creation going back to colonial days. And so you have the Kurds and then the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-clapper/the-country-of-iraq-is-somewhat-of-an-artificial-creation-going-back/)

[James Clapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-clapper/)

[Browse all 4,561 Days quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/days/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“We have defied the day as it was set out for us.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "David Levithan"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out-for-us/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Days"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out-for-us/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a70/david-levithan-67_days_we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out_2839429.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a70/david-levithan-67_days_we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out_2839429.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a70/david-levithan-67_days_we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out_2839429.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We have defied the day as it was set out for us.” — David Levithan",
                "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": "David Levithan",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“We have defied the day as...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out-for-us/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/we-have-defied-the-day-as-it-was-set-out-for-us/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
