---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: With all due respect, if you’re…"
description: "\"With all due respect, if you’re forty-three, then I’m a fetus.\" — David Levithan"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76d/david-levithan-67_fetus_with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-thr_2706883.jpg"
---

#  With all due respect, if you’re forty-three, then I’m a…

![“With all due respect, if you’re forty-three, then I’m a fetus.” quote by David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76d/david-levithan-67_fetus_with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-thr_2706883.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76d/david-levithan-67_fetus_with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-thr_2706883.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76d/david-levithan-67_fetus_with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-thr_2706883.jpg)

> “With all due respect, if you’re forty-three, then I’m a fetus.”

[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.

Age differences can blur perspectives, leading to absurd comparisons.

**In simple terms:** Forty‑three equals a fetus.

Key Takeaway

Recognize and respect generational viewpoints.

Themes

humor age perspective

Mood

playful ironic

Type

humor reflection

When to use this quote

- family gatherings
- workplace mentorship
- intergenerational projects
- social media discourse

Key Concepts

empathy communication

Questions to Reflect On

- What assumptions do you make about age?
- How can you bridge generational gaps?

A Different Perspective

Humor may mask deeper age bias.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Respect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respect/)

## Related quotes

> [A pregnant woman and her spouse dream of three babies--the perfect four-month-old who rewards them with smiles and musical cooing,the impaired baby, who changes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-berry-brazelton/a-pregnant-woman-and-her-spouse-dream-of-three-babies-the-perfect/)

[T. Berry Brazelton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-berry-brazelton/)

> [I may be forty, but every morning when I get up, I feel like a twenty-year-old. Unfortunately, there's never one around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-orben/i-may-be-forty-but-every-morning-when-i-get-up-i-feel-like-a-twenty/)

[Robert Orben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-orben/)

> [I feel great. I feel younger. And I don't feel anything at all. I don't know who knows, but right now I'm, how, how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olga-korbut/i-feel-great-i-feel-younger-and-i-don-t-feel-anything-at-all-i-don-t/)

[Olga Korbut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olga-korbut/)

> [The older I get, the more I lose my ability to breathe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/the-older-i-get-the-more-i-lose-my-ability-to-breathe/)

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

> [Scientifically, there's no debate over whether the fetus is alive and human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/scientifically-there-s-no-debate-over-whether-the-fetus-is-alive-and/)

[Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/)

> [There's a difference between early and late abortions. If you have a late abortion, where the fetus might feel pain, then I think you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/there-s-a-difference-between-early-and-late-abortions-if-you-have-a/)

[Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/)

> [I think we have deluded ourselves into believing that people don't know that abortion is killing. So any pretense that abortion is not killing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faye-wattleton/i-think-we-have-deluded-ourselves-into-believing-that-people-don-t/)

[Faye Wattleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faye-wattleton/)

> [The use of fetuses as organ and tissue donors is a ticking time bomb of bioethics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-caplan/the-use-of-fetuses-as-organ-and-tissue-donors-is-a-ticking-time-bomb/)

[Arthur Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-caplan/)

> [“No, I'm the human here. I'm the life at stake. I'm the one with fingernails, who feels pain. Me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alicen-grey/no-i-m-the-human-here-i-m-the-life-at-stake-i-m-the-one-with/)

[Alicen Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alicen-grey/)

> [A woman who deliberately destroys a fetus is answerable for murder. And any fine distinction as to its being completely formed or unformed is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-basil/a-woman-who-deliberately-destroys-a-fetus-is-answerable-for-murder/)

[Saint Basil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-basil/)

> [ \[Margot Hentoff\] thinks - first of all, she - this I hear from a lot of people beside her. She thinks that men have… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nat-hentoff/margot-hentoff-thinks-first-of-all-she-this-i-hear-from-a-lot-of/)

[Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nat-hentoff/)

> [Americans of faith should try as hard to save the lives of African women as the lives of unborn fetuses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-d-kristof/americans-of-faith-should-try-as-hard-to-save-the-lives-of-african/)

[Nicholas D. Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-d-kristof/)

> [“It's kinda cool to think about you as a real person, instead of some fetus ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-frank/it-s-kinda-cool-to-think-about-you-as-a-real-person-instead-of-some/)

[Hillary Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-frank/)

> [Before a baby is born, you have a baby shower, not a fetus shower.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-hunt/before-a-baby-is-born-you-have-a-baby-shower-not-a-fetus-shower/)

[June Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-hunt/)

> [With respect to those meanings of 'human' that are relevant to the morality of abortion, any fetus is less human than an adult pig,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/with-respect-to-those-meanings-of-human-that-are-relevant-to-the/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

## 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 Fetus quotes

> [A pregnant woman and her spouse dream of three babies--the perfect four-month-old who rewards them with smiles and musical cooing,the impaired baby, who changes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-berry-brazelton/a-pregnant-woman-and-her-spouse-dream-of-three-babies-the-perfect/)

[T. Berry Brazelton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-berry-brazelton/)

> [ \[Margot Hentoff\] thinks - first of all, she - this I hear from a lot of people beside her. She thinks that men have… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nat-hentoff/margot-hentoff-thinks-first-of-all-she-this-i-hear-from-a-lot-of/)

[Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nat-hentoff/)

> [Scientifically, there's no debate over whether the fetus is alive and human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/scientifically-there-s-no-debate-over-whether-the-fetus-is-alive-and/)

[Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/)

> [Before a baby is born, you have a baby shower, not a fetus shower.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-hunt/before-a-baby-is-born-you-have-a-baby-shower-not-a-fetus-shower/)

[June Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-hunt/)

> [“It's kinda cool to think about you as a real person, instead of some fetus ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-frank/it-s-kinda-cool-to-think-about-you-as-a-real-person-instead-of-some/)

[Hillary Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-frank/)

> [Americans of faith should try as hard to save the lives of African women as the lives of unborn fetuses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-d-kristof/americans-of-faith-should-try-as-hard-to-save-the-lives-of-african/)

[Nicholas D. Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-d-kristof/)

> [With respect to those meanings of 'human' that are relevant to the morality of abortion, any fetus is less human than an adult pig,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/with-respect-to-those-meanings-of-human-that-are-relevant-to-the/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [A woman who deliberately destroys a fetus is answerable for murder. And any fine distinction as to its being completely formed or unformed is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-basil/a-woman-who-deliberately-destroys-a-fetus-is-answerable-for-murder/)

[Saint Basil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-basil/)

> [“No, I'm the human here. I'm the life at stake. I'm the one with fingernails, who feels pain. Me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alicen-grey/no-i-m-the-human-here-i-m-the-life-at-stake-i-m-the-one-with/)

[Alicen Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alicen-grey/)

> [The use of fetuses as organ and tissue donors is a ticking time bomb of bioethics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-caplan/the-use-of-fetuses-as-organ-and-tissue-donors-is-a-ticking-time-bomb/)

[Arthur Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-caplan/)

> [I think we have deluded ourselves into believing that people don't know that abortion is killing. So any pretense that abortion is not killing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faye-wattleton/i-think-we-have-deluded-ourselves-into-believing-that-people-don-t/)

[Faye Wattleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faye-wattleton/)

> [There's a difference between early and late abortions. If you have a late abortion, where the fetus might feel pain, then I think you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/there-s-a-difference-between-early-and-late-abortions-if-you-have-a/)

[Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/)

> [What it gives any human being a right to - to pick and choose which embryo - which fetus is more valuable than another.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadya-suleman/what-it-gives-any-human-being-a-right-to-to-pick-and-choose-which/)

[Nadya Suleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadya-suleman/)

> [The fetus, in many cases, dies just as a human adult or child would: It bleeds to death as it is torn from limb…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-kennedy/the-fetus-in-many-cases-dies-just-as-a-human-adult-or-child-would-it/)

[Anthony Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-kennedy/)

> [Everyone knows now how early a fetus becomes a baby. Women who have been pregnant have seen their babies on ultrasounds. They know that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayelet-waldman/everyone-knows-now-how-early-a-fetus-becomes-a-baby-women-who-have/)

[Ayelet Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayelet-waldman/)

Browse all 90 Fetus quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "With all due respect, if you’re forty-three, then I’m a fetus.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "David Levithan"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-three-then-i-m-a-fetus/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Fetus"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-three-then-i-m-a-fetus/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76d/david-levithan-67_fetus_with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-thr_2706883.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76d/david-levithan-67_fetus_with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-thr_2706883.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76d/david-levithan-67_fetus_with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-thr_2706883.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“With all due respect, if you’re forty-three, then I’m a fetus.” — 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": "With all due respect, if you’re...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-three-then-i-m-a-fetus/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/with-all-due-respect-if-you-re-forty-three-then-i-m-a-fetus/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
