--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I cannot stand public attention, I just…" description: "\"I cannot stand public attention, I just can't. Of course, if I may I might write something instead\" — Elfriede Jelinek" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f9/elfriede-jelinek-4485_attention_i-cannot-stand-public-attention-i-just-c_3036405.jpg" --- # I cannot stand public attention, I just can't. Of course… ![“I cannot stand public attention, I just can't. Of course, if I may I might write something instead” quote by Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f9/elfriede-jelinek-4485_attention_i-cannot-stand-public-attention-i-just-c_3036405.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f9/elfriede-jelinek-4485_attention_i-cannot-stand-public-attention-i-just-c_3036405.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f9/elfriede-jelinek-4485_attention_i-cannot-stand-public-attention-i-just-c_3036405.jpg) > “I cannot stand public attention, I just can't. Of course, if I may I might write something instead” [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She avoids public attention, preferring writing as an outlet for expression. **In simple terms:** Avoiding fame, choosing writing instead. Key Takeaway Write when spotlight feels uncomfortable. Themes privacy creativity public attention writing Mood reflective introspective Type literary personal When to use this quote - Personal coping - career choice - public life Key Concepts Introversion artistic expression Questions to Reflect On - How does writing serve your privacy? - What other outlets could help? A Different Perspective Writing may not replace all social needs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Before we decide to trust you with this power, we ask you to stand before the public and explain your views. Justice may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-kohl/before-we-decide-to-trust-you-with-this-power-we-ask-you-to-stand/) [Herb Kohl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-kohl/) > [My peers are all in sensitive jobs - at the C.I.A., the National Security Council, working for the Department of Defense. They can't stand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-broadwell/my-peers-are-all-in-sensitive-jobs-at-the-c-i-a-the-national-security/) [Paula Broadwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-broadwell/) > [Seven hundred thousand people who have dementia in this country are not heard. I'm fortunate; I can be heard. Regrettably, it's amazing how people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/seven-hundred-thousand-people-who-have-dementia-in-this-country-are/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [You see people on TV flying in to places just to pick up a baby, or brush some flies away. That's great if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debra-winger/you-see-people-on-tv-flying-in-to-places-just-to-pick-up-a-baby-or/) [Debra Winger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debra-winger/) > [To have the recognition of your colleagues is great. The public attention is a mixed blessing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-lederberg/to-have-the-recognition-of-your-colleagues-is-great-the-public/) [Joshua Lederberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-lederberg/) > [The desire to be the object of public attention is weak, but the excessive dread of it is but a form of vanity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-coleridge/the-desire-to-be-the-object-of-public-attention-is-weak-but-the/) [Sara Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-coleridge/) > [I don't enjoy public attention. I don't like being recognised, being clicked, or being written about. But then it is destiny. I am just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nithya-menen/i-don-t-enjoy-public-attention-i-don-t-like-being-recognised-being/) [Nithya Menen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nithya-menen/) > [Plus the public's attention span is so short right now, if a skater doesn't strike while the iron is hot... well it's not like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-boitano/plus-the-public-s-attention-span-is-so-short-right-now-if-a-skater/) [Brian Boitano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-boitano/) > [The reason we are so pleased to find other people's secrets is that it distracts public attention from our own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-reason-we-are-so-pleased-to-find-other-people-s-secrets-is-that/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The key element of social control is the strategy of distraction that is to divert public attention from important issues and changes decided by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-key-element-of-social-control-is-the-strategy-of-distraction-that/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“To all the talented young men who wander about feeling that there is nothing in the world for them to do, I should say:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/to-all-the-talented-young-men-who-wander-about-feeling-that-there-is/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [It is fatal to decide, intellectually, what good poetry is because you are then in honour bound to try to write it, instead of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/it-is-fatal-to-decide-intellectually-what-good-poetry-is-because-you/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [It's usually quite easy to shrug and write something else instead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-stross/it-s-usually-quite-easy-to-shrug-and-write-something-else-instead/) [Charles Stross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-stross/) > [Growing up, if I didn't want to talk to someone about the way that I was feeling, I would go write instead. I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gracie-abrams/growing-up-if-i-didn-t-want-to-talk-to-someone-about-the-way-that-i/) [Gracie Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gracie-abrams/) > [“Taking out the journal she’d packed, and intending to make some preproduction notes on The Women, Sidda began to write instead about the Ya-Yas.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-wells/taking-out-the-journal-she-d-packed-and-intending-to-make-some/) [Rebecca Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-wells/) ## More by Elfriede Jelinek > [The government has once again made the right socially acceptable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/the-government-has-once-again-made-the-right-socially-acceptable/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [“most expensive originals have cheap imitations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/most-expensive-originals-have-cheap-imitations/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [“Sada kada je Erika silnim zahvatima konačno oblikovana u nešto nježno, mora još samo sje¬sti u kolica što se kotrljaju putovima umjetnosti i postati…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/sada-kada-je-erika-silnim-zahvatima-kona-no-oblikovana-u-ne-to-nje-no/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [My training in music and composition then led me to a kind of musical language process in which, for example, the sound of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/my-training-in-music-and-composition-then-led-me-to-a-kind-of-musical/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [“I only enjoy what I can see, because I don't feel anything. For example, your new wallpaper. I like it and it can stay,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/i-only-enjoy-what-i-can-see-because-i-don-t-feel-anything-for-example/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [“For Erika, the most profound evidence of love is failure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/for-erika-the-most-profound-evidence-of-love-is-failure/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [Only he who loves and is loved for his own sake can be happy, and what produces that happiness is not so much the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/only-he-who-loves-and-is-loved-for-his-own-sake-can-be-happy-and-what/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [Anna despises two classes of people: first, those who own their own homes and have cars and families, and second, everybody else. Constantly she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/anna-despises-two-classes-of-people-first-those-who-own-their-own/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [“Money never goes out of fashion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/money-never-goes-out-of-fashion/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [Love points the way. Desire is its ignorant advisor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/love-points-the-way-desire-is-its-ignorant-advisor/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [Seek and you shall find the repulsive things you secretly hope to find.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/seek-and-you-shall-find-the-repulsive-things-you-secretly-hope-to-find/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [“the ignorant majority, which does however possess one thing in abundance: It is raring for a fight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/the-ignorant-majority-which-does-however-possess-one-thing-in/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [“Majka svaki put ustraje u tomu da se prilikom tzv. -»davanja koncerata«, koji su slatka nagrada za uporno vježbanje, širom otvore prozori na kući…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/majka-svaki-put-ustraje-u-tomu-da-se-prilikom-tzv-davanja-koncerata/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [“She will prolong her life by the length of her story, even though time will wear on inexorably as she tells it, thus depriving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/she-will-prolong-her-life-by-the-length-of-her-story-even-though-time/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) > [Very few women wait for Mr. Right. Most women take the first and worst Mr. Wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elfriede-jelinek/very-few-women-wait-for-mr-right-most-women-take-the-first-and-worst/) [Elfriede Jelinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) [Explore all 88 Elfriede Jelinek quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elfriede-jelinek/) ## More Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/) [Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) [Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I cannot stand public attention, I just can't. 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