--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'd almost say hope isn't what it used to…" description: "\"I'd almost say hope isn't what it used to be. It's very difficult today to be a teacher. I speak to children. And tell them, look, no matter what, you ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/elie-wiesel-341_children_i-d-almost-say-hope-isn-t-what-it-used-t_569259.jpg" --- # I'd almost say hope isn't what it used to be. It's very… ![“I'd almost say hope isn't what it used to be. It's very difficult today to be a teacher. I speak to children. And tell them, look, no matter what, you must have hope. You must. When I invoke Camus, who said when there is no hope, you must invent hope. . .hope is something that is not what God…” quote by Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/elie-wiesel-341_children_i-d-almost-say-hope-isn-t-what-it-used-t_569259.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/elie-wiesel-341_children_i-d-almost-say-hope-isn-t-what-it-used-t_569259.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/elie-wiesel-341_children_i-d-almost-say-hope-isn-t-what-it-used-t_569259.jpg) > “I'd almost say hope isn't what it used to be. It's very difficult today to be a teacher. I speak to children. And tell them, look, no matter what, you must have hope. You must. When I invoke Camus, who said when there is no hope, you must invent hope. . .hope is something that is not what God gives us. It's like peace. It's a gift that one can give to one another. Only another person can push me to despair. And only another person can push me to hope. Its my choice.” [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hope is a personal, cultivated force, not a divine guarantee, requiring mutual support and choice to overcome despair. **In simple terms:** Hope is a self‑made gift we share. Key Takeaway Choose to nurture hope in yourself and others. Themes hope resilience choice community education Mood reflective determined empathetic Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - Teaching - counseling - personal development - peer support Key Concepts Existentialism humanism psychology Questions to Reflect On - How can you actively foster hope in a difficult environment? - What role does community play in sustaining hope? A Different Perspective Hope can feel fragile when external circumstances are harsh. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Despair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despair/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Having hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-hope/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [No hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/no-hope/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Teacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teacher/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) ## Related quotes > [As long as you say there is no hope, then there will be no hope, but if you go down and take a stance,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asmaa-mahfouz/as-long-as-you-say-there-is-no-hope-then-there-will-be-no-hope-but-if/) Asmaa Mahfouz > [Never say there’s no hope. Hope disappears only when you say there’s no hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asmaa-mahfouz/never-say-there-s-no-hope-hope-disappears-only-when-you-say-there-s/) Asmaa Mahfouz > [When there is no hope, one must invent hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/when-there-is-no-hope-one-must-invent-hope/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I'd rather speak as a student of philosophy. Philosophically it makes no sense, absolutely makes no sense. Why should people inherit evil things when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-d-rather-speak-as-a-student-of-philosophy-philosophically-it-makes/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“He shook his head again. “I’m afraid I don’t feel much of anything these days. Especially not hope. I have no time or energy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-strnad/he-shook-his-head-again-i-m-afraid-i-don-t-feel-much-of-anything/) Josh Strnad > [If you know that life is basically going to be horrendously difficult, at best, and all but unlivable at worst, or possibly even unlivable,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-kushner/if-you-know-that-life-is-basically-going-to-be-horrendously-difficult/) [Tony Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-kushner/) > [“I'm beginning to think that to hope isn't the same as to expect something. To hope is to believe that life is an acceptable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/goenawan-mohamad/i-m-beginning-to-think-that-to-hope-isn-t-the-same-as-to-expect/) [Goenawan Mohamad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/goenawan-mohamad/) > [Maybe hope isn't the most dangerous thing a person can have. Maybe love is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-destefano/maybe-hope-isn-t-the-most-dangerous-thing-a-person-can-have-maybe/) [Lauren DeStefano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-destefano/) > [“Hope isn't about waiting for our desires to be fulfilled. Hope is knowing the Holy Spirit and leaning into His presence that is always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-bixler/hope-isn-t-about-waiting-for-our-desires-to-be-fulfilled-hope-is/) [Heather Bixler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-bixler/) > [Hope isn't an abstract theory about where human aspirations end and the impossible begins; it's a never-ending experiment, continually expanding the boundaries of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-rogat-loeb/hope-isn-t-an-abstract-theory-about-where-human-aspirations-end-and/) [Paul Rogat Loeb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-rogat-loeb/) > [“And that's the most frustrating thing about depression. It isn't always something you can fight back against with hope. It isn't even something -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allie-brosh/and-that-s-the-most-frustrating-thing-about-depression-it-isn-t/) [Allie Brosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allie-brosh/) > [Hope isn't the kind of thing that you can say either exists or doesn't exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lara-flores/hope-isn-t-the-kind-of-thing-that-you-can-say-either-exists-or-doesn/) [Lara Flores](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lara-flores/) > [“Hope isn't a wish or a dream – hope is a way of thinking and it's a way of living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-bixler/hope-isn-t-a-wish-or-a-dream-hope-is-a-way-of-thinking-and-it-s-a-way/) [Heather Bixler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-bixler/) > [Love is, and I hope it never isn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetri-martin/love-is-and-i-hope-it-never-isn-t/) [Demetri Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetri-martin/) > [...maybe hope isn't such a bad thing. Maybe it's what keeps us together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-destefano/maybe-hope-isn-t-such-a-bad-thing-maybe-it-s-what-keeps-us-together/) [Lauren DeStefano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-destefano/) ## More by Elie Wiesel > [A religious person answers to God, not to the elected or non-elected official.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/a-religious-person-answers-to-god-not-to-the-elected-or-non-elected/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [One more stab to the heart, one more reason to hate. One less reason to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/one-more-stab-to-the-heart-one-more-reason-to-hate-one-less-reason-to/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“What all these victims need above all is to know that they are not alone; that we are not forgetting them, that when their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/what-all-these-victims-need-above-all-is-to-know-that-they-are-not/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [I feel that books, just like people, have a destiny. Some invite sorrow, others joy, some both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-feel-that-books-just-like-people-have-a-destiny-some-invite-sorrow/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [ \[Chinese\] are a huge empire now, you'll soon be - in a few years two billion people in the world. So, you should be… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/chinese-are-a-huge-empire-now-you-ll-soon-be-in-a-few-years-two/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Did I write it so as not to go mad or, on the contrary, to go mad in order to understand the nature of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/did-i-write-it-so-as-not-to-go-mad-or-on-the-contrary-to-go-mad-in/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Take the story of Cain and Abel. Why were we given that story? Scientifically, you may have an explanation for it, but I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/take-the-story-of-cain-and-abel-why-were-we-given-that-story/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Mankind must remember that peace is not God's gift to his creatures; peace is our gift to each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/mankind-must-remember-that-peace-is-not-god-s-gift-to-his-creatures/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [The world? The world is not interested in us. Today, everything is possible, even the crematoria...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/the-world-the-world-is-not-interested-in-us-today-everything-is/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [every question possessed a power that was lost in the answer . . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/every-question-possessed-a-power-that-was-lost-in-the-answer/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [I think this century more than any other really has seen the phenomenon of people being uprooted in such numbers, such a degree. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-think-this-century-more-than-any-other-really-has-seen-the/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [His cold eyes stared at me. At last, he said wearily: "I have more faith in Hitler than in anyone else. He alone has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/his-cold-eyes-stared-at-me-at-last-he-said-wearily-i-have-more-faith/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [As you know, I describe Shirat ha-Yam as part of an epic story that has qualities of history and which also has qualities of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/as-you-know-i-describe-shirat-ha-yam-as-part-of-an-epic-story-that/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Every Jew, somewhere in his being, should set apart a zone of hate -healthy virile hate- for what the German personifies and for what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/every-jew-somewhere-in-his-being-should-set-apart-a-zone-of-hate/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“Did hope help us to survive, or not? Too many families clung to it all through the war, thus falling into the enemy's trap.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/did-hope-help-us-to-survive-or-not-too-many-families-clung-to-it-all/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) [Explore all 662 Elie Wiesel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [A lesser complaint: hair extensions. There are moments on 'All My Children' when half the women actors, young and old, seem to be afflicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/a-lesser-complaint-hair-extensions-there-are-moments-on-all-my/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? 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