--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I decided to devote my life to telling…" description: "\"I decided to devote my life to telling the story because I felt that having survived I owe something to the dead. and anyone who does not remember betr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/802/elie-wiesel-341_betrays_i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-t_2947325.png" --- # I decided to devote my life to telling the story because I… ![“I decided to devote my life to telling the story because I felt that having survived I owe something to the dead. and anyone who does not remember betrays them again.” quote by Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/802/elie-wiesel-341_betrays_i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-t_2947325.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/802/elie-wiesel-341_betrays_i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-t_2947325.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/802/elie-wiesel-341_betrays_i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-t_2947325.png) > “I decided to devote my life to telling the story because I felt that having survived I owe something to the dead. and anyone who does not remember betrays them again.” [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. Survivors owe the dead memory; forgetting betrays them. **In simple terms:** Remembering the dead honors them. Key Takeaway Preserve memory of those lost. Themes memory history responsibility survivor duty Mood somber reflective Type historical ethical When to use this quote - education - commemoration - public policy - cultural preservation - intergenerational dialogue Key Concepts historical truth collective memory ethical testimony Questions to Reflect On - How do you keep memory alive? - What responsibilities do we have to the past? A Different Perspective Memory can be contested or suppressed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ## Related quotes > [“You never know, until it happens, what you will owe the dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-never-know-until-it-happens-what-you-will-owe-the-dead/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [“I owe more to the dead, with whom I will spend a much longer time, than I will ever owe to the living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/i-owe-more-to-the-dead-with-whom-i-will-spend-a-much-longer-time-than/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [It's a great pleasure having survived six generations of TV critics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldo-rivera/it-s-a-great-pleasure-having-survived-six-generations-of-tv-critics/) [Geraldo Rivera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldo-rivera/) > [“where painfully and with wonder at having survived even this far we are learning to make fire”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/where-painfully-and-with-wonder-at-having-survived-even-this-far-we/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [One can live without having survived](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-forche/one-can-live-without-having-survived/) [Carolyn Forche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-forche/) > [“Having survived something like that, it shows a person they can take more than they thought. It tempers the soul, and if it doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tymber-dalton/having-survived-something-like-that-it-shows-a-person-they-can-take/) [Tymber Dalton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tymber-dalton/) > [Sharing our depressions felt like having survived a war. The experience bonds you to the other person for life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-buchwald/sharing-our-depressions-felt-like-having-survived-a-war-the/) [Art Buchwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-buchwald/) > [“perhaps, now he finds more joy in life, having survived”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-wright/perhaps-now-he-finds-more-joy-in-life-having-survived/) [John C. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-wright/) > [A 45-year old looks a lot like a 25-year old who's been out all night. And feels just as good about having survived the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-vos-savant/a-45-year-old-looks-a-lot-like-a-25-year-old-who-s-been-out-all-night/) [Marilyn vos Savant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-vos-savant/) > [Metz's Perfection chronicles with lapidary precision one woman's climb back to happiness after not just a spouse's death, but also the shocking recognition that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-powell/metz-s-perfection-chronicles-with-lapidary-precision-one-woman-s/) [Julie Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-powell/) > [“You are not weak for having been hurt; rather, you are strong for having survived. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-s-willis/you-are-not-weak-for-having-been-hurt-rather-you-are-strong-for/) [M.S. Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-s-willis/) > [Life keeps getting better. If anything, you start to carry a certain pride in having survived all those years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoko-ono/life-keeps-getting-better-if-anything-you-start-to-carry-a-certain/) [Yoko Ono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoko-ono/) > [I imagine a world in which all humans are born with an intact capacity to love, and I am willing to devote my life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-lim/i-imagine-a-world-in-which-all-humans-are-born-with-an-intact/) [Robin Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-lim/) > [It’s worth noting that you can devote your life to community service and be a total schmuck. You can spend your life on Wall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/it-s-worth-noting-that-you-can-devote-your-life-to-community-service/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [ “...\[A\] strange necessity has been laid upon me to devote my life to the central concern that transcends the walls that divide and would… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-thurman/a-strange-necessity-has-been-laid-upon-me-to-devote-my-life-to-the/) [Howard Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-thurman/) ## 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 Betrays quotes > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [“79. A soul which knows that it is loved, but does not itself love, betrays its sediment: its dregs come up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/79-a-soul-which-knows-that-it-is-loved-but-does-not-itself-love/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Whom you trust betrays you, you value who do not value you, Smile who does not like you, and finally fall in love with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry/whom-you-trust-betrays-you-you-value-who-do-not-value-you-smile-who/) Larry > [The hand betrays the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-imogen-guiney/the-hand-betrays-the-heart/) [Louise Imogen Guiney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-imogen-guiney/) > [One's sentiments -- call them that -- one's fidelities are so instinctive that one hardly knows they exist: only when they are betrayed or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bowen/one-s-sentiments-call-them-that-one-s-fidelities-are-so-instinctive/) [Elizabeth Bowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bowen/) > [The present necessarily betrays the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-present-necessarily-betrays-the-past/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [“If the partridge didn't call at the wrong moment, Neither the hunter nor the falcon would know of it. It follows from this point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahman-baba/if-the-partridge-didn-t-call-at-the-wrong-moment-neither-the-hunter/) [Rahman Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahman-baba/) > [No matter who it may be family or friend someone betrays you in the end..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-matter-who-it-may-be-family-or-friend-someone-betrays-you-in-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes a thong completely betrays you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/channing-tatum/sometimes-a-thong-completely-betrays-you/) [Channing Tatum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/channing-tatum/) > [“When he describes woman, each writer discloses his general ethics and the special idea he has of himself; and in her he often betrays…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/when-he-describes-woman-each-writer-discloses-his-general-ethics-and/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Do not betray the one who betrays you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-not-betray-the-one-who-betrays-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To know a man, observe how he wins his object, rather than how he loses it; for when we fail, our pride supports us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/to-know-a-man-observe-how-he-wins-his-object-rather-than-how-he-loses/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [If someone betrays you once, it is his fault; If he betrays you twice, it is your fault.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-someone-betrays-you-once-it-is-his-fault-if-he-betrays-you-twice/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [He who loves his enemies betrays his friends; this surely is not what Jesus meant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/he-who-loves-his-enemies-betrays-his-friends-this-surely-is-not-what/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [Our nemesis is time, against which we have a single ally, memory, and even it betrays us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-tanenhaus/our-nemesis-is-time-against-which-we-have-a-single-ally-memory-and/) [Sam Tanenhaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-tanenhaus/) Browse all 93 Betrays quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I decided to devote my life to telling the story because I felt that having survived I owe something to the dead. and anyone who does not remember betrays them again.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elie Wiesel" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-the-story-because-i-felt-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Betrays" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-the-story-because-i-felt-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/802/elie-wiesel-341_betrays_i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-t_2947325.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/802/elie-wiesel-341_betrays_i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-t_2947325.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/802/elie-wiesel-341_betrays_i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-t_2947325.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I decided to devote my life to telling the story because I felt that having survived I owe something to the…” — Elie Wiesel", "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": "Elie Wiesel", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I decided to devote my life...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-the-story-because-i-felt-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-decided-to-devote-my-life-to-telling-the-story-because-i-felt-that/#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 } } ] } ```