--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The independents are the ones who tend to…" description: "\"The independents are the ones who tend to commit suicide. I'm not against this way of being in the world. Individuals have brought us many treasures. Y..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d5/gish-jen-21997_commit_the-independents-are-the-ones-who-tend-t_1358685.png" --- # The independents are the ones who tend to commit suicide… ![“The independents are the ones who tend to commit suicide. I'm not against this way of being in the world. Individuals have brought us many treasures. You can't just say that's a bad way of being in the world - it's not. But it's not everyone's way of being in the world.” quote by Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d5/gish-jen-21997_commit_the-independents-are-the-ones-who-tend-t_1358685.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d5/gish-jen-21997_commit_the-independents-are-the-ones-who-tend-t_1358685.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d5/gish-jen-21997_commit_the-independents-are-the-ones-who-tend-t_1358685.png) > “The independents are the ones who tend to commit suicide. I'm not against this way of being in the world. Individuals have brought us many treasures. You can't just say that's a bad way of being in the world - it's not. But it's not everyone's way of being in the world.” [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote reflects on the existential choice of suicide, acknowledging it as a personal path while noting it isn’t universal. **In simple terms:** Suicide is a personal choice, not a universal solution. Key Takeaway Respect individual choices while seeking alternatives. Themes mental health existentialism autonomy Mood thoughtful cautious Type philosophical mental health awareness When to use this quote - counseling services - support groups - public discourse Key Concepts suicidal ideation philosophical perspectives Questions to Reflect On - What support can be offered to those feeling hopeless? - How can society balance respect for autonomy with prevention? A Different Perspective May unintentionally normalize suicide without offering help. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Commit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commit/) [Commit Suicide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commit-suicide-259244/) [Independents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/independents/) [Independents Ones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/independents-ones-4643414/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Suicide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suicide/) [Suicide Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suicide-way-391072/) [Treasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/treasure/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [World Individuals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-individuals-634674/) ## Related quotes > [Whenever I'm asked about independent cinema, I think of what Fidel Castro said during the Cold War about the league of non-aligned nations. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-payne/whenever-i-m-asked-about-independent-cinema-i-think-of-what-fidel/) [Alexander Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-payne/) > [Man has to wake up from this sleep and to understand that he has a way though which he can end this vileness called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sorin-cerin/man-has-to-wake-up-from-this-sleep-and-to-understand-that-he-has-a/) [Sorin Cerin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sorin-cerin/) > [My math book needs to commit suicide. It has way to many problems...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-math-book-needs-to-commit-suicide-it-has-way-to-many-problems/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When I was a kid, I used to live in New York City. There was a guy named Michael Alig. He used to throw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-leto/when-i-was-a-kid-i-used-to-live-in-new-york-city-there-was-a-guy/) [Jared Leto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-leto/) > [Mainstream culture is finally catching on to the fact that the world is made up of individuals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myha-la/mainstream-culture-is-finally-catching-on-to-the-fact-that-the-world/) [Myha'la](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/myha-la/) > [Amid the seeming confusion of our mysterious world , individuals are so nicely adjusted to a system, and systems to one another and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/amid-the-seeming-confusion-of-our-mysterious-world-individuals-are-so/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [There is no such things as 'best' in the world of individuals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hosea-ballou/there-is-no-such-things-as-best-in-the-world-of-individuals/) [Hosea Ballou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hosea-ballou/) > [In today's highly interdependent world, individuals and nations can no longer resolve many of their problems by themselves. We need one another. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/in-today-s-highly-interdependent-world-individuals-and-nations-can-no/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [There is no such things as est in the world of individuals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hosea-ballou/there-is-no-such-things-as-est-in-the-world-of-individuals/) [Hosea Ballou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hosea-ballou/) > [The world's made up of individuals who don't want to be heroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-moore/the-world-s-made-up-of-individuals-who-don-t-want-to-be-heroes/) [Brian Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-moore/) > [There is no such thing as "best" in the world of individuals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hosea-ballou/there-is-no-such-thing-as-best-in-the-world-of-individuals/) [Hosea Ballou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hosea-ballou/) > [None of the world's problems will have a solution until the world's individuals become thoroughly self-educated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/none-of-the-world-s-problems-will-have-a-solution-until-the-world-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The inequality between the world's individuals is staggering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zygmunt-bauman/the-inequality-between-the-world-s-individuals-is-staggering/) [Zygmunt Bauman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zygmunt-bauman/) > [I tried to commit suicide one day. It was a very Woody Allen-type suicide. I turned on the gas and left all the windows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elton-john/i-tried-to-commit-suicide-one-day-it-was-a-very-woody-allen-type/) [Elton John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elton-john/) > [I'm Catholic and I can't commit suicide, but I plan to drink myself to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-m-catholic-and-i-can-t-commit-suicide-but-i-plan-to-drink-myself-to/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) ## More by Gish Jen > [A man was the sum of his limits; freedom only made him see how much so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/a-man-was-the-sum-of-his-limits-freedom-only-made-him-see-how-much-so/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [I like to listen. I'm much more interested in listening than in speaking, for sure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/i-like-to-listen-i-m-much-more-interested-in-listening-than-in/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [I hate to generalize because there are always so many exceptions to any rule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/i-hate-to-generalize-because-there-are-always-so-many-exceptions-to/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [It's a matter of whether you see the self as fundamentally in relationship to other selves or not - whether you see the boundary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/it-s-a-matter-of-whether-you-see-the-self-as-fundamentally-in/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [For students who are in the most creative group in America to somehow be presumed to be narrow is just completely meshugga.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/for-students-who-are-in-the-most-creative-group-in-america-to-somehow/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [There's nothing about interdependence that would keep somebody from making art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/there-s-nothing-about-interdependence-that-would-keep-somebody-from/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [“To have no particular aim was to open grand possibilities...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/to-have-no-particular-aim-was-to-open-grand-possibilities/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [It's human to hear stories and to know how people live and to imagine how that is for them. It's very interdependent!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/it-s-human-to-hear-stories-and-to-know-how-people-live-and-to-imagine/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [Anything is possible. A man is what he makes up his mind to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/anything-is-possible-a-man-is-what-he-makes-up-his-mind-to-be/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [Chinese language tends to be quick, economical. To know what people are saying, you always need to know what the context is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/chinese-language-tends-to-be-quick-economical-to-know-what-people-are/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [Many women tend toward the interdependent end of things, we tend to see ourselves in relationship to others to a far greater degree than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/many-women-tend-toward-the-interdependent-end-of-things-we-tend-to/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [“In truth, he had always considered the sight of men eating croissants slightly ridiculous, especially at the beginning, when for the first bite they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/in-truth-he-had-always-considered-the-sight-of-men-eating-croissants/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [I'm trying to give people an idea of what black looks like and what white looks like before I introduce them to gray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/i-m-trying-to-give-people-an-idea-of-what-black-looks-like-and-what/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [“Plain boiled food, plain boiled thinking. Even his name is plain boiled: John. Maybe because I grew up with black bean sauce and hoisin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/plain-boiled-food-plain-boiled-thinking-even-his-name-is-plain-boiled/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) > [“He would not want to sound like a haunted man; he would not want to sound as though he was calling from a welfare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gish-jen/he-would-not-want-to-sound-like-a-haunted-man-he-would-not-want-to/) [Gish Jen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) [Explore all 28 Gish Jen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gish-jen/) ## More Commit quotes > [I'm Catholic and I can't commit suicide, but I plan to drink myself to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-m-catholic-and-i-can-t-commit-suicide-but-i-plan-to-drink-myself-to/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [Although under particular circumstances, the violence method - any method - can be justified, nevertheless once you commit violence, then counterviolence will be returned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/although-under-particular-circumstances-the-violence-method-any/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [Progress is the injustice each generation commits with regard to its predecessors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-m-cioran/progress-is-the-injustice-each-generation-commits-with-regard-to-its/) [Emile M. Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-m-cioran/) > [Don't commit to being a columnist unless you're willing to do it right. Report your behind off, so you have something original and useful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-sloan/don-t-commit-to-being-a-columnist-unless-you-re-willing-to-do-it/) [Allan Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-sloan/) > [Every sensible man, every honorable man, must hold the Christian sect in horror." "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd and bloody religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/every-sensible-man-every-honorable-man-must-hold-the-christian-sect/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [I like to always wash the slate clean, and reinvigorate my spirit to be connected to the characters that I am doing. I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giancarlo-esposito/i-like-to-always-wash-the-slate-clean-and-reinvigorate-my-spirit-to/) [Giancarlo Esposito](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giancarlo-esposito/) > [He who believes in God is not careful for the morrow, but labors joyfully and with a great heart. "For He giveth His beloved,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/he-who-believes-in-god-is-not-careful-for-the-morrow-but-labors/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [You get a script and you love it. You find a director that you trust, and it becomes all about how do I commit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-van-der-beek/you-get-a-script-and-you-love-it-you-find-a-director-that-you-trust/) [James Van Der Beek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-van-der-beek/) > [Ok, look. I'm honest. Girl I can't lie I miss you. You and the music were the only things that I'd commit to](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/ok-look-i-m-honest-girl-i-can-t-lie-i-miss-you-you-and-the-music-were/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) > [One should not withdraw from individuals and commit to the community what they can accomplish by their own enterprise and industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-pius-xi/one-should-not-withdraw-from-individuals-and-commit-to-the-community/) [Pope Pius XI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-pius-xi/) > [A man must commit a crime at least once in his life-time. Only then will his virtue be recognized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/girish-karnad/a-man-must-commit-a-crime-at-least-once-in-his-life-time-only-then/) [Girish Karnad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/girish-karnad/) > [“A man, who does not commit an evil act either, has no opportunity or the stomach.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/a-man-who-does-not-commit-an-evil-act-either-has-no-opportunity-or/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [One day I may commit to a city and settle down and do the restaurant thing - when I'm ready and however and whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-kish/one-day-i-may-commit-to-a-city-and-settle-down-and-do-the-restaurant/) [Kristen Kish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-kish/) > [Love and commit. Not hit and quit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jhecky/love-and-commit-not-hit-and-quit/) [Jhecky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jhecky/) [Browse all 1,824 Commit quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commit/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The independents are the ones who tend to commit suicide. I'm not against this way of being in the world. Individuals have brought us many treasures. You can't just say that's a bad way of being in the world - it's not. 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