--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't deny or affirm anything. I'm not…" description: "\"I don't deny or affirm anything. I'm not very personal.\" — Gore Vidal" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c91/gore-vidal-466_deny_i-don-t-deny-or-affirm-anything-i-m-not_1314956.jpg" --- # I don't deny or affirm anything. I'm not very personal. ![“I don't deny or affirm anything. I'm not very personal.” quote by Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c91/gore-vidal-466_deny_i-don-t-deny-or-affirm-anything-i-m-not_1314956.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c91/gore-vidal-466_deny_i-don-t-deny-or-affirm-anything-i-m-not_1314956.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c91/gore-vidal-466_deny_i-don-t-deny-or-affirm-anything-i-m-not_1314956.jpg) > “I don't deny or affirm anything. I'm not very personal.” [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker declines to take a stance, preferring privacy and avoiding personal declarations. **In simple terms:** He avoids personal opinions. Key Takeaway Respect boundaries in discourse. Themes privacy neutrality self‑control Mood analytical detached Type philosophical political When to use this quote - political debates - media interviews - social media posts Key Concepts personal autonomy public discourse Questions to Reflect On - When is it better to stay silent? - How does privacy affect credibility? A Different Perspective May be seen as evasive or non‑committal. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Personal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal/) ## Related quotes > [We are here to affirm, not to deny... when we affirm all that is God, all that is not God is automatically denied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/we-are-here-to-affirm-not-to-deny-when-we-affirm-all-that-is-god-all/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [Affirm the body, beautiful and whole, The earth-expression of immortal soul. Affirm the mind, the messenger of the hour, To speed between thee and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-wheeler-wilcox/affirm-the-body-beautiful-and-whole-the-earth-expression-of-immortal/) [Ella Wheeler Wilcox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-wheeler-wilcox/) > [I deny that there's such a thing as a gay person. I deny there's such a thing as a heterosexual person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/i-deny-that-there-s-such-a-thing-as-a-gay-person-i-deny-there-s-such/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“If you show yourself, you will not be seen. If you affirm yourself, you will not shine. If you boast, you will have no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/if-you-show-yourself-you-will-not-be-seen-if-you-affirm-yourself-you/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [“Affirm your life's destiny & purpose to ensure - both are graciously fulfilled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleesha/affirm-your-life-s-destiny-purpose-to-ensure-both-are-graciously/) [Eleesha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleesha/) > [When you affirm your own Tightness in the universe, then you co operate with others easily and automatically as part of your own nature.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-roberts/when-you-affirm-your-own-tightness-in-the-universe-then-you-co/) [Jane Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-roberts/) > [“May all you affirm and believe be given the opportunity to manifest - day by day.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleesha/may-all-you-affirm-and-believe-be-given-the-opportunity-to-manifest/) [Eleesha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleesha/) > [To affirm life is to deepen, to make more inward, and to exalt the will-to-life. At the same time the man who has become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/to-affirm-life-is-to-deepen-to-make-more-inward-and-to-exalt-the-will/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [An affirmation states that a goal is already happening. I'm not crazy about this because, often when we affirm something that is not yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-harv-eker/an-affirmation-states-that-a-goal-is-already-happening-i-m-not-crazy/) [T. Harv Eker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-harv-eker/) > [Affirm: I now willingly release all negative beliefs about myself, my life and all other people. I now forgive myself for thinking I ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/affirm-i-now-willingly-release-all-negative-beliefs-about-myself-my/) [Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/) > [“Summoning gratitude is a sure way to get our life back on track. Opening our eyes to affirm gratitude grows the garden of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-katehakis/summoning-gratitude-is-a-sure-way-to-get-our-life-back-on-track/) [Alexandra Katehakis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-katehakis/) > [“But if there is an ongoing, nagging disconnect between, on the one hand, what I can and must affirm to be true and good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-f-knitter/but-if-there-is-an-ongoing-nagging-disconnect-between-on-the-one-hand/) [Paul F. Knitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-f-knitter/) > [“Self-affirm—build yourself up with honest and genuine praise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorii-myers/self-affirm-build-yourself-up-with-honest-and-genuine-praise/) [Lorii Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorii-myers/) > [To affirm a person is to see the good in them that they cannot see in themselves and to repeat it in spite of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/to-affirm-a-person-is-to-see-the-good-in-them-that-they-cannot-see-in/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [Poesy must not be drawn by the ears: it must be gently led, or rather, it must lead, which was partly the cause that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sidney/poesy-must-not-be-drawn-by-the-ears-it-must-be-gently-led-or-rather/) [Philip Sidney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sidney/) ## More by Gore Vidal > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Many people in the United States happen to believe that United States policy is wrong in Vietnam and the Vietcong are correct in wanting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/many-people-in-the-united-states-happen-to-believe-that-united-states/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“It is curious how little interested we are in the sexual desires of those who do not attract us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/it-is-curious-how-little-interested-we-are-in-the-sexual-desires-of/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [This separation was absolute in our original Republic. But the sky-godders do not give up easily. In the 1950s they actually got the phrase…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/this-separation-was-absolute-in-our-original-republic-but-the-sky/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Style is knowing who you are, what you want to say, and not giving a damn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/style-is-knowing-who-you-are-what-you-want-to-say-and-not-giving-a/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The oligarchs think that the people are both dangerous and stupid. Their point is moot. But we do know that the oligarchs are a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/the-oligarchs-think-that-the-people-are-both-dangerous-and-stupid/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [It is curious how often one prefers his enemies to his friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/it-is-curious-how-often-one-prefers-his-enemies-to-his-friends/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [As societies grow decadent, the language grows decadent, too. Words are used to disguise, not to illuminate, action: you liberate a city by destroying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/as-societies-grow-decadent-the-language-grows-decadent-too-words-are/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Rome ... at its most decadent, had never thought of hiring an actor to go through the motions of being an emperor while the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/rome-at-its-most-decadent-had-never-thought-of-hiring-an-actor-to-go/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [History is nothing but gossip about the past, with the hope that it might be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/history-is-nothing-but-gossip-about-the-past-with-the-hope-that-it/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The malady of civilized man is his knowledge of death. The good artist, like the wise man, addresses himself to life and invests with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/the-malady-of-civilized-man-is-his-knowledge-of-death-the-good-artist/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Sex is a continuum. You go through different phases along life's way... and if you don't, you've been sort of cheated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/sex-is-a-continuum-you-go-through-different-phases-along-life-s-way/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [All I want is that Americans still be able to read the alphabet in a hundred years. I am not very ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/all-i-want-is-that-americans-still-be-able-to-read-the-alphabet-in-a/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [I do not admire 'the people,' as such. No one really does. Their folk wisdom is usually false, their instincts predatory. Even their sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/i-do-not-admire-the-people-as-such-no-one-really-does-their-folk/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“One of the problems of a society as tightly controlled as ours is that we get so little information about what those of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/one-of-the-problems-of-a-society-as-tightly-controlled-as-ours-is/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Explore all 539 Gore Vidal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) ## More Affirm quotes > [“If you show yourself, you will not be seen. If you affirm yourself, you will not shine. If you boast, you will have no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/if-you-show-yourself-you-will-not-be-seen-if-you-affirm-yourself-you/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [To affirm a person is to see the good in them that they cannot see in themselves and to repeat it in spite of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/to-affirm-a-person-is-to-see-the-good-in-them-that-they-cannot-see-in/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [“Self-affirm—build yourself up with honest and genuine praise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorii-myers/self-affirm-build-yourself-up-with-honest-and-genuine-praise/) [Lorii Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorii-myers/) > [“But if there is an ongoing, nagging disconnect between, on the one hand, what I can and must affirm to be true and good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-f-knitter/but-if-there-is-an-ongoing-nagging-disconnect-between-on-the-one-hand/) [Paul F. Knitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-f-knitter/) > [Affirm the body, beautiful and whole, The earth-expression of immortal soul. Affirm the mind, the messenger of the hour, To speed between thee and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-wheeler-wilcox/affirm-the-body-beautiful-and-whole-the-earth-expression-of-immortal/) [Ella Wheeler Wilcox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-wheeler-wilcox/) > [“Summoning gratitude is a sure way to get our life back on track. Opening our eyes to affirm gratitude grows the garden of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-katehakis/summoning-gratitude-is-a-sure-way-to-get-our-life-back-on-track/) [Alexandra Katehakis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-katehakis/) > [Affirm: I now willingly release all negative beliefs about myself, my life and all other people. I now forgive myself for thinking I ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/affirm-i-now-willingly-release-all-negative-beliefs-about-myself-my/) [Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/) > [An affirmation states that a goal is already happening. I'm not crazy about this because, often when we affirm something that is not yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-harv-eker/an-affirmation-states-that-a-goal-is-already-happening-i-m-not-crazy/) [T. Harv Eker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-harv-eker/) > [We are here to affirm, not to deny... when we affirm all that is God, all that is not God is automatically denied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/we-are-here-to-affirm-not-to-deny-when-we-affirm-all-that-is-god-all/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [To affirm life is to deepen, to make more inward, and to exalt the will-to-life. At the same time the man who has become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/to-affirm-life-is-to-deepen-to-make-more-inward-and-to-exalt-the-will/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [“May all you affirm and believe be given the opportunity to manifest - day by day.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleesha/may-all-you-affirm-and-believe-be-given-the-opportunity-to-manifest/) [Eleesha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleesha/) > [When you affirm your own Tightness in the universe, then you co operate with others easily and automatically as part of your own nature.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-roberts/when-you-affirm-your-own-tightness-in-the-universe-then-you-co/) [Jane Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-roberts/) > [“Affirm your life's destiny & purpose to ensure - both are graciously fulfilled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleesha/affirm-your-life-s-destiny-purpose-to-ensure-both-are-graciously/) [Eleesha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleesha/) > [Poesy must not be drawn by the ears: it must be gently led, or rather, it must lead, which was partly the cause that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sidney/poesy-must-not-be-drawn-by-the-ears-it-must-be-gently-led-or-rather/) [Philip Sidney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sidney/) > [“Like a pair of old slippers, I feel comfort and warmth as I slip into you. No, that is too crude. Like the match…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/like-a-pair-of-old-slippers-i-feel-comfort-and-warmth-as-i-slip-into/) [Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/) Browse all 68 Affirm quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I don't deny or affirm anything. 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