--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I can pinpoint the exact moment when I…" description: "\"I can pinpoint the exact moment when I first began to think about what profession I should go into. It was 1978. I was seven and had just been handed o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d5/hisham-matar-4118_career_i-can-pinpoint-the-exact-moment-when-i-f_2427349.jpg" --- # I can pinpoint the exact moment when I first began to… ![“I can pinpoint the exact moment when I first began to think about what profession I should go into. It was 1978. I was seven and had just been handed over by the women of my family to the earnest and self-important gatherings of the men. I was no longer the responsibility of my aunts and older…” quote by Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d5/hisham-matar-4118_career_i-can-pinpoint-the-exact-moment-when-i-f_2427349.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d5/hisham-matar-4118_career_i-can-pinpoint-the-exact-moment-when-i-f_2427349.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d5/hisham-matar-4118_career_i-can-pinpoint-the-exact-moment-when-i-f_2427349.jpg) > “I can pinpoint the exact moment when I first began to think about what profession I should go into. It was 1978. I was seven and had just been handed over by the women of my family to the earnest and self-important gatherings of the men. I was no longer the responsibility of my aunts and older female cousins. I was now a man. This was a tragedy.” [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator reflects on a childhood moment when gender expectations shifted, marking a personal loss of feminine protection and a forced entry into male roles. **In simple terms:** A boy felt forced into manhood, losing female care. Key Takeaway Recognize how early gender roles shape identity. Themes identity gender comingofage Mood reflective somber Type personal memoir When to use this quote - childhood - career decisions - family expectations - gender role transition Key Concepts masculinity family dynamics cultural expectations Questions to Reflect On - How did this shift affect later choices? - What could alternative narratives offer? A Different Perspective The narrative may romanticize loss without acknowledging agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Began Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/began-think-235019/) [Career](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/career/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Moment Began](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moment-began-235016/) [Profession 1978](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profession-1978-235015/) [Responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility/) [Responsibility Aunts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility-aunts-235017/) [Think Profession](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-profession-235018/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women/) ## Related quotes > [“From this moment I began to conclude in my mind that it was possible for me to be more happy in this forsaken, solitary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-defoe/from-this-moment-i-began-to-conclude-in-my-mind-that-it-was-possible/) [Daniel Defoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-defoe/) > [Don't ever forget the moment you began to doubt. Transitioning from fitting into standing out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/don-t-ever-forget-the-moment-you-began-to-doubt-transitioning-from/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) > [Don't ever forget the moment you began to doubt, transitioning from fitting in to standing out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/don-t-ever-forget-the-moment-you-began-to-doubt-transitioning-from-2/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) > [Buffon has been a star from the moment he began his senior career with Parma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-carragher/buffon-has-been-a-star-from-the-moment-he-began-his-senior-career/) [Jamie Carragher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-carragher/) > [Don't ever forget the moment you began to doubt, transitionin from fittin in to standin out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/don-t-ever-forget-the-moment-you-began-to-doubt-transitionin-from/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) > [I think in any profession, in general, you always imagine yourself at the top of it. And I'm not trying to say I'm at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-batalon/i-think-in-any-profession-in-general-you-always-imagine-yourself-at/) [Jacob Batalon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-batalon/) > [I think in any profession you become, you know, a little frustrated if the results aren't what you want them to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-reaves/i-think-in-any-profession-you-become-you-know-a-little-frustrated-if/) [Austin Reaves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-reaves/) > [I can't think of anything in my profession that would mean as much. You can talk about Emmys or Super Bowls. Fifty Masters Tournaments,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-nantz/i-can-t-think-of-anything-in-my-profession-that-would-mean-as-much/) [Jim Nantz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-nantz/) > [We, as designers, have a job with so many possibilities and connections. We are connected to so many different portals, from art to movies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miuccia-prada/we-as-designers-have-a-job-with-so-many-possibilities-and-connections/) [Miuccia Prada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miuccia-prada/) > [“it provokes him to think that his profession will become the exclusive province of programmers, mechanics, engineers, and the autonomous systems they design.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-nagata/it-provokes-him-to-think-that-his-profession-will-become-the/) [Linda Nagata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-nagata/) > [Don't let the world define you. 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Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-vance/) > [I began to think that my time had come, as the saying is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buffalo-bill/i-began-to-think-that-my-time-had-come-as-the-saying-is/) [Buffalo Bill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buffalo-bill/) > [I was rejected a lot in the early days - I think I heard the word 'no' nine times - and I began to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cafu/i-was-rejected-a-lot-in-the-early-days-i-think-i-heard-the-word-no/) [Cafu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cafu/) ## More by Hisham Matar > [There and then, sitting beside her and within the strength of my adoration, I felt invincible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/there-and-then-sitting-beside-her-and-within-the-strength-of-my/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [To be okay with not knowing is a sign of a mature person and a mature society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/to-be-okay-with-not-knowing-is-a-sign-of-a-mature-person-and-a-mature/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [“History remembers Mussolini as the buffoonish Fascist, the ineffective silly man of Italy who led a lame military campaign in the Second World War,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/history-remembers-mussolini-as-the-buffoonish-fascist-the-ineffective/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Grief loves the hollow; all it wants is to hear its own echo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/grief-loves-the-hollow-all-it-wants-is-to-hear-its-own-echo/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Dreams have consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/dreams-have-consequences/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Language is not just a code; you are writing into its history, into its tides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/language-is-not-just-a-code-you-are-writing-into-its-history-into-its/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [My parents were fairly laid-back, but there were certain things about which they were very strict. 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The dictatorship is willing to employ any methods necessary to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/libyans-are-deeply-unsettled-by-gaddafi-and-his-regime-s-careless/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [My best hope is that Libya turns into a peaceful, sensible country that has all the things my father and lots of others have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/my-best-hope-is-that-libya-turns-into-a-peaceful-sensible-country/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Season of Migration to the North, by Tayeb Salih, is an eloquent and restrained portrait of one man's exile. It is a rare narrative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/season-of-migration-to-the-north-by-tayeb-salih-is-an-eloquent-and/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Turgenev's achievement lies in how he succeeded, in spite of himself, his country, and his time, in exempting his work from public duty. 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You are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-james/don-t-allow-anyone-to-pressure-you-into-taking-a-job-in-a-field-that/) [Alison James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-james/) > [In every province, the chief occupations, in order of importance, are lovemaking, malicious gossip, and talking nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/in-every-province-the-chief-occupations-in-order-of-importance-are/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [I think I've had the longest career of strength, focus, and still being able to sell records. I think I'm that guy. I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [One needs more than ambition and talent to make a success of anything, really. There must be love and a vocation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessye-norman/one-needs-more-than-ambition-and-talent-to-make-a-success-of-anything/) [Jessye Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessye-norman/) > [There are so many things you can do with your life, you can go to school and study toward your career, you can become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simphiwe-scientist-dumi/there-are-so-many-things-you-can-do-with-your-life-you-can-go-to/) [Simphiwe Scientist Dumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simphiwe-scientist-dumi/) > [I always knew I wanted to have a good career, so I made it happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chord-overstreet/i-always-knew-i-wanted-to-have-a-good-career-so-i-made-it-happen/) [Chord Overstreet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chord-overstreet/) > [I am a very big fan of Brian Eno, of his work as an artist and making his music, and as a producer. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rostam-batmanglij/i-am-a-very-big-fan-of-brian-eno-of-his-work-as-an-artist-and-making/) [Rostam Batmanglij](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rostam-batmanglij/) > [If I can beat a proven champion like Canelo, that will take my career to a different level.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennady-golovkin/if-i-can-beat-a-proven-champion-like-canelo-that-will-take-my-career/) [Gennady Golovkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennady-golovkin/) > [My non-career. My excuse for a career? Honestly, I never think about the word 'career.' I've had managers, the minute they say it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-verlaine/my-non-career-my-excuse-for-a-career-honestly-i-never-think-about-the/) [Tom Verlaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-verlaine/) > [“The vocation of a man lies in his vision.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/the-vocation-of-a-man-lies-in-his-vision/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [I started off as a model maker, so the first part of my career was a model maker and then a motion control camera…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-knoll/i-started-off-as-a-model-maker-so-the-first-part-of-my-career-was-a/) [John Knoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-knoll/) > [Growing up I did commercials and things like that, but nothing serious. As I got older, my family is really hardcore into academics. 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