---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whatever he might have denied me was…"
description: "\"Whatever he might have denied me was unimportant; it was the fact that he could deny me anything at all, even what I didn't want\" — Hunter S. Thompson"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b8/hunter-s-thompson-278_deny_whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-uni_1463086.jpg"
---

#  Whatever he might have denied me was unimportant; it was…

![“Whatever he might have denied me was unimportant; it was the fact that he could deny me anything at all, even what I didn't want” quote by Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b8/hunter-s-thompson-278_deny_whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-uni_1463086.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b8/hunter-s-thompson-278_deny_whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-uni_1463086.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b8/hunter-s-thompson-278_deny_whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-uni_1463086.jpg)

> “Whatever he might have denied me was unimportant; it was the fact that he could deny me anything at all, even what I didn't want”

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Denial of any request, even unwanted, demonstrates total control over another.

**In simple terms:** Control is shown by denying any request.

Key Takeaway

Beware of relationships where one party holds absolute power.

Themes

power control autonomy

Mood

cautious critical

Type

advisory analytical

When to use this quote

- legal contracts
- personal boundaries
- authoritarian regimes

Key Concepts

Abuse of authority psychological manipulation personal freedom

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you recognize healthy boundaries?
- When is asserting control justified?

A Different Perspective

The quote may exaggerate for effect.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Denied](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/denied/) [Denied Unimportant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/denied-unimportant-5290314/) [Deny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deny/) [Deny Didn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deny-didn-2672716/) [Didn Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/didn-want/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Might](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/might/) [Unimportant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unimportant/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/)

## Related quotes

> [The most important thing for me was to never, ever, ever deny it. But I didn't really have the courage to talk about it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/the-most-important-thing-for-me-was-to-never-ever-ever-deny-it-but-i/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [We have developed this unbelievable ability to deny. We have to. If we didn't, we'd go crazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patty-duke/we-have-developed-this-unbelievable-ability-to-deny-we-have-to-if-we/)

[Patty Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patty-duke/)

> [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/)

> [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/)

[Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/)

> [“You had many more years,” he said. “I didn’t want them.” “But they wanted you. Time is not something you give back. The very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/you-had-many-more-years-he-said-i-didn-t-want-them-but-they-wanted/)

[Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/)

> [There was no point in seeking to convert the intellectuals. For intellectuals would never be converted and would anyway always yield to the stronger,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-goebbels/there-was-no-point-in-seeking-to-convert-the-intellectuals-for/)

[Joseph Goebbels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-goebbels/)

> [The past and the future become unimportant. There is only that moment, and the incredible certainty that everything under the sun has been written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-past-and-the-future-become-unimportant-there-is-only-that-moment/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [A man has only a limited number of ways in which he can express strong emotions or violent passions. He uses the same gestures…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tadeusz-borowski/a-man-has-only-a-limited-number-of-ways-in-which-he-can-express/)

[Tadeusz Borowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tadeusz-borowski/)

> [Peter Keating: "Do you always have to have a purpose? Do you always have to be so damn serious? Can't you ever do things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/peter-keating-do-you-always-have-to-have-a-purpose-do-you-always-have/)

[Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/)

> [The truth seems . . . to be that in the ultimate and essential problem the economic factor is relatively superficial and unimportant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-knight/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-in-the-ultimate-and-essential-problem-the/)

[Frank Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-knight/)

> [One can only continue to expect to be read if one omits everything that is unimportant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/one-can-only-continue-to-expect-to-be-read-if-one-omits-everything/)

[Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/)

> [About myself - no. I'm unimportant, an observer, a wandering animal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-stead/about-myself-no-i-m-unimportant-an-observer-a-wandering-animal/)

[Christina Stead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-stead/)

> [The older I grow the less I esteem mere ideas. In politics, particularly, they are transient and unimportant. . . . There are only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/the-older-i-grow-the-less-i-esteem-mere-ideas-in-politics/)

[H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/)

> [What you really want to do in investments is figure out what's important and knowable. If it's unimportant or unknowable you forget about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/what-you-really-want-to-do-in-investments-is-figure-out-what-s/)

[Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/)

> [Rather than feeling lost and unimportant and meaningless, set against galaxies which go beyond the reach of the furthest telescopes, I feel that my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-l-engle/rather-than-feeling-lost-and-unimportant-and-meaningless-set-against/)

[Madeleine L'Engle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-l-engle/)

## More by Hunter S. Thompson

> [“There was also the fact that sending a penniless writer to get $135 worth of beer was — as Khrushchev said of Nixon —…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-was-also-the-fact-that-sending-a-penniless-writer-to-get-135/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [“Cases of champagne and scotch lay broken in the street, and everyone I saw had a bottle. They were screaming and dancing, and in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/cases-of-champagne-and-scotch-lay-broken-in-the-street-and-everyone-i/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [No music + Bad TV = Bad mood &amp; no pages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-music-bad-tv-bad-mood-no-pages/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [By disgracing and degrading the presidency of the United States, by fleeing the White House like a diseased cur, Richard Nixon broke the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/by-disgracing-and-degrading-the-presidency-of-the-united-states-by/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [No one holds command over me. No man. No god. No Prince. What is a claim of age for ones who are immortal? What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-one-holds-command-over-me-no-man-no-god-no-prince-what-is-a-claim/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [“The person who doesn't scatter the morning dew will not comb grey hairs”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/the-person-who-doesn-t-scatter-the-morning-dew-will-not-comb-grey/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [Hope rises and dreams flicker and die. Love plans for tomorrow and loneliness thinks of yesterday. Life is beautiful and living is pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/hope-rises-and-dreams-flicker-and-die-love-plans-for-tomorrow-and/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [If we get chased out of Iraq with our tail between our legs, that will be the fifth consecutive Third-world country with no hint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/if-we-get-chased-out-of-iraq-with-our-tail-between-our-legs-that-will/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [At age 22 I set what I insist is an all-time record for distance hitchhiking in Bermuda shorts: 3,700 miles in three weeks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/at-age-22-i-set-what-i-insist-is-an-all-time-record-for-distance/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [Paranoia is just another mask for ignorance. The truth, when you finally chase it down is almost always far worse than your darkest visions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/paranoia-is-just-another-mask-for-ignorance-the-truth-when-you/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [“No doubt they all Got What Was Coming To Them. All those pathetically eager acid freaks who thought they could buy Peace and Understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-doubt-they-all-got-what-was-coming-to-them-all-those-pathetically/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [“For several months they'd been drifting toward political involvement, but the picture was hazy and one of the most confusing elements was their geographical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/for-several-months-they-d-been-drifting-toward-political-involvement/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [He wandered into the Newsroom and asked for a job the same way he’d walk into a barbershop and ask for a haircut, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/he-wandered-into-the-newsroom-and-asked-for-a-job-the-same-way-he-d/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [There's no point in getting into politics at all unless you plan to lash things around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-s-no-point-in-getting-into-politics-at-all-unless-you-plan-to/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [There’s a lot of things wrong with this country, but one of the few things still right with it is that a man can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-s-a-lot-of-things-wrong-with-this-country-but-one-of-the-few/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

[Explore all 765 Hunter S. Thompson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

## More Denied quotes

> [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/)

[Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/)

> [Tonight I feel like a prisoner on fire, waiting desperately... denied, sentenced forever more. Only your love can set me free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bolton/tonight-i-feel-like-a-prisoner-on-fire-waiting-desperately-denied/)

[Michael Bolton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bolton/)

> [Today, at Harvard, any student with the currently fashionable color of skin is given rights denied to students of the currently unfashionable color.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-capp/today-at-harvard-any-student-with-the-currently-fashionable-color-of/)

[Al Capp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-capp/)

> [What makes me angry'is that it wasn't me who revealed that I had been with Osama Bin Laden. I originally denied being involved with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kola-boof/what-makes-me-angry-is-that-it-wasn-t-me-who-revealed-that-i-had-been/)

[Kola Boof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kola-boof/)

> [Earthly majesty is always akin to the fallen angel, who is proud and unhappy, beautiful but troubled, and whose plans and efforts, though vast,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/earthly-majesty-is-always-akin-to-the-fallen-angel-who-is-proud-and/)

[Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/)

> [Films are a fantastic medium and the huge impact they have cannot be denied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suhasini-maniratnam/films-are-a-fantastic-medium-and-the-huge-impact-they-have-cannot-be/)

[Suhasini Maniratnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suhasini-maniratnam/)

> [In an age of interdependence, global citizenship - based on trust and sense of shared responsibility - is a crucial pillar of progress. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/in-an-age-of-interdependence-global-citizenship-based-on-trust-and/)

[Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/)

> [Where knowledge is denied, faith comes in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-philip-grove/where-knowledge-is-denied-faith-comes-in/)

[Frederick Philip Grove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-philip-grove/)

> [If I could go, I would tell the truth to the North American people. President Reagan personally ordered my visa to be denied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tomas-borge/if-i-could-go-i-would-tell-the-truth-to-the-north-american-people/)

[Tomas Borge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tomas-borge/)

> [Race should not be used to claim privileges and rights for one group, exclusively, which are denied other different groups. Then that is an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/race-should-not-be-used-to-claim-privileges-and-rights-for-one-group/)

[Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/)

> [Language would have evolved first as an internal object, a kind of "language of thought" (LOT), with externalisation (hence communication) an ancillary process. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/language-would-have-evolved-first-as-an-internal-object-a-kind-of/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [It is necessary a writing critic should understand how to write. And though every writer is not bound to show himself in the capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-ashley-cooper-7th-earl-of-shaftesbury/it-is-necessary-a-writing-critic-should-understand-how-to-write-and/)

[Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-ashley-cooper-7th-earl-of-shaftesbury/)

> [That which is denied cannot be healed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/that-which-is-denied-cannot-be-healed/)

[Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/)

> [Never believe anything in politics until it has been officially denied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/never-believe-anything-in-politics-until-it-has-been-officially-denied/)

[Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/)

> [There is not a right too long denied to which we do not aspire in order to achieve; there is not a wrong too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-gompers/there-is-not-a-right-too-long-denied-to-which-we-do-not-aspire-in/)

[Samuel Gompers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-gompers/)

[Browse all 744 Denied quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/denied/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Whatever he might have denied me was unimportant; it was the fact that he could deny me anything at all, even what I didn't want",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Hunter S. Thompson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-unimportant-it-was-the-fact-that/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Denied"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-unimportant-it-was-the-fact-that/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b8/hunter-s-thompson-278_deny_whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-uni_1463086.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b8/hunter-s-thompson-278_deny_whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-uni_1463086.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b8/hunter-s-thompson-278_deny_whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-uni_1463086.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Whatever he might have denied me was unimportant; it was the fact that he could deny me anything at all…” — Hunter S. Thompson",
                "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": "Hunter S. Thompson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Whatever he might have denied me...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-unimportant-it-was-the-fact-that/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/whatever-he-might-have-denied-me-was-unimportant-it-was-the-fact-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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
