--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm seventeen now, and sometimes I act…" description: "\"“I'm seventeen now, and sometimes I act like I'm about thirteen”\" — J.D. Salinger" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79a/j-d-salinger-560_seventeen_i-m-seventeen-now-and-sometimes-i-act-li_129439.png" --- # I'm seventeen now, and sometimes I act like I'm about… ![“I'm seventeen now, and sometimes I act like I'm about thirteen” quote by J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79a/j-d-salinger-560_seventeen_i-m-seventeen-now-and-sometimes-i-act-li_129439.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79a/j-d-salinger-560_seventeen_i-m-seventeen-now-and-sometimes-i-act-li_129439.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79a/j-d-salinger-560_seventeen_i-m-seventeen-now-and-sometimes-i-act-li_129439.png) > ““I'm seventeen now, and sometimes I act like I'm about thirteen”” [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Adolescents may act younger than their age, reflecting inner conflict between maturity and nostalgia. **In simple terms:** Teenagers sometimes behave childishly. Key Takeaway Accept inner contradictions. Themes identity growth nostalgia Mood reflective conflicted Type literary personal When to use this quote - school - family gatherings - social media Key Concepts developmental psychology self-concept Practical Applications - reflect on personal growth - embrace youthful spirit Questions to Reflect On - What drives youthful behavior? - How does age affect self‑image? A Different Perspective Self-awareness may be lacking. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Act Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/act-like/) [Like Thirteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-thirteen-1256456/) [Seventeen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seventeen/) [Seventeen Act](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seventeen-act-1487700/) [Thirteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thirteen/) ## Related quotes > [I was sixteen then, and I'm seventeen now, and sometimes I act like I'm about thirteen. Sometimes, I act a lot older than I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-sixteen-then-and-i-m-seventeen-now-and-sometimes-i-act-like-i-m/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There was a point in school when I was, like, thirteen, that I didn't feel comfortable at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-ora/there-was-a-point-in-school-when-i-was-like-thirteen-that-i-didn-t/) [Rita Ora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-ora/) > [My parents still treat Christmas like I'm thirteen years old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-shinoda/my-parents-still-treat-christmas-like-i-m-thirteen-years-old/) [Mike Shinoda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-shinoda/) > [It's like I'm thirteen again and he's my crush. All I'm aware of in this entire roomful of people is him. Where he is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/it-s-like-i-m-thirteen-again-and-he-s-my-crush-all-i-m-aware-of-in/) [Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/) > [“He screamed like a thirteen-year-old girl with Bieber Fever,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-galaxy/he-screamed-like-a-thirteen-year-old-girl-with-bieber-fever/) [Jackson Galaxy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-galaxy/) > [“I also say "Boy" a lot. Partly because I have a lousy vocabulary and partly because I act quite young for my age sometimes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger-2/i-also-say-boy-a-lot-partly-because-i-have-a-lousy-vocabulary-and/) [J. D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger-2/) > [“When I was, like thirteen I thought it would be really cool to be a prostitute... I Thought It was like handsome guys would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-clowes/when-i-was-like-thirteen-i-thought-it-would-be-really-cool-to-be-a/) [Daniel Clowes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-clowes/) > [“I don’t know why you’re laughing, Miss Thing,” Nick said, turning his gaze to me. “You still fantasize over Joe McIntyre like you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-clayton/i-don-t-know-why-you-re-laughing-miss-thing-nick-said-turning-his/) [Alice Clayton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-clayton/) > [I've now been in this country for thirteen years, since I was seventeen. So this is my second home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hakeem-olajuwon/i-ve-now-been-in-this-country-for-thirteen-years-since-i-was/) [Hakeem Olajuwon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hakeem-olajuwon/) > [Falling little wind, it was five before I could form my line, or distinguish any of the enemy's motions; and could not judge at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-byng/falling-little-wind-it-was-five-before-i-could-form-my-line-or/) [John Byng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-byng/) > [I first started wearing fragrance when I was thirteen or fourteen, and the smell was candy-like. They were in very colorful bottles, like turquoise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blake-lively/i-first-started-wearing-fragrance-when-i-was-thirteen-or-fourteen-and/) [Blake Lively](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blake-lively/) > [Do you remember how you felt at seventeen? I do and I don't (...) Imagine you came from outer space and someone showed you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/do-you-remember-how-you-felt-at-seventeen-i-do-and-i-don-t-imagine/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [By the time I was seventeen, I was on my way to Hollywood and didn't look back. My family is supportive now, but like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-heard/by-the-time-i-was-seventeen-i-was-on-my-way-to-hollywood-and-didn-t/) [Amber Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-heard/) > [My mom had very low expectations for me, and she really had a point. I was a big problem at seventeen. If I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/my-mom-had-very-low-expectations-for-me-and-she-really-had-a-point-i/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [I wrote when I was a young teen, but I didn't put an eye on the available markets until I was seventeen. The next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reed/i-wrote-when-i-was-a-young-teen-but-i-didn-t-put-an-eye-on-the/) [Robert Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reed/) ## More by J.D. Salinger > [“I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all… I'm standing on the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-keep-picturing-all-these-little-kids-playing-some-game-in-this-big/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“I felt like praying or something, when I was in bed, but I couldn't do it. I can't always pray when I feel like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-felt-like-praying-or-something-when-i-was-in-bed-but-i-couldn-t-do/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“If you're a poet, you do something beautiful. I mean you're supposed to leave something beautiful after you get off the page and everything.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/if-you-re-a-poet-you-do-something-beautiful-i-mean-you-re-supposed-to/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“The best thing, though, in that museum was that everything always stayed right where it was… The only thing that would be different would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/the-best-thing-though-in-that-museum-was-that-everything-always/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“And you make people nervous, young man," she said - most equably, for her. "You either take to somebody or you don't. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/and-you-make-people-nervous-young-man-she-said-most-equably-for-her/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“I still think that, in a way, I can't get past half my childhood dogmas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-still-think-that-in-a-way-i-can-t-get-past-half-my-childhood-dogmas/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“He stuck around till around dinnertime, talking about all the guys at Pencey that he hated their guts, and squeezing this big pimple on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/he-stuck-around-till-around-dinnertime-talking-about-all-the-guys-at/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“For example, when Seymour told one of the twins or Zooey or Franny or even Mme. Boo Boo (who was only two years younger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/for-example-when-seymour-told-one-of-the-twins-or-zooey-or-franny-or/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“One thing? One thing I like? Okay.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/one-thing-one-thing-i-like-okay/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“The cigars are ballast, sweetheart. Sheer ballast. If he didn’t have a cigar to hold on to, his feet would leave the ground. We’d…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/the-cigars-are-ballast-sweetheart-sheer-ballast-if-he-didn-t-have-a/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“They're just people that write poems that get published and anthologized all over the place but they're not poets.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/they-re-just-people-that-write-poems-that-get-published-and/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“In certain Zen monasteries, it's a cardinal rule, if not the only serious enforced discipline, that when one monk calls out 'Hi!' to another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/in-certain-zen-monasteries-it-s-a-cardinal-rule-if-not-the-only/) [j.d. salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“And I hate to tell you... but I think that once you have a fair idea where you want to go, your first move…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/and-i-hate-to-tell-you-but-i-think-that-once-you-have-a-fair-idea/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [“Hi,' he said. He always said it like he was terrifically bored or terrifically tired. He didn't want you to think he was visiting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/hi-he-said-he-always-said-it-like-he-was-terrifically-bored-or/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [ “\[Y\]ou’re someone who took up birds in the first place because they fired your imagination; they fascinated you because ‘they seemed of all created… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/y-ou-re-someone-who-took-up-birds-in-the-first-place-because-they/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) [Explore all 416 J.D. Salinger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) ## More Seventeen quotes > [I wrote when I was a young teen, but I didn't put an eye on the available markets until I was seventeen. The next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reed/i-wrote-when-i-was-a-young-teen-but-i-didn-t-put-an-eye-on-the/) [Robert Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reed/) > [My mom had very low expectations for me, and she really had a point. I was a big problem at seventeen. If I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/my-mom-had-very-low-expectations-for-me-and-she-really-had-a-point-i/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [By the time I was seventeen, I was on my way to Hollywood and didn't look back. My family is supportive now, but like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-heard/by-the-time-i-was-seventeen-i-was-on-my-way-to-hollywood-and-didn-t/) [Amber Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-heard/) > [Do you remember how you felt at seventeen? I do and I don't (...) Imagine you came from outer space and someone showed you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/do-you-remember-how-you-felt-at-seventeen-i-do-and-i-don-t-imagine/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [When I was seventeen, I worked as a counsellor at a co-ed sleep-away camp for eight weeks. I loved it but it could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/when-i-was-seventeen-i-worked-as-a-counsellor-at-a-co-ed-sleep-away/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [Every seventeen minutes in America, someone commits suicide. Mostly, I have been impressed by how little value our society puts on saving the lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/every-seventeen-minutes-in-america-someone-commits-suicide-mostly-i/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [Folks, I've been straight for seventeen days... Not all in a row.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-kinison/folks-i-ve-been-straight-for-seventeen-days-not-all-in-a-row/) [Sam Kinison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-kinison/) > [It was very unusual, because normally the producer requests the test to determine whether they want to hire someone or not. Olivia was concerned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randal-kleiser/it-was-very-unusual-because-normally-the-producer-requests-the-test/) [Randal Kleiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randal-kleiser/) > [I'm seventeen and I'm crazy. My uncle says the two always go together. When people ask your age, he said, always say seventeen and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-m-seventeen-and-i-m-crazy-my-uncle-says-the-two-always-go-together/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“I'll regret it for the rest of my life, Rush, but I was fucking seventeen years old. We're morons at seventeen. We think everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-wright/i-ll-regret-it-for-the-rest-of-my-life-rush-but-i-was-fucking/) [Laura Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-wright/) > [Oh, if I had been loved at the age of seventeen, what an idiot I would be today. Happiness is like smallpox: if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/oh-if-i-had-been-loved-at-the-age-of-seventeen-what-an-idiot-i-would/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [Seventeen's not so young. A hundred years ago people got married when they were practically our age." "Yeah, that was before electricity and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-han/seventeen-s-not-so-young-a-hundred-years-ago-people-got-married-when/) [Jenny Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-han/) > [I remember being 12 or 13 and reading 'Seventeen' and 'CosmoGirl.' They were all about self-improvement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petra-collins/i-remember-being-12-or-13-and-reading-seventeen-and-cosmogirl-they/) [Petra Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petra-collins/) > [Then she yelled after the girl, 'No, we haven't seen any bald 'uns all days. But yesterday seventeen of 'em went by. Arm in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/astrid-lindgren/then-she-yelled-after-the-girl-no-we-haven-t-seen-any-bald-uns-all/) [Astrid Lindgren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/astrid-lindgren/) > [ Elle Fanning was fifteen when we started \[The Neon Demon\]. She turned seventeen during the shoot. Four weeks before Cannes, she turned eighteen. She… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-winding-refn/elle-fanning-was-fifteen-when-we-started-the-neon-demon-she-turned/) [Nicolas Winding Refn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-winding-refn/) [Browse all 361 Seventeen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seventeen/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I'm seventeen now, and sometimes I act like I'm about thirteen”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "J.D. 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