--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If we do not laugh, we will cry. Crying…" description: "\"“If we do not laugh, we will cry. Crying will only make us hotter and sweatier. We Jews like to joke about death because what you laugh at and make fam..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/jane-yolen-7302_death_if-we-do-not-laugh-we-will-cry-crying-wi_1114671.jpg" --- # If we do not laugh, we will cry. Crying will only make us… ![“If we do not laugh, we will cry. Crying will only make us hotter and sweatier. We Jews like to joke about death because what you laugh at and make familiar can no longer frighten you. Besides, Chayaleh, what else is there to do?” quote by Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/jane-yolen-7302_death_if-we-do-not-laugh-we-will-cry-crying-wi_1114671.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/jane-yolen-7302_death_if-we-do-not-laugh-we-will-cry-crying-wi_1114671.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/jane-yolen-7302_death_if-we-do-not-laugh-we-will-cry-crying-wi_1114671.jpg) > ““If we do not laugh, we will cry. Crying will only make us hotter and sweatier. We Jews like to joke about death because what you laugh at and make familiar can no longer frighten you. Besides, Chayaleh, what else is there to do?”” [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humor helps us confront fear and death, turning terror into familiarity and reducing emotional intensity. **In simple terms:** Joking eases fear of death. Key Takeaway Use humor to face scary topics. Themes humor coping death cultural resilience Mood reflective empathetic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - grief counseling - cultural rituals - personal coping strategies Key Concepts psychology existential dread social bonding Questions to Reflect On - How can humor be used responsibly in grief? - When does joking become harmful? A Different Perspective Humor may not work for everyone and can be seen as disrespectful. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Comedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Holocaust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holocaust/) [Judaism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judaism/) [Laugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laugh/) [Time travel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-travel/) ## Related quotes > [Don't take this life as a joke because death is not a joke it's real..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/don-t-take-this-life-as-a-joke-because-death-is-not-a-joke-it-s-real/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [“Death is another story. I will never make a joke about death. It is beyond my powers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-puzo/death-is-another-story-i-will-never-make-a-joke-about-death-it-is/) [Mario Puzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-puzo/) > [Surrealism can only deliver a reactionary judgment; can make out of history only an accumulation of oddities, a joke, a death trip.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/surrealism-can-only-deliver-a-reactionary-judgment-can-make-out-of/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [If you appreciate the value of life, you dont joke about death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-appreciate-the-value-of-life-you-dont-joke-about-death/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I shook with helplessness and rage, but also with fear. This was what fighting back earned you. More abuse. More death. 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I could see that now. There was no rhyme or reason to whether we lived or died. One…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-gratz/it-was-all-a-big-joke-i-could-see-that-now-there-was-no-rhyme-or/) [Alan Gratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-gratz/) > [“This was a particularly spectacular example of the German campaign to gather forced labor in the East, which had begun with the Poles of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-snyder/this-was-a-particularly-spectacular-example-of-the-german-campaign-to/) [Timothy Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-snyder/) > [“When you are singled out for torture because of your faith, can religion still be a beacon?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/when-you-are-singled-out-for-torture-because-of-your-faith-can/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Are there, as science fiction and Gnostic speculation imply, different species of time in the same world, 'good time' and enveloping folds of inhuman…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-styron/are-there-as-science-fiction-and-gnostic-speculation-imply-different/) [William Styron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-styron/) ## More by Jane Yolen > [“You've got some power," Jakkin said. "One hug—and the lights go out!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/you-ve-got-some-power-jakkin-said-one-hug-and-the-lights-go-out/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [“Part of her revolted against the insanity of the rules. Part of her was grateful. In a world of chaos, any guidelines helped. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/part-of-her-revolted-against-the-insanity-of-the-rules-part-of-her/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [“Cinderella, until lately, has never been a passive dreamer waiting for rescue. The forerunners of the Ash-girl have all been hardy, active heroines who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/cinderella-until-lately-has-never-been-a-passive-dreamer-waiting-for/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Stories," he'd said, his voice low and almost husky, "we are made up of stories. And even the one's that seem the most like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/stories-he-d-said-his-voice-low-and-almost-husky-we-are-made-up-of/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Love the writing, love the writing, love the writing... the rest will follow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/love-the-writing-love-the-writing-love-the-writing-the-rest-will/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Just write. If you have to make a choice, if you say, 'Oh well, I'm going to put the writing away until my children…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/just-write-if-you-have-to-make-a-choice-if-you-say-oh-well-i-m-going/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [A child who can love the oddities of a fantasy book cannot possibly be xenophobic as an adult. 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And everyone in it - the good people and the not so good, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/a-mist-a-great-mist-it-covered-the-entire-kingdom-and-everyone-in-it/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Readers re-create any story to suit their own needs. They re-clothe the story in their own shirts. Put simply: just as we write the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/readers-re-create-any-story-to-suit-their-own-needs-they-re-clothe/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [We all have such stories. It is a brutal arithmetic. But I - I am alive. You are alive. As long as we breathe,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/we-all-have-such-stories-it-is-a-brutal-arithmetic-but-i-i-am-alive/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Ideas are the cheapest part of the writing. They are free. The hard part is what you do with ideas you've gathered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/ideas-are-the-cheapest-part-of-the-writing-they-are-free-the-hard/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [“As I thought about endings and – being a lover of fairy tales – I knew immediately that the deeply rooted last line in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/as-i-thought-about-endings-and-being-a-lover-of-fairy-tales-i-knew/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [Get up from your desk and wander outside occasionally. To be a good writer one needs to be a good observer, and there isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/get-up-from-your-desk-and-wander-outside-occasionally-to-be-a-good/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) [Explore all 92 Jane Yolen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) ## More Comedy quotes > ['Mad TV' is one of my most favorite shows of all time and is a huge part of my obsession with sketch comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-dawson/mad-tv-is-one-of-my-most-favorite-shows-of-all-time-and-is-a-huge/) [Shane Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-dawson/) > [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/) [Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [I wouldn't want people to laugh at me. That's why I have to give all that I can, and at least produce something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhao-wei/i-wouldn-t-want-people-to-laugh-at-me-that-s-why-i-have-to-give-all/) [Zhao Wei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhao-wei/) > [“Our world will not die as a result of the bomb, as the papers say, it will die of laughter, of banality, of making a joke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/our-world-will-not-die-as-a-result-of-the-bomb-as-the-papers-say-it/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [I've been funny my whole life. This is a gift God gave me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-morgan/i-ve-been-funny-my-whole-life-this-is-a-gift-god-gave-me/) [Tracy Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-morgan/) > [“Laugh and grow strong”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-loyola/laugh-and-grow-strong/) [Ignatius of Loyola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-loyola/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. 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