---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm sorry I'm young,\" Deborah answered…"
description: "\"I'm sorry I'm young,\" Deborah answered with a bitterness that was half prose. \"We have a right to be as crazy as anyone else.\" The second part was more..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/joanne-greenberg-14643_bitterness_i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-wit_1895291.png"
---

#  I'm sorry I'm young," Deborah answered with a bitterness…

![“I'm sorry I'm young,&quot; Deborah answered with a bitterness that was half prose. &quot;We have a right to be as crazy as anyone else.&quot; The second part was more a plea, and to her surprise the superbly inhuman fighter smiled softly and said, &quot;Yes ... I suppose that's true, though I never thought of it in…” quote by Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/joanne-greenberg-14643_bitterness_i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-wit_1895291.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/joanne-greenberg-14643_bitterness_i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-wit_1895291.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/joanne-greenberg-14643_bitterness_i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-wit_1895291.png)

> “I'm sorry I'm young," Deborah answered with a bitterness that was half prose. "We have a right to be as crazy as anyone else." The second part was more a plea, and to her surprise the superbly inhuman fighter smiled softly and said, "Yes ... I suppose that's true, though I never thought of it in those terms before.”

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

## About This Quote

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

A young woman feels entitled to express wildness, confronting societal expectations and personal pain.

**In simple terms:** Youth claims freedom to be wild.

Key Takeaway

Respect youthful authenticity while navigating norms.

Themes

youth rebellion identity

Mood

reflective empathetic

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- college life
- artistic expression
- family dynamics
- mental health therapy

Key Concepts

existentialism social conformity

Questions to Reflect On

- What does “crazy” mean to you?
- How can you balance freedom with accountability?

A Different Perspective

Romanticizing rebellion can ignore responsibility.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Answered Bitterness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/answered-bitterness-2763540/) [Bitterness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitterness/) [Bitterness Half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitterness-half-2763539/) [Crazy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crazy/) [Deborah Answered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deborah-answered-2763537/) [Fighter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighter/) [Half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/half/) [I m sorry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-m-sorry/) [Inhuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inhuman/) [Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prose/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Softly Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/softly-said-1682033/) [Sorry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sorry/) [Surprise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surprise/) [Term](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/term/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) [Young Deborah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-deborah-2763538/)

## Related quotes

> [I'm sorry I'm young," Deborah answered with a bitterness that was half prose. "We have a right to be as crazy as anyone else](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-with-a-bitterness-that-was-half-2/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [“...he softly touched his lips to hers. Sweetly. Innocently. “Ronin,” she drew in a short, stilted breath. The ache in her body was reaching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sibylla-matilde/he-softly-touched-his-lips-to-hers-sweetly-innocently-ronin-she-drew/)

[Sibylla Matilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sibylla-matilde/)

> [“Mindy.” he softly said my name. “Tell me…my beautiful red rose,” he continued, “why must you let this thorny bush grip onto you, keeping…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deb-apodaca/mindy-he-softly-said-my-name-tell-me-my-beautiful-red-rose-he/)

[Deb Apodaca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deb-apodaca/)

> [He didn't look insane or inhuman. He did look uncooperative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-mckinley/he-didn-t-look-insane-or-inhuman-he-did-look-uncooperative/)

[Robin McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-mckinley/)

> [Humanism is the only - I would go so far as saying the final- resistance we have against the inhuman practices and injustices that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/humanism-is-the-only-i-would-go-so-far-as-saying-the-final-resistance/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“The king who stepped into the ballroom wearing a green velvet robe and bejeweled crown was none other that the tiger-man who'd prowled through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kat-falls/the-king-who-stepped-into-the-ballroom-wearing-a-green-velvet-robe/)

[Kat Falls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kat-falls/)

> [Mathematics has the inhuman quality of starlight, brilliant and sharp, but cold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-weyl/mathematics-has-the-inhuman-quality-of-starlight-brilliant-and-sharp/)

[Hermann Weyl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-weyl/)

> [Whether it comes from a despotic sovereign or an elected president, from a murderous general or a beloved leader, I see power as an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oriana-fallaci/whether-it-comes-from-a-despotic-sovereign-or-an-elected-president/)

[Oriana Fallaci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oriana-fallaci/)

> [Technological society leads to increasing numbers of people who cannot adapt to the inhuman rhythm of modern life with its emphasis on specialization. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/technological-society-leads-to-increasing-numbers-of-people-who/)

[Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/)

> [When men are inhuman, take care not to feel towards them as they do towards other humans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/when-men-are-inhuman-take-care-not-to-feel-towards-them-as-they-do/)

[Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/)

> [I think thing that makes Batman so endlessly interesting is that he's one of the most flawed and deeply human characters, even though he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-snyder/i-think-thing-that-makes-batman-so-endlessly-interesting-is-that-he-s/)

[Scott Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-snyder/)

> [ \[W\]e are the heirs of a past of rope, fire, and murder. I for one am not ashamed of this past. My shame is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/w-e-are-the-heirs-of-a-past-of-rope-fire-and-murder-i-for-one-am-not/)

[Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/)

> [For 'Inhuman,' it's a 'chess game' series. You have a lot of pieces moving different ways at once, and it's about what they do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-soule/for-inhuman-it-s-a-chess-game-series-you-have-a-lot-of-pieces-moving/)

[Charles Soule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-soule/)

> [To forgive all is as inhuman as to forgive none](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-forgive-all-is-as-inhuman-as-to-forgive-none/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“We shall be inhuman - as humankind's greatest conquest. To be is to be beyond the human. To be a human being doesn't do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarice-lispector/we-shall-be-inhuman-as-humankind-s-greatest-conquest-to-be-is-to-be/)

[Clarice Lispector](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarice-lispector/)

## More by Joanne Greenberg

> [The creative strength is good enough and deep enough to bring itself to flower and to grow in spite of this sickness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/the-creative-strength-is-good-enough-and-deep-enough-to-bring-itself/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [“They had shared much of their pasts, most of their fears, and all of their tenuous and fragile hopes, but Deborah had noticed over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/they-had-shared-much-of-their-pasts-most-of-their-fears-and-all-of/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [What cook can match herself against hunger and memory?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/what-cook-can-match-herself-against-hunger-and-memory/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [Sometimes the world is so much sicker than the inmates of its institutions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/sometimes-the-world-is-so-much-sicker-than-the-inmates-of-its/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [suicide is the ultimate 'one-up,' as it were, the accusation that brooks no defense, the argument won at last.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/suicide-is-the-ultimate-one-up-as-it-were-the-accusation-that-brooks/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [“Among equals gratitude is reciprocal; her gratitude to these Titans, who called themselves average and were unaware of their own tremendous strength in being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/among-equals-gratitude-is-reciprocal-her-gratitude-to-these-titans/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [“People were differentiated by this substance, which was called nganon . Nganon was a concentrate which was defined in each person by nurture and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/people-were-differentiated-by-this-substance-which-was-called-nganon/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [“You know... the thing that is so wrong about being mentally ill is the terrible price you have to pay for survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/you-know-the-thing-that-is-so-wrong-about-being-mentally-ill-is-the/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [“Yr had a region called the Fear-bog. Lactamaeon had taken her there once to see the monsters and corpses of her nightmares accumulating there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/yr-had-a-region-called-the-fear-bog-lactamaeon-had-taken-her-there/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [“Later, they began to explore the secret idea that Deborah shared with all the ill—that she had infinitely more power than the ordinary person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/later-they-began-to-explore-the-secret-idea-that-deborah-shared-with/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [There is nothing that you can do to me that my own craziness doesn't do to me smarter and faster and better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/there-is-nothing-that-you-can-do-to-me-that-my-own-craziness-doesn-t/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [all children blackmail their parents with their innocence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/all-children-blackmail-their-parents-with-their-innocence/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [Money in the hand is real - coins and bills. The rest I don't believe in, and I don't think I ever did, really.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/money-in-the-hand-is-real-coins-and-bills-the-rest-i-don-t-believe-in/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [A humane and authentic book written by another voice from the trenches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/a-humane-and-authentic-book-written-by-another-voice-from-the-trenches/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

> [The hidden strength is too deep a secret. But in the end...in the end it is our only ally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/the-hidden-strength-is-too-deep-a-secret-but-in-the-end-in-the-end-it/)

[Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

[Explore all 41 Joanne Greenberg quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/)

## More Bitterness quotes

> [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/)

[Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/)

> [If Japanese tea 'stands,' it acquires a coarse bitterness and an unwholesome astringency. Milk and sugar are not used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-bird/if-japanese-tea-stands-it-acquires-a-coarse-bitterness-and-an/)

[Isabella Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-bird/)

> [Stronger than alcohol, vaster than poetry, Ferment the freckled red bitterness of love!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-rimbaud/stronger-than-alcohol-vaster-than-poetry-ferment-the-freckled-red/)

[Arthur Rimbaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-rimbaud/)

> [“What?" I ask. I try not to get snappy with her. She hasn't really done anything wrong. Falling in love with Turner isn't a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-m-stunich/what-i-ask-i-try-not-to-get-snappy-with-her-she-hasn-t-really-done/)

[C.M. Stunich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-m-stunich/)

> [“The fairest things have fleetest end, Their scent survives their close: But the rose’s scent is bitterness To him that loved the rose. —Francis…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-rule/the-fairest-things-have-fleetest-end-their-scent-survives-their-close/)

[Ann Rule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-rule/)

> [Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity, or registering wrongs. With this creed, revenge never worries my heart, degradation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/life-appears-to-me-too-short-to-be-spent-in-nursing-animosity-or/)

[Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/)

> [“No," I say. "I didn't know that," and as I say it I feel flooded with bitterness at all the things Ingrid kept secret…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-lacour/no-i-say-i-didn-t-know-that-and-as-i-say-it-i-feel-flooded-with/)

[Nina LaCour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-lacour/)

> [Forgiving someone who've done you wrong or didn't treat you right could mean that you are allowing yourself to end up away from bitterness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/april-t-pascua/forgiving-someone-who-ve-done-you-wrong-or-didn-t-treat-you-right/)

[April T Pascua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/april-t-pascua/)

> [You cannot be inspired if you are surrounded with negativity, open the door and step into the inspirational garden of nature. Do not let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemmy-nola/you-cannot-be-inspired-if-you-are-surrounded-with-negativity-open-the/)

[Kemmy Nola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemmy-nola/)

> [It's not the load that breaks you down, it's the way you carry it. Carry it by the comfortable handles of gratitude for what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-horne/it-s-not-the-load-that-breaks-you-down-it-s-the-way-you-carry-it/)

[Lena Horne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-horne/)

> [Not forgiving prolongs hurt and anger and leads to smoldering resentment, which will make us miserable until it kills us. Resentment destroys the perception…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-walters/not-forgiving-prolongs-hurt-and-anger-and-leads-to-smoldering/)

[Richard Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-walters/)

> [Let us not give in to pessimism, to that bitterness that the devil offers us every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/let-us-not-give-in-to-pessimism-to-that-bitterness-that-the-devil/)

[Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/)

> [“Sometimes it is good to remind ourselves how bitterness tastes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rin-chupeco/sometimes-it-is-good-to-remind-ourselves-how-bitterness-tastes/)

[Rin Chupeco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rin-chupeco/)

> [What folly made young people, even those in middle age, think they were immortal? How much better, their lives, if they could remember the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohinton-mistry/what-folly-made-young-people-even-those-in-middle-age-think-they-were/)

[Rohinton Mistry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rohinton-mistry/)

> [Be sure there is something waiting for you after much patience, to astonish you to a degree, that you forget the bitterness of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/be-sure-there-is-something-waiting-for-you-after-much-patience-to/)

[Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/)

[Browse all 1,210 Bitterness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitterness/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I'm sorry I'm young,\" Deborah answered with a bitterness that was half prose. \"We have a right to be as crazy as anyone else.\" The second part was more a plea, and to her surprise the superbly inhuman fighter smiled softly and said, \"Yes ... I suppose that's true, though I never thought of it in those terms before.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Joanne Greenberg"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-with-a-bitterness-that-was-half/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bitterness"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-with-a-bitterness-that-was-half/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/joanne-greenberg-14643_bitterness_i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-wit_1895291.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/joanne-greenberg-14643_bitterness_i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-wit_1895291.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/joanne-greenberg-14643_bitterness_i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-wit_1895291.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I'm sorry I'm young,\" Deborah answered with a bitterness that was half prose. \"We have a right to be as…” — Joanne Greenberg",
                "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": "Joanne Greenberg",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I'm sorry I'm young,\" Deborah answered...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-with-a-bitterness-that-was-half/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/i-m-sorry-i-m-young-deborah-answered-with-a-bitterness-that-was-half/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
