--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: JG: Ha! I will get him Looking for Alaska…" description: "\"“JG: Ha! I will get him Looking for Alaska and tell him this idea that a human being is more than a human being is a mistaken idea and in the end does ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/john-green-12_american-culture_jg-ha-i-will-get-him-looking-for-alaska_723030.jpg" --- # JG: Ha! I will get him Looking for Alaska and tell him… ![“JG: Ha! I will get him Looking for Alaska and tell him this idea that a human being is more than a human being is a mistaken idea and in the end does no service either to him or the person he's imagining. That trope has become so deeply embedded in American culture, and as someone who writes about…” quote by John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/john-green-12_american-culture_jg-ha-i-will-get-him-looking-for-alaska_723030.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/john-green-12_american-culture_jg-ha-i-will-get-him-looking-for-alaska_723030.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/john-green-12_american-culture_jg-ha-i-will-get-him-looking-for-alaska_723030.jpg) > ““JG: Ha! I will get him Looking for Alaska and tell him this idea that a human being is more than a human being is a mistaken idea and in the end does no service either to him or the person he's imagining. That trope has become so deeply embedded in American culture, and as someone who writes about young people falling in love, I feel like I can't ignore it, but I try to make it clear that life works best when we think of people as people.”” [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote challenges the notion that humans are inherently superior to each other, urging us to see people simply as people, not as idealized tropes. **In simple terms:** See people as people, not as superior beings. Key Takeaway Treat others as equals. Themes equality humanity love literature Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical literary social commentary When to use this quote - writing about teen romance - teaching empathy - media analysis - personal relationships Key Concepts existentialism humanism social critique Questions to Reflect On - How does seeing people as equals change your relationships? - What cultural tropes reinforce superiority? A Different Perspective The idea may overlook systemic differences that affect how people are treated. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-culture/) [Falling in love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/falling-in-love/) [Life work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-work/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Trope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trope/) [Young people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-people/) ## Related quotes > [“Things never happened like I imagined them" - Pudge (Looking For Alaska)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/things-never-happened-like-i-imagined-them-pudge-looking-for-alaska/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Looking For Alaska](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/looking-for-alaska/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“working title for Looking for Alaska: - White Flowers and Warm Malt Liquor - Alaska”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/working-title-for-looking-for-alaska-white-flowers-and-warm-malt/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Make sure you're not expecting cute. This isn't Looking For Alaska.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-moskowitz/make-sure-you-re-not-expecting-cute-this-isn-t-looking-for-alaska/) [Hannah Moskowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-moskowitz/) > [“My Mother just lost my book... Looking for Alaska!! I'm still looking for you!!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ingrid-espinoza-hueck/my-mother-just-lost-my-book-looking-for-alaska-i-m-still-looking-for/) Ingrid Espinoza-Hueck > [Straight and fast -Looking for Alaska by John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie/straight-and-fast-looking-for-alaska-by-john-green/) [Leslie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie/) > [Ever since 'Single White Female,' the 1990 novel which was turned into a supremely scary film, the idea of a seemingly normal woman who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-jewell/ever-since-single-white-female-the-1990-novel-which-was-turned-into-a/) [Lisa Jewell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-jewell/) > [In mainstream literature, a trope is a figure of speech: metaphor, simile, irony, or the like. Words used other than literally. In SF, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-m-lerner/in-mainstream-literature-a-trope-is-a-figure-of-speech-metaphor/) [Edward M. Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-m-lerner/) > [I'm drawn to the figure of the ungrateful subaltern as a trope in literature. In real life, it is often dangerous to demand more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-zhang/i-m-drawn-to-the-figure-of-the-ungrateful-subaltern-as-a-trope-in/) [Jenny Zhang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-zhang/) > [I try to stay away from tropes, or if there is a trope there, I ensure that it's cleverly written and isn't just lazy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-pearson/i-try-to-stay-away-from-tropes-or-if-there-is-a-trope-there-i-ensure/) [Adam Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-pearson/) > [I like animal sidekicks. They seem to be a pretty cool trope of post-apocalyptic fiction - just because if you're going to have this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-k-vaughan/i-like-animal-sidekicks-they-seem-to-be-a-pretty-cool-trope-of-post/) [Brian K. Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-k-vaughan/) > [“There is something universally chilling about a new plot. And I could see how my boy needed time and space for a story to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/there-is-something-universally-chilling-about-a-new-plot-and-i-could/) [Chang-rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [I'm used to one-dimensional female friendships. It's become a kind of trope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-brosnahan/i-m-used-to-one-dimensional-female-friendships-it-s-become-a-kind-of/) [Rachel Brosnahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-brosnahan/) > [Some facts in life are immutable. One is, trust no-one who uses the word 'trope'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-gatiss/some-facts-in-life-are-immutable-one-is-trust-no-one-who-uses-the/) [Mark Gatiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-gatiss/) > [“Do you mean to tell me, Superintendent, that this is one of those damned cases you get in detective stories where a man is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/do-you-mean-to-tell-me-superintendent-that-this-is-one-of-those/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) ## More by John Green > [Issac:"I dislike living in a world without Augustus Waters." Computer: "I don't understand-" Issac: "Me neither. Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I just want to stay away from people and read books and think”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-just-want-to-stay-away-from-people-and-read-books-and-think/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [She smiled with all the delight of a kid on Christmas morning and said, "Y'all smoke to enjoy it. I smoke to die." -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-smiled-with-all-the-delight-of-a-kid-on-christmas-morning-and/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [A Margo for each of us--and each more mirror than window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/a-margo-for-each-of-us-and-each-more-mirror-than-window/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“No one ever says good-bye unless they want to see you again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/no-one-ever-says-good-bye-unless-they-want-to-see-you-again/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Traffic's not too bad on Sheridan, and I'm cornering the car like it's the Indy 500, and we're listening to my favorite NMH song,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/traffic-s-not-too-bad-on-sheridan-and-i-m-cornering-the-car-like-it-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Praise God for good nurses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/praise-god-for-good-nurses/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [So I was ugly. I was never fat, really, and I never wore headgear or had zits or anything. But I was ugly. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/so-i-was-ugly-i-was-never-fat-really-and-i-never-wore-headgear-or-had/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“said to him quietly, as if I couldn’t hear or something. Dad was about to respond but I interrupted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/said-to-him-quietly-as-if-i-couldn-t-hear-or-something-dad-was-about/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I believe humans have souls, and I believe in the conservation of souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-believe-humans-have-souls-and-i-believe-in-the-conservation-of-souls/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“He was hot. A nonhotboy stares at you relentlessly and it is, at best, awkward and, at worst, a form of assault. But a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-was-hot-a-nonhotboy-stares-at-you-relentlessly-and-it-is-at-best/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia. (...) You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/imagining-the-future-is-a-kind-of-nostalgia-you-spend-your-whole-life/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) [Explore all 3,614 John Green quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## More American culture quotes > [“Medical studies have shown that cursing reduces levels of stress and pain. Repressing your anger is not healthy. It's much better to verbalize it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/medical-studies-have-shown-that-cursing-reduces-levels-of-stress-and/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [“Every twenty minutes on the Appalachian Trail, Katz and I walked farther than the average American walks in a week. For 93 percent of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/every-twenty-minutes-on-the-appalachian-trail-katz-and-i-walked/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [The Soviet Union is like the Cross without Christ, while American culture is like Christ without the Cross.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-soviet-union-is-like-the-cross-without-christ-while-american/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“information, in a stream-of-consciousness soliloquy that revealed the extent to which he had internalised the adversarial fragmentation of American culture and made it a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/information-in-a-stream-of-consciousness-soliloquy-that-revealed-the/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [ \[If\] we can celebrate that in a way that celebrates our love for New England as well as our love for the Italian culture… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-batali/if-we-can-celebrate-that-in-a-way-that-celebrates-our-love-for-new/) [Mario Batali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-batali/) > [I think in American culture, we put value on economic success but tell people you don't have to be economically successful to be happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hodgman/i-think-in-american-culture-we-put-value-on-economic-success-but-tell/) [John Hodgman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hodgman/) > [The most important thing about Jazz at Lincoln Center is the fact that it's the first time that perhaps the most important art form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-vinoly/the-most-important-thing-about-jazz-at-lincoln-center-is-the-fact/) [Rafael Vinoly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-vinoly/) > [And certainly in British culture, as I'm sure it's the same with American culture, we warm to cultures where people can make fun of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omid-djalili/and-certainly-in-british-culture-as-i-m-sure-it-s-the-same-with/) [Omid Djalili](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omid-djalili/) > [Canada could have enjoyed: English government, French culture, and American know-how. Instead it ended up with: English know-how, French government, and American culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/canada-could-have-enjoyed-english-government-french-culture-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In contemporary American culture, the religions are more and more treated as just passing beliefs - almost as fads - rather than as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-l-carter/in-contemporary-american-culture-the-religions-are-more-and-more/) [Stephen L. Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-l-carter/) > [Being educated in the United States gave me a good understanding of American culture. I think I got a lot of influence from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masayoshi-son/being-educated-in-the-united-states-gave-me-a-good-understanding-of/) [Masayoshi Son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masayoshi-son/) > [“From the isolated, individualistic perspective of most white evangelicals and many other Americans, there really is no race problem other than bad interpersonal relationships.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-smith/from-the-isolated-individualistic-perspective-of-most-white/) [Christian Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-smith/) > [I got interested in the American culture war back in 2004, and it's one of the only growth stocks I've ever invested in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-haidt/i-got-interested-in-the-american-culture-war-back-in-2004-and-it-s/) [Jonathan Haidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-haidt/) > [In American culture at large, but especially in African American culture, it's a sign of weakness to ask for help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/in-american-culture-at-large-but-especially-in-african-american/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) [Browse all 437 American culture quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-culture/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“JG: Ha! 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