--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is exhausting to be seventeen and not…" description: "\"It is exhausting to be seventeen and not know who you are.\" — John Irving" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/john-irving-337_exhausting_it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not_845327.png" --- # It is exhausting to be seventeen and not know who you are. ![“It is exhausting to be seventeen and not know who you are.” quote by John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/john-irving-337_exhausting_it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not_845327.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/john-irving-337_exhausting_it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not_845327.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/john-irving-337_exhausting_it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not_845327.png) > “It is exhausting to be seventeen and not know who you are.” [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He captures teenage angst of identity uncertainty and the pressure of self‑discovery. **In simple terms:** Teenagers often feel lost about who they are. Key Takeaway Explore interests to clarify identity. Themes adolescence identity confusion growth self‑discovery Mood reflective empathetic hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - High school - career choices - personal branding - artistic pursuits - friend groups Key Concepts Psychology developmental theory social pressure Questions to Reflect On - What steps help you discover your true self? - How does society influence teenage identity? A Different Perspective Pressure to define oneself can cause anxiety. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [It must be wonderful to be seventeen, and to know everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/it-must-be-wonderful-to-be-seventeen-and-to-know-everything/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [The beginning of wisdom, as they say. When you're seventeen you know everything. When you're twenty-seven if you still know everything you're still seventeen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/the-beginning-of-wisdom-as-they-say-when-you-re-seventeen-you-know/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Being wrong about important things is exhausting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/being-wrong-about-important-things-is-exhausting/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [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 John Irving > [Your memory is a monster; you forget - it doesn't. It simply files things away. It keeps things for you, or hides things from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/your-memory-is-a-monster-you-forget-it-doesn-t-it-simply-files-things/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [Our memory is a monster; you forget it - it does not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/our-memory-is-a-monster-you-forget-it-it-does-not/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [… and so he tried to accept the ache in his heart as what Dr. Larch would call the common symptoms of normal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/and-so-he-tried-to-accept-the-ache-in-his-heart-as-what-dr-larch/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [Watch out for people who call themselves religious; make sure you know what they mean––make sure they know what they mean!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/watch-out-for-people-who-call-themselves-religious-make-sure-you-know/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [The desire to never leave your side, the desire to never see you again. The desire to see your face asleep on the pillow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/the-desire-to-never-leave-your-side-the-desire-to-never-see-you-again/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [I had been a student in Vienna, and one of the neat little things I had found out was about that zoo. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/i-had-been-a-student-in-vienna-and-one-of-the-neat-little-things-i/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“God, I think I just hit a high E-flat - and I really held it!" Esmeralda said, after one of her more prolonged orgasms,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/god-i-think-i-just-hit-a-high-e-flat-and-i-really-held-it-esmeralda/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“Nostalgia!" Miss Frost cried. "You´re nostalgic!" She repeated. "Just how old are you, William?" She asked. "Seventeen, " I told her. "Seventeen!" Miss Frost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/nostalgia-miss-frost-cried-you-re-nostalgic-she-repeated-just-how-old/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [ “JUST BECAUSE A BUNCH OF ATHEISTS ARE BETTER WRITERS THAN THE GUYS WHO WROTE THE BIBLE DOESN'T NECESSARILY MAKE THEM RIGHT!" \[Owen Meany\] said… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/just-because-a-bunch-of-atheists-are-better-writers-than-the-guys-who/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [It is much easier to be flexible about where a story begins than it ever was for me to change my mind about where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/it-is-much-easier-to-be-flexible-about-where-a-story-begins-than-it/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“Only the chicken-lover will understand me. He will give me a kindly look, maybe mildly desirous. His eyes will tell me: You might look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/only-the-chicken-lover-will-understand-me-he-will-give-me-a-kindly/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [You're nice,' Cushie told him, squeezing his hand. 'And you're my oldest friend.' But they both must have known that you can know someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/you-re-nice-cushie-told-him-squeezing-his-hand-and-you-re-my-oldest/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“Because of A Prayer for Owen Meany, many of my readers assume I am “religious.” I go to church only occasionally—like a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/because-of-a-prayer-for-owen-meany-many-of-my-readers-assume-i-am/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“Did anyone who was in love and was unsatisfied with how he was loved in return ever feel saved?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/did-anyone-who-was-in-love-and-was-unsatisfied-with-how-he-was-loved/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“I TRUST THAT GOD WILL HELP ME, BECAUSE WHAT I’M SUPPOSED TO DO LOOKS VERY HARD.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/i-trust-that-god-will-help-me-because-what-i-m-supposed-to-do-looks/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) [Explore all 641 John Irving quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) ## More Exhausting quotes > [I talk a lot, and that is probably exhausting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-whittaker/i-talk-a-lot-and-that-is-probably-exhausting/) [Jodie Whittaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-whittaker/) > [I'm OK with my appearance. I have made my peace with it after a long and frankly exhausting battle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-perkins/i-m-ok-with-my-appearance-i-have-made-my-peace-with-it-after-a-long/) [Sue Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-perkins/) > [Friendship is a difficult, dangerous job. It is also (though we rarely admit it) extremely exhausting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bibesco/friendship-is-a-difficult-dangerous-job-it-is-also-though-we-rarely/) [Elizabeth Bibesco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bibesco/) > [“It was exhausting being a schizophrenic, which he was still convinced he was.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-wolitzer/it-was-exhausting-being-a-schizophrenic-which-he-was-still-convinced/) [Meg Wolitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-wolitzer/) > [It is utterly exhausting being Black in America - physically, mentally, and emotionally. While many minority groups and women feel similar stress, there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/it-is-utterly-exhausting-being-black-in-america-physically-mentally/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [One day I would want to be an Egyptologist, the next day an ornithologist. I was an exhausting child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-perkins/one-day-i-would-want-to-be-an-egyptologist-the-next-day-an/) [Sue Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-perkins/) > [It's exhausting trying to impress someone and be a version of yourself that might be attractive to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-martin/it-s-exhausting-trying-to-impress-someone-and-be-a-version-of/) [Mae Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-martin/) > [Seeing people I've been friends with for well over a decade just turn on me. It was just so exhausting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-sandoval/seeing-people-i-ve-been-friends-with-for-well-over-a-decade-just-turn/) [Tom Sandoval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-sandoval/) > [Today's competitiveness, so much imposed from without, is exhausting, not exhilarating; is unending-a part of one's social life, one's solitude, one's sleep, one's sleeplessness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-kronenberger/today-s-competitiveness-so-much-imposed-from-without-is-exhausting/) [Louis Kronenberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-kronenberger/) > [“Existing is exhausting. I want to live - How to be”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-a-bitez/existing-is-exhausting-i-want-to-live-how-to-be/) [P.A. Bitez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-a-bitez/) > [It's literally, if I'm not working out, I eat the whole time I'm not working out. It's exhausting. You have to force-feed. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-j-watt/it-s-literally-if-i-m-not-working-out-i-eat-the-whole-time-i-m-not/) [J. J. Watt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-j-watt/) > [The endless definitions for feminism are exhausting. It's this, it isn't this, it's only this if you're this, etc.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cazzie-david/the-endless-definitions-for-feminism-are-exhausting-it-s-this-it-isn/) [Cazzie David](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cazzie-david/) > [“To be in a long-term state of limbo, not knowing the outcome or length of time waiting, is utterly, shatteringly exhausting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanya-marlow/to-be-in-a-long-term-state-of-limbo-not-knowing-the-outcome-or-length/) [Tanya Marlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanya-marlow/) > [Oh, but my treasure, it is so much less exhausting. You only have to forgive once. To resent, you have to do it all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-l-stedman-2/oh-but-my-treasure-it-is-so-much-less-exhausting-you-only-have-to/) [M. L. Stedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-l-stedman-2/) > [Playing live, you can't survive, certainly not in England. We used to work daytime jobs and play gigs at night. It was very exhausting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-rossdale/playing-live-you-can-t-survive-certainly-not-in-england-we-used-to/) [Gavin Rossdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-rossdale/) Browse all 485 Exhausting quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is exhausting to be seventeen and not know who you are.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Irving" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not-know-who-you-are/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Exhausting" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not-know-who-you-are/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/john-irving-337_exhausting_it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not_845327.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/john-irving-337_exhausting_it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not_845327.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b3/john-irving-337_exhausting_it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not_845327.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is exhausting to be seventeen and not know who you are.” — John Irving", "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": "John Irving", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It is exhausting to be seventeen...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not-know-who-you-are/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/it-is-exhausting-to-be-seventeen-and-not-know-who-you-are/#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 } } ] } ```