--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This was his third attempt to escape…" description: "\"“This was his third attempt to escape Yugoslavia, for which he was rewarded by two years of treatment in the insane asylum. The official political reas..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f52/josip-novakovich-16473_asylum_this-was-his-third-attempt-to-escape-yug_2173838.png" --- # This was his third attempt to escape Yugoslavia, for which… ![“This was his third attempt to escape Yugoslavia, for which he was rewarded by two years of treatment in the insane asylum. The official political reasoning was simple: if you wanted to leave a healthy society like socialist Yugoslavia to live in the decadent West, you were insane.” quote by Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f52/josip-novakovich-16473_asylum_this-was-his-third-attempt-to-escape-yug_2173838.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f52/josip-novakovich-16473_asylum_this-was-his-third-attempt-to-escape-yug_2173838.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f52/josip-novakovich-16473_asylum_this-was-his-third-attempt-to-escape-yug_2173838.png) > ““This was his third attempt to escape Yugoslavia, for which he was rewarded by two years of treatment in the insane asylum. The official political reasoning was simple: if you wanted to leave a healthy society like socialist Yugoslavia to live in the decadent West, you were insane.”” [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Political dissent is path as mental illness, discouraging departure from a flawed system **In simple terms:** Dissent is labeled insanity to keep people from leaving a bad society Key Takeaway Question authority and seek truth beyond propaganda Themes politics freedom mental health Mood critical somber Type political social commentary When to use this quote - activism - emigration - human rights advocacy - personal resilience Key Concepts authoritarianism psychology Questions to Reflect On - What are modern equivalents of “insane” labeling? - How can societies protect dissenters? A Different Perspective Labeling dissent as illness can suppress legitimate criticism ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Asylum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asylum/) [Healthy society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/healthy-society/) [Insane asylum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insane-asylum/) ## Related quotes > [South Carolina is too small for a republic and too large for an insane asylum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-l-petigru/south-carolina-is-too-small-for-a-republic-and-too-large-for-an/) James L. Petigru > [“You are the third Healer born and called. The first two failed the test." "What happened to the other two?" "One is dead. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-p-ching/you-are-the-third-healer-born-and-called-the-first-two-failed-the/) [G.P. Ching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-p-ching/) > [We did just leave an insane asylum,” Hi agreed. “For all we know, Chance spend his nights dancing naked with sock puppets, plotting to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-reichs/we-did-just-leave-an-insane-asylum-hi-agreed-for-all-we-know-chance/) [Kathy Reichs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-reichs/) > [Surely my macking on some guy in an insane asylum wouldn't hurt him. He'd been living with his stalker, for heaven's sake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darynda-jones/surely-my-macking-on-some-guy-in-an-insane-asylum-wouldn-t-hurt-him/) [Darynda Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darynda-jones/) > [Society is an insane asylum ran by the inmates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erving-goffman/society-is-an-insane-asylum-ran-by-the-inmates/) [Erving Goffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erving-goffman/) > [“Today the world belongs only to the stupid, the insensitive and the agitated. Today the right to live and triumph is awarded on virtually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/today-the-world-belongs-only-to-the-stupid-the-insensitive-and-the/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [You couldn't find a group outside of an insane asylum more detached from reality than actors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-woolery/you-couldn-t-find-a-group-outside-of-an-insane-asylum-more-detached/) [Chuck Woolery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-woolery/) > [I think there was no other profession for me. I was either going into an insane asylum or to be an actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-wilde/i-think-there-was-no-other-profession-for-me-i-was-either-going-into/) [Olivia Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-wilde/) > [“Yes, we are in a real pickle. Welcome to the pan-galactic insane asylum.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-m-forester/yes-we-are-in-a-real-pickle-welcome-to-the-pan-galactic-insane-asylum/) [H.M. Forester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-m-forester/) > [America is an insane asylum run by the inmates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-roloff/america-is-an-insane-asylum-run-by-the-inmates/) [Lester Roloff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-roloff/) > [The insane asylum on Blackwell’s Island is a human rat-trap. It is easy to get in, but once there it is impossible to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-bly/the-insane-asylum-on-blackwell-s-island-is-a-human-rat-trap-it-is/) [Nellie Bly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-bly/) > [“How had I ever thought he was cute? He so needed to be locked up in an insane asylum somewhere. Too bad Batman wasn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-estep/how-had-i-ever-thought-he-was-cute-he-so-needed-to-be-locked-up-in-an/) [Jennifer Estep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-estep/) > [Erroneous views and presumptuousness send a talent to the insane asylum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-grillparzer/erroneous-views-and-presumptuousness-send-a-talent-to-the-insane/) [Franz Grillparzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-grillparzer/) > [“Insane asylums are deliberate and premeditated receptacles of black magic, and it is not only that doctors encourage magic with their untimely and hybrid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonin-artaud/insane-asylums-are-deliberate-and-premeditated-receptacles-of-black/) [Antonin Artaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonin-artaud/) > [When I was a child, I felt at times that I had been born into an insane asylum, that much of human life appeared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/when-i-was-a-child-i-felt-at-times-that-i-had-been-born-into-an/) [Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/) ## More by Josip Novakovich > [“Strangely enough, I am beginning to feel like an exile when I go to a polling station in PA and people hold placards approving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/strangely-enough-i-am-beginning-to-feel-like-an-exile-when-i-go-to-a/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“MY FATHER TRIED IT. In Daruvar, Croatia, he bought a piano, sat my oldest brother at it, and hired a teacher. Whenever Vlado made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/my-father-tried-it-in-daruvar-croatia-he-bought-a-piano-sat-my-oldest/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“It was clear that people were not rushing to the shelves. In fact, I’d never seen anybody in a library pick up a small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/it-was-clear-that-people-were-not-rushing-to-the-shelves-in-fact-i-d/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“I was taught not to distinguish between patriotism and nationalism; the word patriotism was an attempt to present the same ugly nationalist phenomenon of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/i-was-taught-not-to-distinguish-between-patriotism-and-nationalism/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“In the train, I read a special issue of Der Spiegel, about the Germans who had been driven out in ethnic cleansing campaigns at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/in-the-train-i-read-a-special-issue-of-der-spiegel-about-the-germans/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“He must have given up on image making because his eyes had failed to see something they had yearned for; his mind had failed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/he-must-have-given-up-on-image-making-because-his-eyes-had-failed-to/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“But that did not make Mirko happy - the world was melting away; what was a grade compared with the world? He gazed through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/but-that-did-not-make-mirko-happy-the-world-was-melting-away-what-was/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“You don't need to wait for inspiration to write. It's easier to be inspired while writing than while not writing...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/you-don-t-need-to-wait-for-inspiration-to-write-it-s-easier-to-be/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“Enemies keep you alert, competitive, and friendships lull you into mediocrity, and through peer pressure, keep you back and down, and eventually, down and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/enemies-keep-you-alert-competitive-and-friendships-lull-you-into/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“Describing men, of course, I run into the same problems—aquiline nose, chiseled features, bullish neck, leonine hair, steely gaze, bronze tan—but somehow the arsenal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/describing-men-of-course-i-run-into-the-same-problems-aquiline-nose/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [Fiction is an expressionist painting rather than a photograph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/fiction-is-an-expressionist-painting-rather-than-a-photograph/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“Diogenes heard a young man playing on the lute. The otherwise stoical philosopher seemed to be touched by the emotional music and he fought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/diogenes-heard-a-young-man-playing-on-the-lute-the-otherwise-stoical/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“Late at night, my friend Boris and I stood by the tracks and the train passed with orange lights in all its windows but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/late-at-night-my-friend-boris-and-i-stood-by-the-tracks-and-the-train/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“I became sensitive, or at least hypocritical.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/i-became-sensitive-or-at-least-hypocritical/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) > [“When he moved to another end of our town, our friendship diminished, and I made other friends. I moved to the States, and he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josip-novakovich/when-he-moved-to-another-end-of-our-town-our-friendship-diminished/) [Josip Novakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) [Explore all 39 Josip Novakovich quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josip-novakovich/) ## More Asylum quotes > [Any country that grants asylum to Snowden risks retaliation from the United States, including diplomatic isolation and costly trade sanctions. Several don't seem to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kinzer/any-country-that-grants-asylum-to-snowden-risks-retaliation-from-the/) [Stephen Kinzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kinzer/) > [Sometimes I think they should set up an asylum for people like that... a whole slew of paparazzi defending their positions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-i-think-they-should-set-up-an-asylum-for-people-like-that-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“congress - that great, benevolent asylum for the helpless”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/congress-that-great-benevolent-asylum-for-the-helpless/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I would not invest in a Trump hate wall. We don't need to be protected from immigrants that are coming here seeking asylum and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayanna-pressley/i-would-not-invest-in-a-trump-hate-wall-we-don-t-need-to-be-protected/) [Ayanna Pressley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayanna-pressley/) > [This is called 'the land of the free and the home of the brave'; it is called the 'asylum of the oppressed,' and some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wells-brown/this-is-called-the-land-of-the-free-and-the-home-of-the-brave-it-is/) [William Wells Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wells-brown/) > [The lunatics have taken over the asylum and we can do anything we want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-lunatics-have-taken-over-the-asylum-and-we-can-do-anything-we-want/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [Individuals whose asylum claims have been accepted have gone on to become professors, soldiers in our military, artists, and more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pramila-jayapal/individuals-whose-asylum-claims-have-been-accepted-have-gone-on-to/) [Pramila Jayapal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pramila-jayapal/) > [I shouldn't make movies anymore. I should go to a lunatic asylum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/i-shouldn-t-make-movies-anymore-i-should-go-to-a-lunatic-asylum/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [South Carolina is too small for a republic and too large for an insane asylum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-l-petigru/south-carolina-is-too-small-for-a-republic-and-too-large-for-an/) James L. Petigru > [I had, toward the last, been shut off from all visitors, and so when the lawyer, Peter A. Hendricks, came and told me that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-bly/i-had-toward-the-last-been-shut-off-from-all-visitors-and-so-when-the/) [Nellie Bly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-bly/) > [“I was in a mental asylum? When the fuck did that happen?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darynda-jones/i-was-in-a-mental-asylum-when-the-fuck-did-that-happen/) [Darynda Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darynda-jones/) > [The United States should be an asylum for the persecuted lovers of civil and religious liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/the-united-states-should-be-an-asylum-for-the-persecuted-lovers-of/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [“Asylum. The word always made me smile. Such a pretty name for a hellhole.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-estep/asylum-the-word-always-made-me-smile-such-a-pretty-name-for-a-hellhole/) [jennifer estep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-estep/) > [“Insane asylums are deliberate and premeditated receptacles of black magic, and it is not only that doctors encourage magic with their untimely and hybrid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonin-artaud/insane-asylums-are-deliberate-and-premeditated-receptacles-of-black/) [Antonin Artaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonin-artaud/) > [Instead of turning loose these bogus asylum applicants onto the American streets never to be seen again, let's put them into mobile homes. Let's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-kobach/instead-of-turning-loose-these-bogus-asylum-applicants-onto-the/) [Kris Kobach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-kobach/) [Browse all 166 Asylum quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asylum/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“This was his third attempt to escape Yugoslavia, for which he was rewarded by two years of treatment in the insane asylum. 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