--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When people ask me that absurd question…" description: "\"“When people ask me that absurd question \"Do you like children?\" I always feel like retorting - and sometimes do, if I think the questioner has brains ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/l-m-montgomery-567_children_when-people-ask-me-that-absurd-question_186631.jpg" --- # When people ask me that absurd question "Do you like… ![“When people ask me that absurd question "Do you like children?" I always feel like retorting - and sometimes do, if I think the questioner has brains enough to understand the retort - "Why don't you ask me if I like grown-up people? I like some very much, detest others, and am indifferent to the…” quote by L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/l-m-montgomery-567_children_when-people-ask-me-that-absurd-question_186631.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/l-m-montgomery-567_children_when-people-ask-me-that-absurd-question_186631.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/l-m-montgomery-567_children_when-people-ask-me-that-absurd-question_186631.jpg) > ““When people ask me that absurd question "Do you like children?" I always feel like retorting - and sometimes do, if I think the questioner has brains enough to understand the retort - "Why don't you ask me if I like grown-up people? I like some very much, detest others, and am indifferent to the vast majority.”” [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He turns a provocative question into a witty retort, highlighting the absurdity of judging preferences. **In simple terms:** Uses humor to deflect uncomfortable questions. Key Takeaway Respond with humor to defuse tension. Themes humor social interaction boundaries Mood playful defensive Type conversational witty When to use this quote - social gatherings - online forums - family dinners Key Concepts rhetorical skill self‑assertion social norms Questions to Reflect On - What does humor reveal about personal boundaries? - When is sarcasm appropriate? A Different Perspective May alienate those seeking sincere answers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ask Absurd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ask-absurd-1982281/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Like Retorting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-retorting-1982280/) [Questioner Brains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/questioner-brains-1982282/) [Retort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retort/) [Retorting Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retorting-think-1982279/) ## Related quotes > [“I don't like you with Becky. She's not a very nice girl.' 'I don't like you with Jake. He's not me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/courtney-summers/i-don-t-like-you-with-becky-she-s-not-a-very-nice-girl-i-don-t-like/) [Courtney Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/courtney-summers/) > [ “\[Jean Harlow\] 'Say - aren't you Margot Asquith?' (pronouncing the hard 't') \[Margot Asquith\] 'Yes Dear, But the 't' is silent, as in Harlow.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/jean-harlow-say-aren-t-you-margot-asquith-pronouncing-the-hard-t/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [“How dare you call me lazy? I'd come up with a scathing retort but, meh, I'm just not motivated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-weir/how-dare-you-call-me-lazy-i-d-come-up-with-a-scathing-retort-but-meh/) [Andy Weir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-weir/) > [One doesn't come to Italy for niceness," was the retort; "one comes for life. Buon giorno! Buon giorno!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-doesn-t-come-to-italy-for-niceness-was-the-retort-one-comes-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I said, 'Don't talk rot, Old Tom Travers." "I am not accustomed to talk rot," he said. "Then, for a beginner," I said, "you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse/i-said-don-t-talk-rot-old-tom-travers-i-am-not-accustomed-to-talk-rot/) [P.G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse/) > [“Well, Karou had wanted to retort, with all the gravity and maturity she could muster. Duh.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laini-taylor/well-karou-had-wanted-to-retort-with-all-the-gravity-and-maturity-she/) [Laini Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laini-taylor/) > [“Demaratus, being asked in a troublesome manner by an importunate fellow, Who was the best man in Lacedaemon? answered at last, 'He, Sir, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/demaratus-being-asked-in-a-troublesome-manner-by-an-importunate/) [Plutarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plutarch/) > [I can be just as effective with a quick retort or a one-liner than with a big paragraph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-colmes/i-can-be-just-as-effective-with-a-quick-retort-or-a-one-liner-than/) [Alan Colmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-colmes/) > [“About two hours afterwards Gethryn discovered a suitable retort, but, coming to the conclusion that better late than never does not apply to repartees,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse/about-two-hours-afterwards-gethryn-discovered-a-suitable-retort-but/) [P.G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse/) > [“You can't do a blocking spell, and you've never heard of L'Occhio di Dio? Man, what kind of witch are you?" I had an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-hawkins/you-can-t-do-a-blocking-spell-and-you-ve-never-heard-of-l-occhio-di/) [Rachel Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-hawkins/) > [REPARTEE, n. Prudent insult in retort. Practiced by gentlemen with a constitutional aversion to violence, but a strong disposition to offend. In a war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/repartee-n-prudent-insult-in-retort-practiced-by-gentlemen-with-a/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [A woman springs a sudden reproach upon you which provokes a hot retort, and then she will presently ask you to apologize.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/a-woman-springs-a-sudden-reproach-upon-you-which-provokes-a-hot/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“Billy, honey, could you get me another drink from the bar? I’m almost done with this one.” Kate pulls on his arm, cutting off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-chase/billy-honey-could-you-get-me-another-drink-from-the-bar-i-m-almost/) [Emma Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-chase/) > [Audiences are always better pleased with a smart retort, some joke or epigram, than with any amount of reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/audiences-are-always-better-pleased-with-a-smart-retort-some-joke-or/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [“I'm not sure you're quite sensible of the honor I'm doing you," Jace said. "you'll be the first mundane who has ever been inside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/i-m-not-sure-you-re-quite-sensible-of-the-honor-i-m-doing-you-jace/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) ## More by L.M. Montgomery > [“The other day Nan said, 'Nothing can ever be quite the same for any of us again.' It made me feel rebellious. Why shouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/the-other-day-nan-said-nothing-can-ever-be-quite-the-same-for-any-of/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“It's a very bad habit to put off disagreeable things...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/it-s-a-very-bad-habit-to-put-off-disagreeable-things/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“Who was it said, ‘We forget because we must’? He was right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/who-was-it-said-we-forget-because-we-must-he-was-right/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“I don't think it's any help that it's your habit. What would you think of a person who went about sticking pins and needles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/i-don-t-think-it-s-any-help-that-it-s-your-habit-what-would-you-think/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“What a splendid day! Isn't it good just to be alive on a day like this? I pity the people who aren't born yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/what-a-splendid-day-isn-t-it-good-just-to-be-alive-on-a-day-like-this/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“I told you the Bible was more to be depended on than newspapers!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/i-told-you-the-bible-was-more-to-be-depended-on-than-newspapers/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“On a day like this there's no such word as fail in my bright lexicon.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/on-a-day-like-this-there-s-no-such-word-as-fail-in-my-bright-lexicon/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“I took the brooch because I was too overcome with irresistible temptation. I was imagining I was Lady Cordelia Fitzgerald, and I just had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/i-took-the-brooch-because-i-was-too-overcome-with-irresistible/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“…she made a poem on it at once, the lines singing themselves through her consciousness without effort. With one side of her nature she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/she-made-a-poem-on-it-at-once-the-lines-singing-themselves-through/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“I think there are two kinds of TRUE THINGS-- true things that ARE, and true things that ARE NOT, but MIGHT be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/i-think-there-are-two-kinds-of-true-things-true-things-that-are-and/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“when the darkness is close to us it is a friend. But when we sorter push it away from us—divorce ourselves from it, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/when-the-darkness-is-close-to-us-it-is-a-friend-but-when-we-sorter/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“Yesterday she had been all her own. Now she was this man's.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/yesterday-she-had-been-all-her-own-now-she-was-this-man-s/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“I suppose that's how it looks in prose. But it's very different if you look at it through poetry…and I think it's nicer…' Anne…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/i-suppose-that-s-how-it-looks-in-prose-but-it-s-very-different-if-you/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“Ilse and I hunted all over the old orchard today for a four-leaved clover and couldn't find one. Then I found one in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/ilse-and-i-hunted-all-over-the-old-orchard-today-for-a-four-leaved/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [“Nothing seems worthwhile. My very thoughts are old. I've thought them all before. What is the use of living after all, Anne?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/nothing-seems-worthwhile-my-very-thoughts-are-old-i-ve-thought-them/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) [Explore all 463 L.M. Montgomery quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [A lesser complaint: hair extensions. There are moments on 'All My Children' when half the women actors, young and old, seem to be afflicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/a-lesser-complaint-hair-extensions-there-are-moments-on-all-my/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? Your childhood is always ending and your adult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-espach/children-s-lives-are-always-beginning-and-adults-lives-are-always/) [Alison Espach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-espach/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) [Browse all 62,396 Children quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When people ask me that absurd question \"Do you like children?\" I always feel like retorting - and sometimes do, if I think the questioner has brains enough to understand the retort - \"Why don't you ask me if I like grown-up people? 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