--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Adultery is like, here's the way it is…" description: "\"Adultery is like, here's the way it is, and here's exactly what you're supposed to do. It's like cheating at Monopoly. For me, it just doesn't apply to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/mary-gaitskill-7551_adultery_adultery-is-like-here-s-the-way-it-is-an_1694789.jpg" --- # Adultery is like, here's the way it is, and here's exactly… ![“Adultery is like, here's the way it is, and here's exactly what you're supposed to do. It's like cheating at Monopoly. For me, it just doesn't apply to human relations. I mean, I use the word sometimes because it's fair and everybody knows what it means, but I find it a very irritating word.” quote by Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/mary-gaitskill-7551_adultery_adultery-is-like-here-s-the-way-it-is-an_1694789.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/mary-gaitskill-7551_adultery_adultery-is-like-here-s-the-way-it-is-an_1694789.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/mary-gaitskill-7551_adultery_adultery-is-like-here-s-the-way-it-is-an_1694789.jpg) > “Adultery is like, here's the way it is, and here's exactly what you're supposed to do. It's like cheating at Monopoly. For me, it just doesn't apply to human relations. I mean, I use the word sometimes because it's fair and everybody knows what it means, but I find it a very irritating word.” [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker critiques the term "adultery" as a simplistic, game‑like label that fails to capture the complexity of human relationships. **In simple terms:** The word "adultery" is an irritating, oversimplified label for complex relationships. Key Takeaway Avoid using reductive labels for nuanced situations. Themes relationships language ethics communication Mood frustrated reflective Type analytical critical When to use this quote - marriage counseling - friendship conflicts - ethical debates - personal reflection Key Concepts semantic reduction human complexity social norms Questions to Reflect On - How does language shape our moral judgments? - When is it appropriate to simplify complex issues? A Different Perspective The term may still be useful in legal contexts despite its emotional baggage. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adultery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adultery/) [Cheating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cheating/) [Human relations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-relations/) ## Related quotes > [“The idea of adultery is like a soccer ball. Yeah, you might kick it around for a while, but if you actually wind up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/the-idea-of-adultery-is-like-a-soccer-ball-yeah-you-might-kick-it/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [Is a BJ adultery? What? Did I miss a day of school? Of course it is! Oral sex is adultery like Curling is an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-black/is-a-bj-adultery-what-did-i-miss-a-day-of-school-of-course-it-is-oral/) [Lewis Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-black/) > [I think a woman who commits adultery, is not sympathetic in our culture - or in many cultures, let's face it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/i-think-a-woman-who-commits-adultery-is-not-sympathetic-in-our/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [I can't do a long distance relationship, I feel like you are over there cheating on me while I'm over here](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jawon-stewwert/i-can-t-do-a-long-distance-relationship-i-feel-like-you-are-over/) [Jawon Stewwert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jawon-stewwert/) > [I don't like all the cheating that's going in mixed martial arts. I don't know what percentage of high-level fighters do it, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-askren/i-don-t-like-all-the-cheating-that-s-going-in-mixed-martial-arts-i/) [Ben Askren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-askren/) > [“What was she going to do with two Drustans? A kinky part of her proposed something unmentionable and rather fascinating. Really, if they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/what-was-she-going-to-do-with-two-drustans-a-kinky-part-of-her/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [“I'm at a bar with a woman! So there, you disgusting whore! And I'm going to take her back to our house and I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristan-higgins/i-m-at-a-bar-with-a-woman-so-there-you-disgusting-whore-and-i-m-going/) [Kristan Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristan-higgins/) > [“I’m notoriously married to my job.” “That’s super convenient because so am I. It’ll be like we’re cheating on our jobs with each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-lauren/i-m-notoriously-married-to-my-job-that-s-super-convenient-because-so/) [Christina Lauren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-lauren/) > [“So he hadn’t kicked the guy out and he’d proceeded to have the worst sex of his life. And for the first time, he’d…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annabeth-albert/so-he-hadn-t-kicked-the-guy-out-and-he-d-proceeded-to-have-the-worst/) [Annabeth Albert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annabeth-albert/) > [Having Ghost and Raekwon together on multiple tracks is almost like cheating because they fit so well together. Their chemistry is undeniable, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-younge/having-ghost-and-raekwon-together-on-multiple-tracks-is-almost-like/) [Adrian Younge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-younge/) > [Maybe the best things about celebrity are the things like being able to get that seat on the plane that you wouldn't normally get,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-duchovny/maybe-the-best-things-about-celebrity-are-the-things-like-being-able/) [David Duchovny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-duchovny/) > [I told my wife, when I go up to the garage and I wash my Cobra, I feel like I'm cheating on her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-goldberg/i-told-my-wife-when-i-go-up-to-the-garage-and-i-wash-my-cobra-i-feel/) [Bill Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-goldberg/) > [Writing a song is almost like cheating-writing because you don't have to finish your sentences, you don't have to use any punctuation, no one's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mirah/writing-a-song-is-almost-like-cheating-writing-because-you-don-t-have/) [Mirah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mirah/) > [River Song? Amy Pond? Hardly weak women. It's the exact opposite. You could accuse me of having a fetish for powerful, sexy women who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-moffat/river-song-amy-pond-hardly-weak-women-it-s-the-exact-opposite-you/) [Steven Moffat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-moffat/) > [“My girlfriend has two aliases. Clones aside, it’s the only time I’ve ever felt like I was cheating on one person with the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/my-girlfriend-has-two-aliases-clones-aside-it-s-the-only-time-i-ve/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) ## More by Mary Gaitskill > [“I carry love wrapped in pain. That is my treasure and soon it will be yours.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/i-carry-love-wrapped-in-pain-that-is-my-treasure-and-soon-it-will-be/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [“God famously doesn't afflict Job because of anything Job has done, but because he wants to prove a point to Satan. Twenty years later,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/god-famously-doesn-t-afflict-job-because-of-anything-job-has-done-but/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [When you're writing a story, you're creating something of an artificial ending.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/when-you-re-writing-a-story-you-re-creating-something-of-an/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [Partly, I'm worried that no one is saying anything because they are afraid of being seen as politically correct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/partly-i-m-worried-that-no-one-is-saying-anything-because-they-are/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [ “...loading your brain with subliminal messages… How loathsome to turn a sadistic murder into entertainment \[in the newspaper\] -- and yet how hard not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/loading-your-brain-with-subliminal-messages-how-loathsome-to-turn-a/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [ “The place Joanne is building inside \[herself\] has rooms for all of this. Not just rooms. Beautiful ones. For Karl and Jerry and Karen… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/the-place-joanne-is-building-inside-herself-has-rooms-for-all-of-this/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [“Valiantly, he tried to bring his soul to life in the small thing through which it had to live, and it was crushed, again…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/valiantly-he-tried-to-bring-his-soul-to-life-in-the-small-thing/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [The best definition I've heard is that guilt is about what you've done, shame is about who you are. If something's out of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/the-best-definition-i-ve-heard-is-that-guilt-is-about-what-you-ve/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [When my first book came out, it was very disorienting. My health went south. I didn't know how to relate to people. I thought,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/when-my-first-book-came-out-it-was-very-disorienting-my-health-went/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [When he held her that way, she felt so happy that it disturbed her. After he left, it would take her hours to fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/when-he-held-her-that-way-she-felt-so-happy-that-it-disturbed-her/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [“But life can give a lot. If you can’t see inside the heart no matter how you look, then why not look? Why not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/but-life-can-give-a-lot-if-you-can-t-see-inside-the-heart-no-matter/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [Sexuality is a place where people are very vulnerable and can be experiencing and embodying very raw forces that they don't really understand and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/sexuality-is-a-place-where-people-are-very-vulnerable-and-can-be/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [I focus more on the spiritual or psychic gains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/i-focus-more-on-the-spiritual-or-psychic-gains/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [“When boys get angry with each other, they just fight it out and it's all over. But girls are dirty. They pretend to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/when-boys-get-angry-with-each-other-they-just-fight-it-out-and-it-s/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) > [I think, life is miserable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-gaitskill/i-think-life-is-miserable/) [Mary Gaitskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) [Explore all 87 Mary Gaitskill quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-gaitskill/) ## More Adultery quotes > [A hundred years ago Hester Prynne of The Scarlet Letter was given an A for adultery; today she would rate no better than a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-de-vries/a-hundred-years-ago-hester-prynne-of-the-scarlet-letter-was-given-an/) [Peter De Vries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-de-vries/) > [“Reality has a way of bursting the bubble of illusion, and an affair is one of the biggest illusions that anyone can experience in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/reality-has-a-way-of-bursting-the-bubble-of-illusion-and-an-affair-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Once a cheater always remain's a cheater, if you love your partner, why cheat? That dosent makes any sense, that can tell that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittannia-calder/once-a-cheater-always-remain-s-a-cheater-if-you-love-your-partner-why/) [Brittannia Calder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brittannia-calder/) > [Marriage is honourable, as you say; and if so, wherefore should Cuckoldom be a Discredit, being deriv'd from so honourable a Root?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-congreve/marriage-is-honourable-as-you-say-and-if-so-wherefore-should/) [William Congreve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-congreve/) > [L'adulte' re introduit l'esprit dans la lettre quebien souvent le mariage e u" t laisse e morte. Adultery breathes new life into marriages which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/l-adulte-re-introduit-l-esprit-dans-la-lettre-quebien-souvent-le/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [“I shan't make a fuss over the babe's father.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-e-pearson/i-shan-t-make-a-fuss-over-the-babe-s-father/) [Mary E. Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-e-pearson/) > [When adultery walks in, everything worth having walks out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woodrow-m-kroll/when-adultery-walks-in-everything-worth-having-walks-out/) [Woodrow M. Kroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woodrow-m-kroll/) > [Splendid couple - slept with both of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-bowra/splendid-couple-slept-with-both-of-them/) Maurice Bowra > [“I was thinking of murder, mutilation and dessert like Ignacia Sandoval’s instructions for delectable empanadas made of minced mother-in-law’s tongue (said to induce peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-ramos-o-briant/i-was-thinking-of-murder-mutilation-and-dessert-like-ignacia-sandoval/) Sandra Ramos O'Briant > [Adultery is an image of hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emanuel-swedenborg/adultery-is-an-image-of-hell/) [Emanuel Swedenborg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emanuel-swedenborg/) > [Adolescence: A stage between infancy and adultery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/adolescence-a-stage-between-infancy-and-adultery/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Sin aims always at the utmost; every time it rises up to tempt or entice, if it has its own way it will go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-owen/sin-aims-always-at-the-utmost-every-time-it-rises-up-to-tempt-or/) [John Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-owen/) > [“Next to Joel on the beach was Martha. Two years back in time she had been Joel’s bimbo. That’s because Joel was still married…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-deck/next-to-joel-on-the-beach-was-martha-two-years-back-in-time-she-had/) Stephen Deck > [Homer and Hesiod attributed to the gods all things which are disreputable and worthy of blame when done by men; and they told of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/homer-and-hesiod-attributed-to-the-gods-all-things-which-are/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [I was growing tired of all the fussing and prevaricating, of the stolen hours and the secret rendez-vous; of the small indignities and broad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vicki-baum/i-was-growing-tired-of-all-the-fussing-and-prevaricating-of-the/) [Vicki Baum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vicki-baum/) [Browse all 426 Adultery quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adultery/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Adultery is like, here's the way it is, and here's exactly what you're supposed to do. 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