--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was tricky [to write about Israelis]…" description: "\"It was tricky [to write about Israelis], because everyone has an opinion about the Arab - Israeli conflict, and when I first started writing these stor..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d5/molly-antopol-20696_arab-israeli-conflic_it-was-tricky-to-write-about-israelis-be_2355593.jpg" --- # It was tricky \[to write about Israelis\], because everyone… ![“It was tricky [to write about Israelis], because everyone has an opinion about the Arab - Israeli conflict, and when I first started writing these stories, I was working for an Arab - Israeli human rights group. It was during the Second Intifada. It was this totally violent and intense time, and I…” quote by Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d5/molly-antopol-20696_arab-israeli-conflic_it-was-tricky-to-write-about-israelis-be_2355593.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d5/molly-antopol-20696_arab-israeli-conflic_it-was-tricky-to-write-about-israelis-be_2355593.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d5/molly-antopol-20696_arab-israeli-conflic_it-was-tricky-to-write-about-israelis-be_2355593.jpg) > “It was tricky \[to write about Israelis\], because everyone has an opinion about the Arab - Israeli conflict, and when I first started writing these stories, I was working for an Arab - Israeli human rights group. It was during the Second Intifada. It was this totally violent and intense time, and I think there's a part of me where I don't know how to write about that situation without getting my politics out of my messages, and that's something that was important for me not to do in this book.” [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author struggles to write objectively about a polarized conflict without letting personal politics color the narrative. **In simple terms:** Writing about conflict is hard without bias. Key Takeaway Seek factual clarity, separate personal views. Themes conflict journalism bias truth politics Mood introspective analytical Type journalistic reflective When to use this quote - news articles - academic papers - policy briefs - documentary scripts Key Concepts Ethics of reporting subjectivity media responsibility Questions to Reflect On - How can writers maintain neutrality? - What methods reveal hidden biases? A Different Perspective Personal bias may still seep despite effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Arab israeli conflict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arab-israeli-conflict/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Conflict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conflict/) [Human rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-rights/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Intense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intense/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Messages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/messages/) [Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opinion/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Violent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violent/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-stories/) ## Related quotes > [The Arab-Israeli conflict is the biggest problem, but small problems shape the daily lives of Israelis. 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Georgy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-f-georgy/) > [I was six years old when the conflict started in Rwanda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clemantine-wamariya/i-was-six-years-old-when-the-conflict-started-in-rwanda/) [Clemantine Wamariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clemantine-wamariya/) > [We could still have continued the arms race, but the arms race was pointless, and it was another reason we decided to start perestroika.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-gorbachev/we-could-still-have-continued-the-arms-race-but-the-arms-race-was/) [Mikhail Gorbachev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-gorbachev/) > [Public interest in most of the Middle East was slight at that time; the Arab-Israeli conflict was all that people were interested in and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-cole/public-interest-in-most-of-the-middle-east-was-slight-at-that-time/) [Juan Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-cole/) > [My friends, there is no Palestinian-Israeli conflict. There is only the global war on terrorism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/my-friends-there-is-no-palestinian-israeli-conflict-there-is-only-the/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) > [The idea that the rest of the world was somehow being held hostage by the Arab-Israeli conflict once had a minimal basis in reality.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/the-idea-that-the-rest-of-the-world-was-somehow-being-held-hostage-by/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [The Arab-Israeli conflict is also in many ways a conflict about status: it's a war between two peoples who feel deeply humiliated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-arab-israeli-conflict-is-also-in-many-ways-a-conflict-about/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [Needless to say, if the Arab-Israeli conflict is about interstate disputes and the need to resolve the future of the West Bank and Gaza,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/needless-to-say-if-the-arab-israeli-conflict-is-about-interstate/) [Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/) > [It's funny - for a long time, I didn't know I was writing a book. I was writing stories. For me, each story took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/it-s-funny-for-a-long-time-i-didn-t-know-i-was-writing-a-book-i-was/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [“In the end both people realized something so utterly simple and yet horrifyingly distant- by removing the ‘otherness’ from their respective identification, they can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-f-georgy/in-the-end-both-people-realized-something-so-utterly-simple-and-yet/) [R.F. Georgy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-f-georgy/) > [“My identity as Jewish cannot be reduced to a religious affiliation. Professor Said quoted Gramsci, an author that I’m familiar with, that, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-f-georgy/my-identity-as-jewish-cannot-be-reduced-to-a-religious-affiliation/) [R.F. Georgy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-f-georgy/) > [The preeminent obstacle to peace is Israel's colonization of Palestine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/the-preeminent-obstacle-to-peace-is-israel-s-colonization-of-palestine/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [Why should the Arabs make peace? If I was an Arab leader I would never make terms with Israel. That is natural: we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ben-gurion/why-should-the-arabs-make-peace-if-i-was-an-arab-leader-i-would-never/) [David Ben-Gurion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ben-gurion/) ## More by Molly Antopol > [So if there was a way that I knew something about my character's desires or the things that they were resisting because I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/so-if-there-was-a-way-that-i-knew-something-about-my-character-s/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [“But for the first time, Boaz couldn't think of a single word to describe this kind of loneliness, so scary and real it required…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/but-for-the-first-time-boaz-couldn-t-think-of-a-single-word-to/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [“... having been with Boaz for so long that she could predict every one of his moves, their sex life was more like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/having-been-with-boaz-for-so-long-that-she-could-predict-every-one-of/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [I always tell my students to write the story all the way through, not to play with the language and fall in love with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/i-always-tell-my-students-to-write-the-story-all-the-way-through-not/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [The Israel stories were really hard for me to write, because I think that my book is very much about politics, but it isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/the-israel-stories-were-really-hard-for-me-to-write-because-i-think/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [Years ago I read an interview with Paula Fox in which she said that in writing, truth is just as important as story. Reading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/years-ago-i-read-an-interview-with-paula-fox-in-which-she-said-that/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [People are going to bash you. You get rejected. It's hard. I don't really feel like that's my place as the teacher. I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/people-are-going-to-bash-you-you-get-rejected-it-s-hard-i-don-t/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [But what I realized when I was looking back at them was that no matter how different they are, they're still coming from me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/but-what-i-realized-when-i-was-looking-back-at-them-was-that-no/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [It's funny - for a long time, I didn't know I was writing a book. I was writing stories. For me, each story took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/it-s-funny-for-a-long-time-i-didn-t-know-i-was-writing-a-book-i-was/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [With the Holocaust - I wonder if a lot of Jewish writers of my generation have felt this way - it feels really intimidating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/with-the-holocaust-i-wonder-if-a-lot-of-jewish-writers-of-my/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [Raymond Carver had the quote that I loved about how he felt that a short story was the moment right before someone's life was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/raymond-carver-had-the-quote-that-i-loved-about-how-he-felt-that-a/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [I felt like if I could get the epiphany out of the way in my drafting process, through my eighth or tenth draft, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/i-felt-like-if-i-could-get-the-epiphany-out-of-the-way-in-my-drafting/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [I'm not Israeli and because I'm not a citizen, it doesn't matter how often I go there - I'm still not Israeli. There's this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/i-m-not-israeli-and-because-i-m-not-a-citizen-it-doesn-t-matter-how/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [With the Israel stories, it was for me the most surprising way the title would fit in. I kept thinking about, for a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/with-the-israel-stories-it-was-for-me-the-most-surprising-way-the/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) > [There's something interesting about being really intimate and familiar with Israel, but still being American - that really thin piece of glass between me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-antopol/there-s-something-interesting-about-being-really-intimate-and/) [Molly Antopol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) [Explore all 30 Molly Antopol quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-antopol/) ## More Arab israeli conflict quotes > [Why should the Arabs make peace? If I was an Arab leader I would never make terms with Israel. That is natural: we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ben-gurion/why-should-the-arabs-make-peace-if-i-was-an-arab-leader-i-would-never/) [David Ben-Gurion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ben-gurion/) > [“My identity as Jewish cannot be reduced to a religious affiliation. Professor Said quoted Gramsci, an author that I’m familiar with, that, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-f-georgy/my-identity-as-jewish-cannot-be-reduced-to-a-religious-affiliation/) [R.F. Georgy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-f-georgy/) > [What I, as the prime minister of the present government of Israel, started to do, is first to tackle the longest part of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yitzhak-rabin/what-i-as-the-prime-minister-of-the-present-government-of-israel/) [Yitzhak Rabin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yitzhak-rabin/) > [“It used to be a universally accepted axiom that the Palestinian Israeli conflict is an intractable and immovable impasse of epic proportion. Its Sisyphean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-f-georgy/it-used-to-be-a-universally-accepted-axiom-that-the-palestinian/) [R.F. Georgy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-f-georgy/) > [The preeminent obstacle to peace is Israel's colonization of Palestine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/the-preeminent-obstacle-to-peace-is-israel-s-colonization-of-palestine/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [“In the end both people realized something so utterly simple and yet horrifyingly distant- by removing the ‘otherness’ from their respective identification, they can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-f-georgy/in-the-end-both-people-realized-something-so-utterly-simple-and-yet/) [R.F. Georgy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-f-georgy/) > [It is the duty of Israeli leaders to explain to public opinion, clearly and courageously, a certain number of facts that are forgotten with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ariel-sharon/it-is-the-duty-of-israeli-leaders-to-explain-to-public-opinion/) [Ariel Sharon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ariel-sharon/) > [We do not wish and do not need to expel Arabs and take their places.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ben-gurion/we-do-not-wish-and-do-not-need-to-expel-arabs-and-take-their-places/) [David Ben-Gurion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ben-gurion/) > [“Peace is not determined by the signage of treaties or the wishes of leaders. Peace is not a discrete event; rather it is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-f-georgy/peace-is-not-determined-by-the-signage-of-treaties-or-the-wishes-of/) [R.F. Georgy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-f-georgy/) > [Enough of blood and tears. Enough!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yitzhak-rabin/enough-of-blood-and-tears-enough/) [Yitzhak Rabin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yitzhak-rabin/) > [“Many scholars believe the Arab-Israeli conflict did not start out as a war between religions, but as a territorial dispute between two competing groups—Jews…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brigitte-gabriel/many-scholars-believe-the-arab-israeli-conflict-did-not-start-out-as/) [Brigitte Gabriel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brigitte-gabriel/) > [“The imperialist found it useful to incorporate the credible and seemingly unimpeachable wisdom of science to create a racial classification to be used in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-f-georgy/the-imperialist-found-it-useful-to-incorporate-the-credible-and/) [R.F. Georgy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-f-georgy/) > [The Arab-Israeli conflict is the biggest problem, but small problems shape the daily lives of Israelis. Unless there happens to be a war going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yair-lapid/the-arab-israeli-conflict-is-the-biggest-problem-but-small-problems/) [Yair Lapid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yair-lapid/) > [The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zuheir-mohsen/the-palestinian-people-does-not-exist-the-creation-of-a-palestinian/) Zuheir Mohsen > [“Palestinians and Israelis were connected by a fatalistic dialectic, whose movement was punctuated by violence and directed towards an apocalyptic conclusion. One might argue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-f-georgy/palestinians-and-israelis-were-connected-by-a-fatalistic-dialectic/) [R.F. Georgy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-f-georgy/) [Browse all 16 Arab israeli conflict quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arab-israeli-conflict/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It was tricky [to write about Israelis], because everyone has an opinion about the Arab - Israeli conflict, and when I first started writing these stories, I was working for an Arab - Israeli human rights group. It was during the Second Intifada. 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