--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I tried not to think about it. But every…" description: "\"“I tried not to think about it. But every so often it would burst out of me - why did he do something so unkind? What had I done to deserve it? I did b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/nuala-o-faolain-22668_life_i-tried-not-to-think-about-it-but-every_1380033.jpg" --- # I tried not to think about it. But every so often it would… ![“I tried not to think about it. But every so often it would burst out of me - why did he do something so unkind? What had I done to deserve it? I did believe, from my experience of life and of looking at the world, that men hated women. But there were all kinds of exceptions, and I'd have bet…” quote by Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/nuala-o-faolain-22668_life_i-tried-not-to-think-about-it-but-every_1380033.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/nuala-o-faolain-22668_life_i-tried-not-to-think-about-it-but-every_1380033.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/nuala-o-faolain-22668_life_i-tried-not-to-think-about-it-but-every_1380033.jpg) > ““I tried not to think about it. But every so often it would burst out of me - why did he do something so unkind? What had I done to deserve it? I did believe, from my experience of life and of looking at the world, that men hated women. But there were all kinds of exceptions, and I'd have bet everything that this man didn't hate me, this woman.”” [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator wrestles with personal trauma and gender bias, yet recognizes individual exceptions to general hatred. **In simple terms:** Not all men hate women; exceptions exist. Key Takeaway Challenge stereotypes with personal experience. Themes gender trauma bias Mood thoughtful introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - relationship counseling - gender studies workshops - personal reflection Key Concepts psychology social critique Questions to Reflect On - What experiences have reshaped your biases? - How do we address systemic gender prejudice? A Different Perspective Generalizations can oversimplify complex realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Didn Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/didn-hate-377968/) [Hate Woman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate-woman-426153/) [Hated Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hated-women-810545/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Men Hated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-hated-4183037/) [Tried Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tried-think-631710/) ## Related quotes > [I did believe, from my experience of life and of looking at the world, that men hated women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/i-did-believe-from-my-experience-of-life-and-of-looking-at-the-world/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [Bluebell had been saying that he knew the men hated us for raiding their crops and gardens, and Toadflax answered, 'That wasn't why they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-adams/bluebell-had-been-saying-that-he-knew-the-men-hated-us-for-raiding/) [Richard Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-adams/) > [White men are hated in America because most are conservative Christians, like those who founded and built our great country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-lee-peterson/white-men-are-hated-in-america-because-most-are-conservative/) [Jesse Lee Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-lee-peterson/) > [“I was not really surprised by what he was saying. A lot of people felt that way. Especially men. There was a quantity of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/i-was-not-really-surprised-by-what-he-was-saying-a-lot-of-people-felt/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [I mean I could not trust men again. I hated men. I hated humanity. How on earth can people sell each other?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/park-yeon-mi/i-mean-i-could-not-trust-men-again-i-hated-men-i-hated-humanity-how/) [Park Yeon-mi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/park-yeon-mi/) > [“There were those few, and there will be more, who really liked people, loved people—all people. They were the human torches setting aflame the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/there-were-those-few-and-there-will-be-more-who-really-liked-people/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [I had a terrible time with feminists in the Seventies. They hated me, those women. I think they hated everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bailey/i-had-a-terrible-time-with-feminists-in-the-seventies-they-hated-me/) [David Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bailey/) > [I hated women before I went to prison. I always felt like women were trying to tear each other down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/remy-ma/i-hated-women-before-i-went-to-prison-i-always-felt-like-women-were/) [Remy Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/remy-ma/) > [“Joanna. Remember Joanna. Francie could never forget her. From that time on, remembering the stoning women, she hated women. She feared them for their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/joanna-remember-joanna-francie-could-never-forget-her-from-that-time/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [“Remember Joanna. Remember Joanna. Francie could never forget her. From that time on, remembering the stoning women, she hated women. She feared them for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/remember-joanna-remember-joanna-francie-could-never-forget-her-from/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [Feminism is hated because women are hated. Anti-feminism is a direct expression of misogyny; it is the political defense of women hating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-dworkin/feminism-is-hated-because-women-are-hated-anti-feminism-is-a-direct/) [Andrea Dworkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-dworkin/) > [“The right wing of the Republican party-- which controlled the White House from 1980 to 1992, crucial years in the evolution of motherhood--hated the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-j-douglas/the-right-wing-of-the-republican-party-which-controlled-the-white/) [Susan J. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-j-douglas/) > [“If there’s one quality I hate in a woman, it’s modesty. Besides making me, with my trombone mouth, feel vaguely uncouth, I think it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-carter/if-there-s-one-quality-i-hate-in-a-woman-it-s-modesty-besides-making/) [Emily Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-carter/) > [“She hated Jourdan as she had never hated anyone in her life before. She tried to move away, but he wouldn't let her, his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-jordan/she-hated-jourdan-as-she-had-never-hated-anyone-in-her-life-before/) [Penny Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-jordan/) > [I hate a woman who offers herself because she ought to do so, and cold and dry thinks of her sewing when making love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/i-hate-a-woman-who-offers-herself-because-she-ought-to-do-so-and-cold/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) ## More by Nuala O'Faolain > [“...time is the third party to every relationship.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/time-is-the-third-party-to-every-relationship/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [Novels are completed when they are finished, but the memoir changes its own conclusion by virtue of being written... I was not at all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/novels-are-completed-when-they-are-finished-but-the-memoir-changes/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [Lovers are allowed to be as cruel as anything to the one who dissappoints them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/lovers-are-allowed-to-be-as-cruel-as-anything-to-the-one-who/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [If there were nothing else, reading would--obviously--be worth living for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/if-there-were-nothing-else-reading-would-obviously-be-worth-living-for/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [“...Though it seemed trivial, now, to describe a place as if what is was, was what I could see of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/though-it-seemed-trivial-now-to-describe-a-place-as-if-what-is-was/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [..though silence must add intensity to your intimate moments, it must also shrivel your soul to lie beside someone who doesn't talk to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/though-silence-must-add-intensity-to-your-intimate-moments-it-must/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [“States have no goodness. They suppress these villains here and promote those villains there, with no aim but self-aggrandizement.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/states-have-no-goodness-they-suppress-these-villains-here-and-promote/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [“...when I was young, I learned to feel for the harshness under every soft appearance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/when-i-was-young-i-learned-to-feel-for-the-harshness-under-every-soft/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [My life burned inside me. Even such as it was, it was the only record of me, and it was my only creation, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/my-life-burned-inside-me-even-such-as-it-was-it-was-the-only-record/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [I did believe, from my experience of life and of looking at the world, that men hated women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/i-did-believe-from-my-experience-of-life-and-of-looking-at-the-world/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [“There was nothing between the man and me - - nothing, not even liking. But because of the memory of some wholeness, or the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/there-was-nothing-between-the-man-and-me-nothing-not-even-liking-but/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [“What makes a woman into a doormat? What makes her see some quite ordinary other person as a looming Goliath? And are not these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/what-makes-a-woman-into-a-doormat-what-makes-her-see-some-quite/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [“They're fathers second, Jimmy said. They're men first.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/they-re-fathers-second-jimmy-said-they-re-men-first/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [“But you know, there's one simple thing I see absolutely clearly, now that I am so very old. I looked at her. The Albert…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/but-you-know-there-s-one-simple-thing-i-see-absolutely-clearly-now/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) > [A bugler sounded the Last Post. Heartbreak made audible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuala-o-faolain/a-bugler-sounded-the-last-post-heartbreak-made-audible/) [Nuala O'Faolain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) [Explore all 26 Nuala O'Faolain quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuala-o-faolain/) ## More Life quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/) [Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/) > [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/) [Deanna L. Lawlis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deanna-l-lawlis/) > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) [Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I tried not to think about it. 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