---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I found it really disturbing to see a…"
description: "\"I found it really disturbing to see a novelist writing a diatribe about Islam and Muslim radical extremists, blurring the distinction between the two.\"..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/pankaj-mishra-2875_distinction_i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-no_2386489.jpg"
---

#  I found it really disturbing to see a novelist writing a…

![“I found it really disturbing to see a novelist writing a diatribe about Islam and Muslim radical extremists, blurring the distinction between the two.” quote by Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/pankaj-mishra-2875_distinction_i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-no_2386489.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/pankaj-mishra-2875_distinction_i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-no_2386489.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/pankaj-mishra-2875_distinction_i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-no_2386489.jpg)

> “I found it really disturbing to see a novelist writing a diatribe about Islam and Muslim radical extremists, blurring the distinction between the two.”

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

## 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 criticizes conflating a novelist’s critique with extremist ideology, stressing the need to separate artistic expression from extremist actions.

**In simple terms:** Do not mix literary criticism with extremist views.

Key Takeaway

Separate art from ideology.

Themes

literature politics religion ethics

Mood

concerned critical

Type

analytical opinion

When to use this quote

- book reviews
- public debates
- media commentary

Key Concepts

critical analysis identity polarization

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we critique extremist ideas without vilifying entire cultures?
- What responsibilities do writers have when addressing sensitive topics?

A Different Perspective

The quote may oversimplify complex cultural discussions.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Distinction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distinction/) [Extremist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extremist/) [Islam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/islam/) [Novelists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novelists/) [Radical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radical/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [ My character \[in Ted Bundy\] was unaware of all the murders that were being committed by him, so I kind of tried to keep… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boti-bliss/my-character-in-ted-bundy-was-unaware-of-all-the-murders-that-were/)

[Boti Bliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boti-bliss/)

> [It is really disturbing to see that every Tom, Dick and Harry starts singing compositions of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Farrukh Fateh Ali…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahat-fateh-ali-khan/it-is-really-disturbing-to-see-that-every-tom-dick-and-harry-starts/)

[Rahat Fateh Ali Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahat-fateh-ali-khan/)

> [When I was 12, I was probably writing 'Twilight' fanfic, and somewhere someone was reading it being like, 'This is really disturbing.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-sennott/when-i-was-12-i-was-probably-writing-twilight-fanfic-and-somewhere/)

[Rachel Sennott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-sennott/)

> [When you see yourself on video, you and your friends spending time on vacation, and they take a video, and then you see it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/when-you-see-yourself-on-video-you-and-your-friends-spending-time-on/)

[Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/)

> [There's a lot of children that go to bed every night hungry in New York City, and it's shameful. That's really disturbing to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-belzer/there-s-a-lot-of-children-that-go-to-bed-every-night-hungry-in-new/)

[Richard Belzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-belzer/)

> [I get creeped out by Francis Bacon's paintings, and I can't say exactly why. They're all really disturbing, and there is an almost nimbus-like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-demme/i-get-creeped-out-by-francis-bacon-s-paintings-and-i-can-t-say/)

[Jonathan Demme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-demme/)

> [The nations of the Middle East will have to decide what kind of future they want for themselves for their country and, frankly, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/the-nations-of-the-middle-east-will-have-to-decide-what-kind-of/)

[Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/)

> [One stupid act of some stupid extremist puts us all down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amani/one-stupid-act-of-some-stupid-extremist-puts-us-all-down/)

[Amani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amani/)

> [We see today that there is a growing understanding in the international community that the extremist regime in Tehran is not just Israel's problem,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-ahmadinejad/we-see-today-that-there-is-a-growing-understanding-in-the/)

[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-ahmadinejad/)

> [If you look at the people who are advising Rudy Giuliani it turns out that they seem to be all the people who were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-marshall/if-you-look-at-the-people-who-are-advising-rudy-giuliani-it-turns-out/)

[Josh Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-marshall/)

> [The wisest among my race understand that agitations of social equality is the extremist folly, and that progress in the enjoyment of all privileges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/the-wisest-among-my-race-understand-that-agitations-of-social/)

[Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/)

> [It is a great mistake to think that the extremist is a better man than the moderate. Usually the difference is not that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/it-is-a-great-mistake-to-think-that-the-extremist-is-a-better-man/)

[Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/)

> [We will not waste 30 years of our lives dealing with extremist ideas; we will destroy them today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammad-bin-salman/we-will-not-waste-30-years-of-our-lives-dealing-with-extremist-ideas/)

[Mohammad bin Salman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammad-bin-salman/)

> [Teenage girls are extremists who see the world in black-and- white terms, missing shades of gray. Life is either marvelous or notworth living. School…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/teenage-girls-are-extremists-who-see-the-world-in-black-and-white/)

[Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/)

> [Extremist perspectives win sympathy and recruits because they offer narratives that claim to identify deep injustices and enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-gahr-store/extremist-perspectives-win-sympathy-and-recruits-because-they-offer/)

[Jonas Gahr Store](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-gahr-store/)

## More by Pankaj Mishra

> [“Nationalism has again become a seductive but treacherous antidote to an experience of disorder and meaninglessness: the unexpectedly rowdy anticlimax, in a densely populated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/nationalism-has-again-become-a-seductive-but-treacherous-antidote-to/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [I feel very privileged to get to read and write and not to have to do things that I don't like, and I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/i-feel-very-privileged-to-get-to-read-and-write-and-not-to-have-to-do/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [There was great political uncertainty in South Asia at the time of the Buddha. The older small tribal societies were cracking up and gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/there-was-great-political-uncertainty-in-south-asia-at-the-time-of/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [Buddhism resonated very powerfully with a lot of my preoccupations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/buddhism-resonated-very-powerfully-with-a-lot-of-my-preoccupations/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [Our tolerance of the intolerable found a low threshold as early as the late 1950s with the grotesque excesses of McCarthyism, which destroyed so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/our-tolerance-of-the-intolerable-found-a-low-threshold-as-early-as/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [Freedom of speech doesn't guarantee great literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/freedom-of-speech-doesn-t-guarantee-great-literature/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [“As Keynes wrote, with devastating understatement, ‘The age of economic internationalism was not particularly successful in avoiding war.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/as-keynes-wrote-with-devastating-understatement-the-age-of-economic/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [“Voltaire was soon turned, with Catherine’s encouragement, into a patron saint for the secular Russian aristocracy. Voltairianism, vaguely signifying rationalism, scepticism and reformism, became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/voltaire-was-soon-turned-with-catherine-s-encouragement-into-a-patron/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [“Today, the belief in progress, necessary for life in a Godless universe, can no longer be sustained, except, perhaps, in the Silicon Valley mansions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/today-the-belief-in-progress-necessary-for-life-in-a-godless-universe/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [We are always boosting or trying to prop up the ego by fulfilling some desire or other, and always craving affirmation from the outside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/we-are-always-boosting-or-trying-to-prop-up-the-ego-by-fulfilling/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [I don't think of myself as particularly earnest. I have long bouts of cynicism and skepticism. So much of my early life was full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/i-don-t-think-of-myself-as-particularly-earnest-i-have-long-bouts-of/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [“Marx reproduced medieval and Reformation millenarian expectations in his utopia of a classless, stateless society.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/marx-reproduced-medieval-and-reformation-millenarian-expectations-in/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [“History, largely experienced previously as a series of natural disasters, could now be seen as a movement in which everyone could potentially enlist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/history-largely-experienced-previously-as-a-series-of-natural/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [Writers in the nineteenth century - people like George Eliot and Flaubert - were accustomed to addressing particular communities with which they shared not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/writers-in-the-nineteenth-century-people-like-george-eliot-and/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

> [Most suffering is human-made and avoidable. It's mostly in your head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/most-suffering-is-human-made-and-avoidable-it-s-mostly-in-your-head/)

[Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

[Explore all 147 Pankaj Mishra quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/)

## More Distinction quotes

> [I do think that theater is a great venue for science fiction, and not just adaptations but also original work. I also think some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-einhorn/i-do-think-that-theater-is-a-great-venue-for-science-fiction-and-not/)

Edward Einhorn

> [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/)

[George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/)

> [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/)

[Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/)

> [If I have a system it is limited to a recognition of what Kierkegaard called 'the infinite qualitative distinction' between time and eternity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-barth/if-i-have-a-system-it-is-limited-to-a-recognition-of-what-kierkegaard/)

[Karl Barth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-barth/)

> [“In your goals to go the extra mile, prepare to pay an extra cost. Excellence is to be exceptional, surpassing, more competent and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/in-your-goals-to-go-the-extra-mile-prepare-to-pay-an-extra-cost/)

[Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/)

> [I make no distinction between writing and storytelling; I've always wanted to tell stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damon-lindelof/i-make-no-distinction-between-writing-and-storytelling-i-ve-always/)

[Damon Lindelof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damon-lindelof/)

> [Where did you find that one?" "I have no idea. I'm a magnet for crazies, I guess." "They must be able to sense a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiersten-white/where-did-you-find-that-one-i-have-no-idea-i-m-a-magnet-for-crazies-i/)

[Kiersten White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiersten-white/)

> [No people is wholly civilized where a distinction is drawn between stealing an office and stealing a purse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/no-people-is-wholly-civilized-where-a-distinction-is-drawn-between/)

[Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/)

> [I realized early on that the academy and the literary world alike - and I don't think there really is a distinction between the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-bloom/i-realized-early-on-that-the-academy-and-the-literary-world-alike-and/)

[Harold Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-bloom/)

> [Alfred Nobel stipulated that no distinction of race or colour will determine who received of his generosity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/alfred-nobel-stipulated-that-no-distinction-of-race-or-colour-will/)

[Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/)

> [I think it is important for all those young out there - who someday hope to play real football, where you throw it and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kemp/i-think-it-is-important-for-all-those-young-out-there-who-someday/)

[Jack Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kemp/)

> [I've always longed for the theatre and acting to be popular. No actor wants to play to an empty house. We only do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mckellen/i-ve-always-longed-for-the-theatre-and-acting-to-be-popular-no-actor/)

[Ian Mckellen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mckellen/)

> [There is no moral distinction between petty thievery and 'from each according to ability, to each according to need.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-read/there-is-no-moral-distinction-between-petty-thievery-and-from-each/)

[Leonard Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-read/)

> [People always make this totally artificial distinction between what is commercial and what is good. They quote that maxim "Nobody ever lost money underestimating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/people-always-make-this-totally-artificial-distinction-between-what/)

[Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/)

> [People should make distinctions between the office of the presidency and the person who occupies it. You can respect the office even as you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-greenberg/people-should-make-distinctions-between-the-office-of-the-presidency/)

[David Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-greenberg/)

[Browse all 1,181 Distinction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distinction/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I found it really disturbing to see a novelist writing a diatribe about Islam and Muslim radical extremists, blurring the distinction between the two.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Pankaj Mishra"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-novelist-writing-a-diatribe/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Distinction"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-novelist-writing-a-diatribe/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/pankaj-mishra-2875_distinction_i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-no_2386489.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/pankaj-mishra-2875_distinction_i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-no_2386489.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/pankaj-mishra-2875_distinction_i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-no_2386489.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I found it really disturbing to see a novelist writing a diatribe about Islam and Muslim radical extremists…” — Pankaj Mishra",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Pankaj Mishra",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I found it really disturbing to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-novelist-writing-a-diatribe/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/i-found-it-really-disturbing-to-see-a-novelist-writing-a-diatribe/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
