--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And since we don’t just forget things…" description: "\"“And since we don’t just forget things because they don’t matter but also forget things because they matter too much because each of us remembers and f..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f89/philip-roth-681_biographies_and-since-we-don-t-just-forget-things-be_639196.jpg" --- # And since we don’t just forget things because they don’t… ![“And since we don’t just forget things because they don’t matter but also forget things because they matter too much because each of us remembers and forgets in a pattern whose labyrinthine windings are an identification mark no less distinctive than a fingerprint's, it’s no wonder that the shards…” quote by Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f89/philip-roth-681_biographies_and-since-we-don-t-just-forget-things-be_639196.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f89/philip-roth-681_biographies_and-since-we-don-t-just-forget-things-be_639196.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f89/philip-roth-681_biographies_and-since-we-don-t-just-forget-things-be_639196.jpg) > ““And since we don’t just forget things because they don’t matter but also forget things because they matter too much because each of us remembers and forgets in a pattern whose labyrinthine windings are an identification mark no less distinctive than a fingerprint's, it’s no wonder that the shards of reality one person will cherish as a biography can seem to someone else who, say, happened to have eaten some ten thousand dinners at the very same kitchen table, to be a willful excursion into mythomania”” [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Memory is selective; we forget both trivial and profound events, shaping personal narratives that differ from others’ experiences. **In simple terms:** We remember and forget in patterns that shape our personal stories. Key Takeaway Recognize how memory biases shape your view of reality. Themes memory subjectivity identity perception storytelling Mood nostalgic reflective thoughtful Type literary philosophical psychological When to use this quote - family gatherings - personal reflection - historical analysis - psychological therapy Key Concepts cognitive bias personal narrative subjective reality Questions to Reflect On - How do your most cherished memories differ from others’ recollections? - What role does emotion play in what you remember? A Different Perspective Memory is unreliable and can be distorted by emotion. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Biographies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biographies/) [Cherish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cherish/) [Dinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dinner/) [Forget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forget/) [Forget Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forget-things-291407/) [Identification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identification/) [Kitchen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kitchen/) [Kitchen table](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kitchen-table/) [Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mark/) [Matter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matter/) [Matter Forget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matter-forget-1764842/) [Matter Remembers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matter-remembers-650240/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Patterns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patterns/) [Persons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persons/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Remember](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remember/) [Remembers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remembers/) [Remembers Forgets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remembers-forgets-650241/) [Tables](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tables/) [Thousand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand/) [Too much](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/too-much/) [Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonder/) ## Related quotes > [“...we go through life with a generalized sense that everybody is wrong except us. And since we don't just forget things because they don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/we-go-through-life-with-a-generalized-sense-that-everybody-is-wrong/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [“It doesn’t matter who remembers what, I guess, so long as somebody remembers something.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-khong/it-doesn-t-matter-who-remembers-what-i-guess-so-long-as-somebody/) [Rachel Khong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-khong/) > [A nation is bound not only by the real past, but the stories it tells itself: by what it remembers, and what it forgets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-thubron/a-nation-is-bound-not-only-by-the-real-past-but-the-stories-it-tells/) [Colin Thubron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-thubron/) > [No matter what I do, I always forget to forget you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-matter-what-i-do-i-always-forget-to-forget-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The things that have come into being change continually. 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