--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I’d found out that Norman Mailer liked…" description: "\"“If I’d found out that Norman Mailer liked me, I’d have killed myself. I think he was too hung up. I’m glad Kurt Vonnegut didn’t like me either. He had..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20d/ray-bradbury-75_cassandra_if-i-d-found-out-that-norman-mailer-like_1260780.jpg" --- # If I’d found out that Norman Mailer liked me, I’d have… ![“If I’d found out that Norman Mailer liked me, I’d have killed myself. I think he was too hung up. I’m glad Kurt Vonnegut didn’t like me either. He had problems, terrible problems. He couldn’t see the world the way I see it. I suppose I’m too much Pollyanna, he was too much Cassandra. Actually I…” quote by Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20d/ray-bradbury-75_cassandra_if-i-d-found-out-that-norman-mailer-like_1260780.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20d/ray-bradbury-75_cassandra_if-i-d-found-out-that-norman-mailer-like_1260780.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20d/ray-bradbury-75_cassandra_if-i-d-found-out-that-norman-mailer-like_1260780.jpg) > ““If I’d found out that Norman Mailer liked me, I’d have killed myself. I think he was too hung up. I’m glad Kurt Vonnegut didn’t like me either. He had problems, terrible problems. He couldn’t see the world the way I see it. I suppose I’m too much Pollyanna, he was too much Cassandra. Actually I prefer to see myself as the Janus, the two-faced god who is half Pollyanna and half Cassandra, warning of the future and perhaps living too much in the past—a combination of both. But I don’t think I’m too over optimistic.”” [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) ## 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 reflects on feeling misunderstood by peers, seeing himself as both hopeful and prophetic, balancing optimism with caution. **In simple terms:** He feels split between optimism and warning. Key Takeaway Embrace both hope and realistic foresight. Themes identity perception optimism caution self-awareness Mood contemplative reflective Type personal philosophical When to use this quote - creative work - personal relationships - public reception - mental health - career decisions Key Concepts dual nature self-concept expectation literary criticism Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance optimism with realistic warning? - What impact does peer perception have on self‑image? A Different Perspective Self‑labeling can oversimplify complex identity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cassandra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cassandra/) [Janus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/janus/) [Kurt-vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kurt-vonnegut-2/) [Pollyanna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pollyanna/) ## Related quotes > [I prefer to see myself as the Janus, the two-faced god who is half Pollyanna and half Cassandra, warning of the future and perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-prefer-to-see-myself-as-the-janus-the-two-faced-god-who-is-half/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [If I'd found out that Norman Mailer liked me. I'd have killed myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/if-i-d-found-out-that-norman-mailer-liked-me-i-d-have-killed-myself/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“I heard from clear across the city, over the Hudson in the Jersey yards, one fierce whistle of a locomotive which took me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-mailer/i-heard-from-clear-across-the-city-over-the-hudson-in-the-jersey/) [Norman Mailer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-mailer/) > [“Flannery O'Connor had a certain genius. I don't think John Updike has, or Norman Mailer or William Styron, all of whom are talented, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/flannery-o-connor-had-a-certain-genius-i-don-t-think-john-updike-has/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [Love was love, one could find it with anyone, one could find it anywhere. It was just that you could never keep it. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-mailer/love-was-love-one-could-find-it-with-anyone-one-could-find-it/) [Norman Mailer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-mailer/) > [“At this stage of the game, I don’t have the time for patience and tolerance. Ten years ago, even five years ago, I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-szandor-lavey/at-this-stage-of-the-game-i-don-t-have-the-time-for-patience-and/) [Anton Szandor LaVey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-szandor-lavey/) > [ “Who but the sports-mad \[Norman\] Mailer would liken the battle between God and the Devil to a game of American football? The contest, for… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/who-but-the-sports-mad-norman-mailer-would-liken-the-battle-between/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ “It comes as no surprise to find \[Norman\] Mailer embracing \[in the book On God \] a form of Manicheanism, pitting the forces of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-comes-as-no-surprise-to-find-norman-mailer-embracing-in-the-book/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Jonah peered critically up at the Renaissance masterpiece. "Man, those copies don't due it justice. This one's the truth!" "Only a Janus," groaned Hamilton.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-korman/jonah-peered-critically-up-at-the-renaissance-masterpiece-man-those/) [Gordon Korman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-korman/) > [“You don’t see much of any path unless you are Janus, looking simultaneously backward and forward.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/you-don-t-see-much-of-any-path-unless-you-are-janus-looking/) [Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/) > [Everything is bilateral in the domain of thought. Ideas are binary. Janus is the myth of criticism and the symbol of genius. Only God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/everything-is-bilateral-in-the-domain-of-thought-ideas-are-binary/) [Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [“Let us see rather that like Janus—or better, like Yama, the Brahmin god of death—religion has two faces, one very friendly, one very gloomy...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/let-us-see-rather-that-like-janus-or-better-like-yama-the-brahmin-god/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [“For reasons I have yet to define, Signor Arpelli stood out from his colleagues. The curled brim of his hat, perhaps. A certain mingling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-bayard/for-reasons-i-have-yet-to-define-signor-arpelli-stood-out-from-his/) [Louis Bayard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-bayard/) > [It is a curious emotion, this certain homesickness I have in mind. With Americans, it is a national trait, as native to us as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carson-mccullers/it-is-a-curious-emotion-this-certain-homesickness-i-have-in-mind-with/) [Carson McCullers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carson-mccullers/) > [ I know \[my label\], in any case: a double face, a charming Janus, and underneath, the house motto: "Be wary". On my business cards:"Jean-Baptiste… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/i-know-my-label-in-any-case-a-double-face-a-charming-janus-and/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) ## More by Ray Bradbury > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [You feed yourself. Make sure you have all the information, whether it's aesthetic, scientific, mathematical, I don't care what it is. Then you walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-feed-yourself-make-sure-you-have-all-the-information-whether-it-s/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Do you ever read any of the books you burn?" He laughed. "That's against the law!" "Oh. Of course.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/do-you-ever-read-any-of-the-books-you-burn-he-laughed-that-s-against/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [There's no reason to burn books if you don't read them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/there-s-no-reason-to-burn-books-if-you-don-t-read-them/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [We were put here as witnesses to the miracle of life. We see the stars, and we want them. We are beholden to give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/we-were-put-here-as-witnesses-to-the-miracle-of-life-we-see-the-stars/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Remember, with writing, what you’re looking for is just one person to come up and tell you, 'I love you for what you do.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/remember-with-writing-what-you-re-looking-for-is-just-one-person-to/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [As a result of reading science fiction when I was eight, I grew up with an interest in music, architecture, city planning, transportation, politics,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/as-a-result-of-reading-science-fiction-when-i-was-eight-i-grew-up/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“You can’t learn to write in college. It’s a very bad place for writers because the teachers always think they know more than you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-can-t-learn-to-write-in-college-it-s-a-very-bad-place-for-writers/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [We're going to become the martians when we land there. When we explore and build communities, we become the martians. That's a wonderful destiny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/we-re-going-to-become-the-martians-when-we-land-there-when-we-explore/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I wish you a wrestling match with your Creative Muse that will last a lifetime. ... I wish craziness and foolishness and madness upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-wish-you-a-wrestling-match-with-your-creative-muse-that-will-last-a/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [The library is the biggest cracker box factory in the world. The more you eat, the more you want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/the-library-is-the-biggest-cracker-box-factory-in-the-world-the-more/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [We travel for romance, we travel for architecture, and we travel to be lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/we-travel-for-romance-we-travel-for-architecture-and-we-travel-to-be/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I spent three days a week for 10 years educating myself in the public library, and it's better than college. People should educate themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-spent-three-days-a-week-for-10-years-educating-myself-in-the-public/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [If we try to deny the darkness in our souls then we'll become completely dark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/if-we-try-to-deny-the-darkness-in-our-souls-then-we-ll-become/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [But remember that the Captain belongs to the most dangerous enemy to truth and freedom, the solid unmoving cattle of the majority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/but-remember-that-the-captain-belongs-to-the-most-dangerous-enemy-to/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) [Explore all 1,520 Ray Bradbury quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) ## More Cassandra quotes > [“You are the Cassandra of colons.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meghan-lamb/you-are-the-cassandra-of-colons/) Meghan Lamb > [“Surely, she was too young to have so many ghosts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/surely-she-was-too-young-to-have-so-many-ghosts/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I need some Starbucks. What about you? (Cassandra) Always game for java. Give me ground-up beans or give me death. (Katra)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-need-some-starbucks-what-about-you-cassandra-always-game-for-java/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“I love you, I love you, I love you. ~Cassandra ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dodie-smith/i-love-you-i-love-you-i-love-you-cassandra/) [Dodie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dodie-smith/) > [Don’t, Cassandra. (Wulf) Oh, please. I just want to choke her for a few minutes. (Cassandra)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/don-t-cassandra-wulf-oh-please-i-just-want-to-choke-her-for-a-few/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“—Pues la pillará algún día —insistió Pandora con aire ominoso—, si es que no la ha pillado ya. Y luego me la transmitirá a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/pues-la-pillar-alg-n-d-a-insisti-pandora-con-aire-ominoso-si-es-que/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [“She's magic, Cassandra. A single flower blooming in an endless desert.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bishop/she-s-magic-cassandra-a-single-flower-blooming-in-an-endless-desert/) [Anne Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bishop/) > [“Cassandra always hid when she read, though she never quite knew why. It was as if she couldn’t shake the guilty suspicion that she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/cassandra-always-hid-when-she-read-though-she-never-quite-knew-why-it/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) > [“Well, look who's on my front porch," he said, speaking Empire with this odd hissing accent. "A murderer and a cross-dressing pirate." I looked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-rose-clarke/well-look-who-s-on-my-front-porch-he-said-speaking-empire-with-this/) [Cassandra Rose Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-rose-clarke/) > [“I willingly accept Cassandra's fate To speak the truth, although believed too late.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-killigrew/i-willingly-accept-cassandra-s-fate-to-speak-the-truth-although/) Anne Killigrew > [“Her laugh was a travesty. Which made sense because in a way, so was his apology. But what was he supposed to say? I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-bird/her-laugh-was-a-travesty-which-made-sense-because-in-a-way-so-was-his/) Jessica Bird > [“Then her mother – as skilled in the art of ambush as most mothers are – startled her with her furious, echoing roar.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/then-her-mother-as-skilled-in-the-art-of-ambush-as-most-mothers-are/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [“Yea, she hath passed hereby, and blessed the sheaves, And the great garths, and stacks, and quiet farms, And all the tawny, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-manning/yea-she-hath-passed-hereby-and-blessed-the-sheaves-and-the-great/) [Frederic Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-manning/) > [“And thus was their burial of Apollo, god of the sun.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kendare-blake/and-thus-was-their-burial-of-apollo-god-of-the-sun/) [Kendare Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kendare-blake/) > [It didn't occur to him that she might have chosen to remain this way. That where he saw reserve and loneliness, Cassandra saw self-preservation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/it-didn-t-occur-to-him-that-she-might-have-chosen-to-remain-this-way/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) [Browse all 30 Cassandra quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cassandra/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If I’d found out that Norman Mailer liked me, I’d have killed myself. I think he was too hung up. I’m glad Kurt Vonnegut didn’t like me either. He had problems, terrible problems. He couldn’t see the world the way I see it. I suppose I’m too much Pollyanna, he was too much Cassandra. Actually I prefer to see myself as the Janus, the two-faced god who is half Pollyanna and half Cassandra, warning of the future and perhaps living too much in the past—a combination of both. 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