--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: On my mental instant replay, I realized…" description: "\"“On my mental instant replay, I realized that obliquely comparing his family to the Nazis was maybe not my finest moment. He was quiet a second, and th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/rebecca-makkai-20617_art_on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-t_1231048.jpg" --- # On my mental instant replay, I realized that obliquely… ![“On my mental instant replay, I realized that obliquely comparing his family to the Nazis was maybe not my finest moment. He was quiet a second, and then he said, 'Did you know that Hitler anted to be an artist, but since he couldn't get into art school, he turned into a Nazi?' 'Yes, I remember…” quote by Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/rebecca-makkai-20617_art_on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-t_1231048.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/rebecca-makkai-20617_art_on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-t_1231048.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/rebecca-makkai-20617_art_on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-t_1231048.jpg) > ““On my mental instant replay, I realized that obliquely comparing his family to the Nazis was maybe not my finest moment. He was quiet a second, and then he said, 'Did you know that Hitler anted to be an artist, but since he couldn't get into art school, he turned into a Nazi?' 'Yes, I remember that.' 'Just imagine if he got into art school, the whole world would be different.' I said, 'It just shows that people should be allowed to be who they are. If they can't, then they turn into nasty, sad people.' He started to laugh. 'What if you went to the art gallery, and the guy was like, "Here you see a beautiful Monet, and here on your left is an early Hitler." Wouldn't that be weird?' I couldn't think of any subtle way to turn it back around again. He said, 'You would go to the gift shop and buy Hitler postcards, and you'd go, "Oh, look at this beautiful Hitler. I'm going to hang it in my room!" And people would wear Hitler t-shirts.' 'Yes,' I said. 'That would have been better.”” [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Comparing a person to Nazis oversimplifies complex causes; personal frustration can lead to inappropriate analogies. **In simple terms:** Bad analogies hide real issues. Key Takeaway Avoid harmful comparisons. Themes empathy communication history ethics Mood reflective thoughtful Type cautionary analytical When to use this quote - personal conflict - public discourse - teaching tolerance Key Concepts psychology social dynamics historical context Questions to Reflect On - How can we discuss sensitive topics without resorting to extreme analogies? - What alternatives help convey frustration constructively? A Different Perspective Simplistic comparisons can backfire and offend. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Beautiful Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful-hitler-3807551/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hitler/) [Hitler Postcards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hitler-postcards-3807550/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Know Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-hitler-603837/) [Sad People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sad-people/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Turned Nazi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turned-nazi-3807552/) [What if](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/what-if/) [Whole world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole-world/) ## Related quotes > [I don't know much about Hitler. Except that last thing, about the Jews. There has never been a country that put its heel down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huey-long/i-don-t-know-much-about-hitler-except-that-last-thing-about-the-jews/) [Huey Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huey-long/) > [You know, with Hitler, the more I learn about that guy, the more I don't care for him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norm-macdonald/you-know-with-hitler-the-more-i-learn-about-that-guy-the-more-i-don-t/) [Norm MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norm-macdonald/) > [Hitler can't walk over me as he might have done a year ago; I've seen to that. Don't forget that I have three million…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-rohm/hitler-can-t-walk-over-me-as-he-might-have-done-a-year-ago-i-ve-seen/) [Ernst Rohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-rohm/) > [Ya know, Hitler was a great leader, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-holtz/ya-know-hitler-was-a-great-leader-too/) [Lou Holtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-holtz/) > [To this very day, I do not know what he (Hitler) thought or knew or really wanted. I only knew my own thoughts and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-jodl/to-this-very-day-i-do-not-know-what-he-hitler-thought-or-knew-or/) [Alfred Jodl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-jodl/) > [We do not know whether Hitler is going to found a new Islam. He is already on the way; he is like Muhammad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/we-do-not-know-whether-hitler-is-going-to-found-a-new-islam-he-is-2/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [I sat thinking how terribly sad it was that people are made in such a way that they get used to something as incredible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/i-sat-thinking-how-terribly-sad-it-was-that-people-are-made-in-such-a/) [Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/) > [I knew then that the person on the outside was only a shell, a presence to be seen and provoked. Inside was the real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryce-courtenay/i-knew-then-that-the-person-on-the-outside-was-only-a-shell-a/) [Bryce Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryce-courtenay/) > [It's sad that some people still believe that artists die poor. This is not the case in this day and age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/it-s-sad-that-some-people-still-believe-that-artists-die-poor-this-is/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [Both happy and sad people can be cheered up by a nice meal,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-colwin/both-happy-and-sad-people-can-be-cheered-up-by-a-nice-meal/) [Laurie Colwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-colwin/) > [“I feel sad for people and the queer part we play in our own disasters.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/i-feel-sad-for-people-and-the-queer-part-we-play-in-our-own-disasters/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [It's sad how some people are so jealous and intimidated by you that they only have negative things to say when they know absolutely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-sad-how-some-people-are-so-jealous-and-intimidated-by-you-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [People would wonder what I had to be sad about, and I get why people feel that way. God, I feel it too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frankie-bridge/people-would-wonder-what-i-had-to-be-sad-about-and-i-get-why-people/) [Frankie Bridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frankie-bridge/) > [It's really sad how many people believe in curses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peyton-hillis/it-s-really-sad-how-many-people-believe-in-curses/) [Peyton Hillis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peyton-hillis/) > [It's sad when people you know become people you knew. When you can walk right past someone like they were never a big part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-sad-when-people-you-know-become-people-you-knew-when-you-can/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Rebecca Makkai > [“These were wise, modern children, and they knew: a mother could be a witch, a child could be a criminal. A librarian could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/these-were-wise-modern-children-and-they-knew-a-mother-could-be-a/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“Because what it's come down to, after that whole messy spring, that whole tortured summer, all the time since, is this: I no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/because-what-it-s-come-down-to-after-that-whole-messy-spring-that/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“I might be the villain of this story.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/i-might-be-the-villain-of-this-story/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“He started Number the Stars before we were even out of the store. "The only problem is, I already know how it ends," he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/he-started-number-the-stars-before-we-were-even-out-of-the-store-the/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“So here, patient listener: your soothing epilogue. Imagine him happy. Imagine him spinning in circles... Imagine his heaven, where he can float through characters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/so-here-patient-listener-your-soothing-epilogue-imagine-him-happy/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“And for what portion of human history had people even had desk jobs? Maybe the last four hundred years, out of four million? It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/and-for-what-portion-of-human-history-had-people-even-had-desk-jobs/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“...all I knew were novels. It gave me pause, for a moment, that all my reference points were fiction, that all my narratives were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/all-i-knew-were-novels-it-gave-me-pause-for-a-moment-that-all-my/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“I could put a book in his hands, but I couldn't take him by the ankles and dip him headfirst in another world. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/i-could-put-a-book-in-his-hands-but-i-couldn-t-take-him-by-the-ankles/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“The whole damn century would've made more sense backwards. Where we ended is worse than where we began.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/the-whole-damn-century-would-ve-made-more-sense-backwards-where-we/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“But here at Laurelfield, there was something more in the mornings, a buzzing sensation about the whole house, as if it weren't the servants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/but-here-at-laurelfield-there-was-something-more-in-the-mornings-a/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“Very few writers thank their mothers for keen editorial insight; I'm happy to be the exception.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/very-few-writers-thank-their-mothers-for-keen-editorial-insight-i-m/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“I believed that books might save him because I knew they had so far, and because I knew the people books had saved. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/i-believed-that-books-might-save-him-because-i-knew-they-had-so-far/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“Like a good American, I wanted to sue somebody. But like a good librarian, I just sat at my desk and waited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/like-a-good-american-i-wanted-to-sue-somebody-but-like-a-good/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“I no longer believe I can save people. I've tried, and I've failed, and while I'm sure there are people out there in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/i-no-longer-believe-i-can-save-people-i-ve-tried-and-i-ve-failed-and/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) > [“Maybe that's why I prefer this new library to my own bedroom: looking at the million book spines, I can imagine a million alternate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/maybe-that-s-why-i-prefer-this-new-library-to-my-own-bedroom-looking/) [Rebecca Makkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) [Explore all 30 Rebecca Makkai quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [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/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. 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He was quiet a second, and then he said, 'Did you know that Hitler anted to be an artist, but since he couldn't get into art school, he turned into a Nazi?' 'Yes, I remember that.' 'Just imagine if he got into art school, the whole world would be different.' I said, 'It just shows that people should be allowed to be who they are. If they can't, then they turn into nasty, sad people.' He started to laugh. 'What if you went to the art gallery, and the guy was like, \"Here you see a beautiful Monet, and here on your left is an early Hitler.\" Wouldn't that be weird?' I couldn't think of any subtle way to turn it back around again. He said, 'You would go to the gift shop and buy Hitler postcards, and you'd go, \"Oh, look at this beautiful Hitler. I'm going to hang it in my room!\" And people would wear Hitler t-shirts.' 'Yes,' I said. 'That would have been better.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rebecca Makkai" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-that-obliquely-comparing-his/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-that-obliquely-comparing-his/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/rebecca-makkai-20617_art_on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-t_1231048.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/rebecca-makkai-20617_art_on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-t_1231048.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/rebecca-makkai-20617_art_on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-t_1231048.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“On my mental instant replay, I realized that obliquely comparing his family to the Nazis was maybe not my…” — Rebecca Makkai", "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": "Rebecca Makkai", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-makkai/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“On my mental instant replay, I...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-that-obliquely-comparing-his/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-makkai/on-my-mental-instant-replay-i-realized-that-obliquely-comparing-his/#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 } } ] } ```