--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I do not want to be misunderstood that…" description: "\"I do not want to be misunderstood that you need a dose of persecution in order, really, to have a sense of your identity. Otherwise, you know, there wo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbd/simon-schama-4492_american_i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-y_2094513.jpg" --- # I do not want to be misunderstood that you need a dose of… ![“I do not want to be misunderstood that you need a dose of persecution in order, really, to have a sense of your identity. Otherwise, you know, there would be no American Jews. Even if you're not strictly, fiercely Orthodox, you commit yourselves to a community of memory.” quote by Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbd/simon-schama-4492_american_i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-y_2094513.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbd/simon-schama-4492_american_i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-y_2094513.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbd/simon-schama-4492_american_i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-y_2094513.jpg) > “I do not want to be misunderstood that you need a dose of persecution in order, really, to have a sense of your identity. Otherwise, you know, there would be no American Jews. Even if you're not strictly, fiercely Orthodox, you commit yourselves to a community of memory.” [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Jewish identity is forged through collective memory and occasional persecution, which paradoxically strengthens communal bonds. **In simple terms:** Shared hardship can define a group. Key Takeaway Value community memory over external validation. Themes identity memory persecution community Jewish culture Mood thoughtful hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - family gatherings - educational programs - communal rituals - historical research Key Concepts Diaspora studies collective identity cultural resilience Questions to Reflect On - How does memory shape your sense of self? - Can identity thrive without adversity? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on suffering may limit positive self‑definition. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Jews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jews/) [Judaism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judaism/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Misunderstood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misunderstood/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Orthodox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/orthodox/) [Persecution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persecution/) [Yourselves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yourselves/) ## Related quotes > [In the U.K., we have a paper called 'The Daily Mail,' which is quite misogynist. And every day, it just writes pieces about: 'Women,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-moran/in-the-u-k-we-have-a-paper-called-the-daily-mail-which-is-quite/) [Caitlin Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-moran/) > [Washington told Wall Street, 'We're going to let y'all regulate yourselves.' The Republicans were in charge. They never said a word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronnie-musgrove/washington-told-wall-street-we-re-going-to-let-y-all-regulate/) [Ronnie Musgrove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronnie-musgrove/) > [In England, you laugh at yourselves; in France, we laugh at others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-doillon/in-england-you-laugh-at-yourselves-in-france-we-laugh-at-others/) [Lou Doillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-doillon/) > [Please, please, stop referring to yourselves as 'consumers.' OK? Consumers are different than citizens. Consumers do not have obligations, responsibilities and duties to their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/please-please-stop-referring-to-yourselves-as-consumers-ok-consumers-2/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [Not to be too preachy, but I would really recommend to people, if you get the chance, to trust yourselves to leap without a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-mathews/not-to-be-too-preachy-but-i-would-really-recommend-to-people-if-you/) [Ross Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-mathews/) > [It's as important to sell yourselves as much as the service. The business model's going to change 50 times, and the market's going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-smith/it-s-as-important-to-sell-yourselves-as-much-as-the-service-the/) [Dylan Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-smith/) > [Surrender your forces and give yourselves and your troops the opportunity to be a part of Iraq's future and not a part of Iraq's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-pace/surrender-your-forces-and-give-yourselves-and-your-troops-the/) [Peter Pace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-pace/) > [If you're going to run a public company, be absolutely certain of what the parameters are, what the clarity is, that you can explain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-diller/if-you-re-going-to-run-a-public-company-be-absolutely-certain-of-what/) [Barry Diller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-diller/) > [You've got to stop dividing yourselves. You got to organize.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-rap-brown/you-ve-got-to-stop-dividing-yourselves-you-got-to-organize/) [H. Rap Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-rap-brown/) > [Parents who neglect their children, who don't know where they are, who don't know what they're doing, who don't know who they're hanging out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-nutter/parents-who-neglect-their-children-who-don-t-know-where-they-are-who/) [Michael Nutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-nutter/) > [I feel to invite women everywhere to rise to the great potential within you. I do not ask that you reach beyond your capacity.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/i-feel-to-invite-women-everywhere-to-rise-to-the-great-potential/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [Decades of research have shown that most happy families communicate effectively. But talking doesn't mean simply 'talking through problems,' as important as that is.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/decades-of-research-have-shown-that-most-happy-families-communicate/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [The bomber will always get through. The only defense is in offense, which means that you have to kill more women and children more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-baldwin/the-bomber-will-always-get-through-the-only-defense-is-in-offense/) [Stanley Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-baldwin/) > [What women need to understand is that men don't communicate. It's not intentional or on purpose. We're just not as emotional. You ladies feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-hart/what-women-need-to-understand-is-that-men-don-t-communicate-it-s-not/) [Kevin Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-hart/) > [Yes, Jews - typically American Jews, typically vote democrat, I get that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bolling/yes-jews-typically-american-jews-typically-vote-democrat-i-get-that/) [Eric Bolling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bolling/) ## More by Simon Schama > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [The difficulty with poetry is that it doesn't have the life that Shakespeare or Jane Austen have beyond the page. You can't make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-difficulty-with-poetry-is-that-it-doesn-t-have-the-life-that/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Taxation, the very thing that had triggered the British civil wars, would do so again, this time in America. The taxes may have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/taxation-the-very-thing-that-had-triggered-the-british-civil-wars/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Anyone can write an academic piece directed at other academics. To write something that delivers an argument and a gripping storyline to someone's granny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/anyone-can-write-an-academic-piece-directed-at-other-academics-to/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [In its Greek origins, historia meant inquiry, and from Thucydides onwards, the past has been studied to understand its connections with the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/in-its-greek-origins-historia-meant-inquiry-and-from-thucydides/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Jewish history turns out not to be an either/or story - as in, either pure Judaism detached from its surroundings or else assimilation -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/jewish-history-turns-out-not-to-be-an-either-or-story-as-in-either/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Growing up in Britain as a rather loose Jew, the two things that didn't belong together were freedom and religious intensity. In America, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/growing-up-in-britain-as-a-rather-loose-jew-the-two-things-that-didn/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [In the end, history, especially British history with its succession of thrilling illuminations, should be, as all her most accomplished narrators have promised, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/in-the-end-history-especially-british-history-with-its-succession-of/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [From 1789, perhaps even before that, it had been the willingness of politicians to exploit either the threat or the fact of violence that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/from-1789-perhaps-even-before-that-it-had-been-the-willingness-of/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [The default mode of modern writing about art is to despise any notion of singularity as so much overheated genius-fetishism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-default-mode-of-modern-writing-about-art-is-to-despise-any-notion/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [The synagogues of late antiquity and the early medieval period were built around imagery: imagery of remembering the Temple, but also of the celestial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-synagogues-of-late-antiquity-and-the-early-medieval-period-were/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [At 11, 12, I thought I was clumsy, ugly, a mess, an unappealing person, but I did have the gift of the gab. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/at-11-12-i-thought-i-was-clumsy-ugly-a-mess-an-unappealing-person-but/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [We seem wired to grieve with greenery. Allowing the dead to dissolve into the earth, to become part of the cycle of the seasons,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/we-seem-wired-to-grieve-with-greenery-allowing-the-dead-to-dissolve/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [The older I get, the more I want to do. It beats death, decay or golf in unfortunate trousers. Peace and quiet depress me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-older-i-get-the-more-i-want-to-do-it-beats-death-decay-or-golf-in/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [The Elephantine papyri - written as some of the books of the Bible are being written - is true social and legal documentation, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-elephantine-papyri-written-as-some-of-the-books-of-the-bible-are/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) [Explore all 109 Simon Schama quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) ## More American quotes > [I wasn't attracted to American cinema, but I fell in love with Los Angeles the minute I arrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-wasn-t-attracted-to-american-cinema-but-i-fell-in-love-with-los/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [William Maxwell's my favorite North American writer, I think. And an Irish writer who used to write for 'The New Yorker' called Maeve Brennan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/william-maxwell-s-my-favorite-north-american-writer-i-think-and-an/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [I have fallen in love with American names, the sharp names that never get fat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vincent-benet/i-have-fallen-in-love-with-american-names-the-sharp-names-that-never/) [Stephen Vincent Benet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vincent-benet/) > [I really like a lot of American country stuff, so my music has that influence, but I don't like to be set within a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade-bird/i-really-like-a-lot-of-american-country-stuff-so-my-music-has-that/) [Jade Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade-bird/) > [I certainly don't think that the heirs of the American Revolution were a particularly noble class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-brands/i-certainly-don-t-think-that-the-heirs-of-the-american-revolution/) [H. W. Brands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-w-brands/) > [Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act in a tremendous investment to support millions of workers without a paycheck and behind on bills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/congress-passed-the-american-rescue-plan-act-in-a-tremendous/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy and employ almost half of the working population. Yet because of their size, they rarely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-lipinski/small-businesses-are-the-backbone-of-the-american-economy-and-employ/) [Dan Lipinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-lipinski/) > [Although I write in English, and despite the fact that I'm from America, I consider myself an Armenian writer. The words I use are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/although-i-write-in-english-and-despite-the-fact-that-i-m-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [When we first sold the Wallace and Gromit shorts to America, people suggested we get rid of the strange British accents and put clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-park/when-we-first-sold-the-wallace-and-gromit-shorts-to-america-people/) [Nick Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-park/) > [Firefighters and rescue workers are American superheroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-kennedy/firefighters-and-rescue-workers-are-american-superheroes/) [Kerry Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-kennedy/) > [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [New York and San Francisco are distinctly different. San Francisco is driving the American media, not New York. You have young, microwaved millionaires and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-whitlock/new-york-and-san-francisco-are-distinctly-different-san-francisco-is/) [Jason Whitlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-whitlock/) > [Well look, CIA is an agency that has to collect intelligence, do operations. We have to take risks and it's important that we take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-panetta/well-look-cia-is-an-agency-that-has-to-collect-intelligence-do/) [Leon Panetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-panetta/) > [Food as a hobby used to be an elite pastime, and it has become something that is totally ordinary for people of every background.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-goodyear/food-as-a-hobby-used-to-be-an-elite-pastime-and-it-has-become/) [Dana Goodyear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-goodyear/) > [It's important for American soldiers to be culturally sensitive when deployed in foreign countries. But it's just as important for the U.S. never to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-bauer/it-s-important-for-american-soldiers-to-be-culturally-sensitive-when/) [Gary Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-bauer/) Browse all 7,717 American quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I do not want to be misunderstood that you need a dose of persecution in order, really, to have a sense of your identity. Otherwise, you know, there would be no American Jews. Even if you're not strictly, fiercely Orthodox, you commit yourselves to a community of memory.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Simon Schama" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-you-need-a-dose-of-persecution/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-you-need-a-dose-of-persecution/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbd/simon-schama-4492_american_i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-y_2094513.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbd/simon-schama-4492_american_i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-y_2094513.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbd/simon-schama-4492_american_i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-y_2094513.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I do not want to be misunderstood that you need a dose of persecution in order, really, to have a sense of…” — Simon Schama", "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": "Simon Schama", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I do not want to be...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-you-need-a-dose-of-persecution/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/i-do-not-want-to-be-misunderstood-that-you-need-a-dose-of-persecution/#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 } } ] } ```