---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Silence, this will surprise you not…"
description: "\"Silence, this will surprise you not, isn't really a Jewish concept.\" — Simon Schama"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7d/simon-schama-4492_concept_silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t_1040064.png"
---

#  Silence, this will surprise you not, isn't really a Jewish…

![“Silence, this will surprise you not, isn't really a Jewish concept.” quote by Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7d/simon-schama-4492_concept_silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t_1040064.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7d/simon-schama-4492_concept_silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t_1040064.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7d/simon-schama-4492_concept_silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t_1040064.png)

> “Silence, this will surprise you not, isn't really a Jewish concept.”

[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.

The quote challenges the notion that silence is inherently tied to Jewish tradition, suggesting it is not a core cultural concept.

**In simple terms:** Silence isn’t uniquely Jewish.

Key Takeaway

Question assumptions about cultural stereotypes.

Themes

culture stereotypes identity

Mood

thoughtful analytical

Type

philosophical critical

When to use this quote

- interfaith dialogue
- education
- media representation

Key Concepts

religious identity cultural narratives

Questions to Reflect On

- How do cultural narratives shape our understanding of traditions?
- What other stereotypes might be misleading?

A Different Perspective

Cultural concepts are complex and varied.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Concept](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concept/) [Jewish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jewish/) [Jewish Concept](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jewish-concept-2425662/) [Judaism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judaism/) [Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really/) [Really Jewish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really-jewish-2425661/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) [Silence Surprise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence-surprise-2425659/) [Surprise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surprise/) [Surprise Isn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surprise-isn-2425660/) [Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will/) [You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/)

## Related quotes

> [Walking on camera is damn hard. It's a Jewish problem. The rangy stride across the blasted moor is not really a Jewish thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/walking-on-camera-is-damn-hard-it-s-a-jewish-problem-the-rangy-stride/)

[Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/)

> [“It captures the essence of a mystical Jewish concept: the struggle of the animalistic, amoral soul against the human, spiritual soul. In Kabbalah, this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-blech/it-captures-the-essence-of-a-mystical-jewish-concept-the-struggle-of/)

[Benjamin Blech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-blech/)

> [“The knife to heart is always a surprise; it isn't the fashion to name evil or forever bind a liar to their lies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/talie-helene/the-knife-to-heart-is-always-a-surprise-it-isn-t-the-fashion-to-name/)

[Talie Helene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/talie-helene/)

> [The concept of God in Jewish orthodoxy is one where you're having constant quarrels with God. Where I come from, in Islam, the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/the-concept-of-god-in-jewish-orthodoxy-is-one-where-you-re-having/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [I don't think a Jewish or Christian or Islamic state is a proper concept. I would object to the United States as a Christian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-don-t-think-a-jewish-or-christian-or-islamic-state-is-a-proper/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [When Jesus calls his disciples 'brothers' and 'friends', he is contradicting general Jewish usage and breaking through into a new concept of brotherhood which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kirk/when-jesus-calls-his-disciples-brothers-and-friends-he-is/)

[David Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kirk/)

> [St. Paul was making it impossible to be Jewish and Christian at the same time. What is very striking about those early churches and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/st-paul-was-making-it-impossible-to-be-jewish-and-christian-at-the/)

[Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/)

> [Jewish comedy doesn't come out of nothing. Jewish music doesn't come out of nothing... I don't want to be part of a story where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/jewish-comedy-doesn-t-come-out-of-nothing-jewish-music-doesn-t-come/)

[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/)

> [Trust is a small word with a big concept.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/trust-is-a-small-word-with-a-big-concept/)

[Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/)

> [The concept of USADA is not bad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-barnett/the-concept-of-usada-is-not-bad/)

[Josh Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-barnett/)

> [In the very beginning, Yelp started as a service where we really didn't think people would write reviews for fun. The whole concept of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-stoppelman/in-the-very-beginning-yelp-started-as-a-service-where-we-really-didn/)

[Jeremy Stoppelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-stoppelman/)

> [When good media takes a bounded form, and comes once in a period of time, it begs to be consumed as a whole -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-battelle/when-good-media-takes-a-bounded-form-and-comes-once-in-a-period-of/)

[John Battelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-battelle/)

> [There aren't traditions of freedom in a place like Iraq. They're going to have to come to grips with a concept that they hadn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-wallop/there-aren-t-traditions-of-freedom-in-a-place-like-iraq-they-re-going/)

[Malcolm Wallop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-wallop/)

> [Ownership is a very complex judicial concept.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kapil-sibal/ownership-is-a-very-complex-judicial-concept/)

[Kapil Sibal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kapil-sibal/)

## 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 Concept quotes

> [Ownership is a very complex judicial concept.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kapil-sibal/ownership-is-a-very-complex-judicial-concept/)

[Kapil Sibal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kapil-sibal/)

> [There aren't traditions of freedom in a place like Iraq. They're going to have to come to grips with a concept that they hadn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-wallop/there-aren-t-traditions-of-freedom-in-a-place-like-iraq-they-re-going/)

[Malcolm Wallop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-wallop/)

> [When good media takes a bounded form, and comes once in a period of time, it begs to be consumed as a whole -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-battelle/when-good-media-takes-a-bounded-form-and-comes-once-in-a-period-of/)

[John Battelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-battelle/)

> [In the very beginning, Yelp started as a service where we really didn't think people would write reviews for fun. The whole concept of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-stoppelman/in-the-very-beginning-yelp-started-as-a-service-where-we-really-didn/)

[Jeremy Stoppelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-stoppelman/)

> [The concept of USADA is not bad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-barnett/the-concept-of-usada-is-not-bad/)

[Josh Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-barnett/)

> [Trust is a small word with a big concept.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/trust-is-a-small-word-with-a-big-concept/)

[Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/)

> [In Greek mythology, the hero wants to be great, but the very concept does not exist in the Indian vocabulary. Yet it has become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devdutt-pattanaik/in-greek-mythology-the-hero-wants-to-be-great-but-the-very-concept/)

[Devdutt Pattanaik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devdutt-pattanaik/)

> [The 'Occupy' movement seems to have found a central theme to its 2012 movement around overturning 'the corporation as a person,' and some legislators…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-battelle/the-occupy-movement-seems-to-have-found-a-central-theme-to-its-2012/)

[John Battelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-battelle/)

> [I came up with the Enveloper when I was 20 and it took my dad and me several months to develop the initial concept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-davies/i-came-up-with-the-enveloper-when-i-was-20-and-it-took-my-dad-and-me/)

[Sara Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-davies/)

> [When you design a building, you start from a general philosophy, and you come down, and you start from detail and come up. Only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renzo-piano/when-you-design-a-building-you-start-from-a-general-philosophy-and/)

[Renzo Piano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renzo-piano/)

> [A game's concept is one of its most important assets. I feel that we must aim to satisfy both beginners and experts, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masahiro-sakurai/a-game-s-concept-is-one-of-its-most-important-assets-i-feel-that-we/)

[Masahiro Sakurai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masahiro-sakurai/)

> [I liked the concept of 'Lucifer.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohanlal/i-liked-the-concept-of-lucifer/)

[Mohanlal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohanlal/)

> [I disagree strongly with the concept of separation of church and state. It was not written into the Constitution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-buck/i-disagree-strongly-with-the-concept-of-separation-of-church-and/)

[Ken Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-buck/)

> [Originally, back in 1992, DKNY started because I couldn't find a pair of jeans. I also wanted to dress my teenage daughter Gabby. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-karan/originally-back-in-1992-dkny-started-because-i-couldn-t-find-a-pair/)

[Donna Karan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-karan/)

> [The truth is nobody can own anything. That was an unheard-of concept among indigenous people. We invented that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-shadyac/the-truth-is-nobody-can-own-anything-that-was-an-unheard-of-concept/)

[Tom Shadyac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-shadyac/)

[Browse all 627 Concept quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concept/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Silence, this will surprise you not, isn't really a Jewish concept.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Simon Schama"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t-really-a-jewish-concept/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Concept"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t-really-a-jewish-concept/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7d/simon-schama-4492_concept_silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t_1040064.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7d/simon-schama-4492_concept_silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t_1040064.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7d/simon-schama-4492_concept_silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t_1040064.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Silence, this will surprise you not, isn't really a Jewish concept.” — 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": "Silence, this will surprise you not,...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t-really-a-jewish-concept/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/silence-this-will-surprise-you-not-isn-t-really-a-jewish-concept/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
