--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It’s okay to kill a man if someone else…" description: "\"“It’s okay to kill a man if someone else deems him unfit to live. What I really want to say is who the hell are you and who are you to decide who gets ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19c/tahereh-mafi-229_killing_it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else_3203981.jpg" --- # It’s okay to kill a man if someone else deems him unfit to… ![“It’s okay to kill a man if someone else deems him unfit to live. What I really want to say is who the hell are you and who are you to decide who gets to die. Who are you to decide who should be killed. Who are you to tell me which father I should destroy and which child I should orphan and which…” quote by Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19c/tahereh-mafi-229_killing_it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else_3203981.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19c/tahereh-mafi-229_killing_it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else_3203981.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19c/tahereh-mafi-229_killing_it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else_3203981.jpg) > ““It’s okay to kill a man if someone else deems him unfit to live. What I really want to say is who the hell are you and who are you to decide who gets to die. Who are you to decide who should be killed. Who are you to tell me which father I should destroy and which child I should orphan and which mother should be left without her son, which brother should be left without a sister, which grandmother should spend the rest of her life crying in the early hours of the morning because the body of her grandchild was buried in the ground before her own. What I really want to say is who the hell do you think you are to tell me that it’s awesome to be able to kill a living thing, that it’s interesting to be able to ensnare another soul, that it’s fair to choose a victim simply because I’m capable of killing without a gun. I want to say mean things and angry things and hurtful things and I want to throw expletives in the air and run far, far away; I want to disappear into the horizon and I want to dump myself on the side of the road if only it will bring me toward some semblance of freedom but I don’t know where to go. I have nowhere else to go.”” [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) ## 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 rejects the moral authority of others to decide who lives or dies, expressing anguish and a desire for escape from oppression. **In simple terms:** Rejecting others' power over life and death, feeling trapped and desperate. Key Takeaway Seek autonomy and reject imposed judgments. Themes power morality despair freedom oppression Mood angry desperate defiant Type personal political psychological When to use this quote - facing authoritarian control - personal crisis - mental health struggles - search for meaning - escape attempts Key Concepts existentialism ethical autonomy psychological trauma Questions to Reflect On - Who grants you the right to decide another’s fate? - How can you reclaim agency without harming others? A Different Perspective The intensity may alienate listeners and obscure constructive dialogue. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Killing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/killing/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ## Related quotes > [“Because some people are so stupid to believe there are thick neon lines separating good and evil. That it's easy to make that kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/because-some-people-are-so-stupid-to-believe-there-are-thick-neon/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“What I really want to say is who the hell are you and who are you to decide who gets to die. Who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/what-i-really-want-to-say-is-who-the-hell-are-you-and-who-are-you-to/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“...there are just some people you cannot find the good in. But who am I to decide if someone should be killed for murdering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/there-are-just-some-people-you-cannot-find-the-good-in-but-who-am-i/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Sometimes people want to have full conversations really early in the morning and its okay to kill those people :P](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/sometimes-people-want-to-have-full-conversations-really-early-in-the/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) > [“But your ’mest is in there doing Evil Earth knows what, and I’m basically asking you if it’s okay to kill her, because that’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/but-your-mest-is-in-there-doing-evil-earth-knows-what-and-i-m/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [“He’s not auctioning off the right to choose a victim. In fact, the auction winner has no say about who gets killed.” Sighing heavily,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-s-not-auctioning-off-the-right-to-choose-a-victim-in-fact-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In the law, you have people whose lives have changed because some dirtbag decided to do something to them. We should call it the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanine-pirro/in-the-law-you-have-people-whose-lives-have-changed-because-some/) [Jeanine Pirro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanine-pirro/) > [I can choose either to be a victim of the world or an adventurer in search of treasure. It's all a question of how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-can-choose-either-to-be-a-victim-of-the-world-or-an-adventurer-in/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [When the ego is forced to choose between happiness and victimhood, it will always choose being the victim.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-the-ego-is-forced-to-choose-between-happiness-and-victimhood-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“We live in a world where one needs to choose - to be the victim or the executioner, and nothing else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/we-live-in-a-world-where-one-needs-to-choose-to-be-the-victim-or-the/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“You can choose to be a victim to your circumstances or take responsibility for how you choose to perceive them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-sincero/you-can-choose-to-be-a-victim-to-your-circumstances-or-take/) [Jen Sincero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-sincero/) > [You can choose between being a victim of destiny or an adventurer who is fighting for something important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-can-choose-between-being-a-victim-of-destiny-or-an-adventurer-who/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“But if they were capable of killing, wouldn't they just do it again?  It was something he'd never really understood.  It probably varied from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hollis-shiloh/but-if-they-were-capable-of-killing-wouldn-t-they-just-do-it-again-it/) Hollis Shiloh > [Cruelty...prefers abstraction. Some have tried to resolved this gap by hunting or butchering an animal themselves, as if those experiences might somehow legitimize the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/cruelty-prefers-abstraction-some-have-tried-to-resolved-this-gap-by/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [We may anticipate a state of affairs in which two Great Powers will each be in a position to put an end to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-robert-oppenheimer/we-may-anticipate-a-state-of-affairs-in-which-two-great-powers-will/) [J. Robert Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-robert-oppenheimer/) ## More by Tahereh Mafi > [His hands are holding my cheeks, and he pulls back just to look me in the eye and his chest is heaving and he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/his-hands-are-holding-my-cheeks-and-he-pulls-back-just-to-look-me-in/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“think Adam is looking to break Kenji’s neck at this point.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/think-adam-is-looking-to-break-kenji-s-neck-at-this-point/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I didn't want the clothes or the perfect shoes or the expensive anything. I didn't want to be draped in silk. All I ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-didn-t-want-the-clothes-or-the-perfect-shoes-or-the-expensive/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“infinite points of feeling for every nerve ending in my body”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/infinite-points-of-feeling-for-every-nerve-ending-in-my-body/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“He's too much. Everything about him is too much. His emotions, his actions, his anger, his aggression. His love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/he-s-too-much-everything-about-him-is-too-much-his-emotions-his/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“Right now I can't even control my own imagination as it grips my hair and drags me into the dark”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/right-now-i-can-t-even-control-my-own-imagination-as-it-grips-my-hair/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I want you, I want all of you. I want you inside and out and catching your breath and aching for me like I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-want-you-i-want-all-of-you-i-want-you-inside-and-out-and-catching/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I will give no one the satisfaction of my death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-will-give-no-one-the-satisfaction-of-my-death/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I almost forget that she still hates me, despite how hard I’ve fallen for her. And I’ve fallen. So hard. I’ve hit the ground.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-almost-forget-that-she-still-hates-me-despite-how-hard-i-ve-fallen/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another human being not just with my hands but with my heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/all-i-ever-wanted-was-to-reach-out-and-touch-another-human-being-not/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“It's the kind of kiss that makes you realize oxygen is overrated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/it-s-the-kind-of-kiss-that-makes-you-realize-oxygen-is-overrated/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“That’s when I understand. Of course she’s not okay. Of course she didn’t get any sleep last night. Last night she almost killed one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/that-s-when-i-understand-of-course-she-s-not-okay-of-course-she-didn/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I used to have a family. He”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-used-to-have-a-family-he/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I've never been able to follow through.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-ve-never-been-able-to-follow-through/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“ground where it smells like ice and metal and dirt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/ground-where-it-smells-like-ice-and-metal-and-dirt/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) [Explore all 821 Tahereh Mafi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) ## More Killing quotes > [ The best way to marginalize the Muslim Brotherhood \[in Egypt\] is in the ballot box, not through arrests and killing people. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-ayotte/the-best-way-to-marginalize-the-muslim-brotherhood-in-egypt-is-in-the/) [Kelly Ayotte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-ayotte/) > [No religion has mandated killing others as a requirement for its sustenance or promotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-religion-has-mandated-killing-others-as-a-requirement-for-its/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't enjoy killing, but when done righteously, it's just a chore, like any other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua/i-don-t-enjoy-killing-but-when-done-righteously-it-s-just-a-chore/) [Joshua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua/) > [Many years ago I was fishing, and as I was reeling in the poor fish, I realised, 'I am killing him - all for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mccartney/many-years-ago-i-was-fishing-and-as-i-was-reeling-in-the-poor-fish-i/) [Paul McCartney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mccartney/) > [Killing shit the ever so talented Mr. Ripley.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/killing-shit-the-ever-so-talented-mr-ripley/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) > [Humans had always been better at killing than any other living thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/humans-had-always-been-better-at-killing-than-any-other-living-thing/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Those old hypocrites. They talk about killing witches but the Good Book’s full of magic. Turning the Nile to blood and parting the Red…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/those-old-hypocrites-they-talk-about-killing-witches-but-the-good/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) > [Muses had a way of killing those whom they inspired.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-neville/muses-had-a-way-of-killing-those-whom-they-inspired/) [Katherine Neville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-neville/) > [“I would ask what it is you think you're doing, but... you are a teenager. I should have known better than to leave you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-would-ask-what-it-is-you-think-you-re-doing-but-you-are-a-teenager/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [You don't bargain with terrorists. You don't appease terrorists. And anybody who believes that this is about something we've done has to ask themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chertoff/you-don-t-bargain-with-terrorists-you-don-t-appease-terrorists-and/) [Michael Chertoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chertoff/) > [Yelena.” I halted in the doorway, looking back over my shoulder. “You once said I wasn’t ready to believe your reason for killing Reyad.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-v-snyder/yelena-i-halted-in-the-doorway-looking-back-over-my-shoulder-you-once/) [Maria V. Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-v-snyder/) > [Killing became the same thing as having sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-lee-lucas/killing-became-the-same-thing-as-having-sex/) Henry Lee Lucas > [“English: "Being an adult doesn't mean killing the child we once were; it means being able to protect him." Česky: „Být dospělým neznamená zabít…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebasti-n-wortys/english-being-an-adult-doesn-t-mean-killing-the-child-we-once-were-it/) [Sebastián Wortys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebasti-n-wortys/) > [If both parties have a stake in the other, the chances of them killing each other are going to be reduced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/if-both-parties-have-a-stake-in-the-other-the-chances-of-them-killing/) [Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/) > [Dancing with death meant being committed to killing, committed with your heart and soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/dancing-with-death-meant-being-committed-to-killing-committed-with/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) [Browse all 2,564 Killing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/killing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It’s okay to kill a man if someone else deems him unfit to live. What I really want to say is who the hell are you and who are you to decide who gets to die. Who are you to decide who should be killed. Who are you to tell me which father I should destroy and which child I should orphan and which mother should be left without her son, which brother should be left without a sister, which grandmother should spend the rest of her life crying in the early hours of the morning because the body of her grandchild was buried in the ground before her own. What I really want to say is who the hell do you think you are to tell me that it’s awesome to be able to kill a living thing, that it’s interesting to be able to ensnare another soul, that it’s fair to choose a victim simply because I’m capable of killing without a gun. I want to say mean things and angry things and hurtful things and I want to throw expletives in the air and run far, far away; I want to disappear into the horizon and I want to dump myself on the side of the road if only it will bring me toward some semblance of freedom but I don’t know where to go. I have nowhere else to go.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tahereh Mafi" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else-deems-him-unfit-to-live-what/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Killing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else-deems-him-unfit-to-live-what/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19c/tahereh-mafi-229_killing_it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else_3203981.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19c/tahereh-mafi-229_killing_it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else_3203981.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19c/tahereh-mafi-229_killing_it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else_3203981.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It’s okay to kill a man if someone else deems him unfit to live. What I really want to say is who the hell…” — Tahereh Mafi", "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": "Tahereh Mafi", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It’s okay to kill a man...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else-deems-him-unfit-to-live-what/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/it-s-okay-to-kill-a-man-if-someone-else-deems-him-unfit-to-live-what/#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 } } ] } ```