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Our parents, our tribesman, our authority figures, clearly…

“Our parents, our tribesman, our authority figures, clearly expect us to be bad or anti-social or greedy or selfish or dirty or destructive or self-destructive. Our social nature is such that we tend to meet the expectations of our elders. Whenever this reversal took place and our elders stopped…” quote by Jean Liedloff
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“Our parents, our tribesman, our authority figures, clearly expect us to be bad or anti-social or greedy or selfish or dirty or destructive or self-destructive. Our social nature is such that we tend to meet the expectations of our elders. Whenever this reversal took place and our elders stopped expecting us to be social and expected us to be anti-social, just to put it in gross terms, that's when the real fall took place. And we're paying for it dearly.”

Jean Liedloff

About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

When elders reverse expectations, society’s social fabric unravels, causing personal and collective suffering.

In simple terms: Reversed expectations damage social harmony.

Key Takeaway

Align expectations with human nature.

Themes

society expectations social health

Mood

concerned analytical

Type

critical philosophical

When to use this quote

  • parenting
  • education
  • community building
  • policy making

Key Concepts

anthropology psychology culture

Questions to Reflect On

  • What expectations need reevaluation?
  • How can we restore social harmony?
A Different Perspective

Changing deep‑rooted expectations is difficult.

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