Arrogance Quote by Attica Locke
““The belief that they were special, that they had the stones to endure what others couldn't, was the most quintessentially Texas thing about them. It was an arrogance born of genuine fortitude and a streak of hardheadness six generations deep, a Homeric shield against the petty jealousies and lethal injustices that so occupied white folks' free time, their oppressive and intrusive gaze into every aspect of black life - from what you eat to who you marry to the clothes you wear to the music you play to the way you wear your hair to how you address them on the street. The Mathews family recognized it for what it was: a fevered obsession that didn't really have anything to do with them, a preoccupation that weakened a man looking anywhere but at himself.””
About This Quote
Source Novel: The Cutting Season, 2015
The quote describes a family's deep-rooted pride and resilience, rooted in a Texas identity, which both empowers them and blinds them to personal flaws.
In simple terms: Pride and resilience can blind self‑awareness.
Key Takeaway
Recognize pride, but also examine personal blind spots.
Themes
identity
pride
resilience
blindness
self‑reflection
Mood
reflective
critical
somber
Type
literary
social commentary
character study
When to use this quote
- family dynamics
- racial oppression
- personal growth
- community relations
Key Concepts
Texas culture
generational trauma
social hierarchy
Questions to Reflect On
- How does pride protect and limit you?
- What blind spots arise from cultural identity?
A Different Perspective
The narrative may romanticize harsh attitudes, overlooking the harm they cause.
![“Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this [step by step, from humans to apes to monkeys to lemurs] - leading us insensibly from the crown and summit of the animal creation down to creatures, from which there is but a step, as it seems, to the…” quote by Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f0b/thomas-huxley-1183_animal_perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us_3051.jpg)
