--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We in ancient countries have our past- we…" description: "\"We in ancient countries have our past- we obsess over the past. They, the Americans, have a dream: they feel nostalgia about the promise of the future...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/azar-nafisi-2001_ancient_we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we_1944789.png" --- # We in ancient countries have our past- we obsess over the… ![“We in ancient countries have our past- we obsess over the past. They, the Americans, have a dream: they feel nostalgia about the promise of the future.” quote by Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/azar-nafisi-2001_ancient_we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we_1944789.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/azar-nafisi-2001_ancient_we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we_1944789.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/azar-nafisi-2001_ancient_we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we_1944789.png) > “We in ancient countries have our past- we obsess over the past. They, the Americans, have a dream: they feel nostalgia about the promise of the future.” [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) ## 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 contrasts American nostalgia for future promises with societies that cling to past histories, critiquing differing temporal focuses. **In simple terms:** Americans dream of future; others dwell on past. Key Takeaway Balance past lessons with future hope. Themes nostalgia future history culture Mood thoughtful analytical Type historical philosophical When to use this quote - political discourse - education - media analysis - personal reflection Key Concepts temporal perspective collective memory Questions to Reflect On - How does nostalgia shape national identity? - Can societies honor history while embracing change? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on past can hinder progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ancient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Nostalgia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nostalgia/) [Our past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-past/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Promise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/promise/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [No matter how much you stress or obsess about the past or future, you can't change either one. In the present is where your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-matter-how-much-you-stress-or-obsess-about-the-past-or-future-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“And as if by magic - and it may have been magic, for I believe America is the land of magic, and that we,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-wolfe/and-as-if-by-magic-and-it-may-have-been-magic-for-i-believe-america/) [Gene Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-wolfe/) > [In the past, Americans have brought forth their best in times of crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/in-the-past-americans-have-brought-forth-their-best-in-times-of-crisis/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [France and America have a long history of mutual loathing and longing. Americans still dream of Paris; Parisians still dream of the America they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosecrans-baldwin/france-and-america-have-a-long-history-of-mutual-loathing-and-longing/) [Rosecrans Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosecrans-baldwin/) > [If we think we have ours and don't owe any time or money or effort to help those left behind, then we are a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/if-we-think-we-have-ours-and-don-t-owe-any-time-or-money-or-effort-to/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [I, with millions of other Americans, have the same dream Martin Luther King Jr. had; when I wake up I wish some of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/i-with-millions-of-other-americans-have-the-same-dream-martin-luther/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [It looked like just the sort of family Americans dream of having: dumb and loving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/it-looked-like-just-the-sort-of-family-americans-dream-of-having-dumb/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [When you look at our Godzilla, you won't feel any nostalgia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-devlin/when-you-look-at-our-godzilla-you-won-t-feel-any-nostalgia/) [Dean Devlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-devlin/) > [How could she feel nostalgia when he was right in front of her? How can you suffer from the absence of a person who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/how-could-she-feel-nostalgia-when-he-was-right-in-front-of-her-how/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“... I could feel a nostalgia for the evening already setting in, a longing for the existence of this night building before my eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deirdre-shaw/i-could-feel-a-nostalgia-for-the-evening-already-setting-in-a-longing/) Deirdre Shaw > [When I was a little girl, my first link to the world was as a reader. Sometimes, I feel a nostalgia for those times,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leila-slimani/when-i-was-a-little-girl-my-first-link-to-the-world-was-as-a-reader/) [Leila Slimani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leila-slimani/) > [America to me is so varied and exciting. I always feel nostalgia for the place I'm not in, and then I get there and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-frazier/america-to-me-is-so-varied-and-exciting-i-always-feel-nostalgia-for/) [Ian Frazier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-frazier/) > [I often remember in this false, distorted way, and the memories are often cloaked in the colour of the sun. Sometimes I feel nostalgia…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-often-remember-in-this-false-distorted-way-and-the-memories-are/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [How is it possible to feel nostalgia for a world I never knew?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/che-guevara/how-is-it-possible-to-feel-nostalgia-for-a-world-i-never-knew/) [Che Guevara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/che-guevara/) > [“Let us call this quality the Original Mind. This mind looked at the world more directly—not through words and received ideas. It was flexible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/let-us-call-this-quality-the-original-mind-this-mind-looked-at-the/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) ## More by Azar Nafisi > [“A novel is not an allegory...it is a sensual experience of another world. If you don't enter that world, hold your breath with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/a-novel-is-not-an-allegory-it-is-a-sensual-experience-of-another/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“I have a recurring fantasy that one more article has been added to the Bill of Rights: the right to free access to imagination.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/i-have-a-recurring-fantasy-that-one-more-article-has-been-added-to/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“Hope for some means its loss for others; when the hopeless regain some hope, those in power--the ones who had taken it away--become afraid,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/hope-for-some-means-its-loss-for-others-when-the-hopeless-regain-some/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [Imagine you are walking down a leafy path…The sun is receding, and you are walking alone, caressed by the breezy light of the late…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/imagine-you-are-walking-down-a-leafy-path-the-sun-is-receding-and-you/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [If I turned towards books, it was because they were the only sanctuary I knew, one I needed in order to survive, to protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/if-i-turned-towards-books-it-was-because-they-were-the-only-sanctuary/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [ “Such an act \[testifying for an accused prison guard of the Shah's regime\] can only be accomplished by someone who is engrossed in literature,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/such-an-act-testifying-for-an-accused-prison-guard-of-the-shah-s/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [It is only through literature that one can put oneself in someone else’s shoes and understand the other’s different and contradictory sides and refrain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/it-is-only-through-literature-that-one-can-put-oneself-in-someone/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“That first day I asked my students what they thought fiction should accomplish, why one should bother to read fiction at all. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/that-first-day-i-asked-my-students-what-they-thought-fiction-should/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“you cannot just be stubborn against something, you need to be stubborn for something as well”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/you-cannot-just-be-stubborn-against-something-you-need-to-be-stubborn/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [Do not, under any circumstances, belittle a work of fiction by trying to turn it into a carbon copy of real life; what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/do-not-under-any-circumstances-belittle-a-work-of-fiction-by-trying/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [Visa for Avalon is a testament to the power of fiction. It illuminates the truth at the heart of what is commonly called reality.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/visa-for-avalon-is-a-testament-to-the-power-of-fiction-it-illuminates/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“You ask me what it means to be irrelevant? The feeling is akin to visiting your old house as a wandering ghost with unfinished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/you-ask-me-what-it-means-to-be-irrelevant-the-feeling-is-akin-to/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“I explained that most great works of the imagination were meant to make you feel like a stranger in your own home. The best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/i-explained-that-most-great-works-of-the-imagination-were-meant-to/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“We envy people like you, and we want to be you; we can't, so we destroy you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/we-envy-people-like-you-and-we-want-to-be-you-we-can-t-so-we-destroy/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [“..."readers were born free and ought to remain free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/readers-were-born-free-and-ought-to-remain-free/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) [Explore all 182 Azar Nafisi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) ## More Ancient quotes > [“We ought to know the history of our ancient ancestors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/we-ought-to-know-the-history-of-our-ancient-ancestors/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [In ancient times, those who wished to illuminate the world with virtue first brought order to their nations. Wishing to order well their nations,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/in-ancient-times-those-who-wished-to-illuminate-the-world-with-virtue/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Ancient eyes had stared at me, filled with ancient grief. And something more. Something so alien and unexpected that I'd almost burst into tears.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/ancient-eyes-had-stared-at-me-filled-with-ancient-grief-and-something/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [“Whenever I think about ancient cultures nostalgia seizes me. Perhaps this is nothing but envy of the sweet slowness of the history of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/whenever-i-think-about-ancient-cultures-nostalgia-seizes-me-perhaps/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [I don't know if I've come of age, but I'm certainly older now. I feel shrunken, as if there's a tiny ancient Oliver Tate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-dunthorne/i-don-t-know-if-i-ve-come-of-age-but-i-m-certainly-older-now-i-feel/) [Joe Dunthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-dunthorne/) > [Tentatively I stood a great lump of wood on the chopping block and bought the axe down on it. It flew into two perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-garner/tentatively-i-stood-a-great-lump-of-wood-on-the-chopping-block-and/) [Helen Garner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-garner/) > [Men must speak English who can write Sanskrit; they must speak a modern language who write, perchance, an ancient and universal one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/men-must-speak-english-who-can-write-sanskrit-they-must-speak-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The Tao is the center of the universe, the good man's treasure, the bad man's refuge. Honors can be bought with fine words, respect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/the-tao-is-the-center-of-the-universe-the-good-man-s-treasure-the-bad/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [So too, monks, I saw the ancient path, the ancient road traveled by the Perfectly Enlightened Ones of the past. And what is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/so-too-monks-i-saw-the-ancient-path-the-ancient-road-traveled-by-the/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [Ancient societies had anthropomorphic gods: a huge pantheon expanding into centuries of dynastic drama; fathers and sons, martyred heroes, star-crossed lovers, the deaths of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hiddleston/ancient-societies-had-anthropomorphic-gods-a-huge-pantheon-expanding/) [Tom Hiddleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hiddleston/) > [My life shall be free and broad and great, and I will not be the slave to the sense delights which chained my ancient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/my-life-shall-be-free-and-broad-and-great-and-i-will-not-be-the-slave/) [Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/) > [Those of us with this ancient compulsion to tell stories sometimes start with a single kernel of something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-p-jones/those-of-us-with-this-ancient-compulsion-to-tell-stories-sometimes/) [Edward P. Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-p-jones/) > [All the stories I have told you are finally as useless as all ancient knowledge is to man and to us. Its images and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/all-the-stories-i-have-told-you-are-finally-as-useless-as-all-ancient/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [So what if I'm ninety-three? So what if I'm ancient and cranky and my body's a wreck? If they're willing to accept me and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-gruen/so-what-if-i-m-ninety-three-so-what-if-i-m-ancient-and-cranky-and-my/) [Sara Gruen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-gruen/) > [Science has revealed a universe that is vast, ancient, violent, strange, and beautiful, a universe of almost infinite variety and possibility one in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-mlodinow/science-has-revealed-a-universe-that-is-vast-ancient-violent-strange/) [Leonard Mlodinow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-mlodinow/) [Browse all 2,415 Ancient quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We in ancient countries have our past- we obsess over the past. They, the Americans, have a dream: they feel nostalgia about the promise of the future.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Azar Nafisi" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we-obsess-over-the-past-they/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ancient" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we-obsess-over-the-past-they/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/azar-nafisi-2001_ancient_we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we_1944789.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/azar-nafisi-2001_ancient_we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we_1944789.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/azar-nafisi-2001_ancient_we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we_1944789.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We in ancient countries have our past- we obsess over the past. They, the Americans, have a dream: they feel…” — Azar Nafisi", "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": "Azar Nafisi", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We in ancient countries have our...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we-obsess-over-the-past-they/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/we-in-ancient-countries-have-our-past-we-obsess-over-the-past-they/#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 } } ] } ```