--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What the United States does best is to…" description: "\"What the United States does best is to understand itself. What it does worst is understand others.\" — Carlos Fuentes" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c82/carlos-fuentes-1696_best_what-the-united-states-does-best-is-to-u_1023863.jpg" --- # What the United States does best is to understand itself… ![“What the United States does best is to understand itself. What it does worst is understand others.” quote by Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c82/carlos-fuentes-1696_best_what-the-united-states-does-best-is-to-u_1023863.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c82/carlos-fuentes-1696_best_what-the-united-states-does-best-is-to-u_1023863.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c82/carlos-fuentes-1696_best_what-the-united-states-does-best-is-to-u_1023863.jpg) > “What the United States does best is to understand itself. What it does worst is understand others.” [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The US excels at introspection but struggles with understanding others. **In simple terms:** America knows itself well but fails to grasp foreign perspectives. Key Takeaway Cultivate empathy and global awareness. Themes self‑knowledge empathy national identity global understanding Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - foreign policy - education - media analysis - personal travel Key Concepts cultural humility political science psychology Questions to Reflect On - How can societies balance self‑understanding with external empathy? - What practices improve cross‑cultural insight? A Different Perspective May overlook internal diversity; self‑reflection can be biased. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [United states](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united-states/) ## Related quotes > [What America does best is to understand itself. What it does worst is to understand others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/what-america-does-best-is-to-understand-itself-what-it-does-worst-is/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [Not everybody will understand you. But there will always be someone who does and you should find them enough for the company no matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-mark/not-everybody-will-understand-you-but-there-will-always-be-someone/) [Terry Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-mark/) > [A failure to understand something does not mean it is irrational. It may simply mean that it lies on the far side of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alister-e-mcgrath/a-failure-to-understand-something-does-not-mean-it-is-irrational-it/) [Alister E. McGrath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alister-e-mcgrath/) > [~You won't understand me no-one does~< 3](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shes-gone/you-won-t-understand-me-no-one-does-3/) Shes\_gone > [What a man does not understand, he does not possess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/what-a-man-does-not-understand-he-does-not-possess/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [When a person knows and can't make the others understand, what does he do?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carson-mccullers/when-a-person-knows-and-can-t-make-the-others-understand-what-does-he/) [Carson McCullers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carson-mccullers/) > [“There is no one in the world that can best understand you the way you understand yourself. It only take you to make the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdulazeez-henry-musa/there-is-no-one-in-the-world-that-can-best-understand-you-the-way-you/) [Abdulazeez Henry Musa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdulazeez-henry-musa/) > [“Humans are mysterious creatures. There comes a time when we can clearly understand even things that we can't see. It's the same with anything.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sakura-tsukuba/humans-are-mysterious-creatures-there-comes-a-time-when-we-can/) [Sakura Tsukuba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sakura-tsukuba/) > [The best of the best understand that people do business with people they like. People do business with people they trust, and people do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-s-sharma/the-best-of-the-best-understand-that-people-do-business-with-people/) [Robin S. Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-s-sharma/) > [I certainly should have,' he agrees, smiling and thinking what an absurd and universally-accepted bit of nonsense it is, that your best friends must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-isherwood/i-certainly-should-have-he-agrees-smiling-and-thinking-what-an-absurd/) [Christopher Isherwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-isherwood/) > [I Never prove to be good enough for everyone. But I'm the best for them who Understand Me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/i-never-prove-to-be-good-enough-for-everyone-but-i-m-the-best-for/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [We always do the best we can to get others to understand...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bella-mutolo/we-always-do-the-best-we-can-to-get-others-to-understand/) [Bella Mutolo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bella-mutolo/) > [We cannot understand. The best is perhaps what we understand least.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-cannot-understand-the-best-is-perhaps-what-we-understand-least/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I know, I am not perfect, but I do my best.Please understand my mistakes, and I Promise to understand your's too...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-know-i-am-not-perfect-but-i-do-my-best-please-understand-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I never prove to be good enough For every one...! But I'm the best for them who understand me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-never-prove-to-be-good-enough-for-every-one-but-i-m-the-best-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Carlos Fuentes > [No, it's not that they're bad. It's that they're obliged to pretend they're good. They've been brought up to deceive and be cunning, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/no-it-s-not-that-they-re-bad-it-s-that-they-re-obliged-to-pretend/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [Contrary to the macho culture of Mexico, both my grandmothers were very brave young widows. I was always very close to these hard-working, intelligent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/contrary-to-the-macho-culture-of-mexico-both-my-grandmothers-were/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [The contract between the author and the reader is a game. And the game . . . is one of the greatest invetions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/the-contract-between-the-author-and-the-reader-is-a-game-and-the-game/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [Love can isolate us from everything around us. But in its absence, we can be filled with the fear that something comparable exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/love-can-isolate-us-from-everything-around-us-but-in-its-absence-we/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [You start by writing to live. You end by writing so as not to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/you-start-by-writing-to-live-you-end-by-writing-so-as-not-to-die/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [“Because it’s a fucking disaster to be creative when you know you’re not Mozart or Keats. Dammit, I got tired of scratching around in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/because-it-s-a-fucking-disaster-to-be-creative-when-you-know-you-re/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [In the name of certainty, the greatest crimes have been committed against humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/in-the-name-of-certainty-the-greatest-crimes-have-been-committed/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [Mexico is a very complex, mysterious country. I will never understand it fully, and that's why I write so much about it, in order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/mexico-is-a-very-complex-mysterious-country-i-will-never-understand/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [chaos: it has no plural.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/chaos-it-has-no-plural/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [“Sólo el imbécil no duda. Sólo el idiota no sufre".”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/s-lo-el-imb-cil-no-duda-s-lo-el-idiota-no-sufre/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [I have no literary fears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/i-have-no-literary-fears/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [“You will have given another moment to the moment you are living and to the moments you are going to live; you have perverted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/you-will-have-given-another-moment-to-the-moment-you-are-living-and/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [I am a Mexican. The United States lived seventy-five years with the one party system in Mexico - the PRI - without batting an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/i-am-a-mexican-the-united-states-lived-seventy-five-years-with-the/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [“It is true that every mountain has four faces, and one tends to know but one. ― Carlos Fuentes, Terra Nostra”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/it-is-true-that-every-mountain-has-four-faces-and-one-tends-to-know/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) > [To read and write is a paradise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/to-read-and-write-is-a-paradise/) [Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) [Explore all 134 Carlos Fuentes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What the United States does best is to understand itself. 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