--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: America can be a very hysterical country…" description: "\"America can be a very hysterical country intellectually and very puritanical, too. You probably have fun in private, but to the rest of the world you s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffd/doris-lessing-501_conformity_america-can-be-a-very-hysterical-country_1717700.png" --- # America can be a very hysterical country intellectually… ![“America can be a very hysterical country intellectually and very puritanical, too. You probably have fun in private, but to the rest of the world you seem to hate fun - to be big on agendas and short on spontaneity. The image you present is one of appalling conformity. The thought police is what…” quote by Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffd/doris-lessing-501_conformity_america-can-be-a-very-hysterical-country_1717700.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffd/doris-lessing-501_conformity_america-can-be-a-very-hysterical-country_1717700.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffd/doris-lessing-501_conformity_america-can-be-a-very-hysterical-country_1717700.png) > “America can be a very hysterical country intellectually and very puritanical, too. You probably have fun in private, but to the rest of the world you seem to hate fun - to be big on agendas and short on spontaneity. The image you present is one of appalling conformity. The thought police is what you are ruled by.” [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. American society can be both intellectually rigid and morally strict, presenting a façade of conformity while suppressing spontaneity and fun. **In simple terms:** America often appears overly controlled and lacking spontaneity. Key Takeaway Encourage authentic expression over conformity. Themes society culture conformity freedom spontaneity Mood thoughtful analytical Type commentary cultural When to use this quote - workplace culture - education systems - media narratives - social media trends Key Concepts sociology psychology cultural criticism Questions to Reflect On - What ways can you foster spontaneity in daily life? - How does conformity affect personal freedom? A Different Perspective Emphasizing conformity may stifle creativity and joy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conformity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conformity/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fun/) [Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate/) [Having fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-fun/) [Police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/police/) [Spontaneity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spontaneity/) [Thought police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-police/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [I'm naive. I will admit that I'm naive. 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Yet all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/she-was-using-the-water-as-she-had-used-the-fruit-earlier-to-calm/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [I remember World War II when there were very few books, very little paper available. 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I've been much happier unmarried than married.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/i-do-not-think-that-marriage-is-one-of-my-talents-i-ve-been-much/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [I haven't got the energy to write now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/i-haven-t-got-the-energy-to-write-now/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [What really fascinates me is this need that is so strong now that if you read a work of the imagination you instantly have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/what-really-fascinates-me-is-this-need-that-is-so-strong-now-that-if/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“The charge that the United Nations are using bacteriological warfare in Korea cannot be dismissed merely because it would be insane.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/the-charge-that-the-united-nations-are-using-bacteriological-warfare/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [What I did have, which others perhaps didn't, was a capacity for sticking at it, which really is the point, not the talent at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/what-i-did-have-which-others-perhaps-didn-t-was-a-capacity-for/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [The human community is evolving... . We can survive anything you care to mention. We are supremely equipped to survive, to adapt and even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/the-human-community-is-evolving-we-can-survive-anything-you-care-to/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [So love is rest? The cosy corner? The little nook? Sometimes it ought to be. Sometimes it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/so-love-is-rest-the-cosy-corner-the-little-nook-sometimes-it-ought-to/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) [Explore all 508 Doris Lessing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) ## More Conformity quotes > [“So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-supertramp-chris-mccandless/so-many-people-live-within-unhappy-circumstances-and-yet-will-not/) Alexander Supertramp Chris McCandless > [“All to often, on the long road up, young leaders become servants of what is rather than shapers of what might be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gardner/all-to-often-on-the-long-road-up-young-leaders-become-servants-of/) [John Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gardner/) > [The Chains of conformity click in tiresomely monotonous unison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-sweet/the-chains-of-conformity-click-in-tiresomely-monotonous-unison/) [Leonard Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-sweet/) > [No shepherd and one herd! 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