--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I felt if I went chronologically, I'd get…" description: "\"I felt if I went chronologically, I'd get bogged down in childhood and that's part of our culture of complaint in America. This endless wailing about y..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e67/edmund-white-2376_america_i-felt-if-i-went-chronologically-i-d-get_566562.jpg" --- # I felt if I went chronologically, I'd get bogged down in… ![“I felt if I went chronologically, I'd get bogged down in childhood and that's part of our culture of complaint in America. This endless wailing about your childhood.” quote by Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e67/edmund-white-2376_america_i-felt-if-i-went-chronologically-i-d-get_566562.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e67/edmund-white-2376_america_i-felt-if-i-went-chronologically-i-d-get_566562.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e67/edmund-white-2376_america_i-felt-if-i-went-chronologically-i-d-get_566562.jpg) > “I felt if I went chronologically, I'd get bogged down in childhood and that's part of our culture of complaint in America. This endless wailing about your childhood.” [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often dwell on childhood grievances, which can dominate cultural narratives and hinder progress. **In simple terms:** Obsessing on childhood hurts stunts growth. Key Takeaway Shift focus from past grievances to present actions. Themes culture complaint memory Mood reflective critical Type philosophical contemplative When to use this quote - political debates - media commentary - personal therapy - education Key Concepts nostalgia victimhood social discourse Questions to Reflect On - Why do we cling to childhood narratives? - How can societies move beyond blame? A Different Perspective Constant complaining can become a self‑fulfilling prophecy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Bogged Childhood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bogged-childhood-4686231/) [Childhood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childhood/) [Childhood Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childhood-culture-4686234/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Chronologically Bogged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chronologically-bogged-4686232/) [Complaints](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complaints/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Culture Complaint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture-complaint-896870/) [Endless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/endless/) [Felt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/felt/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Our children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-children/) [Wailing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wailing/) [Went Chronologically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/went-chronologically-4686233/) [Your children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/your-children/) ## Related quotes > [The unsparing savagery of stories like the Robber Bridegroom is a sharp reminder that fairy tales belong to the childhood of culture as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-tatar/the-unsparing-savagery-of-stories-like-the-robber-bridegroom-is-a/) [Maria Tatar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-tatar/) > [The Culture of Complaint... We live in a culture of complaint because everyone is always looking for things to complain about. It's all tied…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/the-culture-of-complaint-we-live-in-a-culture-of-complaint-because/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [Lives have been altered in fundamental ways, and later, after they acquire a more complete understanding of what goals are actually attainable, many are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-trudeau/lives-have-been-altered-in-fundamental-ways-and-later-after-they/) [Garry Trudeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-trudeau/) > [The cultivation - even celebration - of victimhood by intellectuals, tort lawyers, politicians and the media is both cause and effect of today's culture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/the-cultivation-even-celebration-of-victimhood-by-intellectuals-tort/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [“We live in a culture of complaint because everyone is always looking for things to complain about. It's all tied in with the desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/we-live-in-a-culture-of-complaint-because-everyone-is-always-looking/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [I'm not into the culture of complaint. I roll up my sleeves and somehow I get it together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/i-m-not-into-the-culture-of-complaint-i-roll-up-my-sleeves-and/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [The melancholy days are come, the saddest of the year, Of wailing winds, and naked woods and meadows brown and sear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/the-melancholy-days-are-come-the-saddest-of-the-year-of-wailing-winds/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [There sighs, lamentations and loud wailings resounded through the starless air, so that at first it made me weep; strange tongues, horrible language, words…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dante-alighieri/there-sighs-lamentations-and-loud-wailings-resounded-through-the/) [Dante Alighieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dante-alighieri/) > [Do one of three things. One, go and find a wailing wall and feel sorry for yourselves. Two, go psycho and start bombing --…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-one-of-three-things-one-go-and-find-a-wailing-wall-and-feel-sorry/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My neighbor Alice Pierce is fond of singing folk music to her garden plants. Thinks it makes them grow or something. The Major had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-simonson/my-neighbor-alice-pierce-is-fond-of-singing-folk-music-to-her-garden/) [Helen Simonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-simonson/) > [But as in wailing there's nought availing, And Death unfailing will strike the blow, Then for that reason, and for a season, Let us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-philpot-curran/but-as-in-wailing-there-s-nought-availing-and-death-unfailing-will/) [John Philpot Curran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-philpot-curran/) > [Everyone knows that quote because of the Doors." Jace looked at her blankly. "The Doors. They were a band." "If you say so," he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/everyone-knows-that-quote-because-of-the-doors-jace-looked-at-her/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Hungry wailing standeth not aloof.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hungry-wailing-standeth-not-aloof/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [These tears I'm wailing, I spill not without reason. Remove them, my dearest love. Take me to the place I've been dreaming of, where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/these-tears-i-m-wailing-i-spill-not-without-reason-remove-them-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The wailing of the newborn infant is mingled with the dirge for the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretius/the-wailing-of-the-newborn-infant-is-mingled-with-the-dirge-for-the/) [Lucretius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretius/) ## More by Edmund White > [The talk shows in the States want celebrities, not authors. In France, it is different; writers are called upon to comment on everything. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/the-talk-shows-in-the-states-want-celebrities-not-authors-in-france/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Just like Barack Obama, my views on gay marriage have evolved, and now I am a reluctant groom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/just-like-barack-obama-my-views-on-gay-marriage-have-evolved-and-now/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [In 'A Boy's Own Story' and 'Jack Holmes and His Friend,' my idea was to take someone totally different from my real self and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/in-a-boy-s-own-story-and-jack-holmes-and-his-friend-my-idea-was-to/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Everyone seems agreed that writing about sex is perilous, partly because it threatens to swamp highly individualised characters in a generic, featureless activity (much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/everyone-seems-agreed-that-writing-about-sex-is-perilous-partly/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > ['The Sound of Things Falling' may be a page turner, but it's also a deep meditation on fate and death. 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She had been sheltered excessively by her husband and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/from-my-mother-i-learned-just-how-violent-and-unquenchable-a-woman-s/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [From an early age, I had the idea that writing was truth-telling. It's on the record. Everybody can see it. Maybe it goes back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/from-an-early-age-i-had-the-idea-that-writing-was-truth-telling-it-s/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Since, in the best Southern tradition, I was named Edmund Valentine White III, sometimes when people look up my books on Amazon they find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/since-in-the-best-southern-tradition-i-was-named-edmund-valentine/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [When I was young, I despised old people. I was provincial and narrow-minded. It's the reason I stayed stupid so long. If you only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/when-i-was-young-i-despised-old-people-i-was-provincial-and-narrow/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Key West is the place where your sickly house plant back in New York grows to 10 ft. It's also the place where an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/key-west-is-the-place-where-your-sickly-house-plant-back-in-new-york/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [“In the past, when gays were very flamboyant as drag queens or as leather queens or whatever, that just amused people. And most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/in-the-past-when-gays-were-very-flamboyant-as-drag-queens-or-as/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [When a woman falls in love with me, I feel guilty. I am convinced that it's pure obstinacy that keeps me from reciprocating her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/when-a-woman-falls-in-love-with-me-i-feel-guilty-i-am-convinced-that/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [While writing 'City Boy,' I relied mainly on my own memories. In particular, I was able to describe the effect of gay liberation on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/while-writing-city-boy-i-relied-mainly-on-my-own-memories-in/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) [Explore all 166 Edmund White quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) ## 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. 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