--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: At the beginning we had been issued with…" description: "\"“At the beginning we had been issued with a packet of cigarettes a day, then it got down to eight cigarettes a day, then to five. Finally there were te..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/george-orwell-57_every-day_at-the-beginning-we-had-been-issued-with_1961590.jpg" --- # At the beginning we had been issued with a packet of… ![“At the beginning we had been issued with a packet of cigarettes a day, then it got down to eight cigarettes a day, then to five. Finally there were ten deadly days when there was no issue of tobacco at all. For the first time, in Spain, I saw something that you see every day in London—people…” quote by George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/george-orwell-57_every-day_at-the-beginning-we-had-been-issued-with_1961590.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/george-orwell-57_every-day_at-the-beginning-we-had-been-issued-with_1961590.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/george-orwell-57_every-day_at-the-beginning-we-had-been-issued-with_1961590.jpg) > ““At the beginning we had been issued with a packet of cigarettes a day, then it got down to eight cigarettes a day, then to five. Finally there were ten deadly days when there was no issue of tobacco at all. For the first time, in Spain, I saw something that you see every day in London—people picking up fag-ends.”” [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The reduction of cigarettes highlights how scarcity reveals everyday habits like littering. **In simple terms:** Less cigarettes expose litter habits. Key Takeaway Notice how scarcity changes behavior. Themes habit environment scarcity Mood observational critical Type social environmental When to use this quote - urban clean‑up - policy making - education campaigns Key Concepts social observation public health Questions to Reflect On - Why do people litter even when cigarettes are scarce? - What policies reduce litter effectively? A Different Perspective People may still litter without enforcement. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cigarettes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cigarettes/) [Wine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wine/) ## Related quotes > [I ain't got no cigarettes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-travis/i-ain-t-got-no-cigarettes/) [Randy Travis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-travis/) > [I had quit smoking a pack of cigarettes a day just in time to put on 11 kg.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-vaughn/i-had-quit-smoking-a-pack-of-cigarettes-a-day-just-in-time-to-put-on/) [Vince Vaughn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-vaughn/) > [I put the heart attack down to 66 cigarettes a day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-lythgoe/i-put-the-heart-attack-down-to-66-cigarettes-a-day/) [Nigel Lythgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-lythgoe/) > [“She was shot dead, in cold blood," he said bitterly. I could see we were in for a long night. I got out my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-kerr/she-was-shot-dead-in-cold-blood-he-said-bitterly-i-could-see-we-were/) [Philip Kerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-kerr/) > [“Research finds that people who eat a diet rich in animal protein carry similar cancer risk to those who smoke twenty cigarettes each day.”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-simmons/research-finds-that-people-who-eat-a-diet-rich-in-animal-protein/) [Russell Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-simmons/) > [There are some circles in America where it seems to be more socially acceptable to carry a hand-gun than a packet of cigarettes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-whitehorn/there-are-some-circles-in-america-where-it-seems-to-be-more-socially/) [Katharine Whitehorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-whitehorn/) > [What can you say about Guy's cooking that hasn't been printed on a packet of cigarettes?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-geist/what-can-you-say-about-guy-s-cooking-that-hasn-t-been-printed-on-a/) [Willie Geist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-geist/) > [I was very surprised when last I bought a packet of cigarettes and had to request a refund as I read a warning that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-clark/i-was-very-surprised-when-last-i-bought-a-packet-of-cigarettes-and/) [Robert Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-clark/) > [They should give until it hurts, maybe a very small thing, maybe just a packet of cigarettes, but instead of by smoking that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/they-should-give-until-it-hurts-maybe-a-very-small-thing-maybe-just-a/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [“You smoke?” “Smoke? Do I look like a fucking idiot?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-k-morgan/you-smoke-smoke-do-i-look-like-a-fucking-idiot/) [Richard K. 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Isn't that something? I'm on to cigars now. I'm on to a five-year plan. I eliminated cigarettes, then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-candy/hey-i-stopped-smoking-cigarettes-isn-t-that-something-i-m-on-to/) [John Candy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-candy/) > [The increased use of cigarettes and tobacco products among youth is worrying. Starting with cigarettes and tobacco, youngsters are soon lured into use of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-jayachandran/the-increased-use-of-cigarettes-and-tobacco-products-among-youth-is/) [M. Jayachandran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-jayachandran/) ## More by George Orwell > [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/) > [It was given out that the animals there practised cannibalism, tortured one another with red-hot horseshoes, and had their females in common. This was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/it-was-given-out-that-the-animals-there-practised-cannibalism/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“The actual writing would be easy. All he had to do was to transfer to paper the interminable restless monologue that had been running…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-actual-writing-would-be-easy-all-he-had-to-do-was-to-transfer-to/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [He felt as though he were wandering in the forests of the sea bottom, lost in a monstrous world where he himself was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/he-felt-as-though-he-were-wandering-in-the-forests-of-the-sea-bottom/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“if you took 1 Corinthians, chapter thirteen, and in every verse wrote 'money' instead of 'charity', the chapter had ten times as much meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/if-you-took-1-corinthians-chapter-thirteen-and-in-every-verse-wrote/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Happiness can exist only in acceptance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/happiness-can-exist-only-in-acceptance/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-if-all-others-accepted-the-lie-which-the-party-imposed-if-all/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Whitman himself "accepted" a great deal that his contemporaries found unmentionable. For he is not only writing of the prairie, he also wanders through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/whitman-himself-accepted-a-great-deal-that-his-contemporaries-found/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“But I tell you, Winston, that reality is not external. Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else. Whatever the Party holds to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/but-i-tell-you-winston-that-reality-is-not-external-reality-exists-in/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“And the people under the sky were also very much the same...everywhere, all over the world, hundreds or thousands of millions of people just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-the-people-under-the-sky-were-also-very-much-the-same-everywhere/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/don-t-you-see-that-the-whole-aim-of-newspeak-is-to-narrow-the-range/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Windmill or no windmill, he said, life would go on as it had always gone on--that is, badly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/windmill-or-no-windmill-he-said-life-would-go-on-as-it-had-always/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/man-is-the-only-creature-that-consumes-without-producing-he-does-not/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [And the bigger the fall, the bigger the joke. It would be better fun to throw a custard pie at a bishop than at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-the-bigger-the-fall-the-bigger-the-joke-it-would-be-better-fun-to/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Any writer or journalist who wants to retain his integrity finds himself thwarted by the general drift of society rather than by active persecution.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/any-writer-or-journalist-who-wants-to-retain-his-integrity-finds/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) [Explore all 1,657 George Orwell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) ## More Cigarettes quotes > [The increased use of cigarettes and tobacco products among youth is worrying. Starting with cigarettes and tobacco, youngsters are soon lured into use of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-jayachandran/the-increased-use-of-cigarettes-and-tobacco-products-among-youth-is/) [M. Jayachandran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-jayachandran/) > [Don't be like cigarettes:people buy you when they need you and step on you when they finish from you,but be like drugs,they DIE if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-tiwari/don-t-be-like-cigarettes-people-buy-you-when-they-need-you-and-step/) [Abhishek Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-tiwari/) > [We have too many preacherettes preaching too many sermonettes to too many Christianettes smoking cigarettes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-ravenhill/we-have-too-many-preacherettes-preaching-too-many-sermonettes-to-too/) [Leonard Ravenhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-ravenhill/) > [Negativity slowly kills your mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew/negativity-slowly-kills-your-mind/) [Andrew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew/) > [In the 1960s, you could eat anything you wanted, and of course, people were smoking cigarettes and all kinds of things, and there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-child/in-the-1960s-you-could-eat-anything-you-wanted-and-of-course-people/) [Julia Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-child/) > [I did 12 shows in 13 weeks at a summer theater in Maine where we were paid $35 a week. After taxes and $25…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-landau/i-did-12-shows-in-13-weeks-at-a-summer-theater-in-maine-where-we-were/) [Martin Landau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-landau/) > [I know cigarettes can kill & wonder if non smokers are immortal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hemantsmarty/i-know-cigarettes-can-kill-wonder-if-non-smokers-are-immortal/) Hemantsmarty > [“He lights a cigarette off a candle. These death-tubes, these little crutches or fuses: useful for getting through all sorts of things you don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garth-risk-hallberg/he-lights-a-cigarette-off-a-candle-these-death-tubes-these-little/) [Garth Risk Hallberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garth-risk-hallberg/) > [I quit because I'm so tired of hearing bad news about cigarettes... Even if they discover good news, they don't publicize it - like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arj-barker/i-quit-because-i-m-so-tired-of-hearing-bad-news-about-cigarettes-even/) [Arj Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arj-barker/) > [Everything really needs to be paraben-free for me. I mean, because if I’m going to smoke cigarettes, then I need to be aware of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-wasson/everything-really-needs-to-be-paraben-free-for-me-i-mean-because-if-i/) [Erin Wasson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-wasson/) > [Cigarettes don't kill people - cancer kills people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weiner/cigarettes-don-t-kill-people-cancer-kills-people/) Richard M. Weiner > [“If you went twenty-four hours without cigarettes, I'd drink a can of pop. Regular pop. The whole can." Isaw the glimmer of Adrian's earlier…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-mead/if-you-went-twenty-four-hours-without-cigarettes-i-d-drink-a-can-of/) [Richelle Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-mead/) > [Once I thought I found love, but then I realized I was just outof cigarettes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hemantsmarty/once-i-thought-i-found-love-but-then-i-realized-i-was-just-outof/) Hemantsmarty > [I tap a Malediction out of the box, fire it up, and puff. It tastes like a tire fire in a candy factory next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-kadrey/i-tap-a-malediction-out-of-the-box-fire-it-up-and-puff-it-tastes-like/) [Richard Kadrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-kadrey/) > [“Stephanie took another puff from her candy cigarette, reached into her purse, brought out the rest of the pack, and said, "Want one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-martin-beckner/stephanie-took-another-puff-from-her-candy-cigarette-reached-into-her/) [K. Martin Beckner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-martin-beckner/) [Browse all 199 Cigarettes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cigarettes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“At the beginning we had been issued with a packet of cigarettes a day, then it got down to eight cigarettes a day, then to five. Finally there were ten deadly days when there was no issue of tobacco at all. 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