--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...I have come to be convinced that it is…" description: "\"“...I have come to be convinced that it is only the unbending observance of custom that sustains life in an urban circumstance.”\" — Gordon Lish" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74a/gordon-lish-47070_culture_i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-o_1333064.png" --- # ...I have come to be convinced that it is only the… ![“...I have come to be convinced that it is only the unbending observance of custom that sustains life in an urban circumstance.” quote by Gordon Lish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74a/gordon-lish-47070_culture_i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-o_1333064.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74a/gordon-lish-47070_culture_i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-o_1333064.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74a/gordon-lish-47070_culture_i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-o_1333064.png) > ““...I have come to be convinced that it is only the unbending observance of custom that sustains life in an urban circumstance.”” [Gordon Lish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lish/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rigid adherence to tradition is presented as the only thing keeping urban life functional, implying flexibility is risky. **In simple terms:** Custom keeps city life stable. Key Takeaway Question flexibility in city life. Themes tradition urban life stability Mood reflective critical Type analytical commentary When to use this quote - urban planning - community building - policy making - social reform Key Concepts Sociology cultural inertia Questions to Reflect On - How does tradition limit progress? - When is flexibility essential? A Different Perspective Custom may hinder innovation and adaptation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Tradition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tradition/) ## Related quotes > [ \[Islam\] Leaves no room of human legislation in an Islamic state, because herein all legislative functions vest in God and the only function left… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abul-a-la-maududi/islam-leaves-no-room-of-human-legislation-in-an-islamic-state-because/) [Abul A'la Maududi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abul-a-la-maududi/) > [Be dead in life, and you will not live in death. Let your soul die strenuously, and not live in weakness. Not only those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-of-nineveh/be-dead-in-life-and-you-will-not-live-in-death-let-your-soul-die/) [Isaac of Nineveh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-of-nineveh/) > [Both magic and religion are based strictly on mythological tradition, and they also both exist in the atmosphere of the miraculous, in a constant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bronislaw-malinowski/both-magic-and-religion-are-based-strictly-on-mythological-tradition/) [Bronislaw Malinowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bronislaw-malinowski/) > [It is only when the individual is good that society will progress. When the society and the nation is based on the observance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sathya-sai-baba/it-is-only-when-the-individual-is-good-that-society-will-progress/) [Sathya Sai Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sathya-sai-baba/) > [Procrastination, as it may be applied to Gospel principles, is the thief of eternal life - which is life in the presence of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-fielding-smith/procrastination-as-it-may-be-applied-to-gospel-principles-is-the/) [Joseph Fielding Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-fielding-smith/) > [There is a better thing than the observance of Christmas day, and that is, keeping Christmas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-van-dyke/there-is-a-better-thing-than-the-observance-of-christmas-day-and-that/) [Henry Van Dyke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-van-dyke/) > [Observance of customs and laws can very easily be a cloak for a lie so subtle that our fellow human beings are unable to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/observance-of-customs-and-laws-can-very-easily-be-a-cloak-for-a-lie/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [Religious Observance, does not mean: You attend services and then sit back and watch the world pass you by, ¦ In the past several…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rokas/religious-observance-does-not-mean-you-attend-services-and-then-sit/) [John Rokas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rokas/) > [If is a custom, More honor'd in the breach than the observance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/if-is-a-custom-more-honor-d-in-the-breach-than-the-observance/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Some level of truthfulness has always been seen as essential to human society, no matter how deficient the observance of other moral principles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sissela-bok/some-level-of-truthfulness-has-always-been-seen-as-essential-to-human/) [Sissela Bok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sissela-bok/) > [If anywhere the day is made holy for the mere day's sake - if anyone set up its observance on a Jewish foundation, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/if-anywhere-the-day-is-made-holy-for-the-mere-day-s-sake-if-anyone/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [The worst sinners, according to Jesus, are not the harlots and publicans, but the religious leaders with their insistence on proper dress and grooming,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-nibley/the-worst-sinners-according-to-jesus-are-not-the-harlots-and/) [Hugh Nibley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-nibley/) > [All worldly pursuits have but one unavoidable and inevitable end, which is sorrow; acquisitions end in dispersion; buildings in destruction; meetings in separation; births…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milarepa/all-worldly-pursuits-have-but-one-unavoidable-and-inevitable-end/) [Milarepa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milarepa/) > [There cannot be a surer rule, nor a stronger exhortation to the observance of it, than when we are taught that all the endowments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/there-cannot-be-a-surer-rule-nor-a-stronger-exhortation-to-the/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/) > [Ours is a civil fight, and imprisonment as a civil prisoner has got to be earned by the strict observance of the programme.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/ours-is-a-civil-fight-and-imprisonment-as-a-civil-prisoner-has-got-to/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) ## More by Gordon Lish > [“He came to chat with me the day of my being discharged, advising that I not stay at the dog fight until the last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/he-came-to-chat-with-me-the-day-of-my-being-discharged-advising-that/) [Gordon Lish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lish/) > [The secret of good writing is telling the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/the-secret-of-good-writing-is-telling-the-truth/) [Gordon Lish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lish/) > [Writing is not about self-expression; it is about putting words on paper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/writing-is-not-about-self-expression-it-is-about-putting-words-on/) [Gordon Lish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lish/) > [Never be sincere - sincerity is the death of writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/never-be-sincere-sincerity-is-the-death-of-writing/) [Gordon Lish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lish/) > [I see the notion of talent as quite irrelevant. I see instead perseverance, application, industry, assiduity, will, will, will, desire, desire, desire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/i-see-the-notion-of-talent-as-quite-irrelevant-i-see-instead/) [Gordon Lish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lish/) > [“It’s not what happens to people on the page; it’s about what happens to a reader in his heart and mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/it-s-not-what-happens-to-people-on-the-page-it-s-about-what-happens/) [Gordon Lish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lish/) > [Don't have stories; have sentences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/don-t-have-stories-have-sentences/) [Gordon Lish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lish/) [Explore all 8 Gordon Lish quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lish/) ## More Culture quotes > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/) [Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/) > [I was born and raised in Orlando, where the economy and culture has been powerfully shaped by tourism, and so I've long been interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/i-was-born-and-raised-in-orlando-where-the-economy-and-culture-has/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [Our times demand the declaration of the world's resources as the common heritage of all people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/our-times-demand-the-declaration-of-the-world-s-resources-as-the/) [Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/) > [The U.S.-Mexican border es un herida abierta where the Third World grates against the first and bleeds. And before a scab forms it hemorrhages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-e-anzald-a/the-u-s-mexican-border-es-un-herida-abierta-where-the-third-world/) [Gloria E. Anzaldúa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-e-anzald-a/) > [What it comes down to for me is this: Will the technologies of communication in our culture, serve to enlighten us and help us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/what-it-comes-down-to-for-me-is-this-will-the-technologies-of/) [Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/) > [I think it's useful to experience other types of dance and other cultures, and the life of a classical dancer these days is certainly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-bull/i-think-it-s-useful-to-experience-other-types-of-dance-and-other/) [Deborah Bull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-bull/) > [In the movie, the stars above the ship bear no correspondence to any constellations in a real sky. Worse yet, while the heroine bobs...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-the-movie-the-stars-above-the-ship-bear-no-correspondence-to-any/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [It is not my intention to explain Turkey, its culture and its problems. My literature has a universal concern: I want to bring people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/it-is-not-my-intention-to-explain-turkey-its-culture-and-its-problems/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [I don't think the distinction between high and low culture exists anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-scott/i-don-t-think-the-distinction-between-high-and-low-culture-exists/) [Jeremy Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-scott/) > [You get below the Mason-Dixon line and you have some of the best music, culture, the two races, the literature, and it's so rich.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-duvall/you-get-below-the-mason-dixon-line-and-you-have-some-of-the-best/) [Robert Duvall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-duvall/) > [It is proposed that a form of free dialogue may well be one of the most effective ways of investigating the crisis which faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bohm/it-is-proposed-that-a-form-of-free-dialogue-may-well-be-one-of-the/) [David Bohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bohm/) > [“Being grounded in your lifelong culture and your personal perspective, you are comfortable with the way you see things and may believe it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/being-grounded-in-your-lifelong-culture-and-your-personal-perspective/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) [Browse all 15,940 Culture quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“...I have come to be convinced that it is only the unbending observance of custom that sustains life in an urban circumstance.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gordon Lish" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-only-the-unbending-observance/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Culture" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-only-the-unbending-observance/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74a/gordon-lish-47070_culture_i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-o_1333064.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74a/gordon-lish-47070_culture_i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-o_1333064.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/74a/gordon-lish-47070_culture_i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-o_1333064.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“...I have come to be convinced that it is only the unbending observance of custom that sustains life in an…” — Gordon Lish", "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": "Gordon Lish", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lish/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“...I have come to be convinced...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-only-the-unbending-observance/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lish/i-have-come-to-be-convinced-that-it-is-only-the-unbending-observance/#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 } } ] } ```