--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Every generation laughs at the old…" description: "\"Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new.\" — Henry David Thoreau" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e3/henry-david-thoreau-20_conformity_every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashi_2770129.jpg" --- # Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows… ![“Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new.” quote by Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e3/henry-david-thoreau-20_conformity_every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashi_2770129.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e3/henry-david-thoreau-20_conformity_every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashi_2770129.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e3/henry-david-thoreau-20_conformity_every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashi_2770129.jpg) > “Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new.” [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People mock old customs yet eagerly adopt new ones without critique. **In simple terms:** We ridicule the past but blindly follow the present. Key Takeaway Question traditions before embracing trends. Themes conformity tradition innovation critical thinking Mood reflective critical Type observational philosophical When to use this quote - fashion cycles - technology adoption - political movements - personal habits Key Concepts cultural inertia social influence Questions to Reflect On - What new habit have you adopted without questioning? - How can we balance respect for tradition with openness to change? A Different Perspective New trends can also be harmful if unexamined. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conformity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conformity/) [Fashion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashion/) [Generation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generation/) ## Related quotes > [Old fashions please me best; I am not so nice To change true rules for odd inventions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/old-fashions-please-me-best-i-am-not-so-nice-to-change-true-rules-for/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Death laughs when old women frolic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/death-laughs-when-old-women-frolic/) [Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/) > [The current generation now sees everything clearly, it marvels at the errors, it laughs at the folly of its ancestors, not seeing that this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikolai-gogol/the-current-generation-now-sees-everything-clearly-it-marvels-at-the/) [Nikolai Gogol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikolai-gogol/) > [The world laughs in flowers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-world-laughs-in-flowers/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Back when I was training, probably the only nutritious thing on the market was Gatorade-that's all that we knew. But now in this day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-jackson/back-when-i-was-training-probably-the-only-nutritious-thing-on-the/) [Bo Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-jackson/) > [With everything thats happening, people might need a little old fashioned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/with-everything-thats-happening-people-might-need-a-little-old/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Our modern world defined God as a ‘religious complex’ and laughed at the Ten Commandments as OLD FASHIONED. Then, through the laughter came the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-b-demille/our-modern-world-defined-god-as-a-religious-complex-and-laughed-at/) [Cecil B. DeMille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecil-b-demille/) > [If you want to have sex with strangers, you have to do it the old fashion way and become a prostitute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-handler/if-you-want-to-have-sex-with-strangers-you-have-to-do-it-the-old/) [Chelsea Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-handler/) > [Europe is endearingly old fashioned in its secularism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-quinn/europe-is-endearingly-old-fashioned-in-its-secularism/) [Sally Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-quinn/) > [I'm an old fashioned theater major at heart. I love to do a show, do something with friends; I'm kind of a nerd in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-lenk/i-m-an-old-fashioned-theater-major-at-heart-i-love-to-do-a-show-do/) [Tom Lenk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-lenk/) > [I think it's a very old fashioned attitude, that you've got to wear short skirts and a lot of make up to get on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karren-brady/i-think-it-s-a-very-old-fashioned-attitude-that-you-ve-got-to-wear/) [Karren Brady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karren-brady/) > [In order to be successful, you have to honor what's in old fashion house, but you also have to play with it and push…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dundas/in-order-to-be-successful-you-have-to-honor-what-s-in-old-fashion/) [Peter Dundas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-dundas/) > [I know that a lot of girls nowadays are proposing to guys but I think I'll be old fashioned. I'll wait until I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanessa-lachey/i-know-that-a-lot-of-girls-nowadays-are-proposing-to-guys-but-i-think/) [Vanessa Lachey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanessa-lachey/) > [Crafting your own decorations is such a nice, old fashioned way to spend time with loved ones, creating memories each year when you bring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-farr/crafting-your-own-decorations-is-such-a-nice-old-fashioned-way-to/) [Hilary Farr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-farr/) > [“If it’s love, those tears are a sign of distress, not an act of defiance.        If it’s love, her bold fashion statement is something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-macy-stafford/if-it-s-love-those-tears-are-a-sign-of-distress-not-an-act-of/) [Rachel Macy Stafford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-macy-stafford/) ## More by Henry David Thoreau > [If ever I did a man any goodof course it was something exceptional and insignificant compared with the good or evil which I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/if-ever-i-did-a-man-any-goodof-course-it-was-something-exceptional/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“Men say they know many things; But lo! they have taken wings, — The arts and sciences, And a thousand appliances; The wind that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/men-say-they-know-many-things-but-lo-they-have-taken-wings-the-arts/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I am not afraid of praise, for I have practiced it on myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-am-not-afraid-of-praise-for-i-have-practiced-it-on-myself/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“All voting is a sort of gaming, like checkers or back gammon, with a slight moral tinge to it, a playing with right and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/all-voting-is-a-sort-of-gaming-like-checkers-or-back-gammon-with-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“This spending of the best part of one's life earning money in order to enjoy a questionable liberty during the least valuable part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/this-spending-of-the-best-part-of-one-s-life-earning-money-in-order/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [As for doing good; that is one of the professions which is full. Moreover I have tried it fairly and, strange as it may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-for-doing-good-that-is-one-of-the-professions-which-is-full/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [A traveler who looks at things with an impartial eye may see what the oldest inhabitant has not observed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-traveler-who-looks-at-things-with-an-impartial-eye-may-see-what-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [In proportion as our inward life fails, we go more constantly and desperately to the post office. You may depend on it, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/in-proportion-as-our-inward-life-fails-we-go-more-constantly-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I had three chairs in my house; one for solitude, two for friendship, three for society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-had-three-chairs-in-my-house-one-for-solitude-two-for-friendship/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The still youthful energies of the globe have only to be directed in their proper channel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-still-youthful-energies-of-the-globe-have-only-to-be-directed-in/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Concord's little arch does not span all our fate, nor is what transpires under it law for the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/concord-s-little-arch-does-not-span-all-our-fate-nor-is-what/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The lumberers rarely trouble themselves to put out their fires, such is the dampness of the primitive forest; and this is one cause, no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-lumberers-rarely-trouble-themselves-to-put-out-their-fires-such/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“When he has obtained those things which are necessary to life, there is another alternative than to obtain the superfluities; and that is, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/when-he-has-obtained-those-things-which-are-necessary-to-life-there/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Wealth is measured by the level of experience in all aspects of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/wealth-is-measured-by-the-level-of-experience-in-all-aspects-of-life/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Explore all 3,376 Henry David Thoreau quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## 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! Everybody wants the same, everybody is the same: whoever feels different goes voluntarily into a madhouse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/no-shepherd-and-one-herd-everybody-wants-the-same-everybody-is-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [A self is a frightening thing to waste, it's the lens through which one's whole life is viewed, and few people are willing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/a-self-is-a-frightening-thing-to-waste-it-s-the-lens-through-which/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [Ideation is not a synonym for innovation, conformity is not its simple antonym, and innovation is not the automatic consequence of "creative thinking.".](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-levitt/ideation-is-not-a-synonym-for-innovation-conformity-is-not-its-simple/) [Theodore Levitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-levitt/) > [“I lead with the knowingness that my reality conforms to my wishes and desires instantly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-s-baker/i-lead-with-the-knowingness-that-my-reality-conforms-to-my-wishes-and/) [Robin S. Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-s-baker/) > [Alas, everything that men say to one another is alike; the ideas they exchange are almost always the same, in their conversation. But inside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-musset/alas-everything-that-men-say-to-one-another-is-alike-the-ideas-they/) [Alfred de Musset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-musset/) > [The search for truth is a cooperative, unending endeavor. We can, and should, engage in it to the extent we can and encourage others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-search-for-truth-is-a-cooperative-unending-endeavor-we-can-and/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Seeds have the power to preserve species, to enhance cultural as well as genetic diversity, to counter economic monopoly and to check the advance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/seeds-have-the-power-to-preserve-species-to-enhance-cultural-as-well/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [“Brontë was attempting to depict a character that adheres to the unchanging principles of her faith though she refused conformity to the particular practices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-swallow-prior/bront-was-attempting-to-depict-a-character-that-adheres-to-the/) [Karen Swallow Prior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-swallow-prior/) > [Officers conditioned to conformity in peacetime cannot be expected to behave boldly and flexibly in combat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-yingling/officers-conditioned-to-conformity-in-peacetime-cannot-be-expected-to/) Paul Yingling > [The more civilized a nation, the more conformed its population, until that civilization's last age arrives, when multiplicity wages war with conformity. The former…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-erikson/the-more-civilized-a-nation-the-more-conformed-its-population-until/) [Steven Erikson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-erikson/) > [Society everywhere is in conspiracy against the manhood of every one of its members. The virtue in most request is conformity. Self-reliance is its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/society-everywhere-is-in-conspiracy-against-the-manhood-of-every-one/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Deaths, births, and marriages, considering how much they are separately dependent on the freedom of the human will, should seem to be subject to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-kant/deaths-births-and-marriages-considering-how-much-they-are-separately/) [Immanuel Kant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-kant/) [Browse all 937 Conformity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conformity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henry David Thoreau" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashions-but-follows-religiously/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conformity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashions-but-follows-religiously/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e3/henry-david-thoreau-20_conformity_every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashi_2770129.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e3/henry-david-thoreau-20_conformity_every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashi_2770129.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e3/henry-david-thoreau-20_conformity_every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashi_2770129.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new.” — Henry David Thoreau", "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": "Henry David Thoreau", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Every generation laughs at the old...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashions-but-follows-religiously/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/every-generation-laughs-at-the-old-fashions-but-follows-religiously/#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 } } ] } ```