--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A city is a crazy concrete jungle whose…" description: "\"A city is a crazy concrete jungle whose people at the end of each day somehow make a small step ahead against terrible odds.\" — Herb Caen" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eda/herb-caen-15397_cities_a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose_1170955.jpg" --- # A city is a crazy concrete jungle whose people at the end… ![“A city is a crazy concrete jungle whose people at the end of each day somehow make a small step ahead against terrible odds.” quote by Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eda/herb-caen-15397_cities_a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose_1170955.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eda/herb-caen-15397_cities_a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose_1170955.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eda/herb-caen-15397_cities_a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose_1170955.jpg) > “A city is a crazy concrete jungle whose people at the end of each day somehow make a small step ahead against terrible odds.” [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Urban life is chaotic, yet daily perseverance pushes people forward against adversity. **In simple terms:** Cities are tough, but people keep moving ahead. Key Takeaway Persist despite hardships. Themes urban life perseverance hope Mood reflective hopeful Type social inspirational When to use this quote - commuting - job hunting - housing searches - community organizing Key Concepts sociology psychology Questions to Reflect On - What small steps can you take today? - How do city environments shape resilience? A Different Perspective Not everyone can overcome structural barriers alone. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) [City](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/city/) [Concrete jungle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concrete-jungle/) [Each day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/each-day/) [Jungle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jungle/) [Odds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/odds/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Small steps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-steps/) ## Related quotes > [Finding solitude in the concrete jungle is powerful and peaceful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-dolan/finding-solitude-in-the-concrete-jungle-is-powerful-and-peaceful/) [Michael Dolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-dolan/) > [In the concrete jungle, man you know where it's at. It's the place, where you wanna leave, don't wanna be at.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-murder/in-the-concrete-jungle-man-you-know-where-it-s-at-it-s-the-place/) C Murder > [Rio is an energetic, vibrant place, full of beauty and nature. But we face the kinds of problems any developing metropolis does - with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-paes/rio-is-an-energetic-vibrant-place-full-of-beauty-and-nature-but-we/) [Eduardo Paes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-paes/) > [Typography must be as beautiful as a forest, not like the concrete jungle of the tenements It gives distance between the trees, the room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-frutiger/typography-must-be-as-beautiful-as-a-forest-not-like-the-concrete/) [Adrian Frutiger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-frutiger/) > [The city is not a concrete jungle, it is a human zoo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-morris/the-city-is-not-a-concrete-jungle-it-is-a-human-zoo/) [Desmond Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-morris/) > [I think a current understanding about urban behavior tells us that it's important that people get out and be able to get away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-goldwater/i-think-a-current-understanding-about-urban-behavior-tells-us-that-it/) [Barry Goldwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-goldwater/) > [I don't like concrete jungles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/callan-mcauliffe/i-don-t-like-concrete-jungles/) [Callan McAuliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/callan-mcauliffe/) > [After 'Jungle,' people have realized that I'm not just a sex symbol.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kashmira-shah/after-jungle-people-have-realized-that-i-m-not-just-a-sex-symbol/) [Kashmira Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kashmira-shah/) > [None of the Jungle People like being disturbed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/none-of-the-jungle-people-like-being-disturbed/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [Carol City crazy, man, but it's home at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-curry/carol-city-crazy-man-but-it-s-home-at-the-same-time/) [Denzel Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-curry/) > [New York City is crazy; there are people everywhere. New York is the best city in the world, I think. You have everything there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristaps-porzingis/new-york-city-is-crazy-there-are-people-everywhere-new-york-is-the/) [Kristaps Porzingis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristaps-porzingis/) > [I think everyone who gets into real estate in New York City is crazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-serhant/i-think-everyone-who-gets-into-real-estate-in-new-york-city-is-crazy/) [Ryan Serhant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-serhant/) > [New York City is crazy and beautiful and really close to my heart, and I've always had dear friends here - family, actually, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/new-york-city-is-crazy-and-beautiful-and-really-close-to-my-heart-and/) [Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/) > [Otherwise, I think the building can be bigger, larger, and the city can be much more crazy. The problem is the government structure is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/otherwise-i-think-the-building-can-be-bigger-larger-and-the-city-can/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [I want to be on that team that wins the world championship here in Chicago and sees the city go crazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derrek-lee/i-want-to-be-on-that-team-that-wins-the-world-championship-here-in/) [Derrek Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derrek-lee/) ## More by Herb Caen > [I have a memory like an elephant. I remember every elephant I've ever met.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/i-have-a-memory-like-an-elephant-i-remember-every-elephant-i-ve-ever/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [A city is not gauged by its length and width, but by the broadness of its vision and the height of its dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/a-city-is-not-gauged-by-its-length-and-width-but-by-the-broadness-of/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [I sometimes worry about my short attention span, but not for long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/i-sometimes-worry-about-my-short-attention-span-but-not-for-long/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [Just two days in Manhattan and you find yourself looking for a place to wash your handkerchief after you wipe your forehead and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/just-two-days-in-manhattan-and-you-find-yourself-looking-for-a-place/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [Baffling late-life discovery: Golfers wear those awful clothes on purpose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/baffling-late-life-discovery-golfers-wear-those-awful-clothes-on/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [All American cars are basically Chevrolets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/all-american-cars-are-basically-chevrolets/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [San Franciscans have a bond of self-satisfaction bordering on smugness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/san-franciscans-have-a-bond-of-self-satisfaction-bordering-on-smugness/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [The waterfront without the Ferry Tower would be like a birthday cake without a candle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/the-waterfront-without-the-ferry-tower-would-be-like-a-birthday-cake/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [Best trumpet: Mike Vax, an alumnus of the Kenton Band, who plays every style with a bright cutting edge, throwing in bop riffs here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/best-trumpet-mike-vax-an-alumnus-of-the-kenton-band-who-plays-every/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [The trouble with born-again Christians is that they are an even bigger pain the second time around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/the-trouble-with-born-again-christians-is-that-they-are-an-even/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [We are reorganizing in order to eliminate duplication and redundancy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/we-are-reorganizing-in-order-to-eliminate-duplication-and-redundancy/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [Old San Francisco - the one so many nostalgics yearn for - had buildings that related well to each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/old-san-francisco-the-one-so-many-nostalgics-yearn-for-had-buildings/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [The clock doesn't matter in baseball. Time stands still or moves backwards. Theoretically, one game could go on forever. Some seem to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/the-clock-doesn-t-matter-in-baseball-time-stands-still-or-moves/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [Isn't it nice that people who prefer Los Angeles to San Francisco live there?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/isn-t-it-nice-that-people-who-prefer-los-angeles-to-san-francisco/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [Martinis are like breasts, one isn't enough, and three is too many.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/martinis-are-like-breasts-one-isn-t-enough-and-three-is-too-many/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) [Explore all 43 Herb Caen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) ## More Cities quotes > [Public infrastructure around the world is facing unprecedented stress, with hurricanes, cyclones, floods and forest fires all increasing in frequency and intensity. It's easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/public-infrastructure-around-the-world-is-facing-unprecedented-stress/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [Surely, if Mother Nature had been consulted, she would never have consented to building a city in New Orleans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-zuckerman/surely-if-mother-nature-had-been-consulted-she-would-never-have/) [Mortimer Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-zuckerman/) > [Cities are 2% of the earth's crust, but they are 50% of the world's population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlo-ratti/cities-are-2-of-the-earth-s-crust-but-they-are-50-of-the-world-s/) [Carlo Ratti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlo-ratti/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [All Germany was in turmoil. Revolutionaries seized power in the cities of Munich, Hanover and Cologne. One regional German government after another was toppled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cross-giblin/all-germany-was-in-turmoil-revolutionaries-seized-power-in-the-cities/) James Cross Giblin > [Nice is a city of ghosts and specters, but I hope not to become one of them right away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-modiano/nice-is-a-city-of-ghosts-and-specters-but-i-hope-not-to-become-one-of/) [Patrick Modiano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-modiano/) > [I know of not one Republican candidate that would not appear publicly with Mitt Romney and I know many Democrats that don't even want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-sessions/i-know-of-not-one-republican-candidate-that-would-not-appear-publicly/) [Pete Sessions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-sessions/) > [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/) [Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/) > [We will neglect our cities to our peril, for in neglecting them we neglect the nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/we-will-neglect-our-cities-to-our-peril-for-in-neglecting-them-we/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [I didn't know the city at all, but I was so happy to be in New York I cried. I was so excited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-gerwig/i-didn-t-know-the-city-at-all-but-i-was-so-happy-to-be-in-new-york-i/) [Greta Gerwig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-gerwig/) > [Outside of Paris, there is no hope for the cultured.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/outside-of-paris-there-is-no-hope-for-the-cultured/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [Dawn's faint breath breathes with your mouth at the ends of empty streets. Gray light your eyes, sweet drops of dawn on dark hills.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesare-pavese/dawn-s-faint-breath-breathes-with-your-mouth-at-the-ends-of-empty/) [Cesare Pavese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesare-pavese/) > [Vienna is a handsome, lively city, and pleases me exceedingly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-chopin/vienna-is-a-handsome-lively-city-and-pleases-me-exceedingly/) [Frederic Chopin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-chopin/) > [“We have grace of strength to work, to clear our cities of any dirt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/we-have-grace-of-strength-to-work-to-clear-our-cities-of-any-dirt/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [I was too tired to think. I merely felt the town as a unique unreality. What was it? I knew -- the moon's picture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-too-tired-to-think-i-merely-felt-the-town-as-a-unique-unreality/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 7,153 Cities quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A city is a crazy concrete jungle whose people at the end of each day somehow make a small step ahead against terrible odds.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Herb Caen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose-people-at-the-end-of-each-day/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cities" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose-people-at-the-end-of-each-day/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eda/herb-caen-15397_cities_a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose_1170955.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eda/herb-caen-15397_cities_a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose_1170955.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eda/herb-caen-15397_cities_a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose_1170955.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A city is a crazy concrete jungle whose people at the end of each day somehow make a small step ahead…” — Herb Caen", "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": "Herb Caen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A city is a crazy concrete...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose-people-at-the-end-of-each-day/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/a-city-is-a-crazy-concrete-jungle-whose-people-at-the-end-of-each-day/#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 } } ] } ```