---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A trait which differentiated New York…"
description: "\"A trait which differentiated New York from European cities was the incredible freedom and ease in which life, including sexual life, could be carried o..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89c/jerzy-kosi-ski-6296_cities_a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-fr_658821.png"
---

#  A trait which differentiated New York from European cities…

![“A trait which differentiated New York from European cities was the incredible freedom and ease in which life, including sexual life, could be carried on, on many levels.” quote by Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89c/jerzy-kosi-ski-6296_cities_a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-fr_658821.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89c/jerzy-kosi-ski-6296_cities_a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-fr_658821.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89c/jerzy-kosi-ski-6296_cities_a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-fr_658821.png)

> “A trait which differentiated New York from European cities was the incredible freedom and ease in which life, including sexual life, could be carried on, on many levels.”

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

New York offered a level of personal liberty, especially sexual, that European cities lacked, affecting daily life on many fronts.

**In simple terms:** NYC gave more personal freedom than Europe.

Key Takeaway

Recognize how cultural context shapes personal freedom.

Themes

freedom culture urban life sexuality

Mood

reflective analytical

Type

observational comparative

When to use this quote

- travel
- expat life
- relationship dynamics
- social policy
- urban planning

Key Concepts

libertarianism social norms comparative sociology

Questions to Reflect On

- How does environment influence personal liberty?
- What trade‑offs come with greater freedom?

A Different Perspective

Freedom can clash with community standards and cause tension.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Cities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) [Cities Incredible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities-incredible-5254131/) [Ease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ease/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Freedom Ease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-ease-5254130/) [Including](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/including/) [Incredible Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incredible-freedom-899885/) [Incredibles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incredibles/) [Levels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/levels/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [New york](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-york/) [Sexual Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sexual-life-420367/) [Traits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traits/) [York](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/york/)

## Related quotes

> [I shall rejoin myself to my native country, with new attachments, and with exaggerated esteem for its advantages; for though there is less wealth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-shall-rejoin-myself-to-my-native-country-with-new-attachments-and/)

[Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/)

> [The camera gave me an incredible freedom. It gave me the ability to parade through the world and look at people and things very,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-mae-weems/the-camera-gave-me-an-incredible-freedom-it-gave-me-the-ability-to/)

[Carrie Mae Weems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-mae-weems/)

> [I was brought up with an incredible amount of freedom and creativity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-burns/i-was-brought-up-with-an-incredible-amount-of-freedom-and-creativity/)

[Pete Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-burns/)

> [There is, in fact, an incredible freedom in having nothing left to lose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/there-is-in-fact-an-incredible-freedom-in-having-nothing-left-to-lose/)

[Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/)

> [The Law of God reaches into every area of life, and it brings about incredible blessing and incredible freedom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-terry/the-law-of-god-reaches-into-every-area-of-life-and-it-brings-about/)

[Randall Terry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-terry/)

> [To me, the American Dream is being able to follow your own personal calling. To be able to do what you want to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/to-me-the-american-dream-is-being-able-to-follow-your-own-personal/)

[Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/)

> [I'm never going to be in something as commercially successful as 'Harry Potter' ever again. It's impossible. So that gives me incredible freedom to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-radcliffe/i-m-never-going-to-be-in-something-as-commercially-successful-as/)

[Daniel Radcliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-radcliffe/)

> [“As we place our dependence upon God, an incredible freedom and peace will begin to rest in our hearts. And reaching that point in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-f-stanley/as-we-place-our-dependence-upon-god-an-incredible-freedom-and-peace/)

[Charles F. Stanley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-f-stanley/)

> [ “\[I\]f you can be with the pleasant without chasing after it, with the unpleasant without resisting it, and with the neutral without ignoring it… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-hanson/i-f-you-can-be-with-the-pleasant-without-chasing-after-it-with-the/)

[Rick Hanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-hanson/)

> [I actually have more respect for people who are in the closet. You end up exposing so much of yourself because you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-harrison/i-actually-have-more-respect-for-people-who-are-in-the-closet-you-end/)

[Randy Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-harrison/)

> [Sexual morality - as society in its extreme form, the American, defines it - is contemptible. I advocate an incomparably freer sexual life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/sexual-morality-as-society-in-its-extreme-form-the-american-defines/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [“But there is nothing men lie about so much as about their sexual life,...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/but-there-is-nothing-men-lie-about-so-much-as-about-their-sexual-life/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [We know less about the sexual life of little girls than of boys. But we need not feel ashamed of this distinction; after all,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/we-know-less-about-the-sexual-life-of-little-girls-than-of-boys-but/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [Perhaps the sexual life is the great test. If we can survive it with charity to those we love and with affection to those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/perhaps-the-sexual-life-is-the-great-test-if-we-can-survive-it-with/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [Antidepressants sure kill your sexual life...Now, THAT'S depressing!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ozzy-osbourne/antidepressants-sure-kill-your-sexual-life-now-that-s-depressing/)

[Ozzy Osbourne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ozzy-osbourne/)

## More by Jerzy Kosinski

> [“There should be no promise of a plot. Plot is extraordinary, while chance is ordinary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/there-should-be-no-promise-of-a-plot-plot-is-extraordinary-while/)

[Jerzy Kosiński](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [I look back into past history, the stored experiences or products of the imagination. I look no further forward than the evening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/i-look-back-into-past-history-the-stored-experiences-or-products-of/)

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [“He had found the one calm place in the midst of the storm, a quiet voice calling him to earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/he-had-found-the-one-calm-place-in-the-midst-of-the-storm-a-quiet/)

[Jerzy Kosiński](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [“When I saw them in Africa, I thought these birds were the greatest fliers of all. Hardly beating their wings, they fly for hours,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/when-i-saw-them-in-africa-i-thought-these-birds-were-the-greatest/)

[Jerzy Kosiński](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [“That's why she keeps her nails long, she says, to be able to scratch and claw.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/that-s-why-she-keeps-her-nails-long-she-says-to-be-able-to-scratch/)

[Jerzy Kosiński](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [Travel gives me the opportunity to walk through the sectors of cities where one can clearly see the passage of time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/travel-gives-me-the-opportunity-to-walk-through-the-sectors-of-cities/)

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [Going around under an umbrella interferes with one's looking up at the sky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/going-around-under-an-umbrella-interferes-with-one-s-looking-up-at/)

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [“Against the background of bland colors he projected an unfadable blackness. In a world of men with harrowed faces, with smashed eyes, bloody, bruised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/against-the-background-of-bland-colors-he-projected-an-unfadable/)

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [You don't die in the United States, you underachieve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/you-don-t-die-in-the-united-states-you-underachieve/)

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [Mapplethorpe presented the body as a sexual object, separating it from the humanity of the person. He added nothing to photography as a medium.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/mapplethorpe-presented-the-body-as-a-sexual-object-separating-it-from/)

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [Banks introduced the installment plan. The disappearance of cash and the coming of the credit card changed the shape of life in the United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/banks-introduced-the-installment-plan-the-disappearance-of-cash-and/)

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [I always have a sense of trembling, but so does a compass, after all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/i-always-have-a-sense-of-trembling-but-so-does-a-compass-after-all/)

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [“As a boy I got the idea that death was an animal which lay curled inside waiting to swallow us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/as-a-boy-i-got-the-idea-that-death-was-an-animal-which-lay-curled/)

[Jerzy Kosiński](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [Lovers are not snails; they don't have to protrude from their shells and meet each other halfway. Meet me within your own self.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/lovers-are-not-snails-they-don-t-have-to-protrude-from-their-shells/)

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

> [I am curious about grownups, not children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/i-am-curious-about-grownups-not-children/)

[Jerzy Kosinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

[Explore all 99 Jerzy Kosinski quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/)

## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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 trait which differentiated New York from European cities was the incredible freedom and ease in which life, including sexual life, could be carried on, on many levels.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Jerzy Kosinski"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-from-european-cities-was-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Cities"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-from-european-cities-was-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89c/jerzy-kosi-ski-6296_cities_a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-fr_658821.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89c/jerzy-kosi-ski-6296_cities_a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-fr_658821.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89c/jerzy-kosi-ski-6296_cities_a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-fr_658821.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“A trait which differentiated New York from European cities was the incredible freedom and ease in which…” — Jerzy Kosinski",
                "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": "Jerzy Kosinski",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerzy-kosi-ski/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "A trait which differentiated New York...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-from-european-cities-was-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerzy-kosi-ski/a-trait-which-differentiated-new-york-from-european-cities-was-the/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
