--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...one of the more sophisticated and…" description: "\"“...one of the more sophisticated and accepting things about Europe, when it came to difficult decisions regarding sexual identity, was that the Europe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d08/john-irving-337_accepting-things_one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accept_1722818.png" --- # ...one of the more sophisticated and accepting things… ![“...one of the more sophisticated and accepting things about Europe, when it came to difficult decisions regarding sexual identity, was that the Europeans were so used to sexual differences that they had already begun to make fun of them.” quote by John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d08/john-irving-337_accepting-things_one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accept_1722818.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d08/john-irving-337_accepting-things_one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accept_1722818.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d08/john-irving-337_accepting-things_one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accept_1722818.png) > ““...one of the more sophisticated and accepting things about Europe, when it came to difficult decisions regarding sexual identity, was that the Europeans were so used to sexual differences that they had already begun to make fun of them.”” [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Europe’s long familiarity with sexual diversity leads to a casual, humorous acceptance of gender differences. **In simple terms:** Europe treats sexual differences with humor. Key Takeaway Embrace humor to ease discussions on identity. Themes acceptance humor sexual identity Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - social commentary - education - media - community dialogue Key Concepts cultural norms social satire gender studies Questions to Reflect On - Can humor help or hinder progress on gender rights? - What are respectful ways to discuss sexual identity? A Different Perspective Humor may downplay serious struggles faced by marginalized groups. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Difficult decisions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-decisions/) [Europeans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/europeans/) ## Related quotes > [Europeans used to be proud to be the advanced form of democracy. Now they're definitely a little bit ashamed because we are seeing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-gomes/europeans-used-to-be-proud-to-be-the-advanced-form-of-democracy-now/) [Miguel Gomes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-gomes/) > [So I moved to Europe and only came back when directors like Robert Altman would call me after they'd seen my work in Full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-d-onofrio/so-i-moved-to-europe-and-only-came-back-when-directors-like-robert/) [Vincent D'Onofrio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-d-onofrio/) > [Americans don't have deep gastronomic roots. They wanted to get away from the cultures of Europe or wherever they came from. We stirred up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-waters/americans-don-t-have-deep-gastronomic-roots-they-wanted-to-get-away/) [Alice Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-waters/) > [Of course, the idea that a robot can have a sexual identity is kind of an absurd one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-pitchford/of-course-the-idea-that-a-robot-can-have-a-sexual-identity-is-kind-of/) [Randy Pitchford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-pitchford/) > [“We were evolving with different needs. I needed to explore beyond myself and Robert needed to search within himself. He explored the vocabulary of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patti-smith/we-were-evolving-with-different-needs-i-needed-to-explore-beyond/) [Patti Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patti-smith/) > [I have to object to this notion that children form their sexuality and their sexual identity from their parents. The truth is that scientists,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-hoover/i-have-to-object-to-this-notion-that-children-form-their-sexuality/) [Margaret Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-hoover/) > [I don't trade on my sexual identity in that way for political points. I think that's lame, and it's not my style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bari-weiss/i-don-t-trade-on-my-sexual-identity-in-that-way-for-political-points/) [Bari Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bari-weiss/) > [We need to have profound compassion for the people who are dealing with the very real issue of sexual dysfunction in their life, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-bachmann/we-need-to-have-profound-compassion-for-the-people-who-are-dealing/) [Michele Bachmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-bachmann/) > [Each human being has his or her own sexual identity and should be able to exercise that identity without guilt as long as they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/each-human-being-has-his-or-her-own-sexual-identity-and-should-be/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [I very much related to the idea of sexual identity and how it doesn't have to be black and white. When I first came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/i-very-much-related-to-the-idea-of-sexual-identity-and-how-it-doesn-t/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [Doesn't it make you wonder about your own sexual identity, not to mention your sanity, that the two women you love are, respectively, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/doesn-t-it-make-you-wonder-about-your-own-sexual-identity-not-to/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Your gender identity is who you are. Sexual identity is who you bounce that off of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-solomon/your-gender-identity-is-who-you-are-sexual-identity-is-who-you-bounce/) [Andrew Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-solomon/) > [When I was growing up, I liked to dress in the way that I dressed and that really helped me with my sexual identity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-flip/when-i-was-growing-up-i-liked-to-dress-in-the-way-that-i-dressed-and/) [G Flip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-flip/) > [ \[...\] homosexuality should be seen in broader terms: as arrested development caused by confusion over sexual identity, resulting in inability to bond permanently with… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-makow/homosexuality-should-be-seen-in-broader-terms-as-arrested-development/) [Henry Makow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-makow/) > [“It’s really amazing, isn’t it? Someone can trigger your sexual identity crisis and not have a clue they’re doing it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becky-albertalli/it-s-really-amazing-isn-t-it-someone-can-trigger-your-sexual-identity/) [Becky Albertalli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becky-albertalli/) ## More by John Irving > [Your memory is a monster; you forget - it doesn't. It simply files things away. It keeps things for you, or hides things from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/your-memory-is-a-monster-you-forget-it-doesn-t-it-simply-files-things/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [Our memory is a monster; you forget it - it does not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/our-memory-is-a-monster-you-forget-it-it-does-not/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [… and so he tried to accept the ache in his heart as what Dr. Larch would call the common symptoms of normal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/and-so-he-tried-to-accept-the-ache-in-his-heart-as-what-dr-larch/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [Watch out for people who call themselves religious; make sure you know what they mean––make sure they know what they mean!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/watch-out-for-people-who-call-themselves-religious-make-sure-you-know/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [The desire to never leave your side, the desire to never see you again. The desire to see your face asleep on the pillow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/the-desire-to-never-leave-your-side-the-desire-to-never-see-you-again/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [I had been a student in Vienna, and one of the neat little things I had found out was about that zoo. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/i-had-been-a-student-in-vienna-and-one-of-the-neat-little-things-i/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“God, I think I just hit a high E-flat - and I really held it!" Esmeralda said, after one of her more prolonged orgasms,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/god-i-think-i-just-hit-a-high-e-flat-and-i-really-held-it-esmeralda/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“Nostalgia!" Miss Frost cried. "You´re nostalgic!" She repeated. "Just how old are you, William?" She asked. "Seventeen, " I told her. "Seventeen!" Miss Frost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/nostalgia-miss-frost-cried-you-re-nostalgic-she-repeated-just-how-old/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [ “JUST BECAUSE A BUNCH OF ATHEISTS ARE BETTER WRITERS THAN THE GUYS WHO WROTE THE BIBLE DOESN'T NECESSARILY MAKE THEM RIGHT!" \[Owen Meany\] said… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/just-because-a-bunch-of-atheists-are-better-writers-than-the-guys-who/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [It is much easier to be flexible about where a story begins than it ever was for me to change my mind about where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/it-is-much-easier-to-be-flexible-about-where-a-story-begins-than-it/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“Only the chicken-lover will understand me. He will give me a kindly look, maybe mildly desirous. His eyes will tell me: You might look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/only-the-chicken-lover-will-understand-me-he-will-give-me-a-kindly/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [You're nice,' Cushie told him, squeezing his hand. 'And you're my oldest friend.' But they both must have known that you can know someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/you-re-nice-cushie-told-him-squeezing-his-hand-and-you-re-my-oldest/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“Because of A Prayer for Owen Meany, many of my readers assume I am “religious.” I go to church only occasionally—like a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/because-of-a-prayer-for-owen-meany-many-of-my-readers-assume-i-am/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“Did anyone who was in love and was unsatisfied with how he was loved in return ever feel saved?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/did-anyone-who-was-in-love-and-was-unsatisfied-with-how-he-was-loved/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“I TRUST THAT GOD WILL HELP ME, BECAUSE WHAT I’M SUPPOSED TO DO LOOKS VERY HARD.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/i-trust-that-god-will-help-me-because-what-i-m-supposed-to-do-looks/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) [Explore all 641 John Irving quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) ## More Accepting things quotes > [Start accepting things when they are less than perfect. I believe that one of the biggest challenges for people, including myself, who want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markesa-yeager/start-accepting-things-when-they-are-less-than-perfect-i-believe-that/) [Markesa Yeager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markesa-yeager/) > [Letting go doesn't mean giving up, but rather accepting that there are things that cannot be..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/letting-go-doesn-t-mean-giving-up-but-rather-accepting-that-there-are/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life - It's all around the person with whom we smile or for the person we shed our tears, Life is all about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/life-it-s-all-around-the-person-with-whom-we-smile-or-for-the-person/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [It makes me hate accepting things that are probable when they are held up before me as infallibly true. I prefer these words which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/it-makes-me-hate-accepting-things-that-are-probable-when-they-are/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [Sometimes you have to give up on someone in order to respect yourself rather than keep accepting things and words you don't really deserve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/sometimes-you-have-to-give-up-on-someone-in-order-to-respect-yourself/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [That's gotta be one of the principles behind reality. Accepting things that are hard to comprehend, and leaving them that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/that-s-gotta-be-one-of-the-principles-behind-reality-accepting-things/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/do-not-believe-in-anything-simply-because-you-have-heard-it-but-after/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [Sometimes change means accepting things about ourselves that we'd rather not face up to. The truth hurts, but then it works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-change-means-accepting-things-about-ourselves-that-we-d/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I believe that society needs to be more open and accepting of things that are seen as 'different.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manny-mua/i-believe-that-society-needs-to-be-more-open-and-accepting-of-things/) [Manny MUA](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manny-mua/) > [My life has been extremely complicated. Not by choice at the beginning at all, but later on, I had become used to complication and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-mandelbrot/my-life-has-been-extremely-complicated-not-by-choice-at-the-beginning/) [Benoit Mandelbrot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-mandelbrot/) > [I don't like accepting things at face value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-tao/i-don-t-like-accepting-things-at-face-value/) [Terence Tao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-tao/) > [“That was what maturity was: accepting things. The more things you accepted, the more mature you were.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-burr-gerrard/that-was-what-maturity-was-accepting-things-the-more-things-you/) [David Burr Gerrard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-burr-gerrard/) > [Letting go isnt giving up its accepting some things arent meant to be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babloo/letting-go-isnt-giving-up-its-accepting-some-things-arent-meant-to-be/) [Babloo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babloo/) > [Ignore reality, there's nothing you can do about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-imbruglia/ignore-reality-there-s-nothing-you-can-do-about-it/) [Natalie Imbruglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-imbruglia/) > [The secret to loving this life is accepting things for what they are, after that there is no conflict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-secret-to-loving-this-life-is-accepting-things-for-what-they-are/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) Browse all 54 Accepting things quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“...one of the more sophisticated and accepting things about Europe, when it came to difficult decisions regarding sexual identity, was that the Europeans were so used to sexual differences that they had already begun to make fun of them.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Irving" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accepting-things-about-europe-when/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Accepting things" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accepting-things-about-europe-when/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d08/john-irving-337_accepting-things_one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accept_1722818.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d08/john-irving-337_accepting-things_one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accept_1722818.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d08/john-irving-337_accepting-things_one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accept_1722818.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“...one of the more sophisticated and accepting things about Europe, when it came to difficult decisions…” — John Irving", "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": "John Irving", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“...one of the more sophisticated and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accepting-things-about-europe-when/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/one-of-the-more-sophisticated-and-accepting-things-about-europe-when/#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 } } ] } ```