--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The family dinner table is the…" description: "\"The family dinner table is the cornerstone of civilization and those who 'graze' from refrigerators or in front of the television sets are doomed to re..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f63/judith-martin-1927_civilization_the-family-dinner-table-is-the-cornersto_2095044.png" --- # The family dinner table is the cornerstone of civilization… ![“The family dinner table is the cornerstone of civilization and those who 'graze' from refrigerators or in front of the television sets are doomed to remain in a state of savagery.” quote by Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f63/judith-martin-1927_civilization_the-family-dinner-table-is-the-cornersto_2095044.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f63/judith-martin-1927_civilization_the-family-dinner-table-is-the-cornersto_2095044.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f63/judith-martin-1927_civilization_the-family-dinner-table-is-the-cornersto_2095044.png) > “The family dinner table is the cornerstone of civilization and those who 'graze' from refrigerators or in front of the television sets are doomed to remain in a state of savagery.” [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The family dinner table is essential for civilization; eating elsewhere leads to cultural decline. **In simple terms:** Dinner together builds society. Key Takeaway Prioritize shared meals. Themes family culture community Mood warm thoughtful Type social philosophical When to use this quote - family gatherings - holiday meals - daily dinners - parenting Key Concepts social cohesion tradition Questions to Reflect On - How can you create a consistent dinner routine? - What benefits have you seen from shared meals? A Different Perspective Modern schedules make regular family meals difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Civilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization/) [Dinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dinner/) [Dinner table](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dinner-table/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Family dinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family-dinner/) [Savagery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/savagery/) [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) ## Related quotes > [To us the family is the cornerstone of civilization and must ever be. It is the foundation of proper human relationships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-e-petersen/to-us-the-family-is-the-cornerstone-of-civilization-and-must-ever-be/) [Mark E. Petersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-e-petersen/) > [Some people die before their time so that others can live. It's a cornerstone of civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-malkovich/some-people-die-before-their-time-so-that-others-can-live-it-s-a/) [John Malkovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-malkovich/) > [“Liberty limited by law is the cornerstone of civilization.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-jeremiah/liberty-limited-by-law-is-the-cornerstone-of-civilization/) [David Jeremiah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-jeremiah/) > [Appearing to pay attention when someone is speaking is one of the cornerstones of real social interaction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/appearing-to-pay-attention-when-someone-is-speaking-is-one-of-the/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [“A family in my sister's neighborhood was recently stricken with a double tragedy, when both the young mother and her three-year-old son were diagnosed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/a-family-in-my-sister-s-neighborhood-was-recently-stricken-with-a/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [Coming home for me isn't, like, one family dinner. It's about am I gonna see 50 relatives, or am I gonna see 85?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-karam/coming-home-for-me-isn-t-like-one-family-dinner-it-s-about-am-i-gonna/) [Stephen Karam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-karam/) > [“She ate--so, so good--cocooned in the harmonic dissonance of a large family, where every sound was distinct yet blended.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-hauck/she-ate-so-so-good-cocooned-in-the-harmonic-dissonance-of-a-large/) [Rachel Hauck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-hauck/) > [For the past several centuries the bonding power of the family dinner table has been one of the few constants, and now it's binding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-mcmurtry/for-the-past-several-centuries-the-bonding-power-of-the-family-dinner/) [Larry McMurtry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-mcmurtry/) > [“Frankie had used one (reverently) to wipe his eyes.This specimen was old and soft,monogrammed with a J in the corner. "Makes it interesting," he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-jensen/frankie-had-used-one-reverently-to-wipe-his-eyes-this-specimen-was/) [Melissa Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-jensen/) > [I cook and I really believe in the family dinner, I think that's a nice time to bring the family together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwyneth-paltrow/i-cook-and-i-really-believe-in-the-family-dinner-i-think-that-s-a/) [Gwyneth Paltrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwyneth-paltrow/) > [We don't have to talk about faith and family at dinner-we just show it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/we-don-t-have-to-talk-about-faith-and-family-at-dinner-we-just-show-it/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I am a marathon worker and marathon mother. I'll spend three or four days completely swallowed up by work. And if I make it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mika-brzezinski/i-am-a-marathon-worker-and-marathon-mother-i-ll-spend-three-or-four/) [Mika Brzezinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mika-brzezinski/) > [“Here’s another example of the difference in our worldviews. A family in my sister’s neighborhood was recently stricken with a double tragedy, when both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/here-s-another-example-of-the-difference-in-our-worldviews-a-family/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“I’ve got to go.” He hung up suddenly as if afraid of being caught. His mom had probably come into the room. The Zeemans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/i-ve-got-to-go-he-hung-up-suddenly-as-if-afraid-of-being-caught-his/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [For a group of friends or a family dinner, fish tacos are popular and fun to make.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-douglas/for-a-group-of-friends-or-a-family-dinner-fish-tacos-are-popular-and/) [Tom Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-douglas/) ## More by Judith Martin > [Smart people duck when they hear the dread announcement 'I'm going to be perfectly honest with you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/smart-people-duck-when-they-hear-the-dread-announcement-i-m-going-to/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [If you put together all the ingredients that naturally attract children - sex, violence, revenge, spectacle and vigorous noise - what you have is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/if-you-put-together-all-the-ingredients-that-naturally-attract/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [The one prediction that never comes true is, 'You'll thank me for telling you this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/the-one-prediction-that-never-comes-true-is-you-ll-thank-me-for/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [Chaperons, even in their days of glory, were almost never able to enforce morality; what they did was to force immorality to be discreet.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/chaperons-even-in-their-days-of-glory-were-almost-never-able-to/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [There are always proper responses, even to rude questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/there-are-always-proper-responses-even-to-rude-questions/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [Perhaps the greatest rudenesses of our time come not from the callousness of strangers, but from the solicitousness of intimates who believe that their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/perhaps-the-greatest-rudenesses-of-our-time-come-not-from-the/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [We are all entitled to our little harmless habits, but we are not entitled to demand approval for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/we-are-all-entitled-to-our-little-harmless-habits-but-we-are-not/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [“Lady” is not used before the lady’s first name unless she is the daughter of a duke, marquess or earl; those who come by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/lady-is-not-used-before-the-lady-s-first-name-unless-she-is-the/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [Greece is a good place for rebirths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/greece-is-a-good-place-for-rebirths/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [Adorable children are considered to be the general property of the human race. Rude children belong to their mothers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/adorable-children-are-considered-to-be-the-general-property-of-the/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [I have always believed that the key to a happy marriage was the ability to say with a straight face, 'Why, I don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/i-have-always-believed-that-the-key-to-a-happy-marriage-was-the/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [It is, indeed, a trial to maintain the virtue of humility when one can't help being right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/it-is-indeed-a-trial-to-maintain-the-virtue-of-humility-when-one-can/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [Honesty is a virtue, but not the only one. If you're in a courtroom you need the whole truth and nothing but the truth;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/honesty-is-a-virtue-but-not-the-only-one-if-you-re-in-a-courtroom-you/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [Only a person who considers himself too good for you is good enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/only-a-person-who-considers-himself-too-good-for-you-is-good-enough/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) > [Society cannot exist without etiquette ... It never has, and until our own century, everybody knew that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-martin/society-cannot-exist-without-etiquette-it-never-has-and-until-our-own/) [Judith Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) [Explore all 197 Judith Martin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-martin/) ## More Civilization 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/) > [Sentiment is the mightiest force in civilization; not sentimentality, but sentiment. Women will bring this into politics. Home, sweet home, is as powerful on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-ellen-foster/sentiment-is-the-mightiest-force-in-civilization-not-sentimentality/) [Judith Ellen Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-ellen-foster/) > [Violence is not necessary to destroy a civilization. Each civilization dies from indifference toward the unique values which created it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/violence-is-not-necessary-to-destroy-a-civilization-each-civilization/) [Nicolas Gomez Davila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“The voice in the head that never stops speaking becomes a civilization that is obsessed with form and therefore knows nothing of the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/the-voice-in-the-head-that-never-stops-speaking-becomes-a/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [We released 400,000 classified documents, the most extraordinary history of a war to ever have been released in our civilization. Those documents cover 109,000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/we-released-400-000-classified-documents-the-most-extraordinary/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/wine-is-one-of-the-most-civilized-things-in-the-world-and-one-of-the/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [Whenever we touch nature we get clean. People who have got dirty through too much civilization take a walk in the woods, or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/whenever-we-touch-nature-we-get-clean-people-who-have-got-dirty/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [The invention of gunpowder and the constant improvement of firearms are enough in themselves to show that the advance of civilization has done nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/the-invention-of-gunpowder-and-the-constant-improvement-of-firearms/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [Another success is the post-office, with its educating energy augmented by cheapness and guarded by a certain religious sentimentin mankind; so that the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/another-success-is-the-post-office-with-its-educating-energy/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“The mission is, not to replace old world mindlessness with new world mindlessness, but to put an end to all forms of brainless authoritarianism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/the-mission-is-not-to-replace-old-world-mindlessness-with-new-world/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [We are somehow the children of the planet, we are somehow its finest hour; we bind time, we bind the past, we anticipate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-somehow-the-children-of-the-planet-we-are-somehow-its-finest/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [Our civilization, bequeathed to us by fierce adventurers, eaters of meat and hunters, is so full of hurry and combat, so busy about many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/our-civilization-bequeathed-to-us-by-fierce-adventurers-eaters-of/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [Coal lay in ledges under the ground since the Flood, until a laborer with pick and windlass brings it to the surface. 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