--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If there are to be rules, they must be…" description: "\"“If there are to be rules, they must be articulable and defensible, like etiquette. I do not do anything simply because my family did it. I do things b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/kathleen-rooney-31531_class_if-there-are-to-be-rules-they-must-be-ar_1038627.jpg" --- # If there are to be rules, they must be articulable and… ![“If there are to be rules, they must be articulable and defensible, like etiquette. I do not do anything simply because my family did it. I do things because they make sense, and because they are elegant.” quote by Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/kathleen-rooney-31531_class_if-there-are-to-be-rules-they-must-be-ar_1038627.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/kathleen-rooney-31531_class_if-there-are-to-be-rules-they-must-be-ar_1038627.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef4/kathleen-rooney-31531_class_if-there-are-to-be-rules-they-must-be-ar_1038627.jpg) > ““If there are to be rules, they must be articulable and defensible, like etiquette. I do not do anything simply because my family did it. I do things because they make sense, and because they are elegant.”” [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rules should be clear, defensible, and elegant, not just inherited tradition. **In simple terms:** Clear, sensible rules are better than blind tradition. Key Takeaway Create and follow logical, elegant guidelines. Themes logic ethics individualism elegance Mood thoughtful analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal decisions - organizational policy - social etiquette Key Concepts rationality autonomy principles Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance tradition with personal reasoning? - When is elegance more important than practicality? A Different Perspective Rules may be hard to articulate in complex situations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Articulable Defensible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/articulable-defensible-2414514/) [Class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class/) [Elegance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elegance/) [Etiquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/etiquette/) [Etiquette Simply](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/etiquette-simply-2414513/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Like Etiquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-etiquette-2414512/) [Rule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rule/) [Rules](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rules/) [Rules Articulable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rules-articulable-2414510/) [Sense Elegant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-elegant-2414511/) ## Related quotes > [In Buddhism we have a great deal of etiquette. Etiquette is simply ways of living to conserve energy. Etiquette allows people to live in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/in-buddhism-we-have-a-great-deal-of-etiquette-etiquette-is-simply/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“Traditional values are not gone. They are good netiquette.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chiles/traditional-values-are-not-gone-they-are-good-netiquette/) [David Chiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chiles/) > [An enlightened teacher simply expresses enlightenment in their life by living. It is the student's job to gain the teachings. 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No tradition is necessary, no chain, no lineage. Once you have realized the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/any-individual-is-capable-of-realizing-the-truth-at-any-time-no/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [The Australian Book of Etiquette is a very slim volume.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/the-australian-book-of-etiquette-is-a-very-slim-volume/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [Nothing more rapidly inclines a person to go into a monastery than reading a book on etiquette. There are so many trivial ways in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/nothing-more-rapidly-inclines-a-person-to-go-into-a-monastery-than/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Humility simply means that you do a great job at everything and it isn't really a big deal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/humility-simply-means-that-you-do-a-great-job-at-everything-and-it/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) ## More by Kathleen Rooney > [In early drafts, one of the trickiest things for me to do was to realize that the techniques and devices that make readable and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/in-early-drafts-one-of-the-trickiest-things-for-me-to-do-was-to/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [“When I first came to the city, a line of people often helped me discover an exciting premiere or a big sale; in 1931,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/when-i-first-came-to-the-city-a-line-of-people-often-helped-me/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [Fiction is often a much-needed step back that gives you the distance to see things more clearly; it's very often better at explaining why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/fiction-is-often-a-much-needed-step-back-that-gives-you-the-distance/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [“But there was no way to know, and no way to go back. 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I mourn the conversations murdered by their juvenile intrusions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/i-despise-this-ad-and-the-tv-on-which-it-plays-with-those-flashing/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [If a reader believes that everything in nonfiction or history is just objectively true, I don't really know what to tell them, except that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/if-a-reader-believes-that-everything-in-nonfiction-or-history-is-just/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [“I do wear underwear under them. I am a lady, after all; plus I don’t want a yeast infection, and who cares if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/i-do-wear-underwear-under-them-i-am-a-lady-after-all-plus-i-don-t/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [The ingredients that make a good poem often differ from those that make a good essay and from those that make a good novel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/the-ingredients-that-make-a-good-poem-often-differ-from-those-that/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [As a writer who writes poetry, nonfiction, and fiction, I think it's important to always maintain a firm grasp on genre and ethics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/as-a-writer-who-writes-poetry-nonfiction-and-fiction-i-think-it-s/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [I never have trouble keeping fact and invention straight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/i-never-have-trouble-keeping-fact-and-invention-straight/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [Not to give too big of a spoiler, but I never find myself thinking, for example, Oh, remember that crazy time I stumbled on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-rooney/not-to-give-too-big-of-a-spoiler-but-i-never-find-myself-thinking-for/) [Kathleen Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-rooney/) > [“this, they’ve never felt that, they no longer feel anything, they don’t count anymore. 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