--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I felt like my parents were always…" description: "\"I felt like my parents were always involved with abstraction, and I wanted to do something very specific.\" — Lena Dunham" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/lena-dunham-1013_abstraction_i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-invol_1302581.jpg" --- # I felt like my parents were always involved with… ![“I felt like my parents were always involved with abstraction, and I wanted to do something very specific.” quote by Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/lena-dunham-1013_abstraction_i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-invol_1302581.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/lena-dunham-1013_abstraction_i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-invol_1302581.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/lena-dunham-1013_abstraction_i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-invol_1302581.jpg) > “I felt like my parents were always involved with abstraction, and I wanted to do something very specific.” [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Desires concrete work after growing up with abstract parental influences. **In simple terms:** Wants specific, tangible projects. Key Takeaway Seek clarity in career goals. Themes career creativity identity Mood reflective determined Type personal creative When to use this quote - art projects - writing - entrepreneurship Key Concepts abstraction personal development Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance abstraction with practicality? - What concrete steps can you take? A Different Perspective Abstract thinking can also be valuable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/) [Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) ## Related quotes > [Neither of my parents are involved in theater or acting, but they are very artistic. My mom is a painter; she's an artist. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-kampouris/neither-of-my-parents-are-involved-in-theater-or-acting-but-they-are/) [Elena Kampouris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-kampouris/) > [I don't think it matters what school you go to, but I think it's important for parents to be involved. And to know that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erykah-badu/i-don-t-think-it-matters-what-school-you-go-to-but-i-think-it-s/) [Erykah Badu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erykah-badu/) > [As a teacher you can see the difference in kids who have parents who were involved. That difference, by the time these kids get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenna-bush/as-a-teacher-you-can-see-the-difference-in-kids-who-have-parents-who/) [Jenna Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenna-bush/) > [If there is one thing educators can agree on, it's this: children do better in school when their parents get involved in their learning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bennett/if-there-is-one-thing-educators-can-agree-on-it-s-this-children-do/) [William Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bennett/) > [There is nothing that compares to the bonding between parent and child in that first year of life. Study after study shows how both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-swinson/there-is-nothing-that-compares-to-the-bonding-between-parent-and/) [Jo Swinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-swinson/) > [Maybe it's because my uncle and my parents were always very involved with the civil rights movement, so I just grew up and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audra-mcdonald/maybe-it-s-because-my-uncle-and-my-parents-were-always-very-involved/) [Audra McDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audra-mcdonald/) > [If I look back down the years, how I was treated as a kid, if it wasn't for the teachers at my school, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mo-farah/if-i-look-back-down-the-years-how-i-was-treated-as-a-kid-if-it-wasn-t/) [Mo Farah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mo-farah/) > [Allowing flexibility to local school districts to set their own nutritional standards and having parents involved in the process is a win-win for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mercedes-schlapp/allowing-flexibility-to-local-school-districts-to-set-their-own/) [Mercedes Schlapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mercedes-schlapp/) > [I was very much a product of the public-school system. There was only one other kid in my class who had parents not involved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-radcliffe/i-was-very-much-a-product-of-the-public-school-system-there-was-only/) [Daniel Radcliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-radcliffe/) > [It's hard to have both parents involved in elective office at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-kennedy/it-s-hard-to-have-both-parents-involved-in-elective-office-at-the/) [Kerry Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-kennedy/) > [My parents were involved in everything I did. They were showbiz people themselves. My dad was an actor. They were parents; they did what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-yothers/my-parents-were-involved-in-everything-i-did-they-were-showbiz-people/) [Tina Yothers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-yothers/) > [My parents were not at all involved in science. In fact, neither of them went to college.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-guth/my-parents-were-not-at-all-involved-in-science-in-fact-neither-of/) [Alan Guth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-guth/) > [If you ever write a book, I can only give you one piece of advice. Don't let your parents get involved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/if-you-ever-write-a-book-i-can-only-give-you-one-piece-of-advice-don/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [My parents had been involved in the labor movement; if we'd grown up in the city, we would have been red-diaper babies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-near/my-parents-had-been-involved-in-the-labor-movement-if-we-d-grown-up/) [Holly Near](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-near/) > [When I was growing up, my parents were almost involved in various volunteer things. My dad was head of Planned Parenthood. And it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/when-i-was-growing-up-my-parents-were-almost-involved-in-various/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) ## More by Lena Dunham > [It was only when I started making short films in college and I was looking for girls to play the me-ish parts that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/it-was-only-when-i-started-making-short-films-in-college-and-i-was/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [“Oberlin being a liberal haven where opposition was king, the coolest clique at school was a group of rugby-playing, neon-wearing lesbians. They dominated every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/oberlin-being-a-liberal-haven-where-opposition-was-king-the-coolest/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [Calling someone a drama queen is so negative. Why not 'content creator'?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/calling-someone-a-drama-queen-is-so-negative-why-not-content-creator/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [My relationship to eating, my relationship to critiquing my own shape, all of that has changed since I've started viewing my body much more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/my-relationship-to-eating-my-relationship-to-critiquing-my-own-shape/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [“I am sorry (not to you but in a deeper way, sorry for my brain chemistry and who I am.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-am-sorry-not-to-you-but-in-a-deeper-way-sorry-for-my-brain/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [It's very easy for me to say what success is. I think success is connecting with an audience who understands you and having a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/it-s-very-easy-for-me-to-say-what-success-is-i-think-success-is/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [At my age, no one is married, no one has kids, no one has a career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/at-my-age-no-one-is-married-no-one-has-kids-no-one-has-a-career/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [I should do the things that make me feel cool and smart. As I get older, I'm realizing more and more that it doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-should-do-the-things-that-make-me-feel-cool-and-smart-as-i-get/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [My shape reminds me a lot of my grandmother, whom I was really close to. She died when I was 13, and we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/my-shape-reminds-me-a-lot-of-my-grandmother-whom-i-was-really-close/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [I never set out to make any statements about a specific character, I just set out to tell what feels like is a truthful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-never-set-out-to-make-any-statements-about-a-specific-character-i/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [You’ve learned a new rule and it’s simple: don’t put yourself in situations you’d like to run away from. But when you run, run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/you-ve-learned-a-new-rule-and-it-s-simple-don-t-put-yourself-in/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [I would go to work from 9 to 6, go home, nap for two hours, then write from 8 to 2 a.m.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-would-go-to-work-from-9-to-6-go-home-nap-for-two-hours-then-write/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [My uncle's a lawyer and I remember going to see him in court and thinking, 'That's cool, too bad I could never be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/my-uncle-s-a-lawyer-and-i-remember-going-to-see-him-in-court-and/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [I love directing scenes that I'm not in because suddenly I really feel like a filmmaker which is a different thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-love-directing-scenes-that-i-m-not-in-because-suddenly-i-really/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [I'm glad if my work can make a difference.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-m-glad-if-my-work-can-make-a-difference/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) [Explore all 301 Lena Dunham quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) ## More Abstraction quotes > [Everything in dancing is style, allusion, the essence of many thoughts and feelings. The abstraction of many moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-ailey/everything-in-dancing-is-style-allusion-the-essence-of-many-thoughts/) [Alvin Ailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-ailey/) > [The premises from which we begin are not arbitrary ones, not dogmas, but real premises from which abstraction can only be made in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/the-premises-from-which-we-begin-are-not-arbitrary-ones-not-dogmas/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [Two elements are needed to form a truth - a fact and an abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/remy-de-gourmont/two-elements-are-needed-to-form-a-truth-a-fact-and-an-abstraction/) [Remy de Gourmont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/remy-de-gourmont/) > [But we must not underestimate the potency of the mathematical process of abstraction. A surprising variety of things happen to have both magnitude and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banesh-hoffmann/but-we-must-not-underestimate-the-potency-of-the-mathematical-process/) Banesh Hoffmann > [Sometimes I start in a very realistic fashion, and as I go on from one painting to another of the same kind, it becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-o-keeffe/sometimes-i-start-in-a-very-realistic-fashion-and-as-i-go-on-from-one/) [Georgia O'Keeffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-o-keeffe/) > [I like residing in abstraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-like-residing-in-abstraction/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [Cancer begins and ends with people. In the midst of scientific abstraction, it is sometimes possible to forget this one basic fact. Doctors treat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-goodfield/cancer-begins-and-ends-with-people-in-the-midst-of-scientific/) [June Goodfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-goodfield/) > [Yes, there was an element of abstraction and unreality in misfortune. But when an abstraction starts to kill you, you have to get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/yes-there-was-an-element-of-abstraction-and-unreality-in-misfortune/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Computer Science is a science of abstraction -creating the right model for a problem and devising the appropriate mechanizable techniques to solve it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-aho/computer-science-is-a-science-of-abstraction-creating-the-right-model/) Alfred Aho > [In 'Self Comes to Mind' I pay a lot of attention to simple creatures without brains or minds, because those 'cartooned abstractions of who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-damasio/in-self-comes-to-mind-i-pay-a-lot-of-attention-to-simple-creatures/) [Antonio Damasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-damasio/) > [Don't get stuck on the level of words. A word is no more than a means to an end. It's an abstraction. Not unlike…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/don-t-get-stuck-on-the-level-of-words-a-word-is-no-more-than-a-means/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Holidays are in no sense an alternative to the congestion and bustle of the cities and work. Quite the contrary. People look to escape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baudrillard/holidays-are-in-no-sense-an-alternative-to-the-congestion-and-bustle/) [Jean Baudrillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baudrillard/) > [The pragmatist turns away from abstraction and insufficiency, from verbal solutions, from bad a priori reasons, from fixed principles, closed systems, and pretended absolutes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/the-pragmatist-turns-away-from-abstraction-and-insufficiency-from/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [ I'd say that \[Louis\] Brandeis practiced a kind of a "living originalism," to use the title of Jack Balkin's great book. He said you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-rosen/i-d-say-that-louis-brandeis-practiced-a-kind-of-a-living-originalism/) [Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-rosen/) > [When novels deal in abstractions, they generally go off the rails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/when-novels-deal-in-abstractions-they-generally-go-off-the-rails/) [Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/) [Browse all 562 Abstraction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I felt like my parents were always involved with abstraction, and I wanted to do something very specific.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lena Dunham" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-involved-with-abstraction-and-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abstraction" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-involved-with-abstraction-and-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/lena-dunham-1013_abstraction_i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-invol_1302581.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/lena-dunham-1013_abstraction_i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-invol_1302581.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/lena-dunham-1013_abstraction_i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-invol_1302581.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I felt like my parents were always involved with abstraction, and I wanted to do something very specific.” — Lena Dunham", "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": "Lena Dunham", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I felt like my parents were...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-involved-with-abstraction-and-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/i-felt-like-my-parents-were-always-involved-with-abstraction-and-i/#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 } } ] } ```