--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: America has had much more respect for its…" description: "\"America has had much more respect for its writers because they had to define what America was. America wasn't sure what it was.\" — Martin Amis" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a2a/martin-amis-704_america_america-has-had-much-more-respect-for-it_1092636.jpg" --- # America has had much more respect for its writers because… ![“America has had much more respect for its writers because they had to define what America was. America wasn't sure what it was.” quote by Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a2a/martin-amis-704_america_america-has-had-much-more-respect-for-it_1092636.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a2a/martin-amis-704_america_america-has-had-much-more-respect-for-it_1092636.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a2a/martin-amis-704_america_america-has-had-much-more-respect-for-it_1092636.jpg) > “America has had much more respect for its writers because they had to define what America was. America wasn't sure what it was.” [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writers shape national identity by articulating undefined concepts, earning respect through that act. **In simple terms:** Writers define a country, gaining respect. Key Takeaway Listen to writers to understand cultural foundations. Themes identity culture literature nationalism Mood reflective analytical Type observational critical When to use this quote - Political discourse - education curricula - media analysis - public debates Key Concepts Narrative construction collective memory authorial authority Questions to Reflect On - How do writers influence your sense of nation? - Can literature replace political definition? A Different Perspective Writers may reflect biases, not just define truth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Respect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respect/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [our rights come from our Creator and it is impossible to define America if you do not talk in public about where your rights…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/our-rights-come-from-our-creator-and-it-is-impossible-to-define/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [The U.S. military has done a phenomenal job of creating these facilities almost over-night and dealing with these sworn enemies of America with more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-u-s-military-has-done-a-phenomenal-job-of-creating-these/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Americanism not globalism will be our credo as long as we are led by politicians who will not put America first, then we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/americanism-not-globalism-will-be-our-credo-as-long-as-we-are-led-by/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [It's one thing I like about America - they respect the sportsman. They put them up on a pedestal. They don't try to knock…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-beckham/it-s-one-thing-i-like-about-america-they-respect-the-sportsman-they/) [David Beckham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-beckham/) > [“I hope that it will yet be said, America is America's best customer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-clay/i-hope-that-it-will-yet-be-said-america-is-america-s-best-customer/) [Henry Clay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-clay/) > [I walk out into a nature such as the old prophets and poets Menu, Moses, Homer, Chaucer, walked in. You may name it America,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-walk-out-into-a-nature-such-as-the-old-prophets-and-poets-menu/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Not only was not a single shot not fired in the taking of America but it wasn't even heard.\*](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omar-j-calleja/not-only-was-not-a-single-shot-not-fired-in-the-taking-of-america-but/) [OMAR J CALLEJA](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omar-j-calleja/) > [“America wasn’t perfect, but nothing touched by human hands could be. There was greed, corruption, selfishness, pettiness, hatred. But there were good things too.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wildbow/america-wasn-t-perfect-but-nothing-touched-by-human-hands-could-be/) wildbow > [I knew I couldn't live in America, and I wasn't ready to move to Europe, so I moved to an island off the coast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spalding-gray/i-knew-i-couldn-t-live-in-america-and-i-wasn-t-ready-to-move-to/) [Spalding Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spalding-gray/) > [I honestly never wanted to come to America. It wasn't part of my goal as an actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wunmi-mosaku/i-honestly-never-wanted-to-come-to-america-it-wasn-t-part-of-my-goal/) [Wunmi Mosaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wunmi-mosaku/) > [I thought everything would be different in America. It wasn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-thought-everything-would-be-different-in-america-it-wasn-t/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [All of a sudden America wasn't about hamburgers and hot rods anymore. It was about the Mayflower and Plymouth Rock. It was about something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/all-of-a-sudden-america-wasn-t-about-hamburgers-and-hot-rods-anymore/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [America wasn't interested in the roots of house music because it was too black, it was too gay, it was all these things, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-buxton/america-wasn-t-interested-in-the-roots-of-house-music-because-it-was/) Felix Buxton > [MEN WALK ON THE MOON. To me, this speaks of a time when America wasn't just about the almighty buck. The Russians had put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-fillion/men-walk-on-the-moon-to-me-this-speaks-of-a-time-when-america-wasn-t/) [Nathan Fillion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-fillion/) > [I obviously wouldn't say on nationwide TV that I thought America was racist, sexist, homophobic and violent if they asked me why I left.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-trent-d-arby/i-obviously-wouldn-t-say-on-nationwide-tv-that-i-thought-america-was/) [Terence Trent D'Arby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-trent-d-arby/) ## More by Martin Amis > [“Yeah,' I said and started smoking another cigarette. Unless I inform you otherwise, I'm always smoking another cigarette.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/yeah-i-said-and-started-smoking-another-cigarette-unless-i-inform-you/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [“barrios; each barrio has two or three gangs, and all the gangs are theoretically”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/barrios-each-barrio-has-two-or-three-gangs-and-all-the-gangs-are/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [I'm not interested in making a diagnostic novel or a concern. I'm 100 percent committed in fiction to the pleasure principle - that's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/i-m-not-interested-in-making-a-diagnostic-novel-or-a-concern-i-m-100/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [“If we all downed tools and joined hands for ten minutes and stopped believing in money, then money would no longer exist. We never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/if-we-all-downed-tools-and-joined-hands-for-ten-minutes-and-stopped/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [When I see a lot of young faces in the audience, it's just sort of sinking in how important that is. Because you're old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/when-i-see-a-lot-of-young-faces-in-the-audience-it-s-just-sort-of/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [“I was informed by my viscera that now was the time to put my arm around her shoulders. I ignored them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/i-was-informed-by-my-viscera-that-now-was-the-time-to-put-my-arm/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [You use a different part of your heart with girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/you-use-a-different-part-of-your-heart-with-girls/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [It's becoming clearer and clearer to me that the world is there to be celebrated by writers, and in fact this is what all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/it-s-becoming-clearer-and-clearer-to-me-that-the-world-is-there-to-be/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [In her final months Princess Diana was being shat upon by the tabloids -- basically for sleeping with an Arab. When she died, these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/in-her-final-months-princess-diana-was-being-shat-upon-by-the/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [If you feel you have a strong constituency among the young, you can really die happy, because the great unanswered question, the only valid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/if-you-feel-you-have-a-strong-constituency-among-the-young-you-can/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [My life looked good on paper - where, in fact, almost all of it was being lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/my-life-looked-good-on-paper-where-in-fact-almost-all-of-it-was-being/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [I say, 'If I had a serious brain injury I might well write a children's book', but otherwise the idea of being conscious of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/i-say-if-i-had-a-serious-brain-injury-i-might-well-write-a-children-s/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [The future could go this way, that way. The future's futures have never looked so rocky. Don't put money on it. Take my advice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/the-future-could-go-this-way-that-way-the-future-s-futures-have-never/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [Each life is a game of chess that went to hell on the seventh move(...)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/each-life-is-a-game-of-chess-that-went-to-hell-on-the-seventh-move/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [ “There exists a subterranean world where pathological fantasies disguised as ideas are churned out by crooks and half-educated fanatics \[notably the lower clergy\] for… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/there-exists-a-subterranean-world-where-pathological-fantasies/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) [Explore all 393 Martin Amis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "America has had much more respect for its writers because they had to define what America was. 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