--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This humanity we would claim for…" description: "\"“This humanity we would claim for ourselves is the legacy, not only of the Enlightenment, but of the thousands of European peasants and poor townspeopl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ab/mary-mccarthy-2691_america_this-humanity-we-would-claim-for-ourselv_1757210.jpg" --- # This humanity we would claim for ourselves is the legacy… ![“This humanity we would claim for ourselves is the legacy, not only of the Enlightenment, but of the thousands of European peasants and poor townspeople who came here bringing their humanity and their sufferings with them. It is the absence of a stable upper class that is responsible for much of…” quote by Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ab/mary-mccarthy-2691_america_this-humanity-we-would-claim-for-ourselv_1757210.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ab/mary-mccarthy-2691_america_this-humanity-we-would-claim-for-ourselv_1757210.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ab/mary-mccarthy-2691_america_this-humanity-we-would-claim-for-ourselv_1757210.jpg) > ““This humanity we would claim for ourselves is the legacy, not only of the Enlightenment, but of the thousands of European peasants and poor townspeople who came here bringing their humanity and their sufferings with them. It is the absence of a stable upper class that is responsible for much of the vulgarity of the American scene. Should we blush before the visitor for this deficiency? The ugliness of American decoration, American entertainment, American literature - is not this the visible expression of the impoverishment of the European masses, a manifestation of all the backwardness, deprivation, and want that arrived here in boatloads from Europe? The immense popularity of American movies abroad demonstrates that Europe is the unfinished negative of which America is the proof. The European traveler, viewing with distaste a movie palace or a Motorola, is only looking into the terrible concavity of his continent of hunger inverted startlingly into the convex. Our civilization, deformed as it is outwardly, is still an accomplishment; all this had to come to light.”” [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that America’s cultural flaws stem from the impoverished European masses who migrated, lacking a stable elite, leading to vulgarity but also a unique achievement. **In simple terms:** American culture reflects European poverty and lack of elite class, creating both flaws and achievements. Key Takeaway Recognize how historical immigration shapes cultural strengths and weaknesses. Themes culture immigration class identity art Mood critical reflective Type analytical observational When to use this quote - urban development - media criticism - education reform - public policy - community building Key Concepts sociology historical analysis cultural criticism Questions to Reflect On - How do immigrant histories influence modern cultural values? - Can flaws be transformed into strengths? A Different Perspective It may overgeneralize diverse American experiences and ignore internal agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [American literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-literature/) [American movies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-movies/) [Buddhism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buddhism/) [Upper class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/upper-class/) ## Related quotes > [The immense popularity of American movies abroad demonstrates that Europe is the unfinished negative of which America is the proof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/the-immense-popularity-of-american-movies-abroad-demonstrates-that/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [Europe is the unfinished negative of which America is the proof.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/europe-is-the-unfinished-negative-of-which-america-is-the-proof/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [“Nobody ever went broke overestimating the vulgarity of the American people,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/nobody-ever-went-broke-overestimating-the-vulgarity-of-the-american/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [America always seemed to me this foreign land that I imagined I could escape to if I needed to get away - and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-garfield/america-always-seemed-to-me-this-foreign-land-that-i-imagined-i-could/) [Andrew Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-garfield/) > [I look at American movies, the big muscles, and try to apply that to Chinese film-making.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ang-lee/i-look-at-american-movies-the-big-muscles-and-try-to-apply-that-to/) [Ang Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ang-lee/) > [We've grown up with American movies. 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This was the direction American movies should take: into idiosyncratic characters, into dialogue with an ear for the vulgar and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/we-d-had-a-revelation-this-was-the-direction-american-movies-should/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) ## More by Mary McCarthy > [From what I have seen, I am driven to the conclusion that religion is only good for good people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/from-what-i-have-seen-i-am-driven-to-the-conclusion-that-religion-is/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [In morals as in politics anarchy is not for the weak.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/in-morals-as-in-politics-anarchy-is-not-for-the-weak/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [Yet friendship, I believe, is essential to intellectuals. It is probably the growth hormone the mind requires as it begins its activity of producing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/yet-friendship-i-believe-is-essential-to-intellectuals-it-is-probably/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [Any sizeable Portuguese town looks like a superstitious bride's finery - something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/any-sizeable-portuguese-town-looks-like-a-superstitious-bride-s/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [The desire to believe the best of people is a prerequisite for intercourse with strangers; suspicion is reserved for friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/the-desire-to-believe-the-best-of-people-is-a-prerequisite-for/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [ “She considered \[her\] life, which had not been a life but only a sort of greeting, a Hello There.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/she-considered-her-life-which-had-not-been-a-life-but-only-a-sort-of/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [America is indeed a revelation, though not quite the one that was planned. 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I would also recommend the avoidance of credit cards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/be-truthful-and-pay-attention-i-would-also-recommend-the-avoidance-of/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [All ideas advanced to deal with the Florentine noise problem, the Florentine traffic problem, are Utopian, and nobody believes in them, just as nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/all-ideas-advanced-to-deal-with-the-florentine-noise-problem-the/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) [Explore all 154 Mary McCarthy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) ## 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! 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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. 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