--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Children, you are the future,' he said…" description: "\"“Children, you are the future,' he said, and today I realize he did not mean it the way it sounded. The reason children are the future is not that they..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f56/milan-kundera-120_childhood_children-you-are-the-future-he-said-and_1816220.jpg" --- # Children, you are the future,' he said, and today I… ![“Children, you are the future,' he said, and today I realize he did not mean it the way it sounded. The reason children are the future is not that they will one day be grownups. No, the reason is that mankind is moving more and more in the direction of infancy, and childhood is the image of the…” quote by Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f56/milan-kundera-120_childhood_children-you-are-the-future-he-said-and_1816220.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f56/milan-kundera-120_childhood_children-you-are-the-future-he-said-and_1816220.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f56/milan-kundera-120_childhood_children-you-are-the-future-he-said-and_1816220.jpg) > ““Children, you are the future,' he said, and today I realize he did not mean it the way it sounded. The reason children are the future is not that they will one day be grownups. No, the reason is that mankind is moving more and more in the direction of infancy, and childhood is the image of the future.”” [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humanity is regressing to childlike dependence, making children symbolic of the future. **In simple terms:** Future is childlike dependence. Key Takeaway Embrace growth and responsibility. Themes growth responsibility societal change Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - education policy - parenting - technology adoption - urban planning Key Concepts human development cultural evolution Questions to Reflect On - How does society nurture maturity? - What role do children play in shaping tomorrow? A Different Perspective Regressing may hinder progress if not balanced. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Childhood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childhood/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Children Are The Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children-are-the-future-213225/) [Children Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children-future/) [Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future/) [Future Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future-said-645601/) [Grownups Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grownups-reason-2155966/) [Reason Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason-children-357973/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Children are the future, because mankind is moving more and more towards infancy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/children-are-the-future-because-mankind-is-moving-more-and-more/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [I do believe the children are the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alaska/i-do-believe-the-children-are-the-future/) [Alaska](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alaska/) > [See all I'm tryna do is just get on with my life. The children are the future, so give them a try...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barrington-levy/see-all-i-m-tryna-do-is-just-get-on-with-my-life-the-children-are-the/) [Barrington Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barrington-levy/) > [I believe children are the future...which is why they must be stopped now!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/i-believe-children-are-the-future-which-is-why-they-must-be-stopped/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [I do believe that children are the future, and we are doing the best that we can to figure out outlets for inner-city youth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sisqo/i-do-believe-that-children-are-the-future-and-we-are-doing-the-best/) [Sisqo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sisqo/) > [There's no reason why children in inner cities or rural areas do not receive the same quality education or opportunities as those in suburbs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-sharpton/there-s-no-reason-why-children-in-inner-cities-or-rural-areas-do-not/) [Al Sharpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-sharpton/) > [One reason we have children I think is to learn that parts of ourselves we had given up for dead are merely dormant and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-fadiman/one-reason-we-have-children-i-think-is-to-learn-that-parts-of/) [Anne Fadiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-fadiman/) > [My wife and I have five children and the reason why we have five children is because we do not want six.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-cosby/my-wife-and-i-have-five-children-and-the-reason-why-we-have-five/) [Bill Cosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-cosby/) > [Poets have said that the reason to have children is to give yourself immortality. 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They are my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brii-ann/they-are-my-heart-they-are-my-soul-they-are-my-life-they-are-my-love/) [Brii Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brii-ann/) > [Curiosity in children, is but an appetite for knowledge. The great reason why children abandon themselves wholly to silly pursuits and trifle away their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-locke/curiosity-in-children-is-but-an-appetite-for-knowledge-the-great/) [John Locke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-locke/) > [“I think love is sort of a con you play on yourself. I think the whole conception of love is something the previous generation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-hell/i-think-love-is-sort-of-a-con-you-play-on-yourself-i-think-the-whole/) [Richard Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-hell/) > [The reason most of the children are having problems in any inner-city neighborhood is because they don't see enough positive role models in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marla-gibbs/the-reason-most-of-the-children-are-having-problems-in-any-inner-city/) [Marla Gibbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marla-gibbs/) ## More by Milan Kundera > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“From that time on they both looked forward to sleeping together. I might even say that the goal of their lovemaking was not so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/from-that-time-on-they-both-looked-forward-to-sleeping-together-i/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“Beauty in the European sense has always had a premeditated quality to it. We've always had an aesthetic intention and a long-range plan. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/beauty-in-the-european-sense-has-always-had-a-premeditated-quality-to/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [The beauty of New York is unintentional; it arose independent of human design, like a stalagmite cavern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-beauty-of-new-york-is-unintentional-it-arose-independent-of-human/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Children, Never look Back!" and this meant that we must never allow the future to be weighed down by memory . for children have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/children-never-look-back-and-this-meant-that-we-must-never-allow-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“Our lives may be separate, but they run in the same direction, like parallel lines.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/our-lives-may-be-separate-but-they-run-in-the-same-direction-like/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“Having a child is to show an absolute accord with mankind. 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Your childhood is always ending and your adult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-espach/children-s-lives-are-always-beginning-and-adults-lives-are-always/) [Alison Espach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-espach/) > [“From childhood’s hour I have not been As others were—I have not seen As others saw—I could not bring My passions from a common…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/from-childhood-s-hour-i-have-not-been-as-others-were-i-have-not-seen/) [Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/) > [We were so poor as kids. I didn't even see a bathtub, running water, hot water, commode - we didn't have any of that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-robertson/we-were-so-poor-as-kids-i-didn-t-even-see-a-bathtub-running-water-hot/) [Phil Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-robertson/) > [I had a rough upbringing. Group homes. 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It was a mixture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tove-jansson/i-m-not-sure-i-would-have-ever-started-to-draw-let-alone-write-if-my/) [Tove Jansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tove-jansson/) [Browse all 5,837 Childhood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childhood/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Children, you are the future,' he said, and today I realize he did not mean it the way it sounded. The reason children are the future is not that they will one day be grownups. 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