--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is not just that human trash…" description: "\"“It is not just that human trash accumulates in cities—it is that cities turn what accumulates in them into trash.”\" — Nicolás Gómez Dávila" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/452/nicolas-gomez-davila-9640_cities-turn_it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumula_1595008.png" --- # It is not just that human trash accumulates in cities—it… ![“It is not just that human trash accumulates in cities—it is that cities turn what accumulates in them into trash.” quote by Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/452/nicolas-gomez-davila-9640_cities-turn_it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumula_1595008.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/452/nicolas-gomez-davila-9640_cities-turn_it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumula_1595008.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/452/nicolas-gomez-davila-9640_cities-turn_it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumula_1595008.png) > ““It is not just that human trash accumulates in cities—it is that cities turn what accumulates in them into trash.”” [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Cities transform waste into a symbol of decay, showing how collective neglect becomes cultural trash. **In simple terms:** Cities turn waste into cultural trash. Key Takeaway Recognize and reduce urban waste habits Themes urban decay culture environment Mood critical reflective Type observational philosophical When to use this quote - city planning - public health - community activism Key Concepts sociology environmental ethics Questions to Reflect On - How does city design influence waste perception? - What cultural habits turn waste into trash? A Different Perspective Trash can also be a symptom of deeper social issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accumulates Cities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accumulates-cities-6052991/) [Accumulates Trash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accumulates-trash-6052993/) [Cities Turn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities-turn-3998388/) [Human Trash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-trash-6052992/) [Trash Accumulates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trash-accumulates-6052990/) ## Related quotes > [“Gentrification is key to understanding what happened to our cities at the turn of the millennium. But it is only half of the story.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-chang/gentrification-is-key-to-understanding-what-happened-to-our-cities-at/) [Jeff Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-chang/) > [The general desire of men to live by their heads rather than their hands, and the strong allurements of great cities to those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-general-desire-of-men-to-live-by-their-heads-rather-than-their/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“the murder rate has fallen by 16.7 per cent in the US cities since the turn of the century, while rising by 16.9 per…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-luce/the-murder-rate-has-fallen-by-16-7-per-cent-in-the-us-cities-since/) [Edward Luce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-luce/) ## More by Nicolás Gómez Dávila > [Violence is not necessary to destroy a civilization. Each civilization dies from indifference toward the unique values which created it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/violence-is-not-necessary-to-destroy-a-civilization-each-civilization/) [Nicolas Gomez Davila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“Modern man’s misfortune lies not in having to live a mediocre life, but in believing that he could live one that is not mediocre.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/modern-man-s-misfortune-lies-not-in-having-to-live-a-mediocre-life/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“The liberation promised by every invention ends with the growing submission of the man who adopts it to the man who manufactures it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/the-liberation-promised-by-every-invention-ends-with-the-growing/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“Revolution is progressivist and seeks the strengthening of the state; rebellion is reactionary and seeks its disappearance. The revolutionary is a potential government official;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/revolution-is-progressivist-and-seeks-the-strengthening-of-the-state/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“Rather than humanizing technology, modern man prefers to technify man.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/rather-than-humanizing-technology-modern-man-prefers-to-technify-man/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“As they cannot be defined univocally, nor irrefutably demonstrated, so-called “human rights” serve as a pretext for the individual who rebels against a positive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/as-they-cannot-be-defined-univocally-nor-irrefutably-demonstrated-so/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“The most ominous of modern perversions is the shame of appearing naïve if we do not flirt with evil. (La más ominosa de las…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/the-most-ominous-of-modern-perversions-is-the-shame-of-appearing-na/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“When nothing in society deserves respect, we should fashion for ourselves in solitude new silent loyalties.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/when-nothing-in-society-deserves-respect-we-should-fashion-for/) [Nicólas Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“Truths are not relative. What is relative are opinions about truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/truths-are-not-relative-what-is-relative-are-opinions-about-truth/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“Every individual with “ideals” is a potential murderer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/every-individual-with-ideals-is-a-potential-murderer/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [Hierarchies are celestial. In hell all are equal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/hierarchies-are-celestial-in-hell-all-are-equal/) [Nicolas Gomez Davila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“Faith is not knowledge of an object but communion with it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/faith-is-not-knowledge-of-an-object-but-communion-with-it/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“An atheist is respectable as long as he does not teach that the dignity of man is the basis of ethics and that love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/an-atheist-is-respectable-as-long-as-he-does-not-teach-that-the/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [The genuine coherence of our ideas does not come from the reasoning that ties them together, but from the spiritual impulse that gives rise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/the-genuine-coherence-of-our-ideas-does-not-come-from-the-reasoning/) [Nicolas Gomez Davila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“Progress ages badly. Each generation brings a new model of progressivism which discards with contempt the previous model. Nothing is more grotesque than yesterday’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/progress-ages-badly-each-generation-brings-a-new-model-of/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) [Explore all 67 Nicolás Gómez Dávila quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) ## More Cities Turn quotes > [“Gentrification is key to understanding what happened to our cities at the turn of the millennium. But it is only half of the story.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-chang/gentrification-is-key-to-understanding-what-happened-to-our-cities-at/) [Jeff Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-chang/) > [The general desire of men to live by their heads rather than their hands, and the strong allurements of great cities to those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-general-desire-of-men-to-live-by-their-heads-rather-than-their/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [“the murder rate has fallen by 16.7 per cent in the US cities since the turn of the century, while rising by 16.9 per…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-luce/the-murder-rate-has-fallen-by-16-7-per-cent-in-the-us-cities-since/) [Edward Luce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-luce/) [Browse all 4 Cities Turn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities-turn-3998388/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is not just that human trash accumulates in cities—it is that cities turn what accumulates in them into trash.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nicolás Gómez Dávila" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumulates-in-cities-it-is-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cities Turn" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumulates-in-cities-it-is-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/452/nicolas-gomez-davila-9640_cities-turn_it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumula_1595008.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/452/nicolas-gomez-davila-9640_cities-turn_it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumula_1595008.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/452/nicolas-gomez-davila-9640_cities-turn_it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumula_1595008.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is not just that human trash accumulates in cities—it is that cities turn what accumulates in them into…” — Nicolás Gómez Dávila", "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": "Nicolás Gómez Dávila", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It is not just that human...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumulates-in-cities-it-is-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/it-is-not-just-that-human-trash-accumulates-in-cities-it-is-that/#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 } } ] } ```