--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Social mores change all the time. In the…" description: "\"Social mores change all the time. In the mid-1970s, it would've been astonishing, say, to see two men holding hands in the streets. And the attitude to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bab/robert-harris-2039_astonishing_social-mores-change-all-the-time-in-the_1477646.png" --- # Social mores change all the time. In the mid-1970s, it… ![“Social mores change all the time. In the mid-1970s, it would've been astonishing, say, to see two men holding hands in the streets. And the attitude to having a fling with a girl, or whatever, was quite different then.” quote by Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bab/robert-harris-2039_astonishing_social-mores-change-all-the-time-in-the_1477646.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bab/robert-harris-2039_astonishing_social-mores-change-all-the-time-in-the_1477646.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bab/robert-harris-2039_astonishing_social-mores-change-all-the-time-in-the_1477646.png) > “Social mores change all the time. In the mid-1970s, it would've been astonishing, say, to see two men holding hands in the streets. And the attitude to having a fling with a girl, or whatever, was quite different then.” [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Social norms evolve; what was once shocking can become ordinary as cultures shift. **In simple terms:** Societal attitudes change over time. Key Takeaway Accept change and challenge outdated judgments. Themes culture change acceptance Mood reflective thoughtful Type analytical observational When to use this quote - public spaces - LGBTQ+ visibility - gender roles Key Concepts social norms historical context Questions to Reflect On - How do you respond to shifting norms? - What biases still persist? A Different Perspective Progress can be uneven and face backlash. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitude/) [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Girl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/girl/) [Holding hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holding-hands/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Streets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/streets/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Social mores change with time, like fashion - who knows where it might all end up? I especially like the idea that waste, impoliteness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-fforde/social-mores-change-with-time-like-fashion-who-knows-where-it-might/) [Jasper Fforde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-fforde/) > [“Hot tip: If you’re a human having a fling with a werewolf, break it off. Now.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/hot-tip-if-you-re-a-human-having-a-fling-with-a-werewolf-break-it-off/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [Having a fling with you doesn't appeal to me. You're handsome, but you're too inexperienced to be good in bed. Having ridden many horses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/having-a-fling-with-you-doesn-t-appeal-to-me-you-re-handsome-but-you/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [“Hello?" "How's it going?" Dane asked. I relaxed at the familiar voice. "I'm having a fling with a younger man," I told him. "He's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/hello-how-s-it-going-dane-asked-i-relaxed-at-the-familiar-voice-i-m/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [In the mid-1970s, I was teaching design at the Academy of Applied Arts in Budapest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erno-rubik/in-the-mid-1970s-i-was-teaching-design-at-the-academy-of-applied-arts/) [Erno Rubik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erno-rubik/) > [From the mid-1970s, I also started work on the causation and prevention of famines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/from-the-mid-1970s-i-also-started-work-on-the-causation-and/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [“The period that I would anoint as the golden era in American journalism was from the mid 1950s to the mid 1970s. It had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-period-that-i-would-anoint-as-the-golden-era-in-american/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In the mid-1970s I worked at Vauxhall Manor school, a girls comprehensive in south London.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-rosen/in-the-mid-1970s-i-worked-at-vauxhall-manor-school-a-girls/) [Michael Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-rosen/) > [Our social mores no longer conform to a world where nice girls wear skirts that don't cling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-binkley/our-social-mores-no-longer-conform-to-a-world-where-nice-girls-wear/) [Christina Binkley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-binkley/) > [You do realise modern social mores exist for a reason?" "I was hungry, allowances should be made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-carriger/you-do-realise-modern-social-mores-exist-for-a-reason-i-was-hungry/) [Gail Carriger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-carriger/) > [How powerful social mores are! Only a spider's web lies across the volcano, yet it refrains from erupting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/how-powerful-social-mores-are-only-a-spider-s-web-lies-across-the/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [As a novelist, you write about social mores, but not everything can be explained.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/as-a-novelist-you-write-about-social-mores-but-not-everything-can-be/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [I am sure future historians will say the biggest and most astonishing change in politics has been the embracing of all the tenets of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/i-am-sure-future-historians-will-say-the-biggest-and-most-astonishing/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [With the broad and powerful swing of the hand which Zola in The Earth gave to his ploughman, L'Auto, journal of ideas and action,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-desgrange/with-the-broad-and-powerful-swing-of-the-hand-which-zola-in-the-earth/) Henri Desgrange > [“As they say in New York, Get over it and, if you can't get over it, Get over talking about it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/as-they-say-in-new-york-get-over-it-and-if-you-can-t-get-over-it-get/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) ## More by Robert Harris > [“Men mistook measurement for understanding. And they always had to put themselves at the center of everything. That was their greatest conceit. The earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/men-mistook-measurement-for-understanding-and-they-always-had-to-put/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [If one first gives himself to the Lord, all other giving is easy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/if-one-first-gives-himself-to-the-lord-all-other-giving-is-easy/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“He felt more human with his boots on. A man can face the world with something on his feet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/he-felt-more-human-with-his-boots-on-a-man-can-face-the-world-with/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [Cicero most reminds me of Harold Wilson. Both men knew how to keep the show on the road.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/cicero-most-reminds-me-of-harold-wilson-both-men-knew-how-to-keep-the/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [The financial world is at the cutting edge of high technology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/the-financial-world-is-at-the-cutting-edge-of-high-technology/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“To choose one's victims, to prepare one's plans minutely, to slake an implacable vengeance, and then to go to bed ... there is nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/to-choose-one-s-victims-to-prepare-one-s-plans-minutely-to-slake-an/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“Nature has granted man no better gift than the shortness of life. The senses grow dull, the limbs are numb, sight, bearing, gait, even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/nature-has-granted-man-no-better-gift-than-the-shortness-of-life-the/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“A crock of shit,” Rick had called it. But actually this was worse. Shit, to quote Gore Vidal, has its own integrity. This was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/a-crock-of-shit-rick-had-called-it-but-actually-this-was-worse-shit/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“... unfortunately, freedom alone is not enough, by far. If there is a shortage of bread, a shortage of butter and fats, a shortage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/unfortunately-freedom-alone-is-not-enough-by-far-if-there-is-a/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [It is perseverance, and not genius that takes a man to the top. Rome is full of unrecognized geniuses. Only perseverance enables you to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/it-is-perseverance-and-not-genius-that-takes-a-man-to-the-top-rome-is/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“No one can really claim to know politics properly until he has stayed up all night writing a speech for delivery the following day.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/no-one-can-really-claim-to-know-politics-properly-until-he-has-stayed/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [People perish. Books are immortal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/people-perish-books-are-immortal/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [Does a name stick because it suits a man or does the man, unconsciously, evolve into his name?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/does-a-name-stick-because-it-suits-a-man-or-does-the-man/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“He glanced around the reading room and closed his eyes, trying to keep hold of the past for a minute longer, a fattening and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/he-glanced-around-the-reading-room-and-closed-his-eyes-trying-to-keep/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [The natural impulse of men is to follow and whoever has the strongest sense of purpose will always dominate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/the-natural-impulse-of-men-is-to-follow-and-whoever-has-the-strongest/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) [Explore all 184 Robert Harris quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) ## More Astonishing quotes > [It's astonishing what you learn and feel and see along the way. That's why a reporter's job, as you know, is such a joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/it-s-astonishing-what-you-learn-and-feel-and-see-along-the-way-that-s/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [A man may perform astonishing feats and comprehend a vast amount of knowledge, and yet have no understanding of himself. But suffering directs a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-man-may-perform-astonishing-feats-and-comprehend-a-vast-amount-of/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [A first novel of astonishing force, craft and beauty, The Headmaster's Wager conjures up a dizzyingly evocative wartime Saigon in the story of Percival…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-y-k-lee-2/a-first-novel-of-astonishing-force-craft-and-beauty-the-headmaster-s/) Janice Y. K. Lee > [“What is astonishing is that we, who had no idea how anything was going to turn out, now know exactly what happened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/what-is-astonishing-is-that-we-who-had-no-idea-how-anything-was-going/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [It's a great historical joke that when the Spanish met the Aztecs, it was a blind date made in serve-you-right heaven. At the time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill/it-s-a-great-historical-joke-that-when-the-spanish-met-the-aztecs-it/) [A. A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill/) > [It was astonishing when at one point, I got the idea of how to make artifical clouds with a collaborator, we had pictures made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-mandelbrot/it-was-astonishing-when-at-one-point-i-got-the-idea-of-how-to-make/) [Benoit Mandelbrot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-mandelbrot/) > [Although there may be nothing new under the sun, what is old is new to us and so rich and astonishing that we never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/although-there-may-be-nothing-new-under-the-sun-what-is-old-is-new-to/) [Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/) > [The astonishing thing for me is that I had a career before politics and I never thought about my colour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-gyimah/the-astonishing-thing-for-me-is-that-i-had-a-career-before-politics/) [Sam Gyimah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-gyimah/) > [“There is no denying it; one must admit that there is something astonishing about Christianity. 'It is because you were born in it,' they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/there-is-no-denying-it-one-must-admit-that-there-is-something/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [It's Twitter's combination of simplicity and complexity that is astonishing in the same way that minimalist sculpture was inspiring and enlightening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-goldsmith/it-s-twitter-s-combination-of-simplicity-and-complexity-that-is/) [Kenneth Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-goldsmith/) > [All that we don't know is astonishing. Even more astonishing is what passes for knowing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/all-that-we-don-t-know-is-astonishing-even-more-astonishing-is-what/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [Still more astonishing is that world of rigorous fantasy which we call mathematics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-bateson/still-more-astonishing-is-that-world-of-rigorous-fantasy-which-we/) [Gregory Bateson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-bateson/) > [“No one ever said aloud any of the kinds of things he was so constantly thinking, because no one in the parish, not Alice,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-von-arnim/no-one-ever-said-aloud-any-of-the-kinds-of-things-he-was-so/) [Elizabeth von Arnim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-von-arnim/) > [If you worry less about what people think of you, you can pick up an astonishing amount of information about them. You no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-druckerman/if-you-worry-less-about-what-people-think-of-you-you-can-pick-up-an/) [Pamela Druckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-druckerman/) > [The Bureau of Justice reports that one in three black male babies born this century will go to jail or prison - that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-stevenson/the-bureau-of-justice-reports-that-one-in-three-black-male-babies/) [Bryan Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-stevenson/) Browse all 410 Astonishing quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Social mores change all the time. In the mid-1970s, it would've been astonishing, say, to see two men holding hands in the streets. 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