--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People retreated behind their front doors…" description: "\"“People retreated behind their front doors into the hidden zone of their private, family worlds and when outsiders asked how things were they answered,..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/848/salman-rushdie-153_family_people-retreated-behind-their-front-door_890629.jpg" --- # People retreated behind their front doors into the hidden… ![“People retreated behind their front doors into the hidden zone of their private, family worlds and when outsiders asked how things were they answered, Oh, everything’s going along just fine, not much to report, situation normal. But everyone secretly knew that behind that door things were rarely…” quote by Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/848/salman-rushdie-153_family_people-retreated-behind-their-front-door_890629.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/848/salman-rushdie-153_family_people-retreated-behind-their-front-door_890629.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/848/salman-rushdie-153_family_people-retreated-behind-their-front-door_890629.jpg) > ““People retreated behind their front doors into the hidden zone of their private, family worlds and when outsiders asked how things were they answered, Oh, everything’s going along just fine, not much to report, situation normal. But everyone secretly knew that behind that door things were rarely humdrum. More typically, all hell was breaking loose, as people dealt with their angry fathers, drunken mothers, resentful siblings, mad aunts, lecherous uncles and crumbling grandparents. The family was not the firm foundation upon which society rested, but stood at the dark chaotic heart of everything that ailed us. It was not normal, but surreal; not humdrum, but filled with event; not ordinary, but bizarre. He remembered with what excitement he had listened, at the age of twenty, to the Reith Lectures delivered on BBC Radio by Edmund Leach, the great anthropologist and interpreter of Claude Lévi-Strauss who, a year earlier, had succeeded Noel Annan as provost of King’s. “Far from being the basis of the good society,” Leach had said, “the family, with its narrow privacy and tawdry secrets, is the source of all our discontents.” Yes! he thought. Yes! That is a thing I also know. The families in the novels he later wrote would be explosive, operatic, arm-waving, exclamatory, wild. People who did not like his books would sometimes criticize these fictional families for being unrealistic—not “ordinary” enough. However, readers who did like his books said to him, “Those families are exactly like my family.”” [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Family dynamics often conceal chaos, making domestic life a source of societal discontent rather than stability. **In simple terms:** Families hide turmoil behind normal appearances. Key Takeaway Recognize hidden family tensions. Themes family society chaos psychology anthropology Mood reflective analytical serious Type observational critical philosophical When to use this quote - counseling - family therapy - literary analysis - social work - personal reflection Key Concepts social structure private vs public self intergenerational conflict Questions to Reflect On - How does your family’s hidden turmoil affect your life? - What strengths can emerge from family chaos? A Different Perspective Families may also provide support and resilience, not just conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Families Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/families-novels-1145262/) [Families Unrealistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/families-unrealistic-1145265/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Family relationships](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family-relationships/) [Fictional Families](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fictional-families-1145263/) [Firm foundation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firm-foundation/) [Front door](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/front-door/) [Front doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/front-doors/) [Private Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/private-family-1145261/) [Said Families](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-families-1145264/) ## Related quotes > [In fictional families - in sitcoms, in dramas - the members are sharing huge amounts of their interior lives. And that has not been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-kay-zuravleff/in-fictional-families-in-sitcoms-in-dramas-the-members-are-sharing/) [Mary Kay Zuravleff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-kay-zuravleff/) > [“And, absolutely, trust me I know, for many families, money is not something to scoff at, it is a primary concern thanks to its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-lee-knape/and-absolutely-trust-me-i-know-for-many-families-money-is-not/) [Jordan Lee Knape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-lee-knape/) > [There is not much less vexation in the government of a private family than in the managing of an entire state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/there-is-not-much-less-vexation-in-the-government-of-a-private-family/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [What is prudence in the conduct of every private family can scarce be folly in that of a great kingdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/what-is-prudence-in-the-conduct-of-every-private-family-can-scarce-be/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [While this has been a private part of my family's life, it is now clear a media story will soon emerge. My father tragically…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-de-blasio/while-this-has-been-a-private-part-of-my-family-s-life-it-is-now/) [Bill de Blasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-de-blasio/) > [There is little less trouble in governing a private family than a whole kingdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/there-is-little-less-trouble-in-governing-a-private-family-than-a/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [There's no more private family than the royal family. People who can really only be themselves with each other. The rest of us just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lithgow/there-s-no-more-private-family-than-the-royal-family-people-who-can/) [John Lithgow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lithgow/) > [A princely mind will undo a private family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-savile/a-princely-mind-will-undo-a-private-family/) [George Savile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-savile/) > [My mom would leave her job, and there would be throngs of people screaming and banging on our car. I come from a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/my-mom-would-leave-her-job-and-there-would-be-throngs-of-people/) [Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/) > [My position on boarding school is that it's a private family matter. I think it also has to do with a child's personal needs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-zarin/my-position-on-boarding-school-is-that-it-s-a-private-family-matter-i/) [Jill Zarin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-zarin/) > [“I can’t just open myself up the way some people can. And down here, you’re raised a certain way. You’re taught to keep some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy-holton/i-can-t-just-open-myself-up-the-way-some-people-can-and-down-here-you/) [Cathy Holton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy-holton/) > [The history of any private family, however humble, could it be fully related for five or six generations, would illustrate the state and progress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/the-history-of-any-private-family-however-humble-could-it-be-fully/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) > [Certain family matters should always remain private within the family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-grammer/certain-family-matters-should-always-remain-private-within-the-family/) [Camille Grammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-grammer/) > [To subject every private family to the odious visits and examination of the tax-gatherers ... would be altogether inconsistent with liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/to-subject-every-private-family-to-the-odious-visits-and-examination/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [“Look for light Listen for inspiration on the wind Let water cleanse your soul Set yourself on a firm foundation Serve as the plants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anasazi-foundation/look-for-light-listen-for-inspiration-on-the-wind-let-water-cleanse/) [Anasazi Foundation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anasazi-foundation/) ## More by Salman Rushdie > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [It's a terrible thing that your life turns into a good story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/it-s-a-terrible-thing-that-your-life-turns-into-a-good-story/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [Sometimes by a woodland stream he watched the water rush over the pebbled bed, its tiny modulations of bounce and flow. A woman's body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/sometimes-by-a-woodland-stream-he-watched-the-water-rush-over-the/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I want to write novels. I want to write stories. I want to do the stuff that I became a writer to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-want-to-write-novels-i-want-to-write-stories-i-want-to-do-the-stuff/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [If you want to be a serious writer, then you have to write what there is to write about. If you're going to pull…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-you-want-to-be-a-serious-writer-then-you-have-to-write-what-there/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Después de exigir mi marcha, ya no posees jurisdicción en lo concerniente a mi salud.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/despu-s-de-exigir-mi-marcha-ya-no-posees-jurisdicci-n-en-lo/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [If there is a choice between absolute safety and freedom, then freedom must always prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-there-is-a-choice-between-absolute-safety-and-freedom-then-freedom/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I'm not a prophet, but I always thought it was natural for dictatorships to fall. I remember in 1989, two months before the fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-not-a-prophet-but-i-always-thought-it-was-natural-for/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I'd wanted to create a storm so that I could become more famous and richer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-d-wanted-to-create-a-storm-so-that-i-could-become-more-famous-and/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [Who what am I? My answer: I am the sum total of everything that went before me, of all I have been seen done,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/who-what-am-i-my-answer-i-am-the-sum-total-of-everything-that-went/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“...proving once again that there was no escape from recurrence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/proving-once-again-that-there-was-no-escape-from-recurrence/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“information, in a stream-of-consciousness soliloquy that revealed the extent to which he had internalised the adversarial fragmentation of American culture and made it a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/information-in-a-stream-of-consciousness-soliloquy-that-revealed-the/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [A little bit of one story joins onto an idea from another, and hey presto, . . . not old tales but new ones.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/a-little-bit-of-one-story-joins-onto-an-idea-from-another-and-hey/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I'm a novelist. Fortunately I don't have to rule the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-a-novelist-fortunately-i-don-t-have-to-rule-the-world/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [The First Amendment defends all forms of speech including hate speech, which is why groups like Ku Klux Klan are allowed to utter their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/the-first-amendment-defends-all-forms-of-speech-including-hate-speech/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) [Explore all 1,087 Salman Rushdie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) ## More Family quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/) [Maureen Andeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-andeson/) > [Our concept of a family holiday was going to a guest house in the Lake district or Wales where walking was part of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-bannister/our-concept-of-a-family-holiday-was-going-to-a-guest-house-in-the/) [Roger Bannister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-bannister/) > [“So Jace is my actual family," Kit said. "But I can't go live with him, because him and his hot girlfriend are going off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/so-jace-is-my-actual-family-kit-said-but-i-can-t-go-live-with-him/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I have friends and family that identify as LGBTQ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mace/i-have-friends-and-family-that-identify-as-lgbtq/) [Nancy Mace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mace/) > [Her dignity consists in being unknown to the world; her glory is in the esteem of her husband; her pleasures in the happiness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/her-dignity-consists-in-being-unknown-to-the-world-her-glory-is-in/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/) [Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/) > [“She knew how to play him so very well. He slipped his hand around hers. "Friends," he repeated roughly. Her smile was bright enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-smith/she-knew-how-to-play-him-so-very-well-he-slipped-his-hand-around-hers/) [Kathryn Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-smith/) > [As a family, we all loved the Flyers. To me, rooting for the Flyers were how I bonded with my dad especially.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-f-goldberg/as-a-family-we-all-loved-the-flyers-to-me-rooting-for-the-flyers-were/) [Adam F. Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-f-goldberg/) > [The people have always been family to me here in Las Vegas. The people have always been very, very kind to me, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-cunningham/the-people-have-always-been-family-to-me-here-in-las-vegas-the-people/) [Randall Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-cunningham/) > [“Your relationship with your brother will be, in many ways, the most complex and bewildering of all the interpersonal connections you will form. An…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-currie-jr/your-relationship-with-your-brother-will-be-in-many-ways-the-most/) [Ron Currie Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-currie-jr/) > [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [Family over friends, because real friends are family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/family-over-friends-because-real-friends-are-family/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 36,913 Family quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“People retreated behind their front doors into the hidden zone of their private, family worlds and when outsiders asked how things were they answered, Oh, everything’s going along just fine, not much to report, situation normal. But everyone secretly knew that behind that door things were rarely humdrum. More typically, all hell was breaking loose, as people dealt with their angry fathers, drunken mothers, resentful siblings, mad aunts, lecherous uncles and crumbling grandparents. The family was not the firm foundation upon which society rested, but stood at the dark chaotic heart of everything that ailed us. It was not normal, but surreal; not humdrum, but filled with event; not ordinary, but bizarre. He remembered with what excitement he had listened, at the age of twenty, to the Reith Lectures delivered on BBC Radio by Edmund Leach, the great anthropologist and interpreter of Claude Lévi-Strauss who, a year earlier, had succeeded Noel Annan as provost of King’s. “Far from being the basis of the good society,” Leach had said, “the family, with its narrow privacy and tawdry secrets, is the source of all our discontents.” Yes! he thought. Yes! That is a thing I also know. The families in the novels he later wrote would be explosive, operatic, arm-waving, exclamatory, wild. People who did not like his books would sometimes criticize these fictional families for being unrealistic—not “ordinary” enough. 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