--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There’s the big advantage of…" description: "\"“There’s the big advantage of backwardness. By the time the latest ideas reach Chicago, they’re worn thin and easy to see through. You don’t have to bo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/993/saul-bellow-558_backwardness_there-s-the-big-advantage-of-backwardnes_2329163.jpg" --- # There’s the big advantage of backwardness. By the time the… ![“There’s the big advantage of backwardness. By the time the latest ideas reach Chicago, they’re worn thin and easy to see through. You don’t have to bother with them and it saves lots of trouble.” quote by Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/993/saul-bellow-558_backwardness_there-s-the-big-advantage-of-backwardnes_2329163.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/993/saul-bellow-558_backwardness_there-s-the-big-advantage-of-backwardnes_2329163.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/993/saul-bellow-558_backwardness_there-s-the-big-advantage-of-backwardnes_2329163.jpg) > ““There’s the big advantage of backwardness. By the time the latest ideas reach Chicago, they’re worn thin and easy to see through. You don’t have to bother with them and it saves lots of trouble.”” [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Being behind the curve lets you see trends after they fade, making them easier to evaluate and avoid. **In simple terms:** Lagging behind can reveal flaws in new ideas. Key Takeaway Use distance to critique fresh concepts. Themes critical thinking innovation skepticism Mood cautious analytical Type observational critical When to use this quote - business strategy - media analysis - technology adoption Key Concepts cultural lag idea diffusion Questions to Reflect On - How do you decide when an old idea is still useful? - What risks come from dismissing new ideas? A Different Perspective Older ideas may still be relevant; timing matters. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Backwardness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/backwardness/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“The equating of primitive culture with backwardness has been so ingrained in the popular mind that even so-called civilized Indians on the lowest, most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-wallace/the-equating-of-primitive-culture-with-backwardness-has-been-so/) [Scott Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-wallace/) > [“The transmogrification of Islam into Islamism is bad news not only for the West but also for the majority of Muslims who have no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-r-reilly/the-transmogrification-of-islam-into-islamism-is-bad-news-not-only/) [Robert R. 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We were then, and probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-anthony/we-pfliegmans-however-are-incapable-of-imagining-anything-from-the/) [Jessica Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-anthony/) > [“The currents of modern civilization had somehow passed it by, and as he returned to it now, fresh from the sides of England and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orlando-figes/the-currents-of-modern-civilization-had-somehow-passed-it-by-and-as/) [Orlando Figes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orlando-figes/) > [Any revolution which denies the right to criticize is bound to wallow in stagnation and backwardness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-antonio-cuadra/any-revolution-which-denies-the-right-to-criticize-is-bound-to-wallow/) Pablo Antonio Cuadra > [A long time ago I learned not to put the blame for backwardness in Brazil on the US. We have to blame ourselves. 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Most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-c-wrede/william-didn-t-look-like-he-d-be-difficult-about-anything-he-was-thin/) [Patricia C. Wrede](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-c-wrede/) > [These joys were so trifling as to be as imperceptible as grains of gold among the sand, and in moments of depression she saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/these-joys-were-so-trifling-as-to-be-as-imperceptible-as-grains-of/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > ['Mad TV' is one of my most favorite shows of all time and is a huge part of my obsession with sketch comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-dawson/mad-tv-is-one-of-my-most-favorite-shows-of-all-time-and-is-a-huge/) [Shane Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-dawson/) ## More by Saul Bellow > [... a fellow can't predict what he will pick up in the form of influence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/a-fellow-can-t-predict-what-he-will-pick-up-in-the-form-of-influence/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [If I'm out of my mind, it's all right with me, thought Moses Herzog.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/if-i-m-out-of-my-mind-it-s-all-right-with-me-thought-moses-herzog/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [I have begun in old age to understand just how oddly we are all put together. We are so proud of our autonomy that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/i-have-begun-in-old-age-to-understand-just-how-oddly-we-are-all-put/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“On Broadway it was still bright afternoon and the gassy air was almost motionless under the leaden spokes of sunlight, and sawdust footprints lay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/on-broadway-it-was-still-bright-afternoon-and-the-gassy-air-was/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [There are evils that have the ability to survive identification and go on for ever... money, for instance, or war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/there-are-evils-that-have-the-ability-to-survive-identification-and/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [Myself is thus and so, and will continue thus and so. And why fight it? My balance comes from instability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/myself-is-thus-and-so-and-will-continue-thus-and-so-and-why-fight-it/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“A strange heart. I myself can't account for it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/a-strange-heart-i-myself-can-t-account-for-it/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [The late philosopher Morris R. Cohen of CCNY was asked by a student in the metaphysics course, Professor Cohen, how do I know that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/the-late-philosopher-morris-r-cohen-of-ccny-was-asked-by-a-student-in/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [“Therefore we didn't talk of genuine things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/therefore-we-didn-t-talk-of-genuine-things/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [Is our species crazy? 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And this is the root of the struggle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/for-knowledge-of-death-makes-us-wish-to-extend-our-lives-at-the/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) [Explore all 464 Saul Bellow quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) ## More Backwardness quotes > [The backwardness of our religious and social developments is undoubtedly holding back the development of the intellectual and political levels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carroll-quigley/the-backwardness-of-our-religious-and-social-developments-is/) [Carroll Quigley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carroll-quigley/) > [The totalitarian world produces backwardness because it does such violence to the spirit, thwarting the human impulse to create, to enjoy, to worship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/the-totalitarian-world-produces-backwardness-because-it-does-such/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [A long time ago I learned not to put the blame for backwardness in Brazil on the US. 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We were then, and probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-anthony/we-pfliegmans-however-are-incapable-of-imagining-anything-from-the/) [Jessica Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-anthony/) > [Numberless marks does man bear in his soul, that he is fallen and estranged from God; but nothing gives a greater proof thereof, than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-whitefield/numberless-marks-does-man-bear-in-his-soul-that-he-is-fallen-and/) [George Whitefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-whitefield/) > [The huge advantage of Canada is its backwardness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/the-huge-advantage-of-canada-is-its-backwardness/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [“The transmogrification of Islam into Islamism is bad news not only for the West but also for the majority of Muslims who have no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-r-reilly/the-transmogrification-of-islam-into-islamism-is-bad-news-not-only/) [Robert R. Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-r-reilly/) > [“The equating of primitive culture with backwardness has been so ingrained in the popular mind that even so-called civilized Indians on the lowest, most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-wallace/the-equating-of-primitive-culture-with-backwardness-has-been-so/) [Scott Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-wallace/) [Browse all 11 Backwardness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/backwardness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There’s the big advantage of backwardness. By the time the latest ideas reach Chicago, they’re worn thin and easy to see through. 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