--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: America had shifted from what influential…" description: "\"America had shifted from what influential cultural historian Warren Susman called a culture of character to a culture of personality, and opened up a P..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/273/susan-cain-647_america_america-had-shifted-from-what-influentia_2074232.jpg" --- # America had shifted from what influential cultural… ![“America had shifted from what influential cultural historian Warren Susman called a culture of character to a culture of personality, and opened up a Pandora's box of personal anxieties of which we would never recover.” quote by Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/273/susan-cain-647_america_america-had-shifted-from-what-influentia_2074232.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/273/susan-cain-647_america_america-had-shifted-from-what-influentia_2074232.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/273/susan-cain-647_america_america-had-shifted-from-what-influentia_2074232.jpg) > “America had shifted from what influential cultural historian Warren Susman called a culture of character to a culture of personality, and opened up a Pandora's box of personal anxieties of which we would never recover.” [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society moved from valuing character to valuing personality, creating widespread anxieties that are hard to overcome. **In simple terms:** Culture shifted from character to personality, causing anxieties. Key Takeaway Cultivate character over fleeting trends. Themes culture shift anxiety identity social pressure Mood thoughtful analytical Type social philosophical When to use this quote - workplace - education - media - personal development Key Concepts introversion values collective psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you maintain integrity amid social pressures? - What character traits do you cherish? A Different Perspective Personality can be empowering too. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Anxiety](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anxiety/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Pandora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pandora/) [Pandora 's box](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pandora-s-box/) [Pandora's Box](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pandoras-box/) [Personality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personality/) ## Related quotes > [“America had shifted from what the influential cultural historian Warren Susman called a Culture of Character to a Culture of Personality—and opened up a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/america-had-shifted-from-what-the-influential-cultural-historian-2/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“America had shifted from what the influential cultural historian Warren Susman called a Culture of Character to a Culture of Personality”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/america-had-shifted-from-what-the-influential-cultural-historian/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“At the onset of the Culture of Personality, we were urged to develop an extroverted personality for frankly selfish reasons—as a way of outshining…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/at-the-onset-of-the-culture-of-personality-we-were-urged-to-develop/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [I have a lot of personal anxieties and Ive realized that playing a character stuck in a life-or-death situation like this allows me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-eisenberg/i-have-a-lot-of-personal-anxieties-and-ive-realized-that-playing-a/) [Jesse Eisenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-eisenberg/) > [What does it say about our culture that personality is now considered a technology, a tool of the trade, not only in politics but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-gore/what-does-it-say-about-our-culture-that-personality-is-now-considered/) Albert Gore > [The cool thing about doing a voice-over into a different language is that you get to bring the character of your own culture into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridgit-mendler/the-cool-thing-about-doing-a-voice-over-into-a-different-language-is/) [Bridgit Mendler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridgit-mendler/) > [“My kinfolks thought more about character than about culture. They said culture could be acquired but character had to be formed. Character had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-robertson/my-kinfolks-thought-more-about-character-than-about-culture-they-said/) [Ben Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-robertson/) > [It seems reasonable to expect that beauty will emerge from a fusion of the individual character and culture of the potter,with the nature of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-leach/it-seems-reasonable-to-expect-that-beauty-will-emerge-from-a-fusion/) Bernard Leach > [When I was growing up, I didn't realize that the idiosyncrasies of my mother's character had something to do with our culture. After growing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-zauner/when-i-was-growing-up-i-didn-t-realize-that-the-idiosyncrasies-of-my/) [Michelle Zauner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-zauner/) > [Women are mere "beauties" in men's culture so that culture can be kept male. When women in culture show character, they are not desirable,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/women-are-mere-beauties-in-men-s-culture-so-that-culture-can-be-kept-2/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [Also, worldbuilding touches all aspects of your story. It touches plot and character as well. If you don't know the culture your character comes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/also-worldbuilding-touches-all-aspects-of-your-story-it-touches-plot/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [The foundation of culture, as of character, is at last the moral sentiment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-foundation-of-culture-as-of-character-is-at-last-the-moral/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“Women are mere "beauties" in men's culture so that culture can be kept male. When women in culture show character, they are not desirable,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/women-are-mere-beauties-in-men-s-culture-so-that-culture-can-be-kept/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [Winning begins with culture and character matters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vlade-divac/winning-begins-with-culture-and-character-matters/) [Vlade Divac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vlade-divac/) > [“Pandora opened the box with the new high-heels, put them on and went out to town.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ljupka-cvetanova/pandora-opened-the-box-with-the-new-high-heels-put-them-on-and-went/) [Ljupka Cvetanova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ljupka-cvetanova/) ## More by Susan Cain > [“Proverbs from the East: The wind howls, but the mountain remains still. Even though I make no special attempt to observe the discipline of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/proverbs-from-the-east-the-wind-howls-but-the-mountain-remains-still/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“where we fall on the introvert-extrovert spectrum. Our place on this continuum influences our choice of friends and mates, and how we make conversation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/where-we-fall-on-the-introvert-extrovert-spectrum-our-place-on-this/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“I worry that there are people who are put in positions of authority because they’re good talkers, but they don’t have good ideas,” he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/i-worry-that-there-are-people-who-are-put-in-positions-of-authority/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“He believes, as most of us do, that venting anger lets off steam. The “catharsis hypothesis”—that aggression builds up inside us until it’s healthily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/he-believes-as-most-of-us-do-that-venting-anger-lets-off-steam-the/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“Soft power is not limited to moral exemplars like Mahatma Gandhi. Consider, for example, the much-ballyhooed excellence of Asians in fields like math and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/soft-power-is-not-limited-to-moral-exemplars-like-mahatma-gandhi/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“Events like this don't give me the sense of oneness others seem to enjoy; it's always been private occasions that make me feel connected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/events-like-this-don-t-give-me-the-sense-of-oneness-others-seem-to/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“Social anxiety disorder”—which essentially means pathological shyness—is now thought to afflict nearly one in five of us. The most recent version of the Diagnostic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/social-anxiety-disorder-which-essentially-means-pathological-shyness/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“Potential clients would walk out of Charlie’s office scared”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/potential-clients-would-walk-out-of-charlie-s-office-scared/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“So when introverts assume the observer role, as when they write novels, or contemplate unified field theory- or fall quiet at dinner parties- they’re…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/so-when-introverts-assume-the-observer-role-as-when-they-write-novels/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“Osborn’s theory had great impact, and company leaders took up brainstorming with enthusiasm. To this day, it’s common for anyone who spends time in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/osborn-s-theory-had-great-impact-and-company-leaders-took-up/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [Extroversion is an enormously appealing personality style, but we've turned it into an oppressive standard to which most of us feel we must conform.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/extroversion-is-an-enormously-appealing-personality-style-but-we-ve/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“But as the word satyagraha implies, Gandhi’s passivity was not weakness at all. It meant focusing on an ultimate goal and refusing to divert…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/but-as-the-word-satyagraha-implies-gandhi-s-passivity-was-not/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“The Extrovert Ideal has been documented in many studies, though this research has never been grouped under a single name. Talkative people, for example,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/the-extrovert-ideal-has-been-documented-in-many-studies-though-this/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“introverts prefer to work independently, and solitude can be a catalyst to innovation. As the influential psychologist Hans Eysenck once observed, introversion “concentrates the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/introverts-prefer-to-work-independently-and-solitude-can-be-a/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [ “People who tend to \[suppress their negative emotions\] regularly,” concludes Grob, “might start to see the world in a more negative light.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/people-who-tend-to-suppress-their-negative-emotions-regularly/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) [Explore all 428 Susan Cain quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "America had shifted from what influential cultural historian Warren Susman called a culture of character to a culture of personality, and opened up a Pandora's box of personal anxieties of which we would never recover.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Susan Cain" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/america-had-shifted-from-what-influential-cultural-historian-warren/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "America" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/america-had-shifted-from-what-influential-cultural-historian-warren/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/273/susan-cain-647_america_america-had-shifted-from-what-influentia_2074232.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/273/susan-cain-647_america_america-had-shifted-from-what-influentia_2074232.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/273/susan-cain-647_america_america-had-shifted-from-what-influentia_2074232.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“America had shifted from what influential cultural historian Warren Susman called a culture of character to…” — Susan Cain", "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": "Susan Cain", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "America had shifted from what influential...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/america-had-shifted-from-what-influential-cultural-historian-warren/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/america-had-shifted-from-what-influential-cultural-historian-warren/#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 } } ] } ```