--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think it's true about people now being…" description: "\"I think it's true about people now being closer to their parents, since the '60s, really. The parents are no longer from a different planet, the 1950s ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/223/tama-janowitz-19512_american-family_i-think-it-s-true-about-people-now-being_1458865.png" --- # I think it's true about people now being closer to their… ![“I think it's true about people now being closer to their parents, since the '60s, really. The parents are no longer from a different planet, the 1950s ideas of American family. We could be friends with our parents. After the '60s, it wasn't like a person smoking pot was what the parents would be…” quote by Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/223/tama-janowitz-19512_american-family_i-think-it-s-true-about-people-now-being_1458865.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/223/tama-janowitz-19512_american-family_i-think-it-s-true-about-people-now-being_1458865.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/223/tama-janowitz-19512_american-family_i-think-it-s-true-about-people-now-being_1458865.png) > “I think it's true about people now being closer to their parents, since the '60s, really. The parents are no longer from a different planet, the 1950s ideas of American family. We could be friends with our parents. After the '60s, it wasn't like a person smoking pot was what the parents would be appalled at.” [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Modern families are more emotionally close, sharing values and lifestyles across generations, unlike the distant, hierarchical model of the 1950s. **In simple terms:** Families are now more like friends. Key Takeaway Embrace open communication with parents. Themes family dynamics generational change social norms Mood reflective hopeful Type observational social commentary When to use this quote - family gatherings - parent‑child counseling - multigenerational households - conflict resolution Key Concepts intergenerational intimacy cultural shift parent‑child relationships Questions to Reflect On - How can we bridge lingering 1950s attitudes? - What habits foster mutual respect across ages? A Different Perspective Older generations may still hold lingering biases that hinder true equality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-family/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Smoking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smoking/) [Smoking pot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smoking-pot/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [I have heard people say that they felt closer to their parents after they have died. 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Their parents had told them to stay away from me, because they said I was crazy, I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudette-colvin/i-lost-most-of-my-friends-their-parents-had-told-them-to-stay-away/) [Claudette Colvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudette-colvin/) > [It's hard to leave New York: this is where my friends are, my parents are. It is so vital. The whole world seems to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-ames/it-s-hard-to-leave-new-york-this-is-where-my-friends-are-my-parents/) [Jonathan Ames](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-ames/) > [My friends' parents who were in the Marines, they were the people I looked up to the most. I looked up to them as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-carmouche/my-friends-parents-who-were-in-the-marines-they-were-the-people-i/) [Liz Carmouche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-carmouche/) > [When I come home, I am literally the most popular person with my friends' parents for doing 'The Archers.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/when-i-come-home-i-am-literally-the-most-popular-person-with-my/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) > [The one thing that was nice about being an only child is that my friends' parents would always ask me whether I would want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexa-bliss/the-one-thing-that-was-nice-about-being-an-only-child-is-that-my/) [Alexa Bliss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexa-bliss/) > [I'm always interested to meet my friends' parents, or who they were raised by. Where they grew up, I always find very interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-bett-rickards/i-m-always-interested-to-meet-my-friends-parents-or-who-they-were/) [Emily Bett Rickards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-bett-rickards/) > [If you don't go through life making excuses, you save yourself, your friends, and parents a lot of trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaun-livingston/if-you-don-t-go-through-life-making-excuses-you-save-yourself-your/) [Shaun Livingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaun-livingston/) > [For years before I became a father, I would try to spend as much time as I could with my friends who were parents…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/for-years-before-i-became-a-father-i-would-try-to-spend-as-much-time/) [Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/) > [“Shane never knew how to address her friends' parents. She wanted to call her Mrs. Eliot's Mom, but knew that the cutesiness would not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomm-quackenbush/shane-never-knew-how-to-address-her-friends-parents-she-wanted-to/) [Thomm Quackenbush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomm-quackenbush/) > [I have skated when I was a child, but it was just with our friends and our parents, no special technique.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saara-aalto/i-have-skated-when-i-was-a-child-but-it-was-just-with-our-friends-and/) [Saara Aalto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saara-aalto/) ## More by Tama Janowitz > [Why would I want to read something about somebody that's just a really nice, decent person who overcomes terrible trials? That's not how life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/why-would-i-want-to-read-something-about-somebody-that-s-just-a/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [“I don't like him...he makes me feel like he's going to throw me in a coffin and walk around on top of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/i-don-t-like-him-he-makes-me-feel-like-he-s-going-to-throw-me-in-a/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [The older a woman gets, the more invisible you become.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/the-older-a-woman-gets-the-more-invisible-you-become/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [Brownstein's is a fresh and jaunty voice, with a jazz snap all his own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/brownstein-s-is-a-fresh-and-jaunty-voice-with-a-jazz-snap-all-his-own/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [I felt my whole life was a facsimile of a life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/i-felt-my-whole-life-was-a-facsimile-of-a-life/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [I was like a social worker for lepers. My clients had a chunk of their body they wanted to give away; for a price…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/i-was-like-a-social-worker-for-lepers-my-clients-had-a-chunk-of-their/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [If you want to write about a person who isn't nice, people say, "This is a bad book. It's about somebody I couldn't stand."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/if-you-want-to-write-about-a-person-who-isn-t-nice-people-say-this-is/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [I think in a lot of ways, writing, when you're really in there, is like being an actress because you're in somebody else's head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/i-think-in-a-lot-of-ways-writing-when-you-re-really-in-there-is-like/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [I'm writing what I want to write. But it's almost an act of rebellion on my part. Because as a person, I've always wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/i-m-writing-what-i-want-to-write-but-it-s-almost-an-act-of-rebellion/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [Long after the bomb falls and you and your good deeds are gone, cockroaches will still be here, prowling the streets like armored cars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/long-after-the-bomb-falls-and-you-and-your-good-deeds-are-gone/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [“I had a hunger for things I knew realistically I didn't actually care for.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/i-had-a-hunger-for-things-i-knew-realistically-i-didn-t-actually-care/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [Whether I'm critically well received, whether or not I sell books - of course it becomes progressively harder to get them published - nevertheless,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/whether-i-m-critically-well-received-whether-or-not-i-sell-books-of/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [Most of my life is just spent lying in bed. I mean, it's enough pressure to write the words. Do I need to use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/most-of-my-life-is-just-spent-lying-in-bed-i-mean-it-s-enough/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [I think it's more difficult writing what it's like to be a child. You can pretend you know what it's like, but you don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/i-think-it-s-more-difficult-writing-what-it-s-like-to-be-a-child-you/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [I think powerful women don't care whether or not they're liked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/i-think-powerful-women-don-t-care-whether-or-not-they-re-liked/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) [Explore all 32 Tama Janowitz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) ## More American family quotes > [In comparative terms, there's no poverty in America by a long shot. Heritage Foundation political scientist Robert Rector has worked up figures showing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/in-comparative-terms-there-s-no-poverty-in-america-by-a-long-shot/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [We want American families to feel more confident in life. We want the next generation to know that yes, the best days of this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/we-want-american-families-to-feel-more-confident-in-life-we-want-the/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [“At the very same time that we witnessed the explosion of white celebrity moms, and the outpouring of advice to a surveillance of middle-class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-j-douglas/at-the-very-same-time-that-we-witnessed-the-explosion-of-white/) [Susan J. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-j-douglas/) > [To my way of thinking, the American family started to decline when parents began to communicate with their children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/to-my-way-of-thinking-the-american-family-started-to-decline-when/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [“We are taken through the pursuit of the American dream, the establishment of the American family, and a smattering of suspense and intrigue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-allgire/we-are-taken-through-the-pursuit-of-the-american-dream-the/) Nikita Allgire > [Now we have black and white elected officials working together. Today, we have gone beyond just passing laws. Now we have to create a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lewis/now-we-have-black-and-white-elected-officials-working-together-today/) [John Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lewis/) > [I was completely naive about the business of being an actor. My family didn't go to the theater or to the movies. We watched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-mcdormand/i-was-completely-naive-about-the-business-of-being-an-actor-my-family/) [Frances McDormand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-mcdormand/) > [“...when President Clinton, on the anniversary of his election, spoke in the church in Tennessee where Martin Luther King, Jr., had delivered his last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-himmelfarb/when-president-clinton-on-the-anniversary-of-his-election-spoke-in/) [Gertrude Himmelfarb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-himmelfarb/) > [We had a very upwardly mobile economy, and that peaked around the 1950s when the typical middle-class American family consisted of a father with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/we-had-a-very-upwardly-mobile-economy-and-that-peaked-around-the/) [Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/) > [The truth is that family values, as used by the American Family Association, Dan Quayle, and the southern Baptists, has nothing to do with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-sullivan/the-truth-is-that-family-values-as-used-by-the-american-family/) Morris Sullivan > [When I was a kid I got so much help from the Church. 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We will see what happens, but this is a difficult topic that touches every American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-blunt/i-think-health-care-reform-is-challenging-and-challenged-we-will-see/) [Roy Blunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-blunt/) > [You hear a lot of dialogue on the death of the American family. Families aren't dying. They're merging into big conglomerates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/you-hear-a-lot-of-dialogue-on-the-death-of-the-american-family/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) [Browse all 155 American family quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-family/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think it's true about people now being closer to their parents, since the '60s, really. The parents are no longer from a different planet, the 1950s ideas of American family. We could be friends with our parents. 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