I have always regarded as a stroke of good fortune that I was not born or brought up in a small American town; they may be the backbone of the nation, but they are also the backbone of ignorance, bigotry, and boredom, all in vast quantities.
Interpretation
The author values the diversity of experiences over the limitations often found in small, homogeneous towns.
Gore Vidal's quote reflects his belief that being raised outside of a small American town spared him from the ignorance and narrow-mindedness that can flourish in such insular environments. While he acknowledges that small towns play a critical role in American culture, he critiques their tendency to foster bigotry and a lack of intellectual stimulation, suggesting that a broader worldview is essential for personal growth.
In practice
In a debate about urban versus rural upbringing, one might quote Gore Vidal to emphasize the importance of exposure to diverse perspectives.
We must declare ourselves, become known; allow the world to discover this subterranean life of ours which connects kings and farm boys, artists and clerks. Let them see that the important thing is not the object of love, but the emotion itself.
American writers want to be not good but great; and so are neither.
Writing fiction has become a priestly business in countries that have lost their faith.
The important thing is not the object of love, but the emotion itself.
For the average American, freedom of speech is simply the freedom to repeat what everyone else is saying and no more.
Ayn Rand's 'philosophy' is nearly perfect in its immorality, which makes the size of her audience all the more ominous and symptomatic as we enter a curious new phase in our society.... To justify and extol human greed and egotism is to my mind not only immoral, but evil.
The Devil has the broadest perspectives for God; therefore, he keeps so far away from God -- the Devil being the most ancient friend of wisdom
When the tyrant has disposed of foreign enemies by conquest or treaty, and there is nothing more to fear from them, then he is always stirring up some war or other, in order that the people may require a leader.
Without self knowledge, without understanding the working and functions of his machine, man cannot be free, he cannot govern himself and he will always remain a slave.
When you know that everything happens for the best, then everything that happens is okay with you. The irony of this is that when everything that happens is okay with you, you set up an energy field of such equanimity and harmony with the universe that the universal law of attraction draws more equanimity and harmony into your life.
A person's a person, no matter how small.
Freedom would be not to choose between black and white but to abjure such prescribed choices.
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