It is by all odds the loftiest of cities. It even managed to reach the highest point in the sky at the lowest moment of the depression.
E. B. WhiteRead
By comparison with other less hectic days, the city is unconfortable and inconvenient; but New Yorkers tempramentally do not crave comfort and convenience - if they did they would live elsewhere.
Interpretation
What this quote means
New Yorkers value the vibrancy and energy of city life over comfort.
E. B. White highlights that the discomfort and inconvenience of city living are accepted by New Yorkers as part of their lifestyle. Instead of seeking comfort, they embrace the unique challenges and lively atmosphere that urban life offers, suggesting a philosophical acceptance of the complexities of life in a bustling city.
Themes
New YorkCity LifeDiscomfortPhilosophyVibrancy
In practice
Example use cases
To describe the relentless pace of urban living when motivating colleagues to embrace challenges on the job.
More from E. B. White
All quotes →It isn't silence you can cut with a knife any more, it's interchange of ideas. Intelligent discussion of practically everything is what is breaking up modern marriage.
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The main thing I try to do is write as clearly as I can. Because I have the greatest respect for the reader, and if he's going to the trouble of reading what I've written -- I'm a slow reader myself and I guess most people are -- why, the least I can do is make it as easy as possible for him to find out what I'm trying to say, trying to get at. I rewrite a good deal to make it clear.
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A good farmer is nothing more nor less than a handy man with a sense of humus.
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A despot doesn't fear eloquent writers preaching freedom- he fears a drunken poet who may crack a joke that will take hold.
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All writing is communication; creative writing is communication through revelation-it is the Self-escaping into the open.
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