After I won the Newbery Medal for 'From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler,' children all over the world let me know that they liked books that take them to unusual places where they meet unusual people.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
The essential problems remain the same... The kids I write about are asking for the same things I wanted. They want two contradictory things. They want to be the same as everyone else, and they want to be different from everyone else. They want acceptance for both.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Children desire both individuality and acceptance within a group.
In this quote, E. L. Konigsburg captures the universal struggle faced by children—balancing the innate desire to fit in with their peers while simultaneously wanting to stand out and express their uniqueness. This duality reflects a fundamental aspect of human nature, where the need for belonging conflicts with the desire for personal identity and expression.
Themes
AcceptanceIndividualityBelongingChildrenIdentity
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about youth development, I might say, 'As E. L. Konigsburg insightfully notes, children seek both acceptance and individuality.'
More from E. L. Konigsburg
All quotes →I'm not sure that love and like aren't like cats and dogs: One can't grow up to be the other, but they can be taught to live under the same roof.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
I think most of us are outsiders. And I think that's good because it makes you question things.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
Art comes from a visceral need and is usually generated by something I have seen; writing comes from something that happens in my head and my heart.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
Every now and then, a person must do something simply because he wants to, because it seems to him worth doing. And that does not make it worthless or a waste of time.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
Finish. The difference between being a writer and being a person of talent is the discipline it takes to apply the seat of your pants to the seat of your chair and finish. Don't talk about doing it. Do it. Finish.
E. L. KonigsburgRead
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