If you have the guts to be yourself, other people'll pay your price.
John UpdikeRead
To guarantee the individual maximum freedom within a social frame of minimal laws ensures - if not happiness - its hopeful pursuit.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote suggests that individual freedom thrives best within a society that has few laws, leading to a hopeful pursuit of happiness.
John Updike highlights the importance of balancing individual freedom with societal structures. He implies that a minimal legal framework allows individuals to explore their desires and aspirations without excessive restrictions, which can lead to a hopeful pursuit of happiness. The essence of the quote is that while laws are necessary, they should not encroach upon personal liberties to the extent that they stifle one's ability to seek a fulfilling life.
Themes
FreedomLawsHappinessSocietyIndividualism
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate about government regulations, this quote can be used to emphasize the importance of personal freedom.
More from John Updike
All quotes →Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of. _x000D_ _x000D_ Suspect each moment, for it is a thief, tiptoeing away with more than it brings.
John UpdikeRead
Museums and bookstores should feel, I think, like vacant lots - places where the demands on us are our own demands, where the spirit can find exercise in unsupervised play.
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But it is just two lovers, holding hands and in a hurry to reach their car, their locked hands a starfish leaping through the dark.
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The reader knows the writer better than he knows himself; but the writer's physical presence is light from a star that has moved on.
John UpdikeRead
Most of American life consists of driving somewhere and then returning home, wondering why the hell you went.
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