"The subtlest change in New York is something people don't speak much about but that is in everyone's mind. The city, for the first time in its long history, is destructible. A single flight of planes no bigger than a wedge of geese can quickly end this island fantasy, burn the towers, crumble the bridges, turn the underground passages into lethal chambers, cremate the millions. The intimation of mortality is part of New York now: in the sounds of jets overhead, in the black headlines of the latest edition. All dwellers in cities must dwell with the stubborn fact of annihilation; in New York the fact is somewhat more concentrated because of the concentration of the city itself and because, of all targets, New York has a certain clear priority. In the mind of whatever perverted dreamer who might loose the lightning, New York must hold a steady, irresistible charm."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
E.B. White, "Here Is New York," Holiday (1948); reprinted in Here is New York (1949)
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/New_York_City
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
New York City
149 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by New York City →
Related Quotes
"Nothing remains static in New York City."
"You know what’s great about New York? The threshold for citizenship as a New Yorker is actually pretty short. If you …"
"A certified geezer is also freer to express displeasure. Once I was walking in midtown Manhattan at rush hour, and I …"
"Two invasive species in particular have caused serious concern: Burmese pythons, and New Yorkers. The New Yorkers hav…"
"Everybody ought to have a lower East Side in their life."
"The global role of the United States is perhaps the ultimate chapter in that long period of European expansion which …"
"Where I come from, the rules were relatively simple... Don't look for trouble, because in New York you can always fin…"
"Just where the Treasury's marble front * Looks over Wall Street's mingled nations,— Where Jews and Gentiles most are …"
"I'll give you another example of what I'm talking about. We've traveled extensively in the United States, and our son…"
"I can't see heaven but I credit hell — I live in New York so I know it well."