From Peter de Vries, “The Tents of Wickedness”

The task of rearing a child must have taught her a lot. Taught her that the conformity we often glibly equate with mediocrity isn’t something free spirits “transcend” as much as something they’re not quite up to. That convention calls for broader shoulders–and, for all I know, more imagination–than revolt.

–this is in the voice of the comic hero, so he’s kind of a fatuous ass, but the best trick is to put wisdom in the mouths of asses.