Never let yourself get a hat that is narrowed than your cheekbones, because it makes you look ridiculous.”
-- Susan Bean Perkins (The Summoned Self)

Importance: This quote represents the strict Yankee culture that Frances Perkins was brought up in. Rather than protecting Frances’s feelings, her mother focuses on telling her daughter her honest opinions. While this brutal honesty may feel cold or mean to modern readers, at the time it was seen as the best way to rear a child — by confronting him or her with an accurate depiction of his or her weaknesses. Rather than being an attack, however, this admonishment is meant to benefit the child as he or she grows up. This attitude shapes Frances’s world view, and as she grows up she becomes staunch in her causes and able to dedicate her life to social reform without shying away from harsh truths and difficult situations. This upbringing, simply put, brings her...