Americans often have trouble enjoying the present moment.

quote by Alan Dundes
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Americans have a penchant for the future and tend to disregard the past.

quote by Alan Dundes
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Life, it seems, is nothing if not a series of initiations, transitions, and incorporations.

quote by Alan Dundes
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Americans do believe in progress and there is almost certainly a kernel of truth in the joke.

quote by Alan Dundes
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Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

quote by Alan Dundes
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Future orientation is combined with a notion and expectation of progress, and nothing is impossible.

quote by Alan Dundes
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My academic identity is that of a folklorist, and for many years I have taught only folklore courses.

quote by Alan Dundes
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I mentioned that one of the tripartite formulas in American worldview involves time: past, present, and future.

quote by Alan Dundes
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There is more to folklore research than fieldwork. This is why in all of my other upper-division courses I require a term paper involving original research.

quote by Alan Dundes
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Ancestor worship, or filial piety so characteristic of Asian cultures, for example, does not really resonate with Americans who favor children, not grandparents.

quote by Alan Dundes
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