What happened in New York and Washington and abroad seemed to impinge not at all upon the Sacramento min. I remember being taken to call upon a very old woman, a rancher's widow, who was reminiscing {the favored conversational mode in Sacramento} about the son of some contemporaries of hers. 'That Johnston boy never did amount to much,' she said. Desultorily, my mother protested: Alva Johnston, she said, had won the Pulitzer Prize, when he was working for The New York Times. Our hostess looked at us impassively. 'He never amounted to anything in Sacramento,' she said.
by Joan Didion
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In Joan Didion's "Slouching Towards Bethlehem," she reflects on the disconnection between significant national events and the local mindset in Sacramento. An anecdote shares her visit to an elderly rancher's widow who reminisces about her past, revealing a focus on local figures that diminishes the achievements recognized elsewhere. Her dismissal of Alva Johnston's Pulitzer Prize-winning career at The New York Times exemplifies a localized perspective that values community over national success.

Didion's experience illustrates a cultural divide where accomplishments outside Sacramento seem irrelevant to its residents. The woman’s insistence that Johnston 'never amounted to anything' highlights how local perceptions can overshadow broader accomplishments, emphasizing a theme of insularity. Such moments reveal the complexities of identity and recognition, suggesting that one's value can be deeply tied to their immediate environment, regardless of larger achievements.

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January 29, 2025

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