They played by the rules, mainly because they did not want to appear to be selfish and arrogant. They worried about what the neighbors thought. That could be overdone, Lord knows.
Mindless conformity does tend to suffocate the self.
But at least a consciousness of others, some slight check on the ego, contributes to a culture's sense of the common good. That sense seems to be collapsing all around us. The rules should be bent - for me, because I'm special. If I come across the opportunity to make a killing by suing you for any pain or inconvenience, I'll grab it. The newspaper carried a story the other week that got me thinking along these lines.