War, we have come to believe, is a spectator sport. The military and the press have turned war into a vast video arcade game. Its very essence-death-is hidden from public view.
Chris HedgesRead
It is better to be an outcast, a stranger in one’s own country, than an outcast from one’s self. It is better to see what is about to befall us and to resist than to retreat into the fantasies embraced by a nation of the blind.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Being true to oneself is more important than fitting in with society, even if it means being an outsider.
This quote emphasizes the importance of self-identity and authenticity over societal acceptance. It conveys that it's preferable to stand alone, and face the challenges of truth, than to conform to collective misconceptions and illusions, represented as 'a nation of the blind.' The call to resist the comfort of denial speaks to the value of personal integrity and the courage to confront reality, even in solitude.
Themes
AuthenticityIdentityTruthSocietyResistanceIndividuality
In practice
Example use cases
During a public speech about the importance of self-acceptance, one might use this quote to reinforce the message.
More from Chris Hedges
All quotes →As long as we think abstractly, as long as we find in patriotism and the exuberance of War our fulfillment, we will never understand those who do battle against us, or how we are perceived by them, or finally those who do battle for us and how we should respond to it all. We will never discover who we are. We will fail to confront the capacity we all have for violence.
Chris HedgesRead
The moral nihilism of celebrity culture is played out on reality television shows, most of which encourage a dark voyeurism into other people's humiliation, pain, weakness, and betrayal.
Chris HedgesRead
The few surviving Armenians no longer ask to go home. They do not ask for restitution. They ask simply to have the memory of their obliteration acknowledged. It is a moral obsession, the lonely legacy passed onto the third and fourth generation who no longer speak Armenian but who carry within them the seeds of resentment that will not be quashed.
Chris HedgesRead
Of the past 3,400 years, humans have been entirely at peace for 268 of them, or just 8 percent of recorded history.
Chris HedgesRead
There are two sets of principles. They are the principles of power and privilege and the principles of truth and justice. If you pursue truth and justice it will always mean a diminution of power and privilege. If you pursue power and privilege, it will always be at the expense of truth and justice
Chris HedgesRead
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