It takes a wonderful brain and exquisite senses to produce a few stupid ideas.
George SantayanaRead
Catastrophes come when some dominant institution, swollen like a soap-bubble and still standing without foundations, suddenly crumbles at the touch of what may seem a word or idea, but is really some stronger material source.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Institutions can seem strong but may collapse when faced with fundamental challenges.
George Santayana's quote reflects on the fragility of institutions that appear powerful and unbreakable but lack true foundational strength. When these institutions encounter a significant challenge—often represented by a seemingly minor word or idea—they can disintegrate, exposing their vulnerabilities and instability. This highlights the importance of having a solid foundation in any organization or ideology to withstand scrutiny and adversity.
Themes
InstitutionsFragilityFoundationsChangeChallenge
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a seminar discussing the resilience of institutions.
More from George Santayana
All quotes →The working of great institutions is mainly the result of a vast mass of routine, petty malice, self interest, carelessness and sheer mistake. Only a residual fraction is thought.
George SantayanaRead
There is no cure for birth and death save to enjoy the interval. The dark background which death supplies brings out the tender colours of life in all their purity.
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Not to believe in love is a great sign of dullness. There are some people so indirect and lumbering that they think all real affection rests on circumstantial evidence.
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To feel beauty is a better thing than to understand how we come to feel it. To have imagination and taste, to love the best, to be carried by the contemplation of nature to a vivid faith in the ideal, all this is more, a great deal more, than any science can hope to be.
George SantayanaRead
The vital straining towards an ideal, definite but latent, when it dominates a whole life, may express that ideal more fully than could the best chosen words.
George SantayanaRead
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