We have done with Hope and Honour. we are lost to Love and Truth, We are dropping down the ladder rung by rung; And the measure of our torment is the measure of our youth. God help us, for we knew the worst too young!
Rudyard KiplingRead
If England was what England seems, _x000D_ An not the England of our dreams, _x000D_ But only putty, brass, an' paint, _x000D_ 'Ow quick we'd chuck 'er! But she ain't!
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the gap between the idealized view of a place and its true nature, suggesting that reality often differs from our dreams.
Rudyard Kipling's quote expresses a deep disillusionment with the discrepancy between the idealized version of England and its actual state. It suggests that if England were merely a façade—consisting of superficial qualities like 'putty, brass, and paint'—then people would readily abandon it. However, he asserts that England is indeed more than that, alluding to a deeper, perhaps intrinsic value that prevents disillusionment.
Themes
EnglandIdealismDisillusionmentRealityPerception
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a discussion about nationalism and identity at a cultural conference.
More from Rudyard Kipling
All quotes →Humble because of knowledge; mighty by sacrifice.
Rudyard KiplingRead
Hear and attend and listen; for this is what befell and be-happened and became and was, O my Best Beloved, when the Tame animals were wild. The dog was wild, and the Horse was wild, and the Cow was wild, and the Sheep was wild, and the Pig was wild -as wild as wild could be - and they walked in the Wet Wild Woods by their wild lones. But the wildest of all the wild animals was the Cat. He walked by himself and all places were alike to him
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I keep six honest serving men.
Rudyard KiplingRead
And when your back stops aching and your hands begin to harden, You will find yourself a partner in the Glory of the Garden.
Rudyard KiplingRead
Savings represent much more than mere money value. They are the proof that the saver is worth something in himself. Any fool can waste; any fool can muddle; but it takes something more of a man to save and the more he saves the more of a man he makes of himself. Waste and extravagance unsettle a man's mind for every crisis; thrift, which means some form of self-restraint, steadies it.
Rudyard KiplingRead
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