It seems to be the fate of idealists to obtain what they have struggled for in a form which destroys their ideals.
Interpretation
Idealists often achieve their goals, but the reality of those achievements may contradict their original ideals.
This quote by Bertrand Russell reflects the paradox faced by idealists, who often pursue lofty goals based on their principles and beliefs. However, upon achieving these goals, they may find that the outcomes do not align with their expectations, leading to a disillusionment that challenges their initial vision of what they were striving for.
In practice
During a graduation speech to highlight the challenges of pursuing ideals in a practical world.
St. Paul introduced an entirely novel view of marriage, that it existed primarily to prevent the sin of fornication. It is just as if one were to maintain that the sole reason for baking bread is to prevent people from stealing cake.
Freedom comes only to those who no longer ask of life that it shall yield them any of those personal goods that are subject to the mutations of time.
Of these austerer virtues the love of truth is the chief, and in mathematics, more than elsewhere, the love of truth may find encouragement for waning faith. Every great study is not only an end in itself, but also a means of creating and sustaining a lofty habit of mind; and this purpose should be kept always in view throughout the teaching and learning of mathematics.
At all times, except when a monarch could enforce his will, war has been facilitated by the fact that vigorous males, confident of victory, enjoyed it, while their females admired them for their prowess.
Moreover, the attitude that one ought to believe such and such a proposition, independently of the question whether there is evidence in its favor, is an attitude which produces hostility to evidence and causes us to close our minds to every fact that does not suit our prejudices.
Extreme hopes are born from extreme misery.
The fable of Christ and his twelve apostles is a parody of the sun and the twelve signs of the Zodiac, copied from the ancient religions of the Eastern world. Every thing told of Christ has reference to the sun. His reported resurrection is at sunrise, and that on the first day of the week; that is, on the day anciently dedicated to the sun, and from thence called Sunday.
The spirit of the kingdom undermines its defenses. People will rise against the king. A new peace is made; holy laws deteriorate. Paris has never before found herself in such dire straits.
I have a great love and respect for religion, great love and respect for atheism. What I hate is agnosticism, people who do not choose.
This self-love is the instrument of our preservation; it resembles the provision for the perpetuity of mankind: it is necessary, it is dear to us, it gives us pleasure, and we must conceal it.
At the time I did not know that stories of life are often more like rivers than books.
Hold fast then to this sound and wholesome rule of life; indulge the body only as far as is needful for health.
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