A handful of works in history have had a direct impact on social policy: one or two works of Dickens, some of Zola, 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' and, in modern drama, Larry Kramer's 'The Normal Heart.'
There are no gods here, no ghosts and spirits in America, there are no angels in America, no spiritual past, no racial past, there's only the political, and the decoys and the ploys to maneuver around the inescapable battle of politics.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the absence of spiritual and mythical influences in American life, focusing instead on the realities of political struggles.
In this quote, Tony Kushner suggests that America is devoid of divine or supernatural influences, highlighting that the nation's identity is rooted purely in the political realm. This statement poses a stark view of American society, asserting that the complexities of politics and the various strategies employed within it are the primary forces shaping people's lives, rather than any spiritual or historical legacies.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate on American identity, one might quote this to emphasize the political versus spiritual aspects of society.
More from Tony Kushner
All quotes →Artists know that diligence counts as much, if not more, as inspiration; in art, as in politics, patience counts as much as revolution.
I don't understand why I'm not dead. When your heart breaks, you should die
In this world, there is a kind of painful progress. Longing for what we've left behind, and dreaming ahead.
The way that same-sex marriage should reach the federal level is that it absolutely should be decided by the Supreme Court as quickly as possible. It's a 14th Amendment issue. There's no argument about it.
Gay TV has been immensely important in transforming American culture in a more gay-positive direction.
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It's really a pity that there are observers who view political events like comic strips. There has to be a Zorro, there has to be a star. No, the problem of Upper Volta is more serious than that. It was a grave mistake to have looked for a man, a star, at all costs, to the point of creating one, that is, to the point of attributing the ownership of the event to captain Sankara, who must have been the brains, etc.
If they think they have issues with the president not doing enough for the poor now, wait and see what happens if the opposition takes office. Then they would really need a poverty tour.
Our politics are our deepest form of expression: they mirror our past experiences and reflect our dreams and aspirations for the future.
My father joined our party because the Democrats in Jim Crow Alabama of 1952 would not register him to vote. The Republicans did.