A poem should not mean but be.
Archibald MacleishRead
There are those, I know, who will say that the liberation of humanity, the freedom of man and mind, is nothing but a dream. They are right. It is the American dream.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on the nature of freedom as an ideal that some may perceive as unattainable.
Archibald Macleish's quote explores the concept of the 'American dream' as a vision of liberation and freedom for humanity. While some skeptics may dismiss this ideal as mere fantasy, the quote suggests that the dream of freedom—both of man and mind—is a powerful and noble pursuit, embodying the very essence of what it means to aspire for a better world.
Themes
FreedomDreamLiberationHumanityPhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
Use this quote during a discussion about the significance of personal freedom.
More from Archibald Macleish
All quotes →To see the earth as we now see it, small and beautiful in that eternal silence where it floats, is to see ourselves as riders on the earth together, brothers on that bright loveliness in the unending night ~ brothers who see now they are truly brothers.
Archibald MacleishRead
Journalism is concerned with events, poetry with feelings. Journalism is concerned with the look of the world, poetry with the feel of the world.
Archibald MacleishRead
How shall freedom be defended? By arms when it is attacked by arms, by truth when it is attacked by lies, by faith when it is attacked by authoritarian dogma. Always, in the final act, by determination and faith.
Archibald MacleishRead
Races didn't bother the Americans. They were something a lot better than any race. They were a People. They were the first self-constituted, self-declared, self-created People in the history of the world.
Archibald MacleishRead
The business of the law is to make sense of the confusion of what we call human life - to reduce it to order but at the same time to give it possibility, scope, even dignity.
Archibald MacleishRead
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