The task of a writer consists of being able to make something out of an idea.
Thomas MannRead
What we call National-Socialism is the poisonous perversion of ideas which have a long history in German intellectual life.
Interpretation
The quote critiques National-Socialism as a corrupted version of longstanding ideological trends in Germany.
Thomas Mann's quote reflects on the dangerous distortion of ideas that, while having deep historical roots in German intellectual thought, have been misappropriated and twisted by National-Socialism. He highlights the importance of understanding the intellectual heritage that could lead to such perversion, suggesting a need for critical reflection on historical ideas to prevent their misuse in oppressive ideologies.
In practice
In a discussion about the origins of extremist ideologies during a history class.
The task of a writer consists of being able to make something out of an idea.
Stupid β well, there are so many kinds of stupidity, and cleverness is one of the worst.
It is a strange fact that freedom and equality, the two basic ideas of democracy, are to some extent contradictory. Logically considered, freedom and equality are mutually exclusive, just as society and the individual are mutually exclusive.
I tell them that if they will occupy themselves with the study of mathematics they will find in it the best remedy against the lusts of the flesh.
Literature... is the union of suffering with the instinct for form.
The Freudian theory is one of the most important foundation stones for an edifice to be built by future generations, the dwelling of a freer and wiser humanity.
If, before undertaking some action, you must obtain the permission of society-you are not free, whether such permission is granted to you or not. Only a slave acts on permission. A permission is not a right.
The rationality of the ruled is always the weapon of the rulers.
Patriotism in its simplest, clearest, and most indubitable meaning is nothing but an instrument for the attainment of the government's ambitious and mercenary aims, and a renunciation of human dignity, common sense, and conscience by the governed, and a slavish submission to those who hold power. That is what is really preached wherever patriotism is championed. Patriotism is slavery.
If men would consider not so much wherein they differ, as wherein they agree, there would be far less of uncharitableness and angry feeling in the world.
For twenty-five centuries, Western knowledge has tried to look upon the world. It has failed to understand that the world is not for the beholding. It is for hearing. It is not legible, but audible.
The prison is not the only institution that has posed complex challenges to the people who have lived with it and have become so inured to its presence that they could not conΒceive of society without it. Within the history of the United States the system of slavery immediately comes to mind.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.