Football strategy does not originate in a scrimmage: it is useless to expect solutions in a political campaign.
There is nothing so good for the human soul as the discovery that there are ancient and flourishing civilized societies which have somehow managed to exist for many centuries and are still in being though they have had no help from the traveler in solving their problems.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the value of learning from ancient civilizations that have thrived independently of outside influence.
Walter Lippmann emphasizes the profound impact that the discovery of ancient, flourishing societies can have on the human soul. It suggests that such societies, which have successfully navigated their own challenges over centuries without external assistance, can inspire and enlighten us about resilience, adaptability, and the richness of diverse ways of life. This can instill a sense of awe and appreciation for human ingenuity and the depth of history.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared in a discussion about the importance of learning from history in educational settings.
More from Walter Lippmann
All quotes →The simple opposition between the people and big business has disappeared because the people themselves have become so deeply involved in big business.
The news and the truth are not the same thing.
There is nothing so bad but it can masquerade as moral.
The tendency of the casual mind is to pick out or stumble upon a sample which supports or defies its prejudices, and then to make it the representative of a whole class.
The private citizen, beset by partisan appeals for the loan of his Public Opinion, will soon see, perhaps, that these appeals are not a compliment to his intelligence, but an imposition on his good nature and an insult to his sense of evidence.
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