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There ought not be two histories, one of political and moral action and one of political and moral theorizing, because there were not two pasts, one populated only by actions, the other only by theories. Every action is the bearer and expression of more or less theory-laden beliefs and concepts; every piece of theorizing and every expression of belief is a politcal and moral action.
Alasdair Macintyre
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Actions and theories are intertwined, with each influencing the other in moral and political contexts.

In this quote, Alasdair Macintyre argues that political and moral actions cannot be separated from the theories that underpin them. He emphasizes that every action carries theoretical beliefs and concepts, and conversely, every theorizing is itself a form of political and moral action. This interconnection suggests that a comprehensive understanding of history must incorporate both actions and the theories that inform them.

Themes

TheoryActionPoliticsMoralityBeliefs

In practice

Example use cases

In an academic discussion on political theory, the quote can be used to emphasize the importance of understanding the theoretical frameworks that guide political actions.

More from Alasdair Macintyre

It is through hearing stories about wicked stepmothers, lost children, good but misguided kings, wolves that suckle twin boys, youngest sons who receive no inheritance but must make their own way in the world, and eldest sons who waste their inheritance on riotous living and go into exile to live with the swine, that children learn or mislearn both what a child and what a parent is, what the cast of characters may be in the drama into which they have been born and what the ways of the world are.
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Imprisoning philosophy within the professionalizations and specializations of an institutionalized curriculum, after the manner of our contemporary European and North American culture, is arguably a good deal more effective in neutralizing its effects than either religious censorship or political terror
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Modern systematic politics, whether liberal, conservative, radical, or socialist, simply has to be rejected from a standpoint that owes genuine allegiance to the tradition of the virtues; for modern politics itself expresses in its institutional forms a systematic rejection of that tradition
Alasdair MacintyreRead

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Quote by Alasdair Macintyre | QuoteProject