American politics is a struggle, not of men but of forces. The men become every year more and more creatures of force, massed about central power houses.
Henry AdamsRead
Politics, as a practise, whatever its professions, has always been the systematic organization of hatreds.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Politics often organizes and utilizes underlying hostilities within society.
Henry Adams emphasizes that politics is not just about governance or policy; it systematically harnesses and organizes the various hatreds that exist in society. This suggests a critical view of political activities, implying that they can often exacerbate divisions rather than promote unity.
Themes
PoliticsHatredDivisionSocietyOrganization
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate about political strategies, one might quote Adams to illustrate how politicians exploit societal divisions.
More from Henry Adams
All quotes βOf all studies, the one he would rather have avoided was that of his own mind. He knew no tragedy so heartrending as introspection.
Henry AdamsRead
Simplicity is the most deceitful mistress that ever betrayed man.
Henry AdamsRead
Church and State, Soul and Body, God and Man, are all one at Mont Saint Michel, and the business of all is to fight, each in his own way, or to stand guard for each other.
Henry AdamsRead
The American President resembles the commander of a ship at sea. He must have a helm to grasp, a course to steer, a port to seek.
Henry AdamsRead
The effect of power and publicity on all men is the aggravation of self, a sort of tumor that ends by killing the victim's sympathies.
Henry AdamsRead
Similar quotes
I learned to be far more skeptical of what I'm told by presidents, no matter who the presidents are, and also to be much more cautious, always, in any action or vote that could lead to the use of American military power and most particularly what we call 'boots on the ground.'
Hillary ClintonRead
"I criticize America because I love her. I want her to stand as a moral example to the world."
Martin Luther King, Jr.Read
He who uses the office he owes to the voters wrongfully and against them is a thief.
Jose MartiRead
It is urgent to prevent new U.S. aggression. The time is now for the world to say 'no' to U.S. threats of air attack against Iran, and to the very notion of a nuclear first-use 'option' by America or any other nation.
Daniel EllsbergRead
Pakistan's political instability is its greatest vulnerability, and a decline in U.S. power would reduce America's ability to aid Pakistan's consolidation and development.
Zbigniew BrzezinskiRead
Diplomacy is the art of telling people to go to hell in such a way that they ask for directions.
Winston ChurchillRead