You can't understand Twenty-first-Century Politics with an Eighteenth-Century Brain.
Interpretation
Modern political issues require contemporary thinking and understanding.
George Lakoff's quote suggests that to effectively comprehend and navigate the complexities of today's political landscape, one must adopt a mindset that is relevant to current times. The phrase emphasizes the gap between historical understanding and the demands of modern society, implying that outdated perspectives are inadequate for addressing contemporary challenges. It advocates for intellectual adaptability and the necessity of evolving thought processes to engage with current realities.
In practice
In a political debate, this quote could be used to illustrate the need for current thinking in policy-making.
Do we really think that the United States will have the protection of innocent Afghans in mind if it rains terror down on the Afghan infrastructure? We are supposedly fighting them because they immorally killed innocent civilians. That made them evil. If we do the same, are we any less immoral?
Moreover, metaphor is typically viewed as characteristic of language alone, a matter of words rather than thought or action. For this reason, most people think they can get along perfectly well without metaphor. We have found, on the contrary, that metaphor is pervasive in everyday life, not just in language but in thought and action. Our ordinary conceptual system, in terms of which we both think and act, is fundamentally metaphorical in nature.
The mind is inherently embodied._x000D_ Thought is mostly unconscious._x000D_ Abstract concepts are largely metaphorical.
We are on the side of religion as opposed to religions, and we are among those who believe in the wretched inadequacy of sermons and the sublimity of prayer.
God grant you all your desires and accept my own hearty thanks for all your attention to me. Although indeed, those attentions have tried me more than death can now terrify me.
The most interesting conversation is not about why Donald Trump lies. Many public figures lie, and he's only a severe example of a common type. The interesting conversation concerns how we come to accept those lies.
[E]very Man who comes among us, and takes up a piece of Land, becomes a Citizen, and by our Constitution has a Voice in Elections, and a share in the Government of the Country.
Last year, Americans spent $450 billion on Christmas. Clean water for the whole world, including every poor person on the planet would cost about $20 billion. Let's just call that what it is: A material blasphemy of the Christmas season.
NVC suggests behind every action, however ineffective, tragic, violent, or abhorrent to us, is an attempt to meet a need.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.