A Preface to Politics
A Preface to Politics, written by Walter Lippmann in the early 20th century, is a collection of essays that critiques the political indifference prevalent in society. Lippmann argues that conventional governance often overlooks the dynamic nature of human needs and social forces, advocating for a more creative and human-centered approach to politics. He emphasizes the need to re-examine political values and frameworks to better align with societal changes, presenting a foundational exploration of political engagement and its significance.
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“Between ourselves and our real natures we interpose that wax figure of idealizations and selections which we call our character. We extend this into all our thinking. Between us and the realities of social life we build up a mass of generalizations, abstract ideas, ancient glories, and personal wishes. They simplify and soften experience. It is so much easier to talk of poverty than to think of the poor, to argue the rights of capital than to see its results. Pretty soon we come to think of the theories and abstract ideas as things in themselves. We worry about their fate and forget their original content.””
— Walter Lippmann
“There is an ascendant feeling among the people that all achievement should be measured in human happiness.””
— Walter Lippmann
