Quote by Walter Lippmann

I generalized rashly: That is what kills political writing, this absurd pretence that you are delivering a great utterance. You never do. You are just a puzzled man making notes about what you think. You are not building the Pantheon, then why act like a graven image? You are drawing sketches in the sand which the sea will wash away.

I generalized rashly: That is what kills political writing,

Summary

This quote suggests that political writers often make the mistake of overestimating the significance of their own work. The speaker criticizes the tendency for writers to strive for grand eloquence, when in reality they are simply sharing their personal thoughts and opinions. By pretending to be delivering monumental speeches or constructing masterpieces, they fail to recognize the impermanence of their words. Instead, the quote encourages writers to embrace their role as observers and recorders, acknowledging that their ideas are fleeting and subject to change or be forgotten over time.

By Walter Lippmann

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