Quote by Charles Dickens
If its individual citizens, to a man, are to be believed, it always is depressed, and always is stagnated, and always is at an alarming crisis, and never was otherwise; though as a body, they are ready to make oath upon the Evangelists, at any hour of the day or night, that it is the most thriving and prosperous of all countries on the habitable globe.
Summary
This quote highlights the paradoxical nature of public opinion. It suggests that while citizens may individually express grievances and concerns, collectively they tend to believe that their country is successful and prosperous. The quote implies that people may exaggerate hardships when discussing their own experiences but choose to emphasize the overall progress and prosperity of their nation when reflecting on it as a whole. It emphasizes the divergence between personal perspectives and public discourse when it comes to evaluating the state of a country.