Quote by James Baldwin
Society is held together by our need; we bind it together with legend, myth, coercion, fearing that without it we will be hurled into that void, within which, like the earth before the Word was spoken, the foundations of society are hidden.
Summary
This quote suggests that society relies on our collective needs and desires to stay united. It implies that to maintain cohesion, we embellish our shared experiences with stories, legends, and myths. We also use forms of control and coercion, motivated by the fear that without these reinforcements, society would collapse into an unknown and chaotic state. The quote further suggests that the true foundations upon which society is built remain obscured, like the earth before any language or communication existed.