Quote by Sir Edmund Gosse

War is the great scavenger of thought. It is the sovereign disinfectant, and its red stream of blood is the Condy's Fluid that cleans out the stagnant pools and clotted channels of the intellect. We have awakened from an opium-dream of comfort, of ease, of that miserable poltroonery of the sheltered life. Our wish for indulgence of every sort, our laxity of manners, our wretched sensitiveness to personal inconvenience, these are suddenly lifted before us in their true guise as the specters of national decay; and we have risen from the lethargy of our dilettantism to lay them, before it is too late, by the flashing of the unsheathed sword.

Summary

This quote suggests that war serves as a transformative force that clears away complacency and superficiality in society, exposing the true nature of decay and prompting action. It portrays war as a necessary evil that revitalizes the intellect by breaking the illusion of comfort and highlighting the negative consequences of indulgence and sensitivity. By bringing to light the realities of national decline, war urges individuals to abandon their apathy and laziness, compelling them to confront and address the problems haunting society.