“ The amount of civilization is measured by the quantity of imagination. Only, a civilizing people should remain a manly people. ”
Victor Hugo, Les Misérables (1862). copy citation
| Author | Victor Hugo |
|---|---|
| Source | Les Misérables |
| Topic | imagination civilization |
| Date | 1862 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | Translation by Isabel F. Hapgood in 1887 |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/135/135-h/135-h.htm |
Context
“That is why the torch of Europe, that is to say of civilization, was first borne by Greece, who passed it on to Italy, who handed it on to France. Divine, illuminating nations of scouts! Vitælampada tradunt.
It is an admirable thing that the poetry of a people is the element of its progress. The amount of civilization is measured by the quantity of imagination. Only, a civilizing people should remain a manly people. Corinth, yes; Sybaris, no. Whoever becomes effeminate makes himself a bastard. He must be neither a dilettante nor a virtuoso: but he must be artistic. In the matter of civilization, he must not refine, but he must sublime.”
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