“ Every nationalist is haunted by the belief that the past can be altered. ”
George Orwell, Notes on Nationalism (1945). copy citation
| Author | George Orwell |
|---|---|
| Source | Notes on Nationalism |
| Topic | belief past |
| Date | 1945 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | in "Polemic" |
| Note | |
| Weblink | https://www.orwellfoundation.com/the-orwell-foundation/orwell/essays-and... |
Context
“A known fact may be so unbearable that it is habitually pushed aside and not allowed to enter into logical processes, or on the other hand it may enter into every calculation and yet never be admitted as a fact, even in one’s own mind.
Every nationalist is haunted by the belief that the past can be altered. He spends part of his time in a fantasy world in which things happen as they should – in which, for example, the Spanish Armada was a success or the Russian Revolution was crushed in 1918 – and he will transfer fragments of this world to the history books whenever possible.”
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