On the record
He will then have spent the whole of youth and the first part of manhood in idleness, and it is unnatural to expect him to labour.
Said by
Walter Bagehot
Source
gutenberg.orgWalter Bagehot: “He will then have spent the whole of youth and the first part of manhood in idleness, and it is unnatural to expect him…”
Editor's note · Context
This quote illustrates Bagehot's view on the challenges of expecting a ruler who has lived in idleness to suddenly take on responsibilities.
Share
More from Walter Bagehot
But it is natural also that persons used to analyse political institutions should look at these anomalies with a little tenderness and a little interest.
The casual line was traced according to the strength of deceased combatants; succeeding generations fought elsewhere; and the hesitating line of a half-drawn battle was left to stand for a perpetual limit.
Subject to this saving remark, however, I not only admit, but maintain, that our Constitution is full of curious oddities, which are impeding and mischievous, and ought to be struck out.
The lessons are good where its primitive assumptions hold, but may be false where those assumptions fail.
Other voices in this conversation
