Political Quotes

Walter Bagehot: Nor can a savage well distinguish between a sign of 'luck' or ill-luck, as we should say, and a deity which causes the…

On the record
Nor can a savage well distinguish between a sign of 'luck' or ill-luck, as we should say, and a deity which causes the good or the ill; the indicating precedent and the causing being are to the savage mind much the same; a steadiness of head far beyond savages is required consistently to distinguish them.
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Walter Bagehot

Editor's note · Context

Bagehot explains the difficulty savages have in distinguishing between luck and divine influence.

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The power of free interchange of ideas being wanting, the ideas themselves were barren.

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