--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There arose a belief in style - and in…" description: "\"There arose a belief in style - and in banality. Banality encompassed politics, too, because it was a common belief that politics were not worthy of ar..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cb/douglas-sirk-19509_art_there-arose-a-belief-in-style-and-in-ban_293394.jpg" --- # There arose a belief in style - and in banality. Banality… ![“There arose a belief in style - and in banality. Banality encompassed politics, too, because it was a common belief that politics were not worthy of art.” quote by Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cb/douglas-sirk-19509_art_there-arose-a-belief-in-style-and-in-ban_293394.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cb/douglas-sirk-19509_art_there-arose-a-belief-in-style-and-in-ban_293394.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cb/douglas-sirk-19509_art_there-arose-a-belief-in-style-and-in-ban_293394.jpg) > “There arose a belief in style - and in banality. Banality encompassed politics, too, because it was a common belief that politics were not worthy of art.” [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote critiques how mundane, conventional thinking dominates both fashion and politics, reducing them to unremarkable, uninspired realms. **In simple terms:** Style and politics become dull when seen as ordinary. Key Takeaway Challenge the notion that politics lacks artistic value. Themes culture politics art conformity Mood critical reflective Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - fashion design - political campaigns - media analysis - public discourse Key Concepts aesthetic theory political critique Questions to Reflect On - How does everyday aesthetics shape political perception? - Can art revive political engagement? A Different Perspective Art can still elevate politics despite prevailing banality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-is/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Banality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/banality/) [Banality Banality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/banality-banality-2817861/) [Banality Encompassed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/banality-encompassed-2817860/) [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Belief Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief-politics-2817862/) [Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Not worthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/not-worthy/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Style](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/style/) [Style Banality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/style-banality-2817859/) [Worthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worthy/) ## Related quotes > [Tobacco is the passion of honest men and he who lives without tobacco is not worthy of living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/tobacco-is-the-passion-of-honest-men-and-he-who-lives-without-tobacco/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [To hear always, to think always, to learn always, it is thus that we live truly. He who aspires to nothing, who learns nothing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-helps/to-hear-always-to-think-always-to-learn-always-it-is-thus-that-we/) [Arthur Helps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-helps/) > [The first step into the realm of giving is...not manward but Godward: an utter yielding of our best. So long as our idea of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lilias-trotter/the-first-step-into-the-realm-of-giving-is-not-manward-but-godward-an/) [Lilias Trotter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lilias-trotter/) > [Recognize that whether you are worthy or not is all a made-up 'story'...Nothing has meaning except for the meaning we give it...There's no one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-harv-eker/recognize-that-whether-you-are-worthy-or-not-is-all-a-made-up-story/) [T. Harv Eker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-harv-eker/) > [The old idea that the joke was not good enough for the company has been superseded by the new aristocratic idea that the company…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/the-old-idea-that-the-joke-was-not-good-enough-for-the-company-has/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [ The American experiment, the United States in the past eight years \[2008-2016\] was not considered worthy of leading, because we had committed too many… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/the-american-experiment-the-united-states-in-the-past-eight-years/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [Fading, fading: strength beyond hope and despair climbing the third stair. 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Was she not saved from all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/what-a-good-thing-for-instance-it-was-that-one-princess-should-sleep/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [a diplomat ... is not worthy of the name unless he can say 'no' and make the other person like it - or at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margery-wilson/a-diplomat-is-not-worthy-of-the-name-unless-he-can-say-no-and-make/) [Margery Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margery-wilson/) > [What we need most right now, at this moment, is a kind of patriotic grace - a grace that takes the long view, apprehends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/what-we-need-most-right-now-at-this-moment-is-a-kind-of-patriotic/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [We are producing urban places which are disjointed and disconnected and not worthy of our civilisation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/we-are-producing-urban-places-which-are-disjointed-and-disconnected/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [I was too shy, I think, to sing publicly. It takes a particular kind of person. And when I was young, I was not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/i-was-too-shy-i-think-to-sing-publicly-it-takes-a-particular-kind-of/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) ## More by Douglas Sirk > [There is a wonderful expression: seeing through a glass darkly. Everything, even life, is inevitably removed from you. You can't reach, or touch, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/there-is-a-wonderful-expression-seeing-through-a-glass-darkly/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [Ross Hunter was my assistant on Take Me to Town, He was a young man, an actor before that, and learned a lot on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/ross-hunter-was-my-assistant-on-take-me-to-town-he-was-a-young-man-an/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [At the time I belonged to the socialist party, and Hitler came to power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/at-the-time-i-belonged-to-the-socialist-party-and-hitler-came-to-power/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [In the 19th century, you had bourgeois art without politics - an almost frozen idea of what beauty is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/in-the-19th-century-you-had-bourgeois-art-without-politics-an-almost/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [These happy endings all express the weak and sly promise that the world is not rotten and out of joint but meaningful and ultimately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/these-happy-endings-all-express-the-weak-and-sly-promise-that-the/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [A director in Hollywood in my time couldn't do what he wanted to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/a-director-in-hollywood-in-my-time-couldn-t-do-what-he-wanted-to-do/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [I worked for UFA as a set designer, you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/i-worked-for-ufa-as-a-set-designer-you-know/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [At the same time, of course, Marxism arose - Rosa Luxembourg, Leninism, anarchism - and art became political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/at-the-same-time-of-course-marxism-arose-rosa-luxembourg-leninism/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [My idea at this time, which was slowly developing, was to create a comedie humaine with little people, average people - samples from every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/my-idea-at-this-time-which-was-slowly-developing-was-to-create-a/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [The war was the end of an era, in art as well. And we were trying to create a new philosophy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/the-war-was-the-end-of-an-era-in-art-as-well-and-we-were-trying-to/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [Rock Hudson was not an educated man, but that very beautiful body of his was putty in my hands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/rock-hudson-was-not-an-educated-man-but-that-very-beautiful-body-of/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [I think the great artists, especially in literature, have always thought with the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/i-think-the-great-artists-especially-in-literature-have-always/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [This is the dialectic - there is a very short distance between high art and trash, and trash that contains an element of craziness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/this-is-the-dialectic-there-is-a-very-short-distance-between-high-art/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [I think the great artists (..) have always thought with the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/i-think-the-great-artists-have-always-thought-with-the-heart/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [Throughout my pictures I employ a lighting which is not naturalistic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/throughout-my-pictures-i-employ-a-lighting-which-is-not-naturalistic/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) [Explore all 32 Douglas Sirk quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There arose a belief in style - and in banality. 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