--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A man's hope measures his civilization…" description: "\"A man's hope measures his civilization. The attainability of the hope measures, or may measure, the civilization of his nation and time.\" — Ezra Pound" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e14/ezra-pound-1208_civilization_a-man-s-hope-measures-his-civilization-t_2134721.png" --- # A man's hope measures his civilization. The attainability… ![“A man's hope measures his civilization. The attainability of the hope measures, or may measure, the civilization of his nation and time.” quote by Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e14/ezra-pound-1208_civilization_a-man-s-hope-measures-his-civilization-t_2134721.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e14/ezra-pound-1208_civilization_a-man-s-hope-measures-his-civilization-t_2134721.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e14/ezra-pound-1208_civilization_a-man-s-hope-measures-his-civilization-t_2134721.png) > “A man's hope measures his civilization. The attainability of the hope measures, or may measure, the civilization of his nation and time.” [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A society's progress is judged by the aspirations it holds and how achievable they seem. **In simple terms:** Civilization is reflected in its hopes. Key Takeaway Cultivate realistic, uplifting hopes. Themes civilization hope progress Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - national policy - education reform - public discourse - personal goal setting Key Concepts sociology philosophy history Questions to Reflect On - What hopes drive your community? - Are those hopes attainable? A Different Perspective Hope can be unrealistic, leading to disillusionment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Civilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Nations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nations/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [One measure of a civilization, either of an age or of a single individual, is what that age or person really wishes to do.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/one-measure-of-a-civilization-either-of-an-age-or-of-a-single/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [The measure of civilization in a people is to be found in its just appreciation of the wrongfulness of war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-helps/the-measure-of-civilization-in-a-people-is-to-be-found-in-its-just/) [Arthur Helps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-helps/) > [I have thought a sufficient measure of civilization is the influence of good women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/i-have-thought-a-sufficient-measure-of-civilization-is-the-influence/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“Contrary to nature’s rule of “survival of the fittest,” we humans measure civilization by how we respond to the most vulnerable and the suffering.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/contrary-to-nature-s-rule-of-survival-of-the-fittest-we-humans/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [How a society treats its disabled is the true measure of a civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chen-guangcheng/how-a-society-treats-its-disabled-is-the-true-measure-of-a/) [Chen Guangcheng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chen-guangcheng/) > [“One measure of a civilization, in fact, is the percentage of misfits in its society.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abe-kobo/one-measure-of-a-civilization-in-fact-is-the-percentage-of-misfits-in/) [Abe Kōbō](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abe-kobo/) > [The measure of a civilization is in the courage, not of its soldiers, but of its bystanders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-mcdevitt/the-measure-of-a-civilization-is-in-the-courage-not-of-its-soldiers/) [Jack McDevitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-mcdevitt/) > [The slum is the measure of civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-slum-is-the-measure-of-civilization/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The measure of a civilization is how it treats those at the dawn of life, the margins of life and the twilight of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-h-humphrey/the-measure-of-a-civilization-is-how-it-treats-those-at-the-dawn-of/) [Hubert H. 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He was a martyr.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/adolf-hitler-was-a-jeanne-d-arc-a-saint-he-was-a-martyr/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [I could I trust starve like a gentleman. It's listed as part of the poetic training, you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/i-could-i-trust-starve-like-a-gentleman-it-s-listed-as-part-of-the/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) [Explore all 273 Ezra Pound quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) ## More Civilization quotes > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Sentiment is the mightiest force in civilization; not sentimentality, but sentiment. 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