--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What concerns me most is the horrible…" description: "\"What concerns me most is the horrible degradation our notions of truth, civility, and decency have undergone. Also the way that language has been malfo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03f/george-saunders-317_banality_what-concerns-me-most-is-the-horrible-de_233288.jpg" --- # What concerns me most is the horrible degradation our… ![“What concerns me most is the horrible degradation our notions of truth, civility, and decency have undergone. Also the way that language has been malformed - we have been overcome with banality and the cynical misuse of language. When a candidate runs a campaign on a series of dog-whistles to…” quote by George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03f/george-saunders-317_banality_what-concerns-me-most-is-the-horrible-de_233288.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03f/george-saunders-317_banality_what-concerns-me-most-is-the-horrible-de_233288.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03f/george-saunders-317_banality_what-concerns-me-most-is-the-horrible-de_233288.jpg) > “What concerns me most is the horrible degradation our notions of truth, civility, and decency have undergone. Also the way that language has been malformed - we have been overcome with banality and the cynical misuse of language. When a candidate runs a campaign on a series of dog-whistles to bigots, then turns around and talks about "healing the wounds of division," that is right out of Orwell.” [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) ## 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 laments the erosion of truth, civility, and decent discourse, noting how language is twisted for cynical political ends, echoing Orwellian manipulation. **In simple terms:** Truth and civility are eroding; language is being misused for political gain. Key Takeaway Guard honest language and demand accountability. Themes truth civility politics language ethics Mood concerned critical reflective Type political philosophical cautionary When to use this quote - political campaigns - social media debates - public policy discussions - education curricula - journalistic standards Key Concepts Orwellian rhetoric public discourse media manipulation Questions to Reflect On - How can we restore integrity to public conversation? - What role does media play in shaping our sense of truth? A Different Perspective It may overlook genuine efforts to restore dialogue and the complexity of differing perspectives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bigots](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigots/) [Campaigns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/campaigns/) [Civility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civility/) [Cynical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynical/) [Decency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decency/) [Degradation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/degradation/) [Dog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dog/) [Healing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/healing/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Overcoming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overcoming/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Wounds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wounds/) ## Related quotes > [It's not beneficial when you have a presidential candidate like Donald Trump, telling his supporters "punch that guy in the face." I think everyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/it-s-not-beneficial-when-you-have-a-presidential-candidate-like/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [Gratitude is the beginning of civility, of decency and goodness, of a recognition that we cannot afford to be arrogant. We should walk with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/gratitude-is-the-beginning-of-civility-of-decency-and-goodness-of-a/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [There are no points for civility or decency when it comes to prosecuting the campaign against Donald Trump.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-wilson/there-are-no-points-for-civility-or-decency-when-it-comes-to/) [Rick Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-wilson/) > [ “Writing of only one small part of the broader problem, namely the single-minded pursuit of individualistic 'rights,' \[Don\] Feder is not wrong to conclude:… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-a-carson-2/writing-of-only-one-small-part-of-the-broader-problem-namely-the/) [D.A. Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-a-carson-2/) > [This - where we are now - is where a culture gets to, when it has chosen, for many years, banality over intelligence, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/this-where-we-are-now-is-where-a-culture-gets-to-when-it-has-chosen/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [I really like the idea of banality and repetition being used to generate the image, which are simple and unobstructed and not captivated by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-aitken/i-really-like-the-idea-of-banality-and-repetition-being-used-to/) [Doug Aitken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-aitken/) > [Language is in decline. Not only has eloquence departed but simple, direct speech as well, though pomposity and banality have not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-newman/language-is-in-decline-not-only-has-eloquence-departed-but-simple/) [Edwin Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-newman/) > [I was filled with angst in college, that I struggled with the question of my future, the meaning of my life - spoiled sheltered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kostova/i-was-filled-with-angst-in-college-that-i-struggled-with-the-question/) [Elizabeth Kostova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kostova/) > [Understanding a people's culture exposes their normalness without reducing their particularity...It renders them accessible: setting them in the frame of their own banalities, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifford-geertz/understanding-a-people-s-culture-exposes-their-normalness-without/) [Clifford Geertz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifford-geertz/) > [The great work of art is the complete banality, and the fault with most banalities is that they are not banal enough. Banality here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asger-jorn/the-great-work-of-art-is-the-complete-banality-and-the-fault-with/) [Asger Jorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asger-jorn/) > [“A plain circular bullet is widely disdained for its banality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolina-de-bartolo/a-plain-circular-bullet-is-widely-disdained-for-its-banality/) Carolina de Bartolo > [My life is short. I can't listen to banality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-naipaul/my-life-is-short-i-can-t-listen-to-banality/) [V. S. Naipaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-s-naipaul/) > [Honest criticism and sensitive appreciation are directed not upon the poet but upon the poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/honest-criticism-and-sensitive-appreciation-are-directed-not-upon-the/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Spirituality can be severed from both vicious sectarianism and thoughtless banalities. Spirituality, I have come to see, is nothing less than the thoughtful love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-c-solomon/spirituality-can-be-severed-from-both-vicious-sectarianism-and/) [Robert C. Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-c-solomon/) > [“Our world will not die as a result of the bomb, as the papers say, it will die of laughter, of banality, of making a joke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/our-world-will-not-die-as-a-result-of-the-bomb-as-the-papers-say-it/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) ## More by George Saunders > [Success is like a mountain in front of you that keeps growing. If you're not careful, it will take up your whole life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/success-is-like-a-mountain-in-front-of-you-that-keeps-growing-if-you/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [“Wow wow wow is all I can say! 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These and all things started as nothing, latent within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/none-of-it-was-real-nothing-was-real-everything-was-real/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [“We must see God not as a Him (some linear rewarding fellow) but an IT, a great beast beyond our understanding, who wants something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/we-must-see-god-not-as-a-him-some-linear-rewarding-fellow-but-an-it-a/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [America, to me, should be shouting all the time, a bunch of shouting voices, most of them wrong, some of them nuts, but please,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/america-to-me-should-be-shouting-all-the-time-a-bunch-of-shouting/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [In my case, when I am trying to be "kind" I often default in a sort of toothless loving-all stance that is, actually, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/in-my-case-when-i-am-trying-to-be-kind-i-often-default-in-a-sort-of/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [Whatever your supposed politics are - left, right - if you put it in a human connection, most people will rise to the occasion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/whatever-your-supposed-politics-are-left-right-if-you-put-it-in-a/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [“A Clinton staffer tells me his theory. Think about Frank Sinatra, he says: born to sing. Think about Willie Mays: born to play ball.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/a-clinton-staffer-tells-me-his-theory-think-about-frank-sinatra-he/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [We try, we fail, we posture, we aspire, we pontificate - and then we age, shrink, die, and vanish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/we-try-we-fail-we-posture-we-aspire-we-pontificate-and-then-we-age/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [“You were torturing a cat," she says. "With a freaking prod." "A prod I built myself in metal shop," he says. "But of course…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/you-were-torturing-a-cat-she-says-with-a-freaking-prod-a-prod-i-built/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [“Rachel got up and did this happy little shuffle, like she was some cheerful farmer chick who'd just stepped outside to find the hick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/rachel-got-up-and-did-this-happy-little-shuffle-like-she-was-some/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [What America is, to me, is a guy doesn't want to buy, you let him not buy, you respect his not buying. A guy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/what-america-is-to-me-is-a-guy-doesn-t-want-to-buy-you-let-him-not/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [What good the prophet in the wilderness may do is incremental and personal. It's good for us to hear someone speak the irrational truth.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/what-good-the-prophet-in-the-wilderness-may-do-is-incremental-and/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [We're in the transition between birth and death. But the one that people often know about is the transition between the moment of death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/we-re-in-the-transition-between-birth-and-death-but-the-one-that/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [You don't want to be that parent - the one who dresses his kid in a cloth sack when all the other kids are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/you-don-t-want-to-be-that-parent-the-one-who-dresses-his-kid-in-a/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) [Explore all 690 George Saunders quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) ## More Banality quotes > [“Our world will not die as a result of the bomb, as the papers say, it will die of laughter, of banality, of making a joke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/our-world-will-not-die-as-a-result-of-the-bomb-as-the-papers-say-it/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [Spirituality can be severed from both vicious sectarianism and thoughtless banalities. Spirituality, I have come to see, is nothing less than the thoughtful love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-c-solomon/spirituality-can-be-severed-from-both-vicious-sectarianism-and/) [Robert C. Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-c-solomon/) > [Honest criticism and sensitive appreciation are directed not upon the poet but upon the poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/honest-criticism-and-sensitive-appreciation-are-directed-not-upon-the/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [My life is short. I can't listen to banality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-naipaul/my-life-is-short-i-can-t-listen-to-banality/) [V. S. Naipaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-s-naipaul/) > [“A plain circular bullet is widely disdained for its banality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolina-de-bartolo/a-plain-circular-bullet-is-widely-disdained-for-its-banality/) Carolina de Bartolo > [The great work of art is the complete banality, and the fault with most banalities is that they are not banal enough. Banality here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asger-jorn/the-great-work-of-art-is-the-complete-banality-and-the-fault-with/) [Asger Jorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asger-jorn/) > [Understanding a people's culture exposes their normalness without reducing their particularity...It renders them accessible: setting them in the frame of their own banalities, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifford-geertz/understanding-a-people-s-culture-exposes-their-normalness-without/) [Clifford Geertz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifford-geertz/) > [I was filled with angst in college, that I struggled with the question of my future, the meaning of my life - spoiled sheltered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kostova/i-was-filled-with-angst-in-college-that-i-struggled-with-the-question/) [Elizabeth Kostova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kostova/) > [Language is in decline. Not only has eloquence departed but simple, direct speech as well, though pomposity and banality have not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-newman/language-is-in-decline-not-only-has-eloquence-departed-but-simple/) [Edwin Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-newman/) > [I really like the idea of banality and repetition being used to generate the image, which are simple and unobstructed and not captivated by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-aitken/i-really-like-the-idea-of-banality-and-repetition-being-used-to/) [Doug Aitken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-aitken/) > [“There seemed no particular object in avoiding banality from the start, as the evening showed every sign of developing into a banal one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-powell/there-seemed-no-particular-object-in-avoiding-banality-from-the-start/) [Anthony Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-powell/) > [On the subway today, a man came up to me to start a conversation. 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Banality encompassed politics, too, because it was a common belief that politics were not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/there-arose-a-belief-in-style-and-in-banality-banality-encompassed/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) Browse all 124 Banality quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What concerns me most is the horrible degradation our notions of truth, civility, and decency have undergone. Also the way that language has been malformed - we have been overcome with banality and the cynical misuse of language. 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