--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: America is the only country ever founded…" description: "\"America is the only country ever founded on the printed word.\" — Marshall McLuhan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17e/marshall-mcluhan-641_america_america-is-the-only-country-ever-founded_1734933.png" --- # America is the only country ever founded on the printed… ![“America is the only country ever founded on the printed word.” quote by Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17e/marshall-mcluhan-641_america_america-is-the-only-country-ever-founded_1734933.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17e/marshall-mcluhan-641_america_america-is-the-only-country-ever-founded_1734933.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17e/marshall-mcluhan-641_america_america-is-the-only-country-ever-founded_1734933.png) > “America is the only country ever founded on the printed word.” [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The printed word is foundational to America's identity and democratic foundations. **In simple terms:** America's identity is built on print media. Key Takeaway Appreciate the power of written communication. Themes media studies history democracy Mood observational historical Type media cultural When to use this quote - education - political campaigning - journalism - digital transition Key Concepts communication theory cultural identity technology Questions to Reflect On - How does digital media reshape this foundational role? - What responsibilities arise from this print heritage? A Different Perspective May ignore other cultural influences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Printed word](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/printed-word/) [United states of america](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united-states-of-america/) [Usa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/usa/) ## Related quotes > [“America is a country founded by people from someplace else on ideas borrowed from someplace else, ultimately to try to distinguish itself from everyplace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/america-is-a-country-founded-by-people-from-someplace-else-on-ideas/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [America is the only country ever founded on a creed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/america-is-the-only-country-ever-founded-on-a-creed/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [“This country was founded by slave owners who wanted to be free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/this-country-was-founded-by-slave-owners-who-wanted-to-be-free/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [I mean, the country was founded on free enterprise. There's good things about it, and there's obviously bad things about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-cusack/i-mean-the-country-was-founded-on-free-enterprise-there-s-good-things/) [Joan Cusack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-cusack/) > [This is not a time to back away from the principles that this country was founded on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bingaman/this-is-not-a-time-to-back-away-from-the-principles-that-this-country/) [Jeff Bingaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bingaman/) > [Science fiction is a field of writing where, month after month, every printed word implies to hundreds of thousands of people: 'There is change.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/science-fiction-is-a-field-of-writing-where-month-after-month-every/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I believe the printed word is more than sacred Beyond the gauge of good or bad The human right to let your soul fly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-partridge/i-believe-the-printed-word-is-more-than-sacred-beyond-the-gauge-of/) [Andy Partridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-partridge/) > [The time is long overdue for a massive flooding of the earth with the Book of Mormon for the many reasons which the Lord…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/the-time-is-long-overdue-for-a-massive-flooding-of-the-earth-with-the/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) > [Photographs have the kind of authority over imagination to-day, which the printed word had yesterday, and the spoken word before that. They seem utterly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/photographs-have-the-kind-of-authority-over-imagination-to-day-which/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [To be censored is one sure way of knowing you have been taken dead seriously. It also speaks to the continuing power of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felice-picano/to-be-censored-is-one-sure-way-of-knowing-you-have-been-taken-dead/) [Felice Picano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felice-picano/) > [The printed word is no longer as in demand as when I was of the age of pupils or even at the age of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/the-printed-word-is-no-longer-as-in-demand-as-when-i-was-of-the-age/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [No printed word, nor spoken plea can teach young minds what they should be. Not all the books on all the shelves - but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/no-printed-word-nor-spoken-plea-can-teach-young-minds-what-they/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [There is nothing more valuable than the printed word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-nothing-more-valuable-than-the-printed-word/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Imagine what our culture would be like if Americans sold ideas, words, and books with the same creativity we use to sell designer jeans,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-trelease/imagine-what-our-culture-would-be-like-if-americans-sold-ideas-words/) [Jim Trelease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-trelease/) > [My childhood was surrounded by books and writing. From a very early age I was fascinated by storytelling, by the printed word, by language,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/my-childhood-was-surrounded-by-books-and-writing-from-a-very-early/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) ## More by Marshall McLuhan > [Even mud gives the illusion of depth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/even-mud-gives-the-illusion-of-depth/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [Language always preserves a play or figure/ground relation between experience, and perception and its replay in expression.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/language-always-preserves-a-play-or-figure-ground-relation-between/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [Electronic man has no physical body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/electronic-man-has-no-physical-body/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [I am curious to know what would happen if art were suddenly seen for what it is, namely, exact information of how to rearrange…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/i-am-curious-to-know-what-would-happen-if-art-were-suddenly-seen-for/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [With the arrival of electric technology, man has extended, or set outside himself, a live model of the central nervous system itself. To the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/with-the-arrival-of-electric-technology-man-has-extended-or-set/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [“The constant broadcast and reception of ghostly images via radio and television, according to this notion, had weakened the sense, particularly among youth, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/the-constant-broadcast-and-reception-of-ghostly-images-via-radio-and/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [Every innovation scraps its immediate predecessor and retrieves still older figures – it causes floods of antiques or nostalgic art forms and stimulates the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/every-innovation-scraps-its-immediate-predecessor-and-retrieves-still/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [The family circle has widened. The worldpool of information fathered by the electric media--movies, Telstar, flight--far surpassesany possible influence mom and dad can now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/the-family-circle-has-widened-the-worldpool-of-information-fathered/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [Like primitive, we now live in a global village of our own making, a simultaneous happening. It doesn't necessarily mean harmony and peace and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/like-primitive-we-now-live-in-a-global-village-of-our-own-making-a/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [Professionalism is environmental. Amateurism is anti-environmental. Professionalism merges the individual into patterns of total environment. Amateurism seeks the development of the total awareness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/professionalism-is-environmental-amateurism-is-anti-environmental/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [The visual power of the phonetic alphabet is the translate other languages into itself is part of its power to invade right hemisphere (oral)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/the-visual-power-of-the-phonetic-alphabet-is-the-translate-other/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [New media may at first appear as mere codes of transmission for older achievement and established patterns of thought. But nobody could make the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/new-media-may-at-first-appear-as-mere-codes-of-transmission-for-older/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [Youth instinctively understand the present environment - the electric drama. It lives mythically and in depth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/youth-instinctively-understand-the-present-environment-the-electric/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [Our motor car is our supreme form of privacy when we are away from home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/our-motor-car-is-our-supreme-form-of-privacy-when-we-are-away-from/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [The scientist rigorously defends his right to be ignorant of almost everything except his specialty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/the-scientist-rigorously-defends-his-right-to-be-ignorant-of-almost/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) [Explore all 433 Marshall McLuhan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. 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