--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are realities that one needs to…" description: "\"There are realities that one needs to deal with, but very often what we are told is political reality is merely cynicism. One could equally say that sl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b79/payam-akhavan-33674_cynicism_there-are-realities-that-one-needs-to-de_2759477.jpg" --- # There are realities that one needs to deal with, but very… ![“There are realities that one needs to deal with, but very often what we are told is political reality is merely cynicism. One could equally say that slavery is a reality, and misogyny too.” quote by Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b79/payam-akhavan-33674_cynicism_there-are-realities-that-one-needs-to-de_2759477.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b79/payam-akhavan-33674_cynicism_there-are-realities-that-one-needs-to-de_2759477.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b79/payam-akhavan-33674_cynicism_there-are-realities-that-one-needs-to-de_2759477.jpg) > “There are realities that one needs to deal with, but very often what we are told is political reality is merely cynicism. One could equally say that slavery is a reality, and misogyny too.” [Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Political narratives often mask deeper societal issues, reducing complex problems to cynical viewpoints. **In simple terms:** Politics can hide real problems. Key Takeaway Question political explanations. Themes politics social justice critical thinking Mood skeptical analytical Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - policy analysis - activism - education - media literacy Key Concepts cynicism reality slavery misogyny Questions to Reflect On - What truths lie beyond political rhetoric? - How can we address underlying injustices? A Different Perspective Cynicism can oversimplify and ignore systemic factors. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cynicism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynicism/) [Misogyny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misogyny/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Realities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realities/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Slavery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slavery/) ## Related quotes > [If you read any of the biographies on J. Edgar Hoover, you find that they contradict each other more than they agree. 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Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-baldwin/) > [“There’s a curious courage to them both: they believe in a political reality which is utterly terrifying, and they’re fighting it. Joe is never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-harkaway/there-s-a-curious-courage-to-them-both-they-believe-in-a-political/) [Nick Harkaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-harkaway/) > [A writer must face up to the test of reality, including political reality, and that can't be done if he keeps his distance. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gunter-grass/a-writer-must-face-up-to-the-test-of-reality-including-political/) [Gunter Grass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gunter-grass/) > [That was the political reality of 1987: Saxophones made you cool. That's real! That really happened in our society!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-miller/that-was-the-political-reality-of-1987-saxophones-made-you-cool-that/) [Christopher Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-miller/) > [I think the political reality for the Democratic Party is, you know, there are two sides. There's one side saying that we weren't liberal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hickenlooper/i-think-the-political-reality-for-the-democratic-party-is-you-know/) [John Hickenlooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hickenlooper/) > [There's a certain advantage to living in a small country like Guatemala, I think. You don't feel so distant from political reality there. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francisco-goldman/there-s-a-certain-advantage-to-living-in-a-small-country-like/) [Francisco Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francisco-goldman/) > [“The 'smoke-filled room' as political reality is now as dead as Prohibition.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-h-white/the-smoke-filled-room-as-political-reality-is-now-as-dead-as/) [Theodore H. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-h-white/) > [At 19, I basically held the position that if you were intellectually honest and really wanted to get in touch with political reality then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/at-19-i-basically-held-the-position-that-if-you-were-intellectually/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [“Classic misogyny with skewed power dynamics at its best is when he constantly proves that he wants to have his cake and eat it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-r-s-foster-on-cheating-married-men-playing-the-field/classic-misogyny-with-skewed-power-dynamics-at-its-best-is-when-he/) Emily R & S. Foster on Cheating married men playing the field > [Misogyny is still very much alive and kicking in the world of football.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ulrika-jonsson/misogyny-is-still-very-much-alive-and-kicking-in-the-world-of-football/) [Ulrika Jonsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ulrika-jonsson/) > [“If men could see us as we really are, they would be a little amazed; but the cleverest, the acutest men are often under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/if-men-could-see-us-as-we-really-are-they-would-be-a-little-amazed/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) ## More by Payam Akhavan > [I hate the tribal hatred thesis - in Yugoslavia and Rwanda and places like that they kill each other because that's just what people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/payam-akhavan/i-hate-the-tribal-hatred-thesis-in-yugoslavia-and-rwanda-and-places/) [Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) > [We must sacrifice something in order to make the world better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/payam-akhavan/we-must-sacrifice-something-in-order-to-make-the-world-better/) [Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) > [Helping survivors of residential schools in Canada is not the same as the UN sending in peacekeepers to prevent the genocide in Rwanda. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/payam-akhavan/helping-survivors-of-residential-schools-in-canada-is-not-the-same-as/) [Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) > [We need to sacrifice something. And this is what I find lacking. 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It is through context and relations that we understand the importance of human dignity. The concept means nothing as an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/payam-akhavan/storytelling-is-very-important-it-is-through-context-and-relations/) [Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) > [“There can be no meaningful change if we choose to look down at the arena of anguish from thirty thousand feet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/payam-akhavan/there-can-be-no-meaningful-change-if-we-choose-to-look-down-at-the/) [Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) > [In Yugoslavia we were told we were not only naive idealists in wanting war criminals to be prosecuted but that we were actually standing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/payam-akhavan/in-yugoslavia-we-were-told-we-were-not-only-naive-idealists-in/) [Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) > [When we deconstruct how radical evil occurs we realize that it is anything but spontaneous combustion. You need pyromaniacs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/payam-akhavan/when-we-deconstruct-how-radical-evil-occurs-we-realize-that-it-is/) [Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) > [When I joined the UN War Crimes Tribunal, it was a realization of the dream of justice, that finally after Nuremberg, the UN is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/payam-akhavan/when-i-joined-the-un-war-crimes-tribunal-it-was-a-realization-of-the/) [Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) > [In many instances violence - which obviously inflicts tremendous trauma on victims - also inflicts trauma on the perpetrator. Radical evil takes a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/payam-akhavan/in-many-instances-violence-which-obviously-inflicts-tremendous-trauma/) [Payam Akhavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) [Explore all 14 Payam Akhavan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/payam-akhavan/) ## More Cynicism quotes > [Scepticism and cynicism about politics is so great that one of the best counters to it is what you can do at a local…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-miliband/scepticism-and-cynicism-about-politics-is-so-great-that-one-of-the/) [Ed Miliband](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-miliband/) > [“Wish in one hand, shit in the other, see which one fills up faster.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noelle-oxenhandler/wish-in-one-hand-shit-in-the-other-see-which-one-fills-up-faster/) Noelle Oxenhandler > [There's a distinct unease about Americans when they are outside the United States. 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Technicians cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/nothing-is-more-urgent-than-a-serious-dare-i-say-compassionate-debate/) [Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/) > [“The fucking world is running out of gas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-fucking-world-is-running-out-of-gas/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“In a fractured age, when cynicism is god, here is a possible heresy: we live by stories, we also live in them. One way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/in-a-fractured-age-when-cynicism-is-god-here-is-a-possible-heresy-we/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [Only the broken-hearted idealist can become a cynic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-clifton/only-the-broken-hearted-idealist-can-become-a-cynic/) Mark Clifton > [What's important is how we use our time on this earth, not how conspicuously we give our money away. What's important is the energy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-pallotta/what-s-important-is-how-we-use-our-time-on-this-earth-not-how/) [Dan Pallotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-pallotta/) [Browse all 890 Cynicism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynicism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There are realities that one needs to deal with, but very often what we are told is political reality is merely cynicism. 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