--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It wasn't idealism that made me, from the…" description: "\"It wasn't idealism that made me, from the beginning, want a more secure and rational society. It was an intellectual judgment, to which I still hold. W..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/298/raymond-williams-25512_absolutes_it-wasn-t-idealism-that-made-me-from-the_517428.jpg" --- # It wasn't idealism that made me, from the beginning, want… ![“It wasn't idealism that made me, from the beginning, want a more secure and rational society. It was an intellectual judgment, to which I still hold. When I was young its name was socialism. We can be deflected by names. But the need was absolute, and is still absolute.” quote by Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/298/raymond-williams-25512_absolutes_it-wasn-t-idealism-that-made-me-from-the_517428.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/298/raymond-williams-25512_absolutes_it-wasn-t-idealism-that-made-me-from-the_517428.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/298/raymond-williams-25512_absolutes_it-wasn-t-idealism-that-made-me-from-the_517428.jpg) > “It wasn't idealism that made me, from the beginning, want a more secure and rational society. It was an intellectual judgment, to which I still hold. When I was young its name was socialism. We can be deflected by names. But the need was absolute, and is still absolute.” [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He pursued a rational, secure society based on intellectual judgment, not idealism; socialism was the label he used. **In simple terms:** He wanted a fair, logical society, driven by reason not idealism. Key Takeaway Prioritize reasoned analysis over labels. Themes reason justice intellectualism Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - policy making - social reform - community building - education initiatives Key Concepts socialism idealism judgment Questions to Reflect On - What core values guide your societal goals? - How do you differentiate between ideology and practical judgment? A Different Perspective Labels can obscure underlying goals and motivations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absolutes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolutes/) [Communism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communism/) [Idealism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idealism/) [Idealism Beginning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idealism-beginning-4371538/) [Intellectual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellectual/) [Judgment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judgment/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/names/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Rational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rational/) [Rational Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rational-society-913976/) [Secure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secure/) [Socialism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/socialism/) [Socialism Deflected](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/socialism-deflected-4371537/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Wasn Idealism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wasn-idealism-4371536/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) ## Related quotes > [“We live in a primitive time—don’t we, Will?—neither savage nor wise. Half measures are the curse of it. Any rational society would either kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-harris/we-live-in-a-primitive-time-don-t-we-will-neither-savage-nor-wise/) [Thomas Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-harris/) > [life is of no value but as it brings gratifications. among the most valuable of these is rational society. it informs the mind, sweetens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/life-is-of-no-value-but-as-it-brings-gratifications-among-the-most/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Were we a rational society, a virtue of which we have rarely been accused, we would husband our oil and gas resources.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-king-hubbert/were-we-a-rational-society-a-virtue-of-which-we-have-rarely-been/) [M. King Hubbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-king-hubbert/) > [“In a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something less,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/in-a-completely-rational-society-the-best-of-us-would-be-teachers-and-2/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [“If science could comprehend all phenomena so that eventually in a thoroughly rational society human beings became as predictable as cogs in a machine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-barrett/if-science-could-comprehend-all-phenomena-so-that-eventually-in-a/) [William Barrett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-barrett/) > [In a rational society we would want our presidents to be teachers. In our actual society we insist they be cheerleaders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-allen/in-a-rational-society-we-would-want-our-presidents-to-be-teachers-in/) [Steve Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-allen/) > [In a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/in-a-completely-rational-society-the-best-of-us-would-be-teachers-and/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-clifton/) > [I unconsciously decided that, even if it wasn't an ideal world, it should be. 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Our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-d-ambrosio/what-the-nostalgic-past-and-the-imaginary-future-seem-to-share-in/) [Charles D'Ambrosio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-d-ambrosio/) > [“I'm an idealist who has outgrown my idealism I have nothing to do the rest of my life but do it and the rest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-m-an-idealist-who-has-outgrown-my-idealism-i-have-nothing-to-do-the/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) ## More by Raymond Williams > [There are no masses; there are only ways of seeing people as masses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/there-are-no-masses-there-are-only-ways-of-seeing-people-as-masses/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [The idea of nature contains, though often unnoticed, an extraordinary amount of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/the-idea-of-nature-contains-though-often-unnoticed-an-extraordinary/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [A contrast between country and city, as fundamental ways of life, reaches back into classical times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/a-contrast-between-country-and-city-as-fundamental-ways-of-life/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [Once we begin to speak of men mixing their labour with the earth, we are in a whole world of new relations between man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/once-we-begin-to-speak-of-men-mixing-their-labour-with-the-earth-we/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [To be truly radical is to make hope possible rather than despair convincing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/to-be-truly-radical-is-to-make-hope-possible-rather-than-despair/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [A very large part of English middle-class education is devoted to the training of servants...In so far as it is, by definition, the training…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/a-very-large-part-of-english-middle-class-education-is-devoted-to-the/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [What breaks capitalism, all that will ever break capitalism, is capitalists. The faster they run the more strain on their heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/what-breaks-capitalism-all-that-will-ever-break-capitalism-is/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [Every aspect of personal life is radically affected by the quality of general life, and yet the general life is seen at its most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/every-aspect-of-personal-life-is-radically-affected-by-the-quality-of/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [If from poetry we expect a succession of signals for the release of miscellaneous private emotion we are likely to find Tears, Idle Tears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/if-from-poetry-we-expect-a-succession-of-signals-for-the-release-of/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [Country' and 'city' are very powerful words, and this is not surprising when we remember how much they seem to stand for in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/country-and-city-are-very-powerful-words-and-this-is-not-surprising/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [Most works of art are effectively treated as commodities and most artists, even when they justly claim quite other intentions, areeffectively treated as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/most-works-of-art-are-effectively-treated-as-commodities-and-most/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [Culture is one of the two or three most complicated words in the English language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-williams/culture-is-one-of-the-two-or-three-most-complicated-words-in-the/) [Raymond Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-williams/) > [It is not primarily ideas that have a history; it is societies. 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