--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Truth might be heroic, but it was not…" description: "\"“Truth might be heroic, but it was not within the range of practical domestic politics.”\" — Samuel Butler" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7e/samuel-butler-823_domestic_truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-wit_325699.jpg" --- # Truth might be heroic, but it was not within the range of… ![“Truth might be heroic, but it was not within the range of practical domestic politics.” quote by Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7e/samuel-butler-823_domestic_truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-wit_325699.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7e/samuel-butler-823_domestic_truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-wit_325699.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7e/samuel-butler-823_domestic_truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-wit_325699.jpg) > ““Truth might be heroic, but it was not within the range of practical domestic politics.”” [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Suggests that while truth is noble, it may be impractical for everyday politics **In simple terms:** Truth is noble but often impractical in politics Key Takeaway Recognize limits of truth in political action Themes politics truth practicality idealism Mood critical reflective Type philosophical political When to use this quote - government - activism - media commentary Key Concepts realpolitik ethical dilemmas public discourse Questions to Reflect On - How can truth be effectively communicated in politics? - When should practicality outweigh idealism? A Different Perspective Idealism may clash with pragmatic governance ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Domestic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/domestic/) [Domestic Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/domestic-politics-1801046/) [Heroic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heroic/) [Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Truth Heroic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-heroic-252695/) ## Related quotes > [The truth is always more heroic than the hype.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-lynch/the-truth-is-always-more-heroic-than-the-hype/) [Jessica Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-lynch/) > [I had the good fortune and opportunity to come home and to tell the truth; many soldiers, like Pat Tillman… did not have that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-lynch/i-had-the-good-fortune-and-opportunity-to-come-home-and-to-tell-the/) [Jessica Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-lynch/) > [“The truth of war is not always easy. The truth is always more heroic than the hype.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-krakauer/the-truth-of-war-is-not-always-easy-the-truth-is-always-more-heroic/) [Jon Krakauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-krakauer/) > [I would rather not meddle in the domestic politics of the United States.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayelet-shaked/i-would-rather-not-meddle-in-the-domestic-politics-of-the-united/) [Ayelet Shaked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayelet-shaked/) > [When you work in the White House you talk to the White House staff all day, so you're talking to the guy who handles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/when-you-work-in-the-white-house-you-talk-to-the-white-house-staff/) [Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/) > [“It was one of the great myths of that time that foreign policy was this pure and uncontaminated area which was never touched by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-halberstam/it-was-one-of-the-great-myths-of-that-time-that-foreign-policy-was/) [David Halberstam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-halberstam/) > [Anyone who tries to separate or divorce domestic politics from international politics does not get it, and that might be dangerous for the future…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/anyone-who-tries-to-separate-or-divorce-domestic-politics-from/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I concern myself with Venezuela. 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In fact, I have been advocating for democracy for decades.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fethullah-gulen/throughout-my-life-i-have-publicly-and-privately-denounced-military/) [Fethullah Gulen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fethullah-gulen/) > [“Foreign policy is in danger of turning into a subdivision of domestic politics instead of an exercise in shaping the future. If the major…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-kissinger/foreign-policy-is-in-danger-of-turning-into-a-subdivision-of-domestic/) [Henry Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-kissinger/) > [In a climate where much of foreign policy is a direct function of domestic politics, focusing on what one doesn't want is an easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hassan-rouhani/in-a-climate-where-much-of-foreign-policy-is-a-direct-function-of/) [Hassan Rouhani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hassan-rouhani/) > [This self-defeating behavior, so the argument goes, must be the result of warped domestic politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/this-self-defeating-behavior-so-the-argument-goes-must-be-the-result/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [Oil could complicate domestic politics in countries with too much of it - there is a reason economists talk about 'the curse of oil,'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chrystia-freeland/oil-could-complicate-domestic-politics-in-countries-with-too-much-of/) [Chrystia Freeland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chrystia-freeland/) > [Perhaps in the long view, de Gaulle was more responsible with his troublesome interventions into our domestic politics, for unifying our country than we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-lamarsh/perhaps-in-the-long-view-de-gaulle-was-more-responsible-with-his/) [Judy LaMarsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-lamarsh/) ## More by Samuel Butler > [Is life worth living? This is a question for an embryo not for a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/is-life-worth-living-this-is-a-question-for-an-embryo-not-for-a-man/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [I am the enfant terrible of literature and science. If I cannot, and I know I cannot, get the literary and scientific bigwigs to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/i-am-the-enfant-terrible-of-literature-and-science-if-i-cannot-and-i/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [If you follow reason far enough it always leads to conclusions that are contrary to reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/if-you-follow-reason-far-enough-it-always-leads-to-conclusions-that/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [All animals, except man, know that the principal business of life is to enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/all-animals-except-man-know-that-the-principal-business-of-life-is-to/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [The advantage of doing one's praising for oneself is that one can lay it on so thick and exactly in the right places.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/the-advantage-of-doing-one-s-praising-for-oneself-is-that-one-can-lay/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [Spare the rod and spoil the child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/spare-the-rod-and-spoil-the-child/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [Opinions have vested interests just as men have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/opinions-have-vested-interests-just-as-men-have/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [“we must judge men not so much by what they, as by what they make us feel that they have it in them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/we-must-judge-men-not-so-much-by-what-they-as-by-what-they-make-us/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [If I die prematurely I shall be saved from being bored to death at my own success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/if-i-die-prematurely-i-shall-be-saved-from-being-bored-to-death-at-my/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [Vaccination is the medical sacrament corresponding to baptism. Whether it is or is not more efficacious I do not know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/vaccination-is-the-medical-sacrament-corresponding-to-baptism-whether/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [“Having, then, once introduced an element of inconsistency into his system, he was far too consistent not to be inconsistent consistently, and he lapsed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/having-then-once-introduced-an-element-of-inconsistency-into-his/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [Brigands demand your money or your life; women require both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/brigands-demand-your-money-or-your-life-women-require-both/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [A man who lets himself be bored is even more contemptible than the bore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/a-man-who-lets-himself-be-bored-is-even-more-contemptible-than-the/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [It is not sufficiently considered in the hour of exultation, that all human excellence is comparative; that no man performs much but in proportion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/it-is-not-sufficiently-considered-in-the-hour-of-exultation-that-all/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [“The oldest books are still only just out to those who have not read them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/the-oldest-books-are-still-only-just-out-to-those-who-have-not-read/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) [Explore all 355 Samuel Butler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) ## More Domestic quotes > [We must commit ourselves to an 'all of the above' energy approach, with a major focus on increasing domestic production and expanding alternatives fuels,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-roskam/we-must-commit-ourselves-to-an-all-of-the-above-energy-approach-with/) [Peter Roskam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-roskam/) > [This is not love. It is a crime... You can't look the other way just because you have not experienced domestic violence with your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salma-hayek/this-is-not-love-it-is-a-crime-you-can-t-look-the-other-way-just/) [Salma Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salma-hayek/) > [I'm kind of domestic, untidily so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-paulin/i-m-kind-of-domestic-untidily-so/) [Tom Paulin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-paulin/) > [The most domestic cat, which has lain on a rug all her days, appears quite at home in the woods, and, by her sly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-most-domestic-cat-which-has-lain-on-a-rug-all-her-days-appears/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Domestic violence doesn't count when it's in a broken home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/domestic-violence-doesn-t-count-when-it-s-in-a-broken-home/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [During his presidency, Truman and the Republicans were locked in a series of furious assaults on each other that outraged him and made Truman…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dallek/during-his-presidency-truman-and-the-republicans-were-locked-in-a/) [Robert Dallek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-dallek/) > [Asked at the hearing why she hadn't pressed the FBI more closely about what it knew, or didn't know, about domestic terrorist threats, Rice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-fineman/asked-at-the-hearing-why-she-hadn-t-pressed-the-fbi-more-closely/) [Howard Fineman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-fineman/) > [A reality that is electronic... Once everybody's got a computer terminal in their home, to satisfy all their needs, all the domestic needs, there'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-g-ballard/a-reality-that-is-electronic-once-everybody-s-got-a-computer-terminal/) [J. G. Ballard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-g-ballard/) > [We can't allow domestic violence to become a campaign issue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandy-adams/we-can-t-allow-domestic-violence-to-become-a-campaign-issue/) [Sandy Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandy-adams/) > [The cat is the only non-gregarious domestic animal. It is retained by its extra-ordinary adhesion to the comforts of the house in which it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-galton/the-cat-is-the-only-non-gregarious-domestic-animal-it-is-retained-by/) [Francis Galton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-galton/) > [Germany is not like Ireland or Denmark. It is a country where the domestic market counts much more than the external market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bofinger/germany-is-not-like-ireland-or-denmark-it-is-a-country-where-the/) [Peter Bofinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bofinger/) > [That means following a very restrictive fiscal and monetary policy which will squeeze the monopolies and cut their subsidies. On the micro level we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-klaus/that-means-following-a-very-restrictive-fiscal-and-monetary-policy/) [Vaclav Klaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-klaus/) > [Secondly, security. Both the challenges we face in the world and the responsibilities that our country has in protecting our people, are major issues.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/secondly-security-both-the-challenges-we-face-in-the-world-and-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > ['Honour'-based violence is a form of domestic violence. 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Humphrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-h-humphrey/) [Browse all 242 Domestic quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/domestic/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Truth might be heroic, but it was not within the range of practical domestic politics.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Samuel Butler" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-within-the-range-of-practical/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Domestic" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-within-the-range-of-practical/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7e/samuel-butler-823_domestic_truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-wit_325699.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7e/samuel-butler-823_domestic_truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-wit_325699.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7e/samuel-butler-823_domestic_truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-wit_325699.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Truth might be heroic, but it was not within the range of practical domestic politics.” — Samuel Butler", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Samuel Butler", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Truth might be heroic, but it...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-within-the-range-of-practical/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/truth-might-be-heroic-but-it-was-not-within-the-range-of-practical/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```