--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ideals are an imaginative understanding…" description: "\"Ideals are an imaginative understanding of that which is desirable in that which is possible.\" — Walter Lippmann" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79f/walter-lippmann-1083_desirable_ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding_518639.jpg" --- # Ideals are an imaginative understanding of that which is… ![“Ideals are an imaginative understanding of that which is desirable in that which is possible.” quote by Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79f/walter-lippmann-1083_desirable_ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding_518639.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79f/walter-lippmann-1083_desirable_ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding_518639.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79f/walter-lippmann-1083_desirable_ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding_518639.jpg) > “Ideals are an imaginative understanding of that which is desirable in that which is possible.” [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Ideals combine imagination with realistic possibilities, shaping what we strive for. **In simple terms:** Dream big, stay realistic. Key Takeaway Align vision with feasible actions. Themes philosophy psychology goal‑setting Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career planning - policy development - artistic creation - personal growth Key Concepts idealism pragmatism creative imagination Questions to Reflect On - What ideals guide your decisions? - How do you test if an ideal is attainable? A Different Perspective Idealism can clash with harsh realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ideals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideals/) [Imaginative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imaginative/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) ## Related quotes > [A desirable advertisement will be reasonable, but never dull ... original, but never self-conscious ... imaginative, but never misleading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fairfax-m-cone/a-desirable-advertisement-will-be-reasonable-but-never-dull-original/) [Fairfax M. Cone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fairfax-m-cone/) > [Not to Learn Irish is to miss the opportunity of understanding what life in this country has meant and could mean in a better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/not-to-learn-irish-is-to-miss-the-opportunity-of-understanding-what/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [Chi-Os were ideal partners for all occasions. They were discrete, desirable, tactful, polite, and fun... Every mom dreamed of her son coming home with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/chi-os-were-ideal-partners-for-all-occasions-they-were-discrete/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [To me the function of politics is to make possible the desirable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/to-me-the-function-of-politics-is-to-make-possible-the-desirable/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [Social and cultural change, however desirable, should not be effected by the engines of national power. Let us, through persuasion and education, seek to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-goldwater/social-and-cultural-change-however-desirable-should-not-be-effected/) [Barry Goldwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-goldwater/) > [When the desirable jobs are spending other people's money, reporting on spending other people's money and lobbying to spend other people's money then you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-worstall/when-the-desirable-jobs-are-spending-other-people-s-money-reporting/) Tim Worstall > [Common sense is both more rare and more desirable in leaders than mere intelligence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/common-sense-is-both-more-rare-and-more-desirable-in-leaders-than/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [I don't just live to work because I don't think that's healthy or desirable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harris-dickinson/i-don-t-just-live-to-work-because-i-don-t-think-that-s-healthy-or/) [Harris Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harris-dickinson/) > [What seems so necessary today may not even be desirable tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/what-seems-so-necessary-today-may-not-even-be-desirable-tomorrow/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [“The great thing about facts is that you don't have to ponder whether they're desirable or not.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-nesb/the-great-thing-about-facts-is-that-you-don-t-have-to-ponder-whether/) [Jo Nesbø](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-nesb/) > [The goal in raising one's child is to enable him, first, to discover who he wants to be, and then to become a person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-bettelheim/the-goal-in-raising-one-s-child-is-to-enable-him-first-to-discover/) [Bruno Bettelheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-bettelheim/) > [Things to be done offer themselves, I suppose, because they are in themselves desirable; not because it is desirable to have something to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/things-to-be-done-offer-themselves-i-suppose-because-they-are-in/) [Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/) > [It was both necessary and desirable for us to be so strong at sea that no Sea Power could attack us without risk, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernhard-von-bulow/it-was-both-necessary-and-desirable-for-us-to-be-so-strong-at-sea/) [Bernhard von Bulow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernhard-von-bulow/) > [I'm happy to be considered desirable. I love it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sarandon/i-m-happy-to-be-considered-desirable-i-love-it/) [Susan Sarandon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sarandon/) > [At times of recession, running a budget deficit is highly desirable. Once the economy begins to recover, you have to balance the budget. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/at-times-of-recession-running-a-budget-deficit-is-highly-desirable/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) ## More by Walter Lippmann > [The emancipated woman has to fight something worse than the crusted prejudices of her uncles; she has to fight the bewilderment in her own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/the-emancipated-woman-has-to-fight-something-worse-than-the-crusted/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [Even God has been defended with nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/even-god-has-been-defended-with-nonsense/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [A better distribution of incomes would increase that efficiency by diverting a great fund of wealth from the useless to the useful members of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/a-better-distribution-of-incomes-would-increase-that-efficiency-by/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [There is but one bond of peace that is both permanent and enriching: The increasing knowledge of the world in which experiment occurs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/there-is-but-one-bond-of-peace-that-is-both-permanent-and-enriching/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [Where there is no danger of overt action there is rarely any interference with freedom. That is why there has so often been amazing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/where-there-is-no-danger-of-overt-action-there-is-rarely-any/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [The final test of a leader is that he leaves behind him in other men the conviction and the will to carry on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/the-final-test-of-a-leader-is-that-he-leaves-behind-him-in-other-men/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [The simple opposition between the people and big business has disappeared because the people themselves have become so deeply involved in big business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/the-simple-opposition-between-the-people-and-big-business-has/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [A free press is not a privilege but an organic necessity in a great society. ... A great society is simply a big and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/a-free-press-is-not-a-privilege-but-an-organic-necessity-in-a-great/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [“Since position and contact play so big a part in determining what can be seen, heard, read, and experienced, as well as what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/since-position-and-contact-play-so-big-a-part-in-determining-what-can/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [An alliance is like a chain. It is not made stronger by adding weak links to it. A great power like the United States…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/an-alliance-is-like-a-chain-it-is-not-made-stronger-by-adding-weak/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [The chief element in the art of statesmanship under modern conditions is the ability to elucidate the confused and clamorous interests which converge upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/the-chief-element-in-the-art-of-statesmanship-under-modern-conditions/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [At the core of every moral code there is a picture of human nature, a map of the universe, and a version of history.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/at-the-core-of-every-moral-code-there-is-a-picture-of-human-nature-a/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [The tendency of the casual mind is to pick out or stumble upon a sample which supports or defies its prejudices, and then to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/the-tendency-of-the-casual-mind-is-to-pick-out-or-stumble-upon-a/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [There is only one purpose to which a whole society can be directed by a deliberate plan. That purpose is war, and there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/there-is-only-one-purpose-to-which-a-whole-society-can-be-directed-by/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [In a democracy, the opposition is not only tolerated as constitutional, but must be maintained because it is indispensable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/in-a-democracy-the-opposition-is-not-only-tolerated-as-constitutional/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) [Explore all 296 Walter Lippmann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) ## More Desirable quotes > [At times of recession, running a budget deficit is highly desirable. Once the economy begins to recover, you have to balance the budget. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/at-times-of-recession-running-a-budget-deficit-is-highly-desirable/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [I'm happy to be considered desirable. I love it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sarandon/i-m-happy-to-be-considered-desirable-i-love-it/) [Susan Sarandon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sarandon/) > [It was both necessary and desirable for us to be so strong at sea that no Sea Power could attack us without risk, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernhard-von-bulow/it-was-both-necessary-and-desirable-for-us-to-be-so-strong-at-sea/) [Bernhard von Bulow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernhard-von-bulow/) > [Things to be done offer themselves, I suppose, because they are in themselves desirable; not because it is desirable to have something to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/things-to-be-done-offer-themselves-i-suppose-because-they-are-in/) [Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/) > [The goal in raising one's child is to enable him, first, to discover who he wants to be, and then to become a person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-bettelheim/the-goal-in-raising-one-s-child-is-to-enable-him-first-to-discover/) [Bruno Bettelheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-bettelheim/) > [“The great thing about facts is that you don't have to ponder whether they're desirable or not.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-nesb/the-great-thing-about-facts-is-that-you-don-t-have-to-ponder-whether/) [Jo Nesbø](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-nesb/) > [What seems so necessary today may not even be desirable tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/what-seems-so-necessary-today-may-not-even-be-desirable-tomorrow/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I don't just live to work because I don't think that's healthy or desirable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harris-dickinson/i-don-t-just-live-to-work-because-i-don-t-think-that-s-healthy-or/) [Harris Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harris-dickinson/) > [Common sense is both more rare and more desirable in leaders than mere intelligence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/common-sense-is-both-more-rare-and-more-desirable-in-leaders-than/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [When the desirable jobs are spending other people's money, reporting on spending other people's money and lobbying to spend other people's money then you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-worstall/when-the-desirable-jobs-are-spending-other-people-s-money-reporting/) Tim Worstall > [Social and cultural change, however desirable, should not be effected by the engines of national power. Let us, through persuasion and education, seek to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-goldwater/social-and-cultural-change-however-desirable-should-not-be-effected/) [Barry Goldwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-goldwater/) > [To me the function of politics is to make possible the desirable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/to-me-the-function-of-politics-is-to-make-possible-the-desirable/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [It is the common calamity of old age to lose whatever might have rendered it desirable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/it-is-the-common-calamity-of-old-age-to-lose-whatever-might-have/) [Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/) > [Desire itself is movement Not in itself desirable; Love is itself unmoving, Only the cause and end of movement, Timeless, and undesiring Except in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/desire-itself-is-movement-not-in-itself-desirable-love-is-itself/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Rhythm is born in all of us. To be a desirable dancing partner, you don't have to do all the intricate fancy steps that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ginger-rogers/rhythm-is-born-in-all-of-us-to-be-a-desirable-dancing-partner-you-don/) [Ginger Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ginger-rogers/) Browse all 509 Desirable quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Ideals are an imaginative understanding of that which is desirable in that which is possible.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Walter Lippmann" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding-of-that-which-is-desirable-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Desirable" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding-of-that-which-is-desirable-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79f/walter-lippmann-1083_desirable_ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding_518639.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79f/walter-lippmann-1083_desirable_ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding_518639.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79f/walter-lippmann-1083_desirable_ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding_518639.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Ideals are an imaginative understanding of that which is desirable in that which is possible.” — Walter Lippmann", "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": "Walter Lippmann", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Ideals are an imaginative understanding of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding-of-that-which-is-desirable-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/ideals-are-an-imaginative-understanding-of-that-which-is-desirable-in/#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 } } ] } ```