Nothing had happened because nothing had changed. Yet the General was rubbish in the end.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Stagnation feels like nothing happening, but it leads to failure or inadequacy over time.
- In plain terms
- Nothing changed so nothing happened, but this still led to failure.
- What can you take from it?
- Stagnation invites decline.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Is no change always bad?
- How do you measure real progress?
Another view
Sometimes stability is better than constant change.
More from Wallace Stevens
The right, uplifted foreleg of the horse Suggested that, at the final funeral, The music halted and the horse stood still.
Permalink to quote #127 Two things of opposite natures seem to depend On one another, as a man depends On a woman, day on night, the imagined On the real. This is the origin of change…
Permalink to quote #129 Should there be a question of returning or Of death in memory's dream? Is spring a sleep? This warmth is for lovers at last accomplishing Their love, this begi…
Permalink to quote #126
Related quotes
Most human organizations that fall short of their goals do so not because of stupidity or faulty doctrines, but because of internal decay and rigidification. T…
James A. GarfieldJames A. Garfield quote #48 You sittin' here chained to your rockin' chair.
Hoagy CarmichaelHoagy Carmichael quote #1 I've burned my own house down, the torch is in my hand. Now I'll burn down the house of anyone who wants to follow me.
KabirKabir quote #1