Material Foundation Quotes

“Character must show itself in the man's
performance both of the duty he owes himself and of the duty he owes the state.
The man's foremast duty is owed to himself and his family; and he can do this
duty only by earning money, by providing what is essential to material wellbeing;
it is only after this has been done that he can hope to build a higher
superstructure on the solid material foundation; it is only after this has been
done that he can help in his movements for the general well-being. He must pull
his own weight first, and only after this can his surplus strength be of use to the
general public. It is not good to excite that bitter laughter which expresses
contempt; and contempt is what we feel for the being whose enthusiasm to
benefit mankind is such that he is a burden to those nearest him; who wishes to
do great things for humanity in the abstract, but who cannot keep his wife in
comfort or educate his children.”
― Theodore Roosevelt, The Man in the Arena: Selected Writings

“The citizen must have high ideals, and yet he must be able to achieve them in
practical fashion.”
― Theodore Roosevelt, The Man in the Arena: Selected Writings

“That is why I decline to recognize the mere
multimillionaire, the man of mere wealth, as an asset of value to any country;
and especially as not an asset to my own country. If he has earned or uses his
wealth in a way that makes him a real benefit, of real use- and such is often the
case- why, then he does become an asset of real worth.”
― Theodore Roosevelt, The Man in the Arena: Selected Writings

“Indeed, it is a sign of marked political weakness in any
commonwealth if the people tend to be carried away by mere oratory, if they
tend to value words in and for themselves, as divorced from the deeds for which
they are supposed to stand. The phrase-maker, the phrase-monger, the ready
talker, however great his power, whose speech does not make for courage,
sobriety, and right understanding, is simply a noxious element in the body
politic, and it speaks ill for the public if he has influence over them. To admire
the gift of oratory without regard to the moral quality behind the gift is to do
wrong to the republic.”
― Theodore Roosevelt, The Man in the Arena: Selected Writings

“We should not take part in acting a lie any more than in telling a lie. We
should not say that men are equal where they are not equal, nor proceed upon
the assumption that there is an equality where it does not exist; but we should
strive to bring about a measurable equality, at least to the extent of preventing
the inequality which is due to force or fraud.”
― Theodore Roosevelt, The Man in the Arena: Selected Writings

“We are bound in honor to strive to bring ever nearer the day when, as far is humanly possible, we shall be able to realize the ideal that each man shall have an equal opportunity to show the stuff that is in him by the way in which he renders service.”
― Theodore Roosevelt, The Man in the Arena: Selected Writings