John Ruskin Ruskin, John 1921, 1925, The Stones of Venice. Volume 2. London: John Dent (1925, volume 2, p. 151.)
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And the great cry that rises from all our manufacturing cities, louder than their furnace blast, is all in very deed for this,—that we manufacture everything there except men; we blanch cotton, and strengthen steel, and refine sugar, and shape pottery; but to brighten, to strengthen, to refine, or to form a single living spirit, never enters into their estimate of advantages.

— John Ruskin on Eugenics

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "And the great cry that rises from all our manufacturing cities, louder than their furnace blast, is all in very deed for this,—that we manufacture everything there except men; we blanch cotton, and strengthen steel, and refine sugar, and shape pottery; but to brighten, to strengthen, to refine, or to form a single living spirit, never enters into their estimate of advantages." in the context of "John Ruskin Ruskin, John 1921, 1925, The Stones of Venice. Volume 2. London: John Dent (1925, volume 2, p. 151.)" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "Eugenics" (Quotes) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
John Ruskin

About John Ruskin

John Ruskin (8 February 1819 – 20 January 1900) was an English author, poet and painter, most famous for his work as art critic and social critic.