The Courage to Continue

By now, Churchill’s wit, eloquence, and bluntness has been analyzed ad nauseam over the course of this blog. However, we’ve merely scratched the surface. Admittedly, there are only so many aphoristic snippets from anyone that are worth repeating over and over, but whenever Churchill spoke, he carried with him an impressive delivery style that demonstrated his command of the English language. I encourage you to read/watch some of Churchill’s speeches and try to mimic his presence.

As much as cam be gleaned from raving about Churchill overall, it would be remiss to not analyze a quote this week. This week’s quote has been earmarked for weeks as the final quote. For me, this is the most influential and impactful of the quotes that I’ve analyzed over the course of this blog. Pithy, meaningful, and stylistic, this quotation is the coup de grâce in proving Churchill’s value as a speaker.

Churchill pointed out that “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts”. Often attributed to a variety of different speakers, it’s impossible to know definitively whether or not Churchill spoke these words, but they fit his style so well that it is easy enough to accept them as his.

As I’m sure you can probably repeat back with me at this point, Churchill utilizes a two-clause approach in the vast majority of his quotes. In this one, the first clause is again split down the middle. He first asserts that success isn’t final: no matter how rich/happy/whatever you define success as you are, it is fleeting and could disappear at any time. With contrast, he also proclaims that failure is not fatal. One mistake or a simple error, no matter how costly, will not ruin you for life. Similar to success as not being final, Churchill is basically pointing out that failure is also temporary, but he stylistically chooses to describe failure in terms of fatality.

Having established that both success and failure are impermanent conditions, the reader is left in a void – nothing they can accomplish or do (everything is either a success or failure, in some sense) will last. What then, truly matters? Having framed this question for his audience, Churchill goes on to answer it, declaring that the courage to continue is what counts, a lovely bit of alliteration that drives home his point with flair. Success will manifest, but will eventually disappear. You will fail, but it won’t ruin you. As long as you have the motivation, mettle, and moxie to get back up again and keep pushing through, you’ll be just fine. Another variation of this quote describe getting knocked down seven times and getting up eight.

As long as you have the courage to continue, you’ll make it in this world. With that in mind, don’t give up on your hopes and dreams. Don’t play life safe. Go out there and do something big with your life. Make an impact on someone. Change the world. Fail, but learn from your mistakes. Always make sure you have the courage to continue. That’s what counts.

Democracy: Not the Worst, I Guess

Readership is declining. I don’t blame you guys – Churchill’s insightfulness can get old. But this week, hopefully a little bit more of a light hearted quote can kindle at least a little bit of renewed interest.

Government can be such a criticized institution. Every American, let alone citizens of other countries (especially non democratic ones), has complained about some sort of governmental action at one point or another I’m sure. I’ve whined about laws I find trivial or unfair, I’m sure you’ve done at least the same. Some take their disenchantment to a higher level, protesting or petitioning for change. For me, halfhearted complaining has always been my staple level of commitment to change.

Winston Churchill was prime minister of a country that some claim to be democratic but really has a strange blend of pseudo-democracy combined with a system of lordship and Unitarianism under a constitutional monarchy. A lot of jargon, but necessary to simulate the complicated political structure of Great Britain. Even in this hazy political situation, only more distressed during the World War era that Churchill presided over, he found it appropriate to point out that “Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time”.

I identify wholeheartedly with this quotation. Government can be so alienating and ineffective in some contexts, but democracy is one of the least of these evils. While my political participation in incredibly lackluster, I do see the value in democracy. By inserting public opinion into the political process, countries can mitigate the resounding negative perceptions of government institutions by utilizing the public’s own responsibility for the matter.

Considering the quotation itself, Churchill again harps on two clauses: first that democracy is a terrible form of government, and second that it is better than the other options. I’ve tried to showcase in some manner my own negative opinions about democracy. More objectively, it is slow, inefficient, and sometimes costly. One chief concern expressed by the founding fathers about democracy was that it in no way insulated the political process from the whim of the common man. Another Churchill quote claims that “The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter”, demonstrating the same lack of faith in the general voting population. Representative democracy does away with some of these flaws, but still creates a stratified system that depends on heavily on polarized parties and can misrepresent the true public opinion.

Courtesy of Kirk Walters

As far as comparing it to other political structures, democracy has for over two centuries stood as an idealized governmental structure, at least in many developed countries of the world. While certain nations globally stick to say monarchism or communism, the United States in particular espouses that democracy is by far superior. I think it would be ethnocentric to simply conclude this based on my own citizenship here in the US, but I think the value in a democracy (including representation, transparency, freedoms, liberty, and protection of rights) is much more than other political systems. I’ll leave that for you to decide on for yourself.