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What does this mean?

"If you don't want a house built, hide the nails and wood. If you don't want a man unhappy don't give him two sides of the question to worry him"
I'm really clueless about this quote.

January 9, 2013

4 Comments • Newest first

frostdrake54

well for my interpretation, it seems that the quote draws on the idea of chaos and how if you hide the tools that foster rage within a man, then you won't have any drama maybe? By giving the man neither of the two sides of a situation, he will remain one-sided and thus use egocentrism to his advantage to continually think that his belief is always correct. Again, this is only an intepretation.

Reply January 9, 2013
ZOMGitjon

its mean dont give the dude something more to worry about

Reply January 9, 2013
Chema

You can't build a house without nails and wood. If you don't want a house built, hide the nails and wood. If you don't want a man unhappy politically, don't give him two sides to the question to worry him; give him one. Better yet, give him none. Let him forget there is such a thing as war. If the government is inefficient, top-heavy, and tax mad, better it be all those than people worry over it. Peace, Montag. Give the people contests they win by remembering the words to more popular songs or the names of state capitals, or how much corn Iowa grew last year. Cram them full with noncombustible data, choke them so damned full of 'facts' they feel stuffed, but absolutely 'brilliant' with information. Then they'll feel they're thinking, they'll get a sense of motion without moving. And they'll be happy, because facts of that sort don't change. Don't give them any slippery stuff like philosophy or sociology to tie things up with. That way lies melancholy. Any man who can take a TV wall apart, and put it back together again, and most man can, nowadays, is happier than man who tries to slide-rule, measure, and equate the universe, which just won't be measured or equated without making man feel bestial and lonely.

Reply January 9, 2013 - edited
LostMyJob

It means that if you want to be a hobo you don't have to have your house built

Reply January 9, 2013 - edited