Politics & Power Quote by Sarah Bernhardt

Bernhardt doesn’t just praise Chicago; she coronates it. Calling the city “the pulse of America” is a performer’s compliment: visceral, rhythmic, bodily. A pulse is proof of life, a beat you can feel even if you can’t fully explain it. For an actress whose career depended on sensing a room’s energy, the metaphor is less postcard romance than professional diagnosis. Chicago, in her framing, isn’t merely impressive or big. It’s where the national body shows its strongest vital signs.

The line also slyly reroutes cultural authority. In Bernhardt’s era, “America” could easily mean New York salons or Washington ceremony. Chicago is the upstart choice: industrial, immigrant-heavy, loud with commerce and ambition. By elevating it to a national metronome, she flatters the city’s self-image as modernity’s proving ground - the place that doesn’t ask permission to become important. It’s a compliment that lands because it validates what Chicagoans already suspect: their city isn’t a second city; it’s the engine room.

There’s marketing savvy here, too. Touring actors lived on hype and local devotion. “I adore Chicago” is intimate, almost romantic, but “pulse of America” turns that affection into civic destiny. It tells audiences their applause isn’t regional fandom; it’s participation in the main event. Bernhardt makes Chicago the heartbeat, and by stepping onto its stage, she casts herself as someone who can feel - and match - the national rhythm.