"Marxism is like a classical building that followed the Renaissance; beautiful in its way, but incapable of growth"
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Macmillan lands the blow with an image that sounds complimentary, then turns quietly brutal. By likening Marxism to a post-Renaissance classical building, he grants it proportion, coherence, even elegance. That concession matters: it frames Marxism not as barbarism but as an impressive, finished design. The insult arrives in the last clause. A building can be admired, visited, photographed. It can also be functionally obsolete. “Incapable of growth” recasts Marxism as a sealed aesthetic system: complete, rigid, unresponsive to weather, plumbing, or the messy demands of actual inhabitants.
The metaphor also smuggles in a very British, very postwar sensibility. Macmillan governed in an era when Europe was rebuilding materially and reordering ideologically. Social democracy and managed capitalism were presenting themselves as modern, adjustable architectures: welfare states, mixed economies, decolonization, consumer affluence. Against that backdrop, Marxism is framed as a grand historical style that cannot handle renovation. It’s not just wrong; it’s out of date.
Subtextually, he’s targeting more than Soviet communism. He’s warning domestic audiences tempted by doctrinaire solutions that politics is a living city, not a museum district. The Renaissance reference does extra work: it implies Marxism is derivative, a revival of classical certainty rather than an invention suited to modern complexity. Macmillan’s conservatism here is less about defending tradition than defending adaptability: better an imperfect structure you can extend than a perfect facade you can’t change.
The metaphor also smuggles in a very British, very postwar sensibility. Macmillan governed in an era when Europe was rebuilding materially and reordering ideologically. Social democracy and managed capitalism were presenting themselves as modern, adjustable architectures: welfare states, mixed economies, decolonization, consumer affluence. Against that backdrop, Marxism is framed as a grand historical style that cannot handle renovation. It’s not just wrong; it’s out of date.
Subtextually, he’s targeting more than Soviet communism. He’s warning domestic audiences tempted by doctrinaire solutions that politics is a living city, not a museum district. The Renaissance reference does extra work: it implies Marxism is derivative, a revival of classical certainty rather than an invention suited to modern complexity. Macmillan’s conservatism here is less about defending tradition than defending adaptability: better an imperfect structure you can extend than a perfect facade you can’t change.
Quote Details
| Topic | Wisdom |
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