The revolution will not be televised
Meaning: Authentic social change emerges from grassroots action, not passive consumption of media spectacles.
Origin: The title of a 1970 spoken-word poem by Gil Scott-Heron, first performed over conga and bongo drums on his live album Small Talk at 125th and Lenox, and re-recorded with a full band on Pieces of a Man in 1971. The poem mocks advertising and television culture: real change, it says, will happen in the streets, not as entertainment.
More proverbs about Wisdom
- The shoemaker's children go barefoot — Those who possess expertise often neglect applying it to their own household's needs.
- The whistle doesn't pull the train — Mere noise and commotion accomplish nothing; only genuine effort and power move things fo…
- Those who have, get — Wealth and resources accumulate toward those already possessing them, compounding their a…
- Timing is everything — Seizing the right moment determines success more than effort or ability alone.
- To the victor go the spoils — Victory earns the right to claim rewards and resources from the defeated.
- What's bred in the bone will come out in the flesh — Inborn character traits and inherited nature inevitably reveal themselves outwardly, no m…
From our untranslatable words
- Shinrin-yoku — Immersing yourself in the atmosphere of a forest — soaking up its calm through all your s…
- Waldeinsamkeit — The serene, faintly mystical feeling of being alone in the woods, at peace with nature.
- Meriggiare — To take a quiet midday rest in a cool, shaded spot, escaping the fierce afternoon sun.