--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: An opposition is necessary and desirable…" description: "\"An opposition is necessary and desirable for the healthy development of any country. You can scarcely find anyone in opposition, except for the communi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f3/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn-671_communist_an-opposition-is-necessary-and-desirable_1624783.jpg" --- # An opposition is necessary and desirable for the healthy… ![“An opposition is necessary and desirable for the healthy development of any country. You can scarcely find anyone in opposition, except for the communists, just like in Yeltsin's times. It is regrettable that there is still no constructive, clear and large-scale opposition in Russia. The growth…” quote by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f3/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn-671_communist_an-opposition-is-necessary-and-desirable_1624783.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f3/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn-671_communist_an-opposition-is-necessary-and-desirable_1624783.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f3/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn-671_communist_an-opposition-is-necessary-and-desirable_1624783.jpg) > “An opposition is necessary and desirable for the healthy development of any country. You can scarcely find anyone in opposition, except for the communists, just like in Yeltsin's times. It is regrettable that there is still no constructive, clear and large-scale opposition in Russia. The growth and development of an opposition, as well as the maturing of other democratic institutions, will take more time and experience.” [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Opposition is essential for a healthy society, yet Russia lacks a strong, constructive opposition, hindering democratic development. **In simple terms:** A strong opposition helps democracy, but Russia currently lacks it. Key Takeaway Support the growth of constructive dissent. Themes democracy politics opposition development Russia Mood concerned analytical hopeful Type political critical observational When to use this quote - elections - policy reform - civil activism - media freedom Key Concepts political theory civil society institution building Questions to Reflect On - What barriers prevent effective opposition? - How can citizens foster constructive dissent? A Different Perspective Opposition can become fragmented or co-opted. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Communist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communist/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Democratic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democratic/) [Development Opposition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/development-opposition-320461/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Growth And Development](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth-and-development/) [Health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/health/) [Healthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/healthy/) [Mature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mature/) [Opposition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposition/) [Opposition Maturing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposition-maturing-320462/) [Opposition Necessary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposition-necessary-239282/) [Opposition Russia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposition-russia-320460/) [Russia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/russia/) ## Related quotes > [US opposition to Russia and China has entailed sanctions against Russia, and Russia in turn has made counter-sanctions against Europe. 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It rests on the assumption that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-tannen/the-argument-culture-urges-us-to-approach-the-world-and-the-people-in/) [Deborah Tannen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-tannen/) > [Hillary Clinton is more in the center of things than I am, but she also knows how to work with the opposition, which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joss-whedon/hillary-clinton-is-more-in-the-center-of-things-than-i-am-but-she/) [Joss Whedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joss-whedon/) > [I do think a healthy opposition is very necessary in a democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naveen-patnaik/i-do-think-a-healthy-opposition-is-very-necessary-in-a-democracy/) [Naveen Patnaik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naveen-patnaik/) > [Communist propaganda would sometimes include statements such as "we include almost all the commandments of the Gospel in our ideology". The difference is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/communist-propaganda-would-sometimes-include-statements-such-as-we/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [There is a strange fact about the human mind, a fact that differentiates the mind sharply from the body. The body is limited in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-adler/there-is-a-strange-fact-about-the-human-mind-a-fact-that/) [Mortimer Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-adler/) > [Education is no longer thought of as a preparation for adult life, but as a continuing process of growth and development from birth until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mitchell/education-is-no-longer-thought-of-as-a-preparation-for-adult-life-but/) [Stephen Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mitchell/) > [“happiness is an exclusive quality of the soul. Thus, a body  that  attains  all  the  material  successes  it  longs  for—money,  power,  fame, etc.—often belongs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashad-khalifa/happiness-is-an-exclusive-quality-of-the-soul-thus-a-body-that/) [Rashad Khalifa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashad-khalifa/) > [I prefer old friends as opposed to new ones - people who have been significant in my growth and development along the way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tomlin/i-prefer-old-friends-as-opposed-to-new-ones-people-who-have-been/) [Mike Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tomlin/) > [I believe that the United Kingdom can stay at the forefront in leading the world's growth and development and also continue to play an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-keqiang/i-believe-that-the-united-kingdom-can-stay-at-the-forefront-in/) [Li Keqiang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-keqiang/) > [“Anyaele Sam Chiyson Leadership Laws of Habitual giving: Prominent leaders inherently give back to their communities, they contribute to the growth and development of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anyaele-sam-chiyson/anyaele-sam-chiyson-leadership-laws-of-habitual-giving-prominent/) [Anyaele Sam Chiyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anyaele-sam-chiyson/) ## More by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn > [If you wanted to put the world to rights, who should you begin with: yourself or others?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/if-you-wanted-to-put-the-world-to-rights-who-should-you-begin-with/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [“...you are strong only as long as you don't deprive people of everything . For a person you've taken everything from is no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/you-are-strong-only-as-long-as-you-don-t-deprive-people-of-everything/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [Woe to that nation whose literature is cut short by the intrusion of force. 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Some things lead us into a realm beyond words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/not-everything-has-a-name-some-things-lead-us-into-a-realm-beyond/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [It is almost always impossible to evaluate at the time events which you have already experienced, and to understand their meaning with the guidance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/it-is-almost-always-impossible-to-evaluate-at-the-time-events-which/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [Human nature is full of riddles; . . . one of those riddles is: how is it that people who have been crushed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/human-nature-is-full-of-riddles-one-of-those-riddles-is-how-is-it/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [“It was astonishing that the pseudo wreckers, who knew perfectly well that they weren't wreckers, believed that military men and priests were being shaken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/it-was-astonishing-that-the-pseudo-wreckers-who-knew-perfectly-well/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [When the whole discussion of "developing a national idea" hastily began in post-Soviet Russia, I tried to pour cold water on it with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/when-the-whole-discussion-of-developing-a-national-idea-hastily-began/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [“It was granted me to carry away from my prison years on my bent back, which nearly broke beneath its load, this essential experience;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/it-was-granted-me-to-carry-away-from-my-prison-years-on-my-bent-back/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [Call no day happy 'til it is done; call no man happy til he is dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/call-no-day-happy-til-it-is-done-call-no-man-happy-til-he-is-dead/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [Whenever the tissue of life is woven of legalistic relationships, this creates an atmosphere of spiritual mediocrity that paralyzes a person's noblest impulses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/whenever-the-tissue-of-life-is-woven-of-legalistic-relationships-this/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [The same old caveman feeling-greed, envy, violence, and mutual hate, which along the way assumed respectable pseudonyms like class struggle, racial struggle, mass struggle,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/the-same-old-caveman-feeling-greed-envy-violence-and-mutual-hate/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [Surrender one hair, and you'll end up beardless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/surrender-one-hair-and-you-ll-end-up-beardless/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) [Explore all 412 Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) ## More Communist quotes > [ Corruption could lead to the collapse of the Party \[Communist Party of China\] and the downfall of the state \[People's Republic of China\]. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xi-jinping/corruption-could-lead-to-the-collapse-of-the-party-communist-party-of/) [Xi Jinping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xi-jinping/) > [If the director's a communist, whatever, he's a communist. All I care is that he directs. For the actor, the same thing. All you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-eastwood/if-the-director-s-a-communist-whatever-he-s-a-communist-all-i-care-is/) [Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-eastwood/) > [The most effective method of propaganda directed at the enemy forces is to release captured soldiers and give the wounded medical treatment... Whenever soldiers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/the-most-effective-method-of-propaganda-directed-at-the-enemy-forces/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [I am like all other atheists only in that I do not believe there are any gods. Beyond that, I may differ dramatically in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-carrier/i-am-like-all-other-atheists-only-in-that-i-do-not-believe-there-are/) [Richard Carrier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-carrier/) > [What we need in South Africa is for egos to be suppressed in favour of peace. We need to create a new breed of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hani/what-we-need-in-south-africa-is-for-egos-to-be-suppressed-in-favour/) [Chris Hani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hani/) > [A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. Any man who is still communist at the age…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-man-who-is-not-a-communist-at-the-age-of-twenty-is-a-fool-any-man/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The ultimate goal of the whole policy of peaceful co-existence was to make progress on the basic goal laid down by Lenin of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-nitze/the-ultimate-goal-of-the-whole-policy-of-peaceful-co-existence-was-to/) [Paul Nitze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-nitze/) > [“Soviet Communism was a fanatical and missionary religion. 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I drifted out in the 50's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/my-father-charles-seeger-got-me-into-the-communist-movement-he-backed/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [We must protect each other against the attacks of those self-appointed watchdogs of patriotism now abroad in the land who irresponsibly pin red labels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-henry-hildebrand/we-must-protect-each-other-against-the-attacks-of-those-self/) [Joel Henry Hildebrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-henry-hildebrand/) > [This time we'll hate, alright - but we'll hate the enemy - the vicious gang of colored scum attackers and Jewish-Communist traitors - rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-lincoln-rockwell/this-time-we-ll-hate-alright-but-we-ll-hate-the-enemy-the-vicious/) [George Lincoln Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-lincoln-rockwell/) > [Fidel Castro outlasted U.S. presidents determined to overthrow him, survived the collapse of the communist bloc that sustained him and outlived many of those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-gjelten/fidel-castro-outlasted-u-s-presidents-determined-to-overthrow-him/) [Tom Gjelten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-gjelten/) > [Communists all seem to wear small caps, a look I consider better suited to tubes of toothpaste than to people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fran-lebowitz/communists-all-seem-to-wear-small-caps-a-look-i-consider-better/) [Fran Lebowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fran-lebowitz/) [Browse all 1,048 Communist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "An opposition is necessary and desirable for the healthy development of any country. 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