--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is essential to the idea of a law…" description: "\"“It is essential to the idea of a law, that it be attended with a sanction; or, in other words, a penalty or punishment for disobedience. If there be n..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/alexander-hamilton-619_crime_it-is-essential-to-the-idea-of-a-law-tha_2108079.jpg" --- # It is essential to the idea of a law, that it be attended… ![“It is essential to the idea of a law, that it be attended with a sanction; or, in other words, a penalty or punishment for disobedience. If there be no penalty annexed to disobedience, the resolutions or commands which pretend to be laws will, in fact, amount to nothing more than advice or…” quote by Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/alexander-hamilton-619_crime_it-is-essential-to-the-idea-of-a-law-tha_2108079.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/alexander-hamilton-619_crime_it-is-essential-to-the-idea-of-a-law-tha_2108079.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/alexander-hamilton-619_crime_it-is-essential-to-the-idea-of-a-law-tha_2108079.jpg) > ““It is essential to the idea of a law, that it be attended with a sanction; or, in other words, a penalty or punishment for disobedience. If there be no penalty annexed to disobedience, the resolutions or commands which pretend to be laws will, in fact, amount to nothing more than advice or recommendation. This penalty, whatever it may be, can only be inflicted in two ways: by the agency of the Courts and Ministers of Justice, or by military force; by the coercion of the magistracy, or by the coercion of arms. The first kind can evidently apply only to men: the last kind must, of necessity, be employed against bodies politic, or communities, or States.”” [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Laws must be backed by enforceable penalties; without sanctions, they are mere suggestions. **In simple terms:** Law needs enforcement to be effective. Key Takeaway Enforce laws with clear consequences. Themes law enforcement authority Mood thought‑provoking reflective Type legal philosophical When to use this quote - legislative drafting - criminal justice - policy making - public compliance - international law Key Concepts social contract penalties state power Questions to Reflect On - What limits should exist on punitive power? - How can societies ensure fair enforcement? A Different Perspective Enforcement can be harsh or unjust if not balanced with rights. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Disobedience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disobedience/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) ## Related quotes > [Government implies the power of making laws. It is essential to the idea of a law, that it be attended with a sanction; or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/government-implies-the-power-of-making-laws-it-is-essential-to-the/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [Remember that mindsets can not be changed through force and coercion. No idea can ever be forcibly thrust upon any one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pervez-musharraf/remember-that-mindsets-can-not-be-changed-through-force-and-coercion/) [Pervez Musharraf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pervez-musharraf/) > [We do not find the Savior using force or coercion to accomplish His purposes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/we-do-not-find-the-savior-using-force-or-coercion-to-accomplish-his/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) > [The heart of government, coated with whatever velvet gloves you want to put on it, is a mailed fist of force and coercion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-keyes/the-heart-of-government-coated-with-whatever-velvet-gloves-you-want/) [Alan Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-keyes/) > [There is all the difference in the world between the criminal's avoiding the public eye and the civil disobedience's taking the law into his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/there-is-all-the-difference-in-the-world-between-the-criminal-s/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [Disobedience was man's Original Virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/disobedience-was-man-s-original-virtue/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [Arrogance is a mixture of impertinence, disobedience, indiscipline, rudeness, harshness, and a self-assertive nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sivananda/arrogance-is-a-mixture-of-impertinence-disobedience-indiscipline/) [Sivananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sivananda/) > [Disobedience of any kind, on any level, is sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/innah-delos-angeles/disobedience-of-any-kind-on-any-level-is-sin/) [Innah Delos Angeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/innah-delos-angeles/) > [“Disobedience, in the eyes of anyone who has read history, is a man's original virtue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/disobedience-in-the-eyes-of-anyone-who-has-read-history-is-a-man-s/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [... professing myself moreover convinced that the general's unjust interference, so far from being really injurious to their felicity, was perhaps rather conducive to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/professing-myself-moreover-convinced-that-the-general-s-unjust/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [When you say 'no' and you get on the streets and you do an act of civil disobedience, it changes your psychology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-bradbrook/when-you-say-no-and-you-get-on-the-streets-and-you-do-an-act-of-civil/) [Gail Bradbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-bradbrook/) > [Every fact of science was once Damned. Every invention was considered impossible. Every discovery was a nervous shock to some orthodoxy. Every artistic innovation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/every-fact-of-science-was-once-damned-every-invention-was-considered/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [The world - and America - has been defined by people who haven't necessarily abided by the laws and the rules. Civil disobedience is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rory-kennedy/the-world-and-america-has-been-defined-by-people-who-haven-t/) [Rory Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rory-kennedy/) > [ \[Putin\] is a bully. And bullies only understand when we punch them in the nose, but we need to do that economically. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-ayotte/putin-is-a-bully-and-bullies-only-understand-when-we-punch-them-in/) [Kelly Ayotte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-ayotte/) > [“There is indeed something delightful about being able to combine obedience and disobedience in the same act.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-is-indeed-something-delightful-about-being-able-to-combine/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) ## More by Alexander Hamilton > [“I am apprehensive, Sir, that in the warmth of my feelings, I may have uttered expressions, which were too vehement. If such has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/i-am-apprehensive-sir-that-in-the-warmth-of-my-feelings-i-may-have/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [“The truth unquestionably is, that the only path to a subversion of the republican system of the Country is, by flattering the prejudices of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/the-truth-unquestionably-is-that-the-only-path-to-a-subversion-of-the/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [ \[W\]ar is a question, under our constitution, not of Executive, but of Legislative cognizance. It belongs to Congress to say whether the Nation shall… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/w-ar-is-a-question-under-our-constitution-not-of-executive-but-of/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [It will be of little avail to the people, that the laws are made by men of their own choice, if the laws be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/it-will-be-of-little-avail-to-the-people-that-the-laws-are-made-by/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [Though a wide ocean separates the United States from Europe, yet there are various considerations that warn us against an excess of confidence or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/though-a-wide-ocean-separates-the-united-states-from-europe-yet-there/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [It is an unquestionable truth, that the body of the people in every country desire sincerely its prosperity. 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I don't want to make the same mistakes the criminals do! ;)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/taking-notes-while-watching-forensic-files-and-snapped-i-don-t-want/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [Nations sometimes flourish by denying the crimes that brought them into being. 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