--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He who in given cases consents to obey…" description: "\"“He who in given cases consents to obey his fellows with servility, and who submits his will, and even his thoughts, to their control, how can he prete..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/alexis-de-tocqueville-625_1835_he-who-in-given-cases-consents-to-obey-h_2435613.png" --- # He who in given cases consents to obey his fellows with… ![“He who in given cases consents to obey his fellows with servility, and who submits his will, and even his thoughts, to their control, how can he pretend that he wishes to be free?” quote by Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/alexis-de-tocqueville-625_1835_he-who-in-given-cases-consents-to-obey-h_2435613.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/alexis-de-tocqueville-625_1835_he-who-in-given-cases-consents-to-obey-h_2435613.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/alexis-de-tocqueville-625_1835_he-who-in-given-cases-consents-to-obey-h_2435613.png) > ““He who in given cases consents to obey his fellows with servility, and who submits his will, and even his thoughts, to their control, how can he pretend that he wishes to be free?”” [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Warns that blind obedience to the majority undermines true freedom. **In simple terms:** Obedience to others limits freedom. Key Takeaway Question authority. Themes freedom obedience individualism Mood reflective serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - political discourse - education - personal decisions Key Concepts political philosophy social conformity liberty Questions to Reflect On - When have you felt pressured to conform? - What does freedom mean to you? A Different Perspective May oversimplify complex social dynamics. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [1835](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/zz-1835-300/) [Consents Obey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consents-obey-336345/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Fellows Servility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fellows-servility-336347/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberty/) [Obey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obey/) [Obey Fellows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obey-fellows-336346/) [Servility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/servility/) [Submission](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/submission/) [Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will/) ## Related quotes > [“Men are not corrupted by the exercise of power, or debased by the habit of obedience; but by the exercise of a power which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/men-are-not-corrupted-by-the-exercise-of-power-or-debased-by-the-2/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [ “\[Patriotism\] is in itself a kind of religion: it does not reason, but it acts from the impulse of faith and sentiment.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/patriotism-is-in-itself-a-kind-of-religion-it-does-not-reason-but-it/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [“During my stay in the United States, I witnessed the spontaneous formation of committees in a country for the pursuit and prosecution of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/during-my-stay-in-the-united-states-i-witnessed-the-spontaneous/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [“There is hardly any political question in the United States that sooner or later does not turn into a judicial question. 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In other words, we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/millions-of-people-are-getting-the-vote-and-we-have-to-educate-them/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [When people complain of the decay of manners they have in mind not the impudent abbreviations of the crowd, but the decline in bowing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-wilson-lynd/when-people-complain-of-the-decay-of-manners-they-have-in-mind-not/) [Robert Wilson Lynd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-wilson-lynd/) > [Could slavery suggest a more complete servility than some of these journals exhibit? Is there any dust which their conduct does not lick, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/could-slavery-suggest-a-more-complete-servility-than-some-of-these/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Servility is disgusting to a truly noble character, and engenders only contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hosea-ballou/servility-is-disgusting-to-a-truly-noble-character-and-engenders-only/) [Hosea Ballou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hosea-ballou/) > [It is not serving, but servility, that is menial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hortense-odlum/it-is-not-serving-but-servility-that-is-menial/) [Hortense Odlum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hortense-odlum/) > [I think that knowledge enslaves us, that at the base of all knowledge there is a servility, the acceptation of a way of life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bataille/i-think-that-knowledge-enslaves-us-that-at-the-base-of-all-knowledge/) [Georges Bataille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bataille/) ## More by Alexis de Tocqueville > [All around you everything is on the move,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/all-around-you-everything-is-on-the-move/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [I have no hesitation in saying that although the American woman never leaves her domestic sphere and is in some respects very dependent within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/i-have-no-hesitation-in-saying-that-although-the-american-woman-never/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [No state of society or laws can render men so much alike but that education, fortune, and tastes will interpose some differences between them;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/no-state-of-society-or-laws-can-render-men-so-much-alike-but-that/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [I do not know if the people of the United States would vote for superior men if they ran for office, but there can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/i-do-not-know-if-the-people-of-the-united-states-would-vote-for/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [What good does it do me, after all, if an ever-watchful authority keeps an eye out to ensure that my pleasures will be tranquil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/what-good-does-it-do-me-after-all-if-an-ever-watchful-authority-keeps/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [The greatness of America lies not in being more enlightened than any other nation, but rather in her ability to repair her faults.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/the-greatness-of-america-lies-not-in-being-more-enlightened-than-any/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [“I am unacquainted with His designs, but I shall not cease to believe in them because I cannot fathom them, and I had rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/i-am-unacquainted-with-his-designs-but-i-shall-not-cease-to-believe/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [I questioned the faithful of all communions; I particularly sought the society of clergymen, who are the depositories of the various creeds and have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/i-questioned-the-faithful-of-all-communions-i-particularly-sought-the/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [Christianity is the companion of liberty in all its conflicts, the cradle of its infancy, and the divine source of its claims.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/christianity-is-the-companion-of-liberty-in-all-its-conflicts-the/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [The more alike men are, the weaker each feels in the face of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/the-more-alike-men-are-the-weaker-each-feels-in-the-face-of-all/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [“There is a twofold liberty, natural (I mean as our nature is now corrupt) and civil or federal. 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