--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: there is that wish, in the name of…" description: "\"there is that wish, in the name of democracy, to level down, because high cultural standards are despised and rejected, and even feared, in our Western..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/097/ann-bridge-29051_british_there-is-that-wish-in-the-name-of-democr_1316160.jpg" --- # there is that wish, in the name of democracy, to level… ![“there is that wish, in the name of democracy, to level down, because high cultural standards are despised and rejected, and even feared, in our Western Democracies. Don't let anyone else have what I've not got, or can't enjoy! - is the secret theory. A very large number of writers in the British…” quote by Ann Bridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/097/ann-bridge-29051_british_there-is-that-wish-in-the-name-of-democr_1316160.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/097/ann-bridge-29051_british_there-is-that-wish-in-the-name-of-democr_1316160.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/097/ann-bridge-29051_british_there-is-that-wish-in-the-name-of-democr_1316160.jpg) > “there is that wish, in the name of democracy, to level down, because high cultural standards are despised and rejected, and even feared, in our Western Democracies. Don't let anyone else have what I've not got, or can't enjoy! - is the secret theory. A very large number of writers in the British and American popular press profess to be preaching democracy when in fact they are only trying to make envy respectable!” [Ann Bridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-bridge/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Democratic rhetoric can mask envy, leading to a desire to equalize cultural standards and resent those with higher status. **In simple terms:** Democracy can hide envy and resentment. Key Takeaway Beware of envy disguised as equality. Themes democracy envy cultural standards Mood critical analytical Type political philosophical When to use this quote - Political debate - media critique - social theory Key Concepts Equality social resentment elitism Questions to Reflect On - How does envy influence political discourse? - Can true equality coexist with cultural diversity? A Different Perspective The claim may oversimplify complex motivations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [British](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/british/) [Democracies Don](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracies-don-834663/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Democracy Level](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy-level-2976239/) [Despised](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despised/) [Enjoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enjoy/) [Envy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Large numbers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/large-numbers/) [Levels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/levels/) [Names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/names/) [Numbers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/numbers/) [Preaching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preaching/) [Preaching Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preaching-democracy-1192483/) [Presses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/presses/) [Rejected](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rejected/) [Respectable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respectable/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) [Standards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/standards/) [Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Western](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/western/) [Western Democracies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/western-democracies-655174/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) [Wish Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish-democracy-4370067/) ## Related quotes > [We believe democracy to be the only real guarantor of stability and we have sought to create a 'Jordanian model' that might also inspire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/king-hussein-i/we-believe-democracy-to-be-the-only-real-guarantor-of-stability-and/) [King Hussein I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/king-hussein-i/) > [“The litmus test of any democracy is the level of tolerance it is willing to extend towards the minorities living in it. 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Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [Most liberal democracies don't try to figure out what the truth is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/most-liberal-democracies-don-t-try-to-figure-out-what-the-truth-is/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) > [You start to learn that democracies don't work when it comes to artistic expression. 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It consists in two things: to know each his own limitations and accept them - that is the same thing as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-bridge/what-is-freedom-it-consists-in-two-things-to-know-each-his-own/) [Ann Bridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-bridge/) [Explore all 18 Ann Bridge quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-bridge/) ## More British quotes > [I'd love to work in the States; I'd love to work anywhere where you get a good script and a good part to play.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-carmichael/i-d-love-to-work-in-the-states-i-d-love-to-work-anywhere-where-you/) [Laura Carmichael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-carmichael/) > [I shot for French and British Vogue. The British Vogue one featured clothes by Chloe and was shot at Highgate and the John Soane…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nan-goldin/i-shot-for-french-and-british-vogue-the-british-vogue-one-featured/) [Nan Goldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nan-goldin/) > [We can find common qualities and common values that have made Britain the country it is. Our belief in tolerance and liberty which shines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-brown/we-can-find-common-qualities-and-common-values-that-have-made-britain/) [Gordon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-brown/) > [ No wonder that Churchill described this effort \[the British codebreakers working at Bletchley Park\] as "Britian"s secret weapon," a weapon far more effective than… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-hilton/no-wonder-that-churchill-described-this-effort-the-british/) [Peter Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-hilton/) > [When we first sold the Wallace and Gromit shorts to America, people suggested we get rid of the strange British accents and put clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-park/when-we-first-sold-the-wallace-and-gromit-shorts-to-america-people/) [Nick Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-park/) > [I always wanted to make a 'James Bond' film, and they only seemed to hire British directors, and I'd made 'Swingers' - they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-liman/i-always-wanted-to-make-a-james-bond-film-and-they-only-seemed-to/) [Doug Liman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-liman/) > [Somebody said that part of my reaction to British cinema is actually, paradoxically, a patriotic one. 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