---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Every society rests in the last resort on…"
description: "\"Every society rests in the last resort on the recognition of common principles and common ideals, and if it makes no moral or spiritual appeal to the l..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/933/christopher-dawson-15516_common_every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-o_2201784.jpg"
---

#  Every society rests in the last resort on the recognition…

![“Every society rests in the last resort on the recognition of common principles and common ideals, and if it makes no moral or spiritual appeal to the loyalty of its members, it must inevitably fall to pieces.” quote by Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/933/christopher-dawson-15516_common_every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-o_2201784.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/933/christopher-dawson-15516_common_every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-o_2201784.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/933/christopher-dawson-15516_common_every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-o_2201784.jpg)

> “Every society rests in the last resort on the recognition of common principles and common ideals, and if it makes no moral or spiritual appeal to the loyalty of its members, it must inevitably fall to pieces.”

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A society that lacks shared moral or spiritual values cannot sustain loyalty and will eventually collapse.

**In simple terms:** Without shared values, societies fall apart.

Key Takeaway

Cultivate common moral ideals.

Themes

society loyalty values collapse

Mood

concerned reflective

Type

philosophical political cautionary

When to use this quote

- political movements
- community building
- national policy
- education reform

Key Concepts

social contract collective identity morality

Questions to Reflect On

- What shared ideals can unite your community?
- How do you foster genuine moral commitment?

A Different Perspective

If values are imposed rather than embraced, they may cause resistance.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/) [Common Ideals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-ideals-332797/) [Common Principles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-principles-341012/) [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Fall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall/) [Inevitably Fall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inevitably-fall-291099/) [Integrity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/integrity/) [Last resort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/last-resort/) [Loyalty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loyalty/) [Members](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/members/) [Members Inevitably](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/members-inevitably-4839101/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Pieces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pieces/) [Principles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principles/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Recognition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/recognition/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Society Rests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society-rests-1248110/) [Spiritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spiritual/)

## Related quotes

> [Society rests upon conscience, not upon science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-frederic-amiel/society-rests-upon-conscience-not-upon-science/)

[Henri Frederic Amiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-frederic-amiel/)

> [The Ten Commandments have never been replaced as the moral basis upon which society rests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/the-ten-commandments-have-never-been-replaced-as-the-moral-basis-upon/)

[Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/)

> [While men inhabiting different parts of this vast continent cannot be expected to hold the same opinions, they can untie in a common objective…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-pierce/while-men-inhabiting-different-parts-of-this-vast-continent-cannot-be/)

[Franklin Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-pierce/)

> [Empires inevitably fall, and when they do, history judges them for the legacies they leave behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-feldman/empires-inevitably-fall-and-when-they-do-history-judges-them-for-the/)

[Noah Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-feldman/)

> [There are writers who do start doing the same thing again and again and almost inevitably fall into self-parody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/there-are-writers-who-do-start-doing-the-same-thing-again-and-again/)

[Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/)

> [Cancer is a collection of many diseases with common principles, and each disease will have to be understood and more effectively controlled on its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/cancer-is-a-collection-of-many-diseases-with-common-principles-and/)

[Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/)

> [America and Islam are not exclusive and need not be in competition. Instead, they overlap, and share common principles of justice and progress, tolerance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/america-and-islam-are-not-exclusive-and-need-not-be-in-competition/)

[Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/)

> [In the United States, as elsewhere, there are, and have always been, two parties in politics ... It is remarkable how nearly their positive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-martineau/in-the-united-states-as-elsewhere-there-are-and-have-always-been-two/)

[Harriet Martineau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-martineau/)

> [The search for happiness ... always ends in the ghastly sense of the bottomless nothingness into which you will inevitably fall if you strain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence/the-search-for-happiness-always-ends-in-the-ghastly-sense-of-the/)

[D. H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence/)

> [I suppose you inevitably fall into habits of expression.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/i-suppose-you-inevitably-fall-into-habits-of-expression/)

[Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/)

> [Although we may come from vastly different stories and very different walks of life, we are one people who possess common values and common…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/although-we-may-come-from-vastly-different-stories-and-very-different/)

[Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/)

> [The instinctive need to be the member of a closely knit group fighting for common ideals may grow so strong that it becomes inessential…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/the-instinctive-need-to-be-the-member-of-a-closely-knit-group/)

[Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/)

> [“The question then as now is whether we can hold true to our common ideals even in the midst of discord.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-baier/the-question-then-as-now-is-whether-we-can-hold-true-to-our-common/)

[Bret Baier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-baier/)

> [Sometimes we are separated by differences, and sometimes we are united by common ideals of respect and compassion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-watson/sometimes-we-are-separated-by-differences-and-sometimes-we-are-united/)

[Paul Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-watson/)

> [With a full century of contrary proof in our possession and despite our demonstrated capacity for cooperative teamwork, some among us seem to accept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/with-a-full-century-of-contrary-proof-in-our-possession-and-despite/)

[Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/)

## More by Christopher Dawson

> [You can give men food and leisure and amusements and good conditions of work, and still they will remain unsatisfied. You can deny them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/you-can-give-men-food-and-leisure-and-amusements-and-good-conditions/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [It is Christian culture that has created Western man and the Western way of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/it-is-christian-culture-that-has-created-western-man-and-the-western/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [No civilisation, not even that of ancient Greece, has ever undergone such a continuous and profound process of change as Western Europe has done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/no-civilisation-not-even-that-of-ancient-greece-has-ever-undergone/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [The present age has seen a great slump in humanist values.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/the-present-age-has-seen-a-great-slump-in-humanist-values/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [Man can know his world without falling back on revelation; he can live his life without feeling his utter dependence on supernatural powers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/man-can-know-his-world-without-falling-back-on-revelation-he-can-live/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [The intercourse between the Mediterranean and the North or between the Atlantic and Central Europe was never purely economic or political; it also meant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/the-intercourse-between-the-mediterranean-and-the-north-or-between/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [The chief safeguard of personal freedom in a democratic society is the anarchy and disorder of capitalist individualism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/the-chief-safeguard-of-personal-freedom-in-a-democratic-society-is/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [And so, today, if the state can no longer appeal to the old moral principles that belong to the Christian tradition, it will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/and-so-today-if-the-state-can-no-longer-appeal-to-the-old-moral/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [Humanism and Divinity are as complementary to one another in theorder of culture, as are Nature and Grace in the order of being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/humanism-and-divinity-are-as-complementary-to-one-another-in-theorder/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [We have entered a new phase of culture - we may call it the Age of the Cinema - in which the most amazing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/we-have-entered-a-new-phase-of-culture-we-may-call-it-the-age-of-the/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [“Culture was actually humanity’s attempt to extend the womb.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/culture-was-actually-humanity-s-attempt-to-extend-the-womb/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [For humanism also appeals to man as man. It seeks to liberate the universal qualities of human nature from the narrow limitations of blood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/for-humanism-also-appeals-to-man-as-man-it-seeks-to-liberate-the/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [This freedom of political discussion on the highest level is something which Western civilization has in common with that of classical antiquity, but with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/this-freedom-of-political-discussion-on-the-highest-level-is/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [The Church as a divine society possess an internal principle of life which is capable of assimilating the most diverse materials and imprinting her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/the-church-as-a-divine-society-possess-an-internal-principle-of-life/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

> [If man attempts to suppress the animal side of his nature by a sheer effort of conscious will, nature finds a hundred unexpected and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/if-man-attempts-to-suppress-the-animal-side-of-his-nature-by-a-sheer/)

[Christopher Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

[Explore all 43 Christopher Dawson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/)

## More Common quotes

> [I'm Fine!, the most common LIE in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-m-fine-the-most-common-lie-in-the-world/)

[Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/)

> [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/)

[Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/)

> [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/)

[John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/)

> [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/)

[Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/)

> [Our times demand the declaration of the world's resources as the common heritage of all people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/our-times-demand-the-declaration-of-the-world-s-resources-as-the/)

[Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/)

> [ Neither Italian fascism nor German national "socialism" have anything in common with such a \[Soviet socialistic\] society, primarily because private ownership of factories, plants,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/neither-italian-fascism-nor-german-national-socialism-have-anything/)

[Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/)

> [When you have a cavity in your tooth and you let it get worse, eventually you have to get a root canal. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-newton-john/when-you-have-a-cavity-in-your-tooth-and-you-let-it-get-worse/)

[Olivia Newton-John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-newton-john/)

> [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/)

[Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/)

> [Common sense is nothing more than a deposit of prejudices laid down in the mind before you reach eighteen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/common-sense-is-nothing-more-than-a-deposit-of-prejudices-laid-down/)

[Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/)

> [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/)

[Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/)

> [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/)

> [A time will come when the science of destruction shall bend before the arts of peace; when the genius which multiplies our powers, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-arago/a-time-will-come-when-the-science-of-destruction-shall-bend-before/)

[Francois Arago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-arago/)

> [… and so he tried to accept the ache in his heart as what Dr. Larch would call the common symptoms of normal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/and-so-he-tried-to-accept-the-ache-in-his-heart-as-what-dr-larch/)

[John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/)

> [It is a tragedy that we live in a world where physical courage is so common, and moral courage is so rare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-monet/it-is-a-tragedy-that-we-live-in-a-world-where-physical-courage-is-so/)

[Claude Monet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-monet/)

> [Those who advocate common usage in philosophy sometimes speak in a manner that suggests the mystique of the 'common man.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/those-who-advocate-common-usage-in-philosophy-sometimes-speak-in-a/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

[Browse all 7,866 Common quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Every society rests in the last resort on the recognition of common principles and common ideals, and if it makes no moral or spiritual appeal to the loyalty of its members, it must inevitably fall to pieces.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Christopher Dawson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-on-the-recognition-of-common/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Common"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-on-the-recognition-of-common/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/933/christopher-dawson-15516_common_every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-o_2201784.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/933/christopher-dawson-15516_common_every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-o_2201784.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/933/christopher-dawson-15516_common_every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-o_2201784.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Every society rests in the last resort on the recognition of common principles and common ideals, and if it…” — Christopher Dawson",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Christopher Dawson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dawson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Every society rests in the last...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-on-the-recognition-of-common/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dawson/every-society-rests-in-the-last-resort-on-the-recognition-of-common/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
