--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A consciousness of rectitude can be a…" description: "\"“A consciousness of rectitude can be a terrible thing, and in those days I didn’t just think that I was right: I thought that “we” (our group of Intern..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e23/christopher-hitchens-117_history_a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-te_1248676.jpg" --- # A consciousness of rectitude can be a terrible thing, and… ![“A consciousness of rectitude can be a terrible thing, and in those days I didn’t just think that I was right: I thought that “we” (our group of International Socialists in particular) were being damn well proved right. If you have never yourself had the experience of feeling that you are yoked to…” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e23/christopher-hitchens-117_history_a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-te_1248676.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e23/christopher-hitchens-117_history_a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-te_1248676.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e23/christopher-hitchens-117_history_a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-te_1248676.jpg) > ““A consciousness of rectitude can be a terrible thing, and in those days I didn’t just think that I was right: I thought that “we” (our group of International Socialists in particular) were being damn well proved right. If you have never yourself had the experience of feeling that you are yoked to the great steam engine of history, then allow me to inform you that the conviction is a very intoxicating one.”” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A belief in collective moral superiority can become intoxicating, blinding one to dissent. **In simple terms:** Group righteousness can be intoxicating. Key Takeaway Question your convictions. Themes politics ideology groupthink Mood cautious critical Type philosophical political When to use this quote - activism - political organizing - academic debate - social movements Key Concepts moral certainty psychology of belief Questions to Reflect On - When does confidence become arrogance? - How to balance conviction with humility? A Different Perspective Such certainty can suppress critical thinking. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Consciousness Rectitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness-rectitude-3926986/) [Conviction Intoxicating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conviction-intoxicating-3926989/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [International Socialists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/international-socialists-3926988/) [Socialists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/socialists/) [Socialists Particular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/socialists-particular-3926987/) ## Related quotes > [Perhaps the values of socialists can only be realized by socialists in a nonsocialist society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/perhaps-the-values-of-socialists-can-only-be-realized-by-socialists/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [The claim of the State Socialists, however, that this right would not be exercised in matters pertaining to the individual in the more intimate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-tucker/the-claim-of-the-state-socialists-however-that-this-right-would-not/) [Benjamin Tucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-tucker/) > [The great error of nearly all studies of war, an error into which all socialists have fallen, has been to consider war as an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/the-great-error-of-nearly-all-studies-of-war-an-error-into-which-all/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [Urban farming appeals to people on the right and the left. People have different reasons for getting into it. Some people are like doomsdayers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novella-carpenter/urban-farming-appeals-to-people-on-the-right-and-the-left-people-have/) [Novella Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novella-carpenter/) > [The extreme socialists desire to run every nation as a single business concern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-b-s-haldane/the-extreme-socialists-desire-to-run-every-nation-as-a-single/) [John B. S. Haldane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-b-s-haldane/) > [“Never listen to a leftist who does not give away his fortune or does not live the exact lifestyle he wants others to follow.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/never-listen-to-a-leftist-who-does-not-give-away-his-fortune-or-does/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [The hope in the hearts of millions of national socialists can be fulfilled only by an authoritarian government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-von-papen/the-hope-in-the-hearts-of-millions-of-national-socialists-can-be/) [Franz von Papen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-von-papen/) > [Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a socialist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-niemoller/then-they-came-for-the-socialists-and-i-did-not-speak-out-because-i/) [Martin Niemoller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-niemoller/) > [We should have had socialism already, but for the socialists, am quite willing to drop the name if dropping it will help me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/we-should-have-had-socialism-already-but-for-the-socialists-am-quite/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [So far I go with the Socialists as to think it a pretty general rule that, where monopoly is necessary, it is better in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-pollock/so-far-i-go-with-the-socialists-as-to-think-it-a-pretty-general-rule/) [Frederick Pollock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-pollock/) > [“Capitalism did not create socialism; socialists invented capitalism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/capitalism-did-not-create-socialism-socialists-invented-capitalism/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think one of the very frightening things about the regime of the National Socialists is that it made people happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-n-wilson/i-think-one-of-the-very-frightening-things-about-the-regime-of-the/) [A. N. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-n-wilson/) > [For socialists, not just the wealth, but the guilt must be redistributed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-sandlin/for-socialists-not-just-the-wealth-but-the-guilt-must-be-redistributed/) [Andrew Sandlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-sandlin/) > [“Whatever their other differences, French Gaullists, Christian Democrats and Socialists shared a common faith in the activist state, economic planning and large-scale public investment.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-judt/whatever-their-other-differences-french-gaullists-christian-democrats/) [Tony Judt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-judt/) > [“Socialists and Progressives confuse compassion and compulsion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-e-samaan/socialists-and-progressives-confuse-compassion-and-compulsion/) [A.E. Samaan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-e-samaan/) ## More by Christopher Hitchens > [“The spirit of our accurate and exact philosophy is outraged by conclusions that contradict each other so glaringly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-spirit-of-our-accurate-and-exact-philosophy-is-outraged-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Many governments employ torture but this was the first time that the element of Saturnalia and pornography in the process had been made so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/many-governments-employ-torture-but-this-was-the-first-time-that-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ It's \[Los Angeles\] mostly full of nonsense and delusion and egomania. They think they'll be young and beautiful forever, even though most of them… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-los-angeles-mostly-full-of-nonsense-and-delusion-and-egomania/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [To be against rationalization is not the same as to be opposed to reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/to-be-against-rationalization-is-not-the-same-as-to-be-opposed-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ \[Religion\] attacks us in our deepest integrity - the core of our self-respect. Religion says that we would not know right from wrong, we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/religion-attacks-us-in-our-deepest-integrity-the-core-of-our-self/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“In the very recent past, we have seen the Church of Rome befouled by its complicity with the unpardonable sin of child rape, or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/in-the-very-recent-past-we-have-seen-the-church-of-rome-befouled-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's surprising to me how many of my friends send Christmas cards, or holiday cards, including my atheist and secular friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-surprising-to-me-how-many-of-my-friends-send-christmas-cards-or/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Suppose there were groups of secularists at hospitals who went round the terminally ill and urged them to adopt atheism: 'Don't be a mug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/suppose-there-were-groups-of-secularists-at-hospitals-who-went-round/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [There are, after all, atheists who say they wish the fable were true but are unable to suspend the requisite disbelief, or who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/there-are-after-all-atheists-who-say-they-wish-the-fable-were-true/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“It isn’t so long since a test of Anglican orthodoxy was applied to anyone seeking to study or teach at Oxford and Cambridge universities.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-isn-t-so-long-since-a-test-of-anglican-orthodoxy-was-applied-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Gullibility and credulity are considered undesireable qualities in every department of human life - except religion ... Why are we praised by godly men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/gullibility-and-credulity-are-considered-undesireable-qualities-in/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's much worse to see a woman drunk than a man: I don't know quite why this is true but it just is. Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-much-worse-to-see-a-woman-drunk-than-a-man-i-don-t-know-quite/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's true that obscenity is a matter of taste and in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-true-that-obscenity-is-a-matter-of-taste-and-in-the-eye-of-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I worked out early on to give up things I couldn't do well at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-worked-out-early-on-to-give-up-things-i-couldn-t-do-well-at-all/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Writing is what's important to me, and anything that helps me do that - or enhances and prolongs and deepens and sometimes intensifies argument…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/writing-is-what-s-important-to-me-and-anything-that-helps-me-do-that/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) [Explore all 1,241 Christopher Hitchens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## More History quotes > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [It is said that history turns on small hinges. A human career, too, results from an accumulating series of decisions about large and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/it-is-said-that-history-turns-on-small-hinges-a-human-career-too/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [The NBA is my history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-hardaway/the-nba-is-my-history/) [Penny Hardaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-hardaway/) > [History has often showed us the strength of the forces that are unleashed by the yearning for freedom. It moved people to overcome their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-merkel/history-has-often-showed-us-the-strength-of-the-forces-that-are/) [Angela Merkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-merkel/) > [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/) > [What is history after all? History is facts which become lies in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/what-is-history-after-all-history-is-facts-which-become-lies-in-the/) [Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/) > [Things live and die, and then someone processes them into edible portions. This is a complete telling of the story, 'Food.' The basic plot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-fahrenthold/things-live-and-die-and-then-someone-processes-them-into-edible/) [David Fahrenthold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-fahrenthold/) > [History is a certain way, but you just change the point of view a little bit, and you discover a whole new side of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-schroeder/history-is-a-certain-way-but-you-just-change-the-point-of-view-a/) [Allison Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-schroeder/) > [We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-re-at-a-point-in-history-were-we-have-to-become-a-part-of-the/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [Today is a reality, tomorrow's a promise, and yesterday's history!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-blanks/today-is-a-reality-tomorrow-s-a-promise-and-yesterday-s-history/) [Billy Blanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-blanks/) > [Truth be told from compulsive liars with a history/Everything must change 2nd chances are a mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-dash/truth-be-told-from-compulsive-liars-with-a-history-everything-must/) [C-DASH](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-dash/) > [Every army in the history of the world has always had some deserters, usually much greater than we have today, because once again every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hilferty/every-army-in-the-history-of-the-world-has-always-had-some-deserters/) [Bryan Hilferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-hilferty/) > [“To those great geniuses now in petticoats, who shall write novels for the beloved reader's children, these men and things will be as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/to-those-great-geniuses-now-in-petticoats-who-shall-write-novels-for/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) [Browse all 27,263 History quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“A consciousness of rectitude can be a terrible thing, and in those days I didn’t just think that I was right: I thought that “we” (our group of International Socialists in particular) were being damn well proved right. If you have never yourself had the experience of feeling that you are yoked to the great steam engine of history, then allow me to inform you that the conviction is a very intoxicating one.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Christopher Hitchens" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-terrible-thing-and-in-those/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "History" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-terrible-thing-and-in-those/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e23/christopher-hitchens-117_history_a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-te_1248676.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e23/christopher-hitchens-117_history_a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-te_1248676.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e23/christopher-hitchens-117_history_a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-te_1248676.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A consciousness of rectitude can be a terrible thing, and in those days I didn’t just think that I was…” — Christopher Hitchens", "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 Hitchens", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“A consciousness of rectitude can be...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-terrible-thing-and-in-those/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/a-consciousness-of-rectitude-can-be-a-terrible-thing-and-in-those/#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 } } ] } ```