--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Allegiance is a powerful force in human…" description: "\"“Allegiance is a powerful force in human affairs; it will not do to treat someone as a mental serf if he is convinced that his thralldom is honorable a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34f/christopher-hitchens-117_allegiance_allegiance-is-a-powerful-force-in-human_2753153.jpg" --- # Allegiance is a powerful force in human affairs; it will… ![“Allegiance is a powerful force in human affairs; it will not do to treat someone as a mental serf if he is convinced that his thralldom is honorable and voluntary. From” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34f/christopher-hitchens-117_allegiance_allegiance-is-a-powerful-force-in-human_2753153.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34f/christopher-hitchens-117_allegiance_allegiance-is-a-powerful-force-in-human_2753153.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34f/christopher-hitchens-117_allegiance_allegiance-is-a-powerful-force-in-human_2753153.jpg) > ““Allegiance is a powerful force in human affairs; it will not do to treat someone as a mental serf if he is convinced that his thralldom is honorable and voluntary. From”” [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. Allegiance can be oppressive when people accept subjugation as honorable, highlighting the danger of uncritical loyalty. **In simple terms:** Blind loyalty can enslave. Key Takeaway Question authority, value autonomy. Themes loyalty power critical thinking freedom authority Mood critical analytical cautious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - workplace dynamics - political movements - personal relationships - social activism Key Concepts political philosophy psychology ethics Questions to Reflect On - When does loyalty become harmful? - How can we support healthy allegiance? A Different Perspective Allegiance can also foster solidarity and shared purpose. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Allegiance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allegiance/) [Allegiance Powerful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allegiance-powerful-3114574/) [Honorable Voluntary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honorable-voluntary-3114575/) [Loyalty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loyalty/) [Mental Serf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mental-serf-3114576/) [Serf Convinced](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/serf-convinced-3114577/) ## Related quotes > [“Very often the test of one's allegiance to a cause or to a people is precisely the willingness to stay the course when things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/very-often-the-test-of-one-s-allegiance-to-a-cause-or-to-a-people-is/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Principles have a way of enduring, as do the few irreducible individuals who maintain allegiance to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/principles-have-a-way-of-enduring-as-do-the-few-irreducible/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Very often the test of one's allegiance to a cause or to a people is precisely the willingness to stay the course when things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/very-often-the-test-of-one-s-allegiance-to-a-cause-or-to-a-people-is-2/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [There is almost no country in Africa where it is not essential to know to which tribe, or which subgroup of which tribe, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/there-is-almost-no-country-in-africa-where-it-is-not-essential-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I claim you as my life mate. I belong to you. I offer my life for you. I give to you my protection, my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-feehan/i-claim-you-as-my-life-mate-i-belong-to-you-i-offer-my-life-for-you-i/) [Christine Feehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-feehan/) > [Loyalty must be forged - to him, to his: stronger than iron, from experience, from risk - it can't be bought, or taught, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-morris/loyalty-must-be-forged-to-him-to-his-stronger-than-iron-from/) [Janet Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-morris/) > [“A story knows no honor. A story knows no allegiance. A story simply is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-j-kirby/a-story-knows-no-honor-a-story-knows-no-allegiance-a-story-simply-is/) [Matthew J. Kirby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-j-kirby/) > [“Let us not forget the obligation which rests upon us to render allegiance and service to the Lord, and that acceptable service to Him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heber-j-grant/let-us-not-forget-the-obligation-which-rests-upon-us-to-render/) [Heber J. Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heber-j-grant/) > [But this is predicated upon the man's becoming in very fact an American and nothing but an American. If he tries to keep segregated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/but-this-is-predicated-upon-the-man-s-becoming-in-very-fact-an/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Withdraw allegiance from the old categories of the Negative (law, limit, castration, lack, lacuna), which the Western thought has so long held sacred as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/withdraw-allegiance-from-the-old-categories-of-the-negative-law-limit/) [Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/) > [“Protesting can be as simple as not participating in the Pledge of Allegiance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/protesting-can-be-as-simple-as-not-participating-in-the-pledge-of/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [Allegiance, after all, has to work two ways; and one can grow weary of an allegiance which is not reciprocal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/allegiance-after-all-has-to-work-two-ways-and-one-can-grow-weary-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I would find no value in the allegiance of a fool ready to give himself up to any old hag of Black Imagination who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-beddor/i-would-find-no-value-in-the-allegiance-of-a-fool-ready-to-give/) [Frank Beddor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-beddor/) > [Let's do more than say the 'Pledge of Allegiance.' Let us live it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emanuel-cleaver/let-s-do-more-than-say-the-pledge-of-allegiance-let-us-live-it/) [Emanuel Cleaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emanuel-cleaver/) > [“The Pledge of Allegiance says 'liberty and justice for all'. Which part of 'all' don't you understand?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-schroeder/the-pledge-of-allegiance-says-liberty-and-justice-for-all-which-part/) [Pat Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-schroeder/) ## 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 Allegiance quotes > [“Maybe it begins the day you pledge allegiance, face the flag and suddenly clutch your left clavicle because you find a tender puff of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-johnson/maybe-it-begins-the-day-you-pledge-allegiance-face-the-flag-and/) [Marilyn Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-johnson/) > [I was under the influence of the early modern masters, Fitzgerald and Steinbeck and Hemingway, especially, when I was a kid. I reacted against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-stone/i-was-under-the-influence-of-the-early-modern-masters-fitzgerald-and/) [Robert Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-stone/) > [“The Pledge of Allegiance says 'liberty and justice for all'. Which part of 'all' don't you understand?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-schroeder/the-pledge-of-allegiance-says-liberty-and-justice-for-all-which-part/) [Pat Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-schroeder/) > [They're counting on your patriotism to distract you from their plunder. They're counting on you to be standing at attention with your hand over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-moyers/they-re-counting-on-your-patriotism-to-distract-you-from-their/) [Bill Moyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-moyers/) > [There is a congratulatory culture in the Gulf. From birth onwards, there is a culture of giving people trophies as markers of achievement for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayshay/there-is-a-congratulatory-culture-in-the-gulf-from-birth-onwards/) [Ayshay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayshay/) > [“We may give our human loves the unconditional allegiance which we owe only to God. Then they become gods: then they become demons. Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/we-may-give-our-human-loves-the-unconditional-allegiance-which-we-owe/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [In my imaginary utopian world there would be a greater allegiance between music writers and musicians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-haines/in-my-imaginary-utopian-world-there-would-be-a-greater-allegiance/) [Emily Haines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-haines/) > [“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the great Republic of America, to our Elector Primo, to our glorious states, to unity against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-lu/i-pledge-allegiance-to-the-flag-of-the-great-republic-of-america-to/) [Marie Lu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-lu/) > [Let's do more than say the 'Pledge of Allegiance.' Let us live it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emanuel-cleaver/let-s-do-more-than-say-the-pledge-of-allegiance-let-us-live-it/) [Emanuel Cleaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emanuel-cleaver/) > [All of us ... should remember that no amount of flag-waving, pledging allegiance, or fervent singing of the national anthem is evidence that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-roosevelt/all-of-us-should-remember-that-no-amount-of-flag-waving-pledging/) [Eleanor Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-roosevelt/) > [“We're not to do everything man tells us to do. We are to obey the Lord Jesus Christ, and our allegiance to the state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-c-morecraft-iii/we-re-not-to-do-everything-man-tells-us-to-do-we-are-to-obey-the-lord/) [Joseph C. Morecraft III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-c-morecraft-iii/) > [Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people. 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On revocation of citizenship, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-alexander/i-think-it-is-right-for-canadians-to-be-asked-to-show-their-faces/) [Chris Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-alexander/) [Browse all 409 Allegiance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allegiance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Allegiance is a powerful force in human affairs; it will not do to treat someone as a mental serf if he is convinced that his thralldom is honorable and voluntary. 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