--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Universal literacy was supposed to…" description: "\"“Universal literacy was supposed to educate the common man to control his environment. Once he could read and write he would have a mind fit to rule. S..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/edward-l-bernays-72909_common-man_universal-literacy-was-supposed-to-educa_939499.jpg" --- # Universal literacy was supposed to educate the common man… ![“Universal literacy was supposed to educate the common man to control his environment. Once he could read and write he would have a mind fit to rule. So ran the democratic doctrine. But instead of a mind, universal literacy has given him rubber stamps, rubber stamps inked with advertising slogans…” quote by Edward L. Bernays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/edward-l-bernays-72909_common-man_universal-literacy-was-supposed-to-educa_939499.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/edward-l-bernays-72909_common-man_universal-literacy-was-supposed-to-educa_939499.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/edward-l-bernays-72909_common-man_universal-literacy-was-supposed-to-educa_939499.jpg) > ““Universal literacy was supposed to educate the common man to control his environment. Once he could read and write he would have a mind fit to rule. So ran the democratic doctrine. But instead of a mind, universal literacy has given him rubber stamps, rubber stamps inked with advertising slogans, with editorials, with published scientific data, with the trivialities of the tabloids and the platitudes of history, but quite innocent of original thought. Each man's rubber stamps are the duplicates of millions of others, so that when those millions are exposed to the same stimuli, all receive identical imprints. It may seem an exaggeration to say that the American public gets most of its ideas in this wholesale fashion. The mechanism by which ideas are disseminated on a large scale is propaganda, in the broad sense of an organized effort to spread a particular belief or doctrine.”” [Edward L. Bernays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-l-bernays/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mass literacy, intended to empower citizens, instead creates uniform, propaganda‑driven thinking, turning people into passive recipients of repeated ideas. **In simple terms:** Literacy can lead to conformity instead of independent thought. Key Takeaway Beware passive consumption of information. Themes media propaganda education democracy conformity Mood skeptical concerned reflective Type analytical critical philosophical When to use this quote - political campaigns - advertising - social media feeds - public policy debates Key Concepts mass communication social engineering cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - How does widespread literacy shape your own beliefs? - What sources challenge the dominant narratives you encounter? A Different Perspective The claim may overstate the uniformity of public thought; many still think critically. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Common man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-man/) [Ideas Disseminated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-disseminated-1594120/) [Original thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/original-thought/) [Propaganda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/propaganda/) [Propaganda Broad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/propaganda-broad-1594119/) [Read And Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read-and-write/) [Rubber stamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rubber-stamp/) [Scale Propaganda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scale-propaganda-770469/) [Universal Literacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universal-literacy-569463/) ## Related quotes > [Once he could read and write he would have a mind fit to rule. So ran the democratic doctrine. But instead of a mind,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bernays/once-he-could-read-and-write-he-would-have-a-mind-fit-to-rule-so-ran/) [Edward Bernays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bernays/) > [ It \[Christian Social Party\] recognized the value of large-scale propaganda and was a virtuoso in influencing the psychological instincts of the broad masses of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/it-christian-social-party-recognized-the-value-of-large-scale/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [“Of all the forms in which ideas are disseminated, the college professor lecturing his class is the slowest and the most expensive. You don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-bird/of-all-the-forms-in-which-ideas-are-disseminated-the-college/) [Caroline Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-bird/) > [Universal literacy was a 20th-century goal. Before then, reading and writing were skills largely confined to a small, highly educated class of professional people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-mackay/universal-literacy-was-a-20th-century-goal-before-then-reading-and/) [Hugh Mackay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-mackay/) > [South Korea from a country that had relatively little primary education became close to universal literacy in the course of 25, 30 years, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/south-korea-from-a-country-that-had-relatively-little-primary/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [The ideal of universal literacy, in the West anyway, was first of all a Protestant idea - that everybody had to be able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hass/the-ideal-of-universal-literacy-in-the-west-anyway-was-first-of-all-a/) [Robert Hass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hass/) > [The question is, will we continue to fight what may be a rearguard action to defend universal literacy as a central goal of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-mackay/the-question-is-will-we-continue-to-fight-what-may-be-a-rearguard/) [Hugh Mackay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-mackay/) > [The achievement of high universal literacy is the key to all other fundamental improvements in American education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-d-hirsch-jr/the-achievement-of-high-universal-literacy-is-the-key-to-all-other/) [E. D. Hirsch, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-d-hirsch-jr/) > [It is my vision that we all will dedicate the next decade to achieve universal literacy and education for all children, especially for girls.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mortenson/it-is-my-vision-that-we-all-will-dedicate-the-next-decade-to-achieve/) [Greg Mortenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mortenson/) > [“The early advocates of universal literacy and a free press…did not foresee…the development of a vast mass communications industry, concerned in the main neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-andersen/the-early-advocates-of-universal-literacy-and-a-free-press-did-not/) [Kurt Andersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-andersen/) > [Advice and consent does not mean rubber stamp in the Senate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-ireland/advice-and-consent-does-not-mean-rubber-stamp-in-the-senate/) [Patricia Ireland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-ireland/) > [At a time when our moral standing in the world has been weakened by a rubber stamp Justice Department that placed the Bush Administration…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-wasserman-schultz/at-a-time-when-our-moral-standing-in-the-world-has-been-weakened-by-a/) [Debbie Wasserman Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-wasserman-schultz/) > [Bill Nelson has demonstrated that he is a rubber stamp for the Obama administration and he's out of touch with the solution that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-hasner/bill-nelson-has-demonstrated-that-he-is-a-rubber-stamp-for-the-obama/) [Adam Hasner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-hasner/) > [“Society is a vicious rubber stamp Labelling and assigning camps But love is an illuminating lamp.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-wetch/society-is-a-vicious-rubber-stamp-labelling-and-assigning-camps-but/) [Justin Wetch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-wetch/) > [I volunteered 35 years ago to go to Vietnam and the guy I was running against got out of going to Vietnam with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-cleland/i-volunteered-35-years-ago-to-go-to-vietnam-and-the-guy-i-was-running/) [Max Cleland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-cleland/) ## More by Edward L. Bernays > [“But being dependent, every day of the year and for year after year, upon certain politicians for news, the newspaper reporters are obliged to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-l-bernays/but-being-dependent-every-day-of-the-year-and-for-year-after-year/) [Edward L. Bernays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-l-bernays/) > [“It is asked whether, in fact, the leader makes propaganda, or whether propaganda makes the leader. There is a widespread impression that a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-l-bernays/it-is-asked-whether-in-fact-the-leader-makes-propaganda-or-whether/) [Edward L. Bernays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-l-bernays/) [Explore all 3 Edward L. Bernays quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-l-bernays/) ## More Common man quotes > [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/) > [In a democracy, voting is a huge and most important right of a common man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-tripathi/in-a-democracy-voting-is-a-huge-and-most-important-right-of-a-common/) [Pankaj Tripathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-tripathi/) > [Through my singing and acting and speaking, I want to make freedom ring. Maybe I can touch people's hearts better than I can their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/through-my-singing-and-acting-and-speaking-i-want-to-make-freedom/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [It's nice that people can call me an artist and it's nice that I can refer to myself as such, but it also kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matana-roberts/it-s-nice-that-people-can-call-me-an-artist-and-it-s-nice-that-i-can/) [Matana Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matana-roberts/) > [The common man, finding himself in a world so excellent, technically and socially, believes it has been produced by nature, and never thinks of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/the-common-man-finding-himself-in-a-world-so-excellent-technically/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [No one got rich on a government program. Do not choose to be a common man. You can be uncommon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-ramsey/no-one-got-rich-on-a-government-program-do-not-choose-to-be-a-common/) [Dave Ramsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-ramsey/) > [Under capitalism the common man enjoys amenities which in ages gone by were unknown and therefore inaccessible even to the richest people. But, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/under-capitalism-the-common-man-enjoys-amenities-which-in-ages-gone/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [The founder of any branch must be more ingenious than the common man. However, if his achievement is not carried on by disciples of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-lee/the-founder-of-any-branch-must-be-more-ingenious-than-the-common-man/) [Bruce Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-lee/) > [I am terrified of restrictive religious doctrine, having learned from history that when men who adhere to any form of it are in control,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-michener/i-am-terrified-of-restrictive-religious-doctrine-having-learned-from/) [James A. Michener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-michener/) > [“Creative writer has artistic sensibility. He observes the world like any common men. But his vision observes the world quite differently. He can perceive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/creative-writer-has-artistic-sensibility-he-observes-the-world-like/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [The commander of the forces of a large State may be carried off, but the will of even a common man cannot be taken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/the-commander-of-the-forces-of-a-large-state-may-be-carried-off-but/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Common men should esteem learning as silver, noble men prize it as gold, and princes as jewels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-pius-ii/common-men-should-esteem-learning-as-silver-noble-men-prize-it-as/) [Pope Pius II](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-pius-ii/) > [Hathiram Choudhary is a vulnerable, intense and deep character. Like every common man, he just wants to prove himself and better himself. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaideep-ahlawat/hathiram-choudhary-is-a-vulnerable-intense-and-deep-character-like/) [Jaideep Ahlawat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaideep-ahlawat/) > [Those who respect the intelligence of the common man have always been masters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suhasini-maniratnam/those-who-respect-the-intelligence-of-the-common-man-have-always-been/) [Suhasini Maniratnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suhasini-maniratnam/) > [I know that a lot of people take inspiration from the fact that I was just a common man with no film background who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uday-kiran/i-know-that-a-lot-of-people-take-inspiration-from-the-fact-that-i-was/) [Uday Kiran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uday-kiran/) [Browse all 367 Common man quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-man/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Universal literacy was supposed to educate the common man to control his environment. 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