--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If the lesser mind could measure the…" description: "\"If the lesser mind could measure the greater as a foot-rule can measure a pyramid, there would be finality in universal suffrage. As it is, the politic..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cf/george-bernard-shaw-68_feet_if-the-lesser-mind-could-measure-the-gre_1713504.png" --- # If the lesser mind could measure the greater as a… ![“If the lesser mind could measure the greater as a foot-rule can measure a pyramid, there would be finality in universal suffrage. As it is, the political problem remains unsolved.” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cf/george-bernard-shaw-68_feet_if-the-lesser-mind-could-measure-the-gre_1713504.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cf/george-bernard-shaw-68_feet_if-the-lesser-mind-could-measure-the-gre_1713504.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8cf/george-bernard-shaw-68_feet_if-the-lesser-mind-could-measure-the-gre_1713504.png) > “If the lesser mind could measure the greater as a foot-rule can measure a pyramid, there would be finality in universal suffrage. As it is, the political problem remains unsolved.” [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Measuring complex political issues with simplistic tools ignores nuance, leaving problems unsolved. **In simple terms:** Simple measures can’t capture political complexity. Key Takeaway Seek nuanced solutions. Themes politics complexity measurement Mood critical serious Type political analytical When to use this quote - policy analysis - public debate - education reform - community organizing - media critique Key Concepts democracy philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How can we better measure political health? - What metrics capture true representation? A Different Perspective Oversimplification may stall progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Feet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feet/) [Finality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/finality/) [Greater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greater/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Political Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-problem-678882/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Pyramid Finality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pyramid-finality-1269611/) [Pyramids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pyramids/) [Remains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remains/) [Suffrage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffrage/) [Suffrage Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffrage-political-1269610/) [Universal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universal/) [Universal suffrage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universal-suffrage/) [Would be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would-be/) ## Related quotes > [I'm optimistic Hong Kong will achieve universal suffrage - no matter the attitude of Beijing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-wong/i-m-optimistic-hong-kong-will-achieve-universal-suffrage-no-matter/) [Joshua Wong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-wong/) > [It's been a long time since universal suffrage, and I'm sick of the old white men running the show.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/it-s-been-a-long-time-since-universal-suffrage-and-i-m-sick-of-the/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [“Parvus denied that universal suffrage was an end to itself since the middle class would always find ways to manipulate the electoral system. Freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-service/parvus-denied-that-universal-suffrage-was-an-end-to-itself-since-the/) [Robert Service](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-service/) > [I firmly believe that the wider community supports achieving the goal of universal suffrage for 2017 according to law. I also believe most political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-lam/i-firmly-believe-that-the-wider-community-supports-achieving-the-goal/) [Carrie Lam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-lam/) > [All governments use force and all assert that they are founded on reason. In fact, whether universal suffrage prevails or not, it is always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vilfredo-pareto/all-governments-use-force-and-all-assert-that-they-are-founded-on/) [Vilfredo Pareto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vilfredo-pareto/) > [We Chinese are instinctively democratic, and Dr. Sun's objective of universal suffrage evokes from all Chinese a ready and unhesitating response.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chiang-kai-shek/we-chinese-are-instinctively-democratic-and-dr-sun-s-objective-of/) [Chiang Kai-shek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chiang-kai-shek/) > [ I need \[Beijing's\] trust in order to develop universal suffrage. The more suspicions being expressed, the more difficulty we'll have in moving towards the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-tsang/i-need-beijing-s-trust-in-order-to-develop-universal-suffrage-the/) [Donald Tsang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-tsang/) > [The alleged menace of universal suffrage having been avoided by the absolute suppression of the negro vote, the spirit of mob murder should have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ida-b-wells/the-alleged-menace-of-universal-suffrage-having-been-avoided-by-the/) [Ida B. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ida-b-wells/) > [“Universal suffrage in the end does not recognize any of the individual’s rights except the “right” to be alternately oppressor or oppressed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/universal-suffrage-in-the-end-does-not-recognize-any-of-the/) [Nicolás Gómez Dávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [When Britain signed up to the European Convention and its later protocols, the words 'universal suffrage' were deleted from the 'right to vote' article.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-raab/when-britain-signed-up-to-the-european-convention-and-its-later/) [Dominic Raab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-raab/) > [Everyone says Francois Mitterrand had huge charisma. But before he was president they used to call him badly dressed, old, archaic and say he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-hollande/everyone-says-francois-mitterrand-had-huge-charisma-but-before-he-was/) [Francois Hollande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-hollande/) > [Does man's freedom consist in revolting against all laws? We say no, in so far as laws are natural, economic, and social laws, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bakunin/does-man-s-freedom-consist-in-revolting-against-all-laws-we-say-no-in/) [Mikhail Bakunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bakunin/) > [Hong Kongers deserve universal suffrage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-wong/hong-kongers-deserve-universal-suffrage/) [Joshua Wong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-wong/) > [Above all things the mass-mind is most bitterly resentful of superiority. It will not tolerate the thought of an elite; and under a political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-j-nock/above-all-things-the-mass-mind-is-most-bitterly-resentful-of/) [Albert J. Nock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-j-nock/) > [In fact, the gravest obstacle to the restoration of civilization in North America is universal suffrage. Letting everybody vote makes no sense. Obviously they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-reed/in-fact-the-gravest-obstacle-to-the-restoration-of-civilization-in/) [Fred Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-reed/) ## More by George Bernard Shaw > [I love little children too but I don't cut off their heads and stick them in vases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-love-little-children-too-but-i-don-t-cut-off-their-heads-and-stick/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Blasphemy and sedition (meaning the truth about Church and State).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/blasphemy-and-sedition-meaning-the-truth-about-church-and-state/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of life, man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-life-man-invents-nothing-but-in-the-arts-of-death-he/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“My religious convictions and scientific views cannot at present be more specifically defined than as those of a believer in creative evolution. I desire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/my-religious-convictions-and-scientific-views-cannot-at-present-be/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [What a man believes may be ascertained, not from his creed, but from the assumptions on which he habitually acts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/what-a-man-believes-may-be-ascertained-not-from-his-creed-but-from/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You are my inspiration and my folly. You are my light across the sea, my million nameless joys, and my day's wage. You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-are-my-inspiration-and-my-folly-you-are-my-light-across-the-sea/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Men have to do some awfully mean things to keep up their respectability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/men-have-to-do-some-awfully-mean-things-to-keep-up-their/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The schoolmaster is the person who takes the children off the parents' hands for a consideration. That is to say, he establishes a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-schoolmaster-is-the-person-who-takes-the-children-off-the-parents/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [As long as I have a want, I have a reason for living. Satisfaction is death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/as-long-as-i-have-a-want-i-have-a-reason-for-living-satisfaction-is/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The camera can represent flesh so superbly that, if I dared, I would never photograph a figure without asking that figure to take its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-camera-can-represent-flesh-so-superbly-that-if-i-dared-i-would/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. Any man who is still communist at the age…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-man-who-is-not-a-communist-at-the-age-of-twenty-is-a-fool-any-man/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [But to admire a strong person and to live under that strong person’s thumb are two different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/but-to-admire-a-strong-person-and-to-live-under-that-strong-person-s/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Socialism is the same as Communism, only better English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/socialism-is-the-same-as-communism-only-better-english/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The person who is ignorant enough to believe that his nourishment depends on meat is in a horrible dilemma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-person-who-is-ignorant-enough-to-believe-that-his-nourishment/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of peace Man is a bungler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-peace-man-is-a-bungler/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) [Explore all 1,640 George Bernard Shaw quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## More Feet quotes > [The minute you step onstage, you get eight feet taller.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-cooper/the-minute-you-step-onstage-you-get-eight-feet-taller/) [Alice Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-cooper/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [I always step on the plane with my right foot and touch the outside of the plane with my left hand. Sometimes you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-davis/i-always-step-on-the-plane-with-my-right-foot-and-touch-the-outside/) [Hope Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-davis/) > [The evening's the best part of the day. You've done your day's work. Now you can put your feet up and enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/the-evening-s-the-best-part-of-the-day-you-ve-done-your-day-s-work/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [We can't love a place or a person if we always have one foot out the door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/we-can-t-love-a-place-or-a-person-if-we-always-have-one-foot-out-the/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [When I was 3, my parents strapped on a pair of Playskool plastic roller skates to my feet, and that's where the story begins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-celski/when-i-was-3-my-parents-strapped-on-a-pair-of-playskool-plastic/) [J. R. Celski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-celski/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [We never think that our mothers will die. It was like suddenly an abyss opened at my feet - I was standing on nothing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/we-never-think-that-our-mothers-will-die-it-was-like-suddenly-an/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [“Always wash you feet last.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/always-wash-you-feet-last/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My husband really loves my feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayesha-curry/my-husband-really-loves-my-feet/) [Ayesha Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayesha-curry/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? 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