--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We are not like that. We know that no one…" description: "\"“We are not like that. We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means, it is an end. One does not e..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a2/george-orwell-57_dictatorship_we-are-not-like-that-we-know-that-no-one_2857347.jpg" --- # We are not like that. We know that no one ever seizes… ![“We are not like that. We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means, it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of…” quote by George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a2/george-orwell-57_dictatorship_we-are-not-like-that-we-know-that-no-one_2857347.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a2/george-orwell-57_dictatorship_we-are-not-like-that-we-know-that-no-one_2857347.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a2/george-orwell-57_dictatorship_we-are-not-like-that-we-know-that-no-one_2857347.jpg) > ““We are not like that. We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means, it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of persecution is persecution. The object of terrorism is terrorism. The object of oppression is oppression. The object of torture is torture. The object of murder is murder. The object of power is power. Now do you begin to understand me?”” [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Power seeks to perpetuate itself; all forms of oppression are self‑justifying ends, not means. **In simple terms:** Power is an end, not a means. Key Takeaway Question authority. Themes politics power ethics Mood cautionary serious Type political philosophical When to use this quote - activism - policy analysis - education Key Concepts critical theory philosophy Questions to Reflect On - Why do revolutions become dictatorships? - How can societies prevent power abuse? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dictatorship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictatorship/) [Power Is Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power-is-power/) ## Related quotes > [The object of terrorism is terrorism. The object of oppression is oppression. The object of torture is torture. The object of murder is murder.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-object-of-terrorism-is-terrorism-the-object-of-oppression-is/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/one-does-not-establish-a-dictatorship-in-order-to-safeguard-a-2/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Power is not a means; it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/power-is-not-a-means-it-is-an-end-one-does-not-establish-a-2/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Now I will tell you the answer to my question. It is this. The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/now-i-will-tell-you-the-answer-to-my-question-it-is-this-the-party/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [The poorest being that crawls on earth, contending to save itself from injustice and oppression, is an object respectable in the eyes of God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/the-poorest-being-that-crawls-on-earth-contending-to-save-itself-from/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [The object of power is power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-object-of-power-is-power/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Information is not power. Power is power. But what turns information into power is action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rinku-sen/information-is-not-power-power-is-power-but-what-turns-information/) [Rinku Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rinku-sen/) > [In Mexico, the perception of power is power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-dresser/in-mexico-the-perception-of-power-is-power/) [Denise Dresser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-dresser/) > [What is the cause of historical events? Power. What is power? Power is the sum total of wills transferred to one person. On what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/what-is-the-cause-of-historical-events-power-what-is-power-power-is/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [The reputation of power IS power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/the-reputation-of-power-is-power/) [Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/) > [On first blush this looks to be about money, but it is about power. Is power going to go to the information monopolies, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-s-raymond/on-first-blush-this-looks-to-be-about-money-but-it-is-about-power-is/) [Eric S. Raymond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-s-raymond/) > [Most power is power to coerce somebody. We don't have the power to coerce anybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-koch/most-power-is-power-to-coerce-somebody-we-don-t-have-the-power-to/) [Charles Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-koch/) > [When all comes to all, the most precious element in life is wonder. Love is a great emotion, and power is power. But both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence/when-all-comes-to-all-the-most-precious-element-in-life-is-wonder/) [D. H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence/) > [The power is neutral. It cannot be divided into positive and negative energies. Power is power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-cunningham/the-power-is-neutral-it-cannot-be-divided-into-positive-and-negative/) [Scott Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-cunningham/) > [“It was written all in O, or nearly so, and all the O's are gone," said Andrea. "When coat is cat, and boat is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-thurber/it-was-written-all-in-o-or-nearly-so-and-all-the-o-s-are-gone-said/) [James Thurber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-thurber/) ## More by George Orwell > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [It was given out that the animals there practised cannibalism, tortured one another with red-hot horseshoes, and had their females in common. This was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/it-was-given-out-that-the-animals-there-practised-cannibalism/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“The actual writing would be easy. All he had to do was to transfer to paper the interminable restless monologue that had been running…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-actual-writing-would-be-easy-all-he-had-to-do-was-to-transfer-to/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [He felt as though he were wandering in the forests of the sea bottom, lost in a monstrous world where he himself was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/he-felt-as-though-he-were-wandering-in-the-forests-of-the-sea-bottom/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“if you took 1 Corinthians, chapter thirteen, and in every verse wrote 'money' instead of 'charity', the chapter had ten times as much meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/if-you-took-1-corinthians-chapter-thirteen-and-in-every-verse-wrote/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Happiness can exist only in acceptance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/happiness-can-exist-only-in-acceptance/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-if-all-others-accepted-the-lie-which-the-party-imposed-if-all/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Whitman himself "accepted" a great deal that his contemporaries found unmentionable. For he is not only writing of the prairie, he also wanders through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/whitman-himself-accepted-a-great-deal-that-his-contemporaries-found/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“But I tell you, Winston, that reality is not external. Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else. Whatever the Party holds to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/but-i-tell-you-winston-that-reality-is-not-external-reality-exists-in/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“And the people under the sky were also very much the same...everywhere, all over the world, hundreds or thousands of millions of people just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-the-people-under-the-sky-were-also-very-much-the-same-everywhere/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/don-t-you-see-that-the-whole-aim-of-newspeak-is-to-narrow-the-range/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Windmill or no windmill, he said, life would go on as it had always gone on--that is, badly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/windmill-or-no-windmill-he-said-life-would-go-on-as-it-had-always/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/man-is-the-only-creature-that-consumes-without-producing-he-does-not/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [And the bigger the fall, the bigger the joke. It would be better fun to throw a custard pie at a bishop than at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-the-bigger-the-fall-the-bigger-the-joke-it-would-be-better-fun-to/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“Any writer or journalist who wants to retain his integrity finds himself thwarted by the general drift of society rather than by active persecution.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/any-writer-or-journalist-who-wants-to-retain-his-integrity-finds/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) [Explore all 1,657 George Orwell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) ## More Dictatorship quotes > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [Dictatorship is rule based directly upon force and unrestricted by any laws. The revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat is rule won and maintained by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/dictatorship-is-rule-based-directly-upon-force-and-unrestricted-by/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [I was born in Cuba. At the age of 14 years of age I was involved in a revolution. We were suffering from a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/i-was-born-in-cuba-at-the-age-of-14-years-of-age-i-was-involved-in-a/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [The situation with Tibet has to change. China is one of the last huge dictatorships, holding on to these colonies, provinces. That has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-yauch/the-situation-with-tibet-has-to-change-china-is-one-of-the-last-huge/) [Adam Yauch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-yauch/) > [Motherland is our property and we have right to handle our properties as pleased. The jokes about death for the sake of the motherland…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/motherland-is-our-property-and-we-have-right-to-handle-our-properties/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [Your best friends are your principles, if you havent them, dont look for another friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/your-best-friends-are-your-principles-if-you-havent-them-dont-look/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [“. Despite the considerable horror they had felt when the SA men were bellowing crude anti-Semitic slogans, in retrospect the joke-tellers were very much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolph-herzog/despite-the-considerable-horror-they-had-felt-when-the-sa-men-were/) [Rudolph Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolph-herzog/) > [A strong saying is not afraid of criticism, because it includes all the answers to criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/a-strong-saying-is-not-afraid-of-criticism-because-it-includes-all/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [The dictatorship of the proletariat and the leadership of the Marxist-Leninist party are indispensable conditions for the triumph of the Socialist revolution and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-khrushchev/the-dictatorship-of-the-proletariat-and-the-leadership-of-the-marxist/) [Nikita Khrushchev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-khrushchev/) > [I never thought about becoming a politician. But during the military dictatorship, my grandfather was put in prison six times and my father twice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-papandreou/i-never-thought-about-becoming-a-politician-but-during-the-military/) [George Papandreou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-papandreou/) > [ “\[...\] dictatorship, the most extreme form of tyranny, can never lead to social liberation.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/dictatorship-the-most-extreme-form-of-tyranny-can-never-lead-to/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I'm not a prophet, but I always thought it was natural for dictatorships to fall. I remember in 1989, two months before the fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-m-not-a-prophet-but-i-always-thought-it-was-natural-for/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [In many ways, the media today makes dictatorship impossible. But it also makes democracy intolerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/in-many-ways-the-media-today-makes-dictatorship-impossible-but-it/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [“Your law always does more harm than crime, and your morality is a form of violence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bond/your-law-always-does-more-harm-than-crime-and-your-morality-is-a-form/) [Edward Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bond/) > [Something that comes to us, some gym shoe that comes to us as a result of child labor from a brutal dictatorship, where people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/something-that-comes-to-us-some-gym-shoe-that-comes-to-us-as-a-result/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) [Browse all 793 Dictatorship quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictatorship/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We are not like that. We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means, it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of persecution is persecution. The object of terrorism is terrorism. The object of oppression is oppression. The object of torture is torture. The object of murder is murder. The object of power is power. 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