--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The essence of its failure was that it…" description: "\"“The essence of its failure was that it could not sustain unity. In its early stages its citizens, both patrician and plebeian, had a certain tradition..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82e/h-g-wells-2-1299_failure_the-essence-of-its-failure-was-that-it-c_2766563.jpg" --- # The essence of its failure was that it could not sustain… ![“The essence of its failure was that it could not sustain unity. In its early stages its citizens, both patrician and plebeian, had a certain tradition of justice and good faith, and of the loyalty of all citizens to the law, and of the goodness of the law for all citizens; it clung to this idea of…” quote by H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82e/h-g-wells-2-1299_failure_the-essence-of-its-failure-was-that-it-c_2766563.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82e/h-g-wells-2-1299_failure_the-essence-of-its-failure-was-that-it-c_2766563.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82e/h-g-wells-2-1299_failure_the-essence-of-its-failure-was-that-it-c_2766563.jpg) > ““The essence of its failure was that it could not sustain unity. In its early stages its citizens, both patrician and plebeian, had a certain tradition of justice and good faith, and of the loyalty of all citizens to the law, and of the goodness of the law for all citizens; it clung to this idea of the importance of the law and of law-abidingness nearly into the first century B.C. But the unforeseen invention and development of money, the temptations and disruptions of imperial expansion, the entanglement of electoral methods, weakened and swamped this tradition by presenting old issues in new disguises under which the judgment did not recognize them, and by enabling men to be loyal to the professions of citizenship and disloyal to its spirit.”” [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Money, empire, and politics eroded Rome’s civic unity and law’s moral force. **In simple terms:** Money and power corrupted civic unity. Key Takeaway Guard civic values. Themes politics economics history Mood analytical critical Type historical philosophical When to use this quote - public policy - financial regulation - education curricula Key Concepts civic republicanism institutional decay Questions to Reflect On - How can modern societies protect civic virtue? - What role does money play today? 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Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [Never fight on the wrong side; you might win but the burden of guilt is more than a loss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lilian-salan/never-fight-on-the-wrong-side-you-might-win-but-the-burden-of-guilt/) [Lilian Salan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lilian-salan/) ## More by H.G. Wells > [“I was grotesque to the theatrical pitch, a stage miser, but I was certainly not a physical impossibility”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/i-was-grotesque-to-the-theatrical-pitch-a-stage-miser-but-i-was/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“Eight-and-twenty years,' said I, 'I have lived, and never a ghost have I seen as yet.' The old woman sat staring hard into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/eight-and-twenty-years-said-i-i-have-lived-and-never-a-ghost-have-i/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“That is the germ of my great discovery. But you are wrong to say that we cannot move about in Time. For instance, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/that-is-the-germ-of-my-great-discovery-but-you-are-wrong-to-say-that/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“What was needed now was not bravery, but circumspection.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/what-was-needed-now-was-not-bravery-but-circumspection/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [ “The thing \[Henry James'\] novel is about is always there. It is like a church lit but without a congregation to distract you, with… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/the-thing-henry-james-novel-is-about-is-always-there-it-is-like-a/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“Don't follow you,' said Filby.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/don-t-follow-you-said-filby/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“We must remember what ruthless and utter destruction our own species has wrought, not only upon animals, such as vanished bison and the dodo,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/we-must-remember-what-ruthless-and-utter-destruction-our-own-species/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“I grieved to think how brief the dream of the human intellect had been. It had committed suicide. It had set itself steadfastly towards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/i-grieved-to-think-how-brief-the-dream-of-the-human-intellect-had/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“Because this island is full of inimical phenomena.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/because-this-island-is-full-of-inimical-phenomena/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“What right have they to hope? They work ill and they want the reward of those who work well. The hope of mankind -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/what-right-have-they-to-hope-they-work-ill-and-they-want-the-reward/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“So long as you are alive you are just the moment, perhaps, but when you are dead then you are all your life from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/so-long-as-you-are-alive-you-are-just-the-moment-perhaps-but-when-you/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“An unpleasant odour would not be objected to, it is not objected to now in many continental hotels.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/an-unpleasant-odour-would-not-be-objected-to-it-is-not-objected-to/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“In the early evening time Dr. Kemp was sitting in his study in the belvedere on the hill overlooking Burdock. It was a pleasant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/in-the-early-evening-time-dr-kemp-was-sitting-in-his-study-in-the/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“The whole world will be intelligent, educated, and co-operating; things will move faster and faster towards the subjugation of Nature. In the end, wisely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/the-whole-world-will-be-intelligent-educated-and-co-operating-things/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [“For three centuries the life of the Hebrews was like the life of a man who insists upon living in the middle of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/for-three-centuries-the-life-of-the-hebrews-was-like-the-life-of-a/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) [Explore all 246 H.G. Wells quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) ## More Failure quotes > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [Failures happen. You can't cry over them. You just take it in your stride because you know that you have done your best... Sometimes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-dutta/failures-happen-you-can-t-cry-over-them-you-just-take-it-in-your/) [Divya Dutta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-dutta/) > [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [“Rhiannon's Law #28: If you're going to fuck up, be sure to fuck up good and proper. Nothing makes failure acceptable, so you might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/rhiannon-s-law-28-if-you-re-going-to-fuck-up-be-sure-to-fuck-up-good/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Failure is a part of life and you have to learn to deal with it. Failure is something that is part of life's cycle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/failure-is-a-part-of-life-and-you-have-to-learn-to-deal-with-it/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [First action was a mistake. What about the second? third? fourth and fifth?...Mehn you are bad...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/first-action-was-a-mistake-what-about-the-second-third-fourth-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God's love never fail :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-love-never-fail/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don’t you just hate nights like that, when you think over every mistake you’ve made, every hurt you’ve received, every bit of meanness you’ve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/don-t-you-just-hate-nights-like-that-when-you-think-over-every/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [“Our failure to understand another being's inner reality doesn't make that reality any less real, or any less valuable to that being. (p.255)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/our-failure-to-understand-another-being-s-inner-reality-doesn-t-make/) [Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/) > [I hope that the Palestinians don't make the mistake of unleashing a new intifada. They've tried it twice before, and the consequences were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-segev/i-hope-that-the-palestinians-don-t-make-the-mistake-of-unleashing-a/) [Tom Segev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-segev/) > [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [As we are coming to the end of the year, I want you to forget about the past, the failure, the negative thoughts or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-we-are-coming-to-the-end-of-the-year-i-want-you-to-forget-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 27,498 Failure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The essence of its failure was that it could not sustain unity. 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