---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We will grind you revolutionists down…"
description: "\"“We will grind you revolutionists down under our heel, and we shall walk upon your faces. The world is ours, we are its lords, and ours it shall remain..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e6/jack-london-595_history_we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-un_2371695.jpg"
---

#  We will grind you revolutionists down under our heel, and…

![“We will grind you revolutionists down under our heel, and we shall walk upon your faces. The world is ours, we are its lords, and ours it shall remain. As for the host of labor, it has been in the dirt since history began, and I read history aright. And in the dirt it shall remain so long as I and…” quote by Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e6/jack-london-595_history_we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-un_2371695.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e6/jack-london-595_history_we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-un_2371695.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e6/jack-london-595_history_we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-un_2371695.jpg)

> ““We will grind you revolutionists down under our heel, and we shall walk upon your faces. The world is ours, we are its lords, and ours it shall remain. As for the host of labor, it has been in the dirt since history began, and I read history aright. And in the dirt it shall remain so long as I and mine and those that come after us have the power. There is the word. It is the king of words—Power. Not God, not Mammon, but Power. Pour it over your tongue till it tingles with it. Power.””

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A proclamation of dominance and power, equating power with the ultimate authority over others.

**In simple terms:** Power is supreme.

Key Takeaway

Recognize the drive for power.

Themes

power domination authority

Mood

cautionary philosophical

Type

literary political

When to use this quote

- political movements
- corporate control
- personal ambition

Key Concepts

political theory social hierarchy

Questions to Reflect On

- How does power affect moral responsibility?
- Can power be used for collective good?

A Different Perspective

Power without moral restraint can lead to oppression.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Dirt Shall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dirt-shall-4310021/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [King Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/king-words-4310020/) [Labor Dirt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/labor-dirt-4310022/) [Lords Shall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lords-shall-1543589/) [Words Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words-power/)

## Related quotes

> [“When you reach out your vaunted strong hands for our palaces and purpled ease, we will show you what strength is. In roar of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/when-you-reach-out-your-vaunted-strong-hands-for-our-palaces-and/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [“My good friends, things cannot go on well in England, nor ever will until everything shall be in common, when there shall be neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ball/my-good-friends-things-cannot-go-on-well-in-england-nor-ever-will/)

[John Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ball/)

> [There's a power in words. There's a power in being able to explain and describe and articulate what you know and feel and believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-chapman/there-s-a-power-in-words-there-s-a-power-in-being-able-to-explain-and/)

[Tracy Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-chapman/)

> [“Words! What power they hold. Once they have rooted in your psyche, it is difficult to escape them. Words can shape the future of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vashti-quiroz-vega/words-what-power-they-hold-once-they-have-rooted-in-your-psyche-it-is/)

[Vashti Quiroz-Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vashti-quiroz-vega/)

> [“Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality.” ― Edgar Allan Poe”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-reid/words-have-no-power-to-impress-the-mind-without-the-exquisite-horror/)

[Penny Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-reid/)

> [“People have the power we give them. Words have the power we give them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whoopi-goldberg/people-have-the-power-we-give-them-words-have-the-power-we-give-them/)

[Whoopi Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whoopi-goldberg/)

> [Words to me were magic. You could say a word and it could conjure up all kinds of images or feelings or a chilly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-tan/words-to-me-were-magic-you-could-say-a-word-and-it-could-conjure-up/)

[Amy Tan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-tan/)

> [ \[...\] "I recall what you said to me once," Will went on. "That words have the power to change us. Your words have changed… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/i-recall-what-you-said-to-me-once-will-went-on-that-words-have-the/)

[Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/)

> [“I've always told people that for each person there is a sentence--a series of words--which has the power to destroy him." Philip K. Dick,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-lombardo/i-ve-always-told-people-that-for-each-person-there-is-a-sentence-a/)

[Dean Lombardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-lombardo/)

> [“After years of not speaking, I understood the importance of words. How they had the power to hurt individuals, yet they also had the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittainy-c-cherry/after-years-of-not-speaking-i-understood-the-importance-of-words-how/)

[Brittainy C. Cherry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brittainy-c-cherry/)

> [“I believe there is power in words, power in asserting our existence, our experience, our lives, through words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-believe-there-is-power-in-words-power-in-asserting-our-existence/)

[Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/)

> [“Words have power, my son. Words can cut to the heart and soothe the deepest hurts. They can be puzzles that leave another pondering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-matthynssens/words-have-power-my-son-words-can-cut-to-the-heart-and-soothe-the/)

[Cheryl Matthynssens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-matthynssens/)

> [For each person there is a sentence—a series of words—which has the power to destroy them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/for-each-person-there-is-a-sentence-a-series-of-words-which-has-the/)

[Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/)

> [“I had no idea words could have so much power and beauty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-cohen-corasanti/i-had-no-idea-words-could-have-so-much-power-and-beauty/)

[Michelle Cohen Corasanti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-cohen-corasanti/)

> [One must always be careful of books," said Tessa, "and what is inside them, for words have the power to change us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/one-must-always-be-careful-of-books-said-tessa-and-what-is-inside/)

[Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/)

## More by Jack London

> [It's better to stand by someone's side than by yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/it-s-better-to-stand-by-someone-s-side-than-by-yourself/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [“And all the while the four men lay beside me and watched and made no move. Nor did I move, and without shame I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/and-all-the-while-the-four-men-lay-beside-me-and-watched-and-made-no/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [“As the days went by, the evolution of LIKE into LOVE was accelerated. White Fang himself began to grow aware of it, though in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/as-the-days-went-by-the-evolution-of-like-into-love-was-accelerated/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [My life shall be free and broad and great, and I will not be the slave to the sense delights which chained my ancient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/my-life-shall-be-free-and-broad-and-great-and-i-will-not-be-the-slave/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [“But he knew life, its foulness as well as its fairness, its greatness in spite of the slime that infested it, and by God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/but-he-knew-life-its-foulness-as-well-as-its-fairness-its-greatness/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [more you drink more you want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/more-you-drink-more-you-want/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [Of her own experience she had no memory of the thing happening; but in her instinct, which was the experience of all mothers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/of-her-own-experience-she-had-no-memory-of-the-thing-happening-but-in/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [Socialism, when the last word is said, is merely a new economic and political system whereby more men can get food to eat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/socialism-when-the-last-word-is-said-is-merely-a-new-economic-and/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [“As I, my real self, grew older, I entered more and more into the substance of my dreams. One may dream, and even in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/as-i-my-real-self-grew-older-i-entered-more-and-more-into-the/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [A good soldier is a blind, heartless, soulless, murderous machine. He is not a man. His is not a brute, for brutes kill only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/a-good-soldier-is-a-blind-heartless-soulless-murderous-machine-he-is/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [I would rather be ashes than dust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/i-would-rather-be-ashes-than-dust/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [“I believe that when I am dead, I am dead. I believe that with my death I am just as much obliterated as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/i-believe-that-when-i-am-dead-i-am-dead-i-believe-that-with-my-death/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [“He wastes his time over his writing, trying to accomplish what geniuses and rare men with college educations sometimes accomplish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/he-wastes-his-time-over-his-writing-trying-to-accomplish-what/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [“Strength is an empty shell. One cannot violate the promptings of one’s nature without having that nature recoil upon itself. Show me a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/strength-is-an-empty-shell-one-cannot-violate-the-promptings-of-one-s/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

> [I'd rather sing one wild song and burst my heart with it, than live a thousand years watching my digestion and being afraid of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/i-d-rather-sing-one-wild-song-and-burst-my-heart-with-it-than-live-a/)

[Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

[Explore all 425 Jack London quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/)

## More History quotes

> [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/)

[Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/)

> [It is said that history turns on small hinges. A human career, too, results from an accumulating series of decisions about large and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/it-is-said-that-history-turns-on-small-hinges-a-human-career-too/)

[Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/)

> [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [The NBA is my history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-hardaway/the-nba-is-my-history/)

[Penny Hardaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-hardaway/)

> [History has often showed us the strength of the forces that are unleashed by the yearning for freedom. It moved people to overcome their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-merkel/history-has-often-showed-us-the-strength-of-the-forces-that-are/)

[Angela Merkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-merkel/)

> [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/)

[John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/)

> [What is history after all? History is facts which become lies in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/what-is-history-after-all-history-is-facts-which-become-lies-in-the/)

[Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/)

> [Things live and die, and then someone processes them into edible portions. This is a complete telling of the story, 'Food.' The basic plot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-fahrenthold/things-live-and-die-and-then-someone-processes-them-into-edible/)

[David Fahrenthold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-fahrenthold/)

> [History is a certain way, but you just change the point of view a little bit, and you discover a whole new side of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-schroeder/history-is-a-certain-way-but-you-just-change-the-point-of-view-a/)

[Allison Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-schroeder/)

> [We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-re-at-a-point-in-history-were-we-have-to-become-a-part-of-the/)

[Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/)

> [Today is a reality, tomorrow's a promise, and yesterday's history!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-blanks/today-is-a-reality-tomorrow-s-a-promise-and-yesterday-s-history/)

[Billy Blanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-blanks/)

> [Truth be told from compulsive liars with a history/Everything must change 2nd chances are a mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-dash/truth-be-told-from-compulsive-liars-with-a-history-everything-must/)

[C-DASH](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-dash/)

> [Every army in the history of the world has always had some deserters, usually much greater than we have today, because once again every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hilferty/every-army-in-the-history-of-the-world-has-always-had-some-deserters/)

[Bryan Hilferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-hilferty/)

> [“To those great geniuses now in petticoats, who shall write novels for the beloved reader's children, these men and things will be as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/to-those-great-geniuses-now-in-petticoats-who-shall-write-novels-for/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

[Browse all 27,263 History quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“We will grind you revolutionists down under our heel, and we shall walk upon your faces. The world is ours, we are its lords, and ours it shall remain. As for the host of labor, it has been in the dirt since history began, and I read history aright. And in the dirt it shall remain so long as I and mine and those that come after us have the power. There is the word. It is the king of words—Power. Not God, not Mammon, but Power. Pour it over your tongue till it tingles with it. Power.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Jack London"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-under-our-heel-and-we-shall/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "History"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-under-our-heel-and-we-shall/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e6/jack-london-595_history_we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-un_2371695.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e6/jack-london-595_history_we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-un_2371695.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e6/jack-london-595_history_we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-un_2371695.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We will grind you revolutionists down under our heel, and we shall walk upon your faces. The world is ours…” — Jack London",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Jack London",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“We will grind you revolutionists down...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-under-our-heel-and-we-shall/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/we-will-grind-you-revolutionists-down-under-our-heel-and-we-shall/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
